Two former Nintendo marketing leads say The Legend of Zelda series was in “dire straits” before Breath of the Wild’s release. Across the outlets, the central claim is that the franchise’s momentum had declined prior to the game that later revitalised the series.
The reports describe a downturn in player engagement and sales leading up to Breath of the Wild, framing the situation as a dwindling playerbase. Eurogamer and Polygon present the story as a turnaround narrative, while IGN All likewise relays the same assessment attributed to the former marketing leads, using similar wording about the period before Breath of the Wild.
