Former Nintendo Staff Say Zelda Was Failing Before Breath of the Wild

Two ex-Nintendo marketing executives have revealed that The Legend of Zelda franchise was struggling badly before its 2017 reinvention, per IGN. Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang, who both held senior roles at the company, discussed the series' low point on their podcast.

They pushed back against fan sentiment that Nintendo abandoned a successful classic formula. According to the pair, the opposite was true. Sales were poor and the audience was shrinking with each new release.

Ellis described attending focus groups where feedback showed a dwindling fanbase that wasn't attracting new players. Yang called it a "dark moment" and said the series was "selling nothing," as reported by Polygon.

The last major traditional Zelda game before the shift was 2011's Skyward Sword. Its sales were reportedly a significant drop from its predecessor. The open-world Breath of the Wild then became the franchise's best-selling entry.

The recent smash-hit remake of Ocarina of Time has reignited debate about which style fans prefer. The former staffers' comments provide context for why Nintendo made such a dramatic change when it did.