The premise of The Legend of Zelda games has always been straight forward with Link serving as a hero that saves Hyrule. One scrapped title could’ve shaken up the franchise, and some concept art shows us what could’ve been.
The Legend of Zelda franchise spans decades of video games. There’s such huge lore inside the franchise that it would not be surprising if Nintendo digs deep to find inspiration from other characters. Thanks to one leaker, we now know what could’ve happened if Nintendo did just that.
A dark and gritty take
The scrapped title was codenamed The Shiek project, and it was supposed to be made by Retro Studios. The project was being worked on between 2005-2008. However, there’s no detail as to why the game was eventually canceled.
The canceled The Legend of Zelda video game was about the last Shiek that survives at the ending of one of Ocarina of Time’s multiple timelines. The period being referred to was when Link was defeated by Ganon by the end of the game. As such, Hyrule was left without a hero, and it eventually succumbs to the darkness.
Apparently leaked prototype art from multiple cancelled Retro Studios projects got leaked? The Sheik project looked STUNNING pic.twitter.com/3oUCwGJLx6
— VitalitySensor (@vitalitysensor) May 5, 2020
Unlike previous titles from the series, this one will be led by a Shiek. Moreover, the game showed a side of the franchise that no fan has seen before. From the dark and ominous feel of the concept art to the gritty character design, it was obvious from the looks alone that there would be a much serious tone to the title.
Sadly, it never came to fruition, but after seeing what could have been, fans can’t help but wish for the game actually to be real.
The next game for the franchise will undoubtedly be the sequel to Breath of the Wild. While it’s still a great game, fans would’ve wanted The Shiek project to be realized as well.
A Super Mario game was scrapped as well
Nintendo was also going to take a different approach with the Super Mario franchise. Among the concept art was a piece featuring Boo from the platforming franchise.
Unlike the Shiek Project, the Boo project seemed more light-hearted. The leaks suggest that the game was supposed to be released for the Nintendo DS, but it never made it out of development limbo as well.
The Legend of Zelda franchise could use some new titles, and the Shiek project is something that every fan would want. Hopefully, Nintendo revives this project for the sake of fans.
Image used courtesy of Nintendo/YouTube