Skip to main content

Report: 'Zelda: Breath of the Wild' delayed, won't make Nintendo Switch launch

Nintendo’s Switch console is scheduled to release next March, but it appears that the system’s biggest launch title may no longer be able to release simultaneously.

Nintendo insider Emily Rogers, who had previously revealed that the Nintendo Switch was set to be fully unveiled in March and would feature 4GB of RAM (the jury is still out on the latter detail), reported that the localization for Breath of the Wild is well behind schedule.

Recommended Videos

Several sources have told Rogers that the localization for the game could take until December to complete, and would then require roughly four to six months of testing before the game would be ready to ship.

This would seem to put Breath of the Wild‘s actual launch date as somewhere between April and June 2017. The extra time, however, could make for a more polished final product — Rogers has also been told that the Switch version of the game is running “more smoothly” than the Wii U version we’ve seen at E3.

Rogers stressed that, even with her multiple sources, fans should take this information with “a grain of salt.” Eurogamer, though, was able to corroborate the report a short time after the original was posted.

“Eurogamer had separately been told of the same schedule, as Nintendo is committed to launching the game in as close to perfect a state as possible after so long in development,” said Eurogamer’s Tom Phillips.

Phillips added that the 3D Mario game we saw a glimpse of during the Switch announcement video will likely fill the void left by Breath of the Wild.

It’s not particularly unusual for a Zelda title to miss a Nintendo system’s launch. Wind Waker, Ocarina of Time, Link to the Past, and the original Legend of Zelda all released well after their respective systems were made available. The sole exception is Twilight Princess, but that game was delayed from an original sole GameCube release in order to move it to the Wii, as well.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will be available for both Nintendo Switch and Wii U.

Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
The Nintendo Switch 2’s launch game lineup is more exciting than you think
Donkey Kong punching through a crystallized banana in Donkey Kong Bananza.

The Nintendo Switch 2 was fully unveiled April 2, giving us slew of console details and new game announcements. One of the biggest surprises is that it'll get a brand new 3D Donkey Kong game as one of its first big games. Though rumors of the game's existence had been floating around for years, its confirmation -- especially over that of a heavily predicted Mario game -- has made for a strange and incredibly welcome change of pace.

If it wasn't already clear, I think this switch up rules.

Read more
I need these 10 GameCube games on Nintendo Switch 2 as soon as possible
A Nintendo GameCube sits on a table with Luigi's Mansion.

There are tons of exciting features coming to Nintendo Switch 2, but what's the one thing I'm most excited about? Nintendo GameCube games are coming to Switch Online. I know it's the nostalgia talking, but I can't help it. The Nintendo GameCube was my first real childhood console and I have a lot of warm memories tied to it as a result. I can't wait to jump back into games like F-Zero GX and Soulcalibur 2, two defining games of my childhood, the first chance I get.

My love for the GameCube isn't just about the good memories, though. To this day, I still believe that the GameCube features perhaps the best exclusive video game lineup of any console. It's not a deep catalogue, but it featured some of Nintendo's most experimental swings as well as some oddball third-party exclusives that have rarely been ported to other platforms since. With the Switch Online upgrade, there's now a great opportunity for Nintendo to bring some of those great games back from the grave, just as it's already doing with games like Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance. These are the eight games that I hope to see add in the service's first year (assuming that recently remastered games like Metroid Prime are out of the equation).

Read more
Switch 2 launch game Deltarune is getting surprise mouse support
deltarune heroes in old portraits

Deltarune is one of the most-anticipated Nintendo Switch 2 launch games, and now its creator Toby Fox says it's getting exclusive, mouse-mode-only content. This content was hinted at in the trailer, but only briefly. If you aren't familiar with Deltarune, it's the follow-up to the cult classic Undertale. Fox assures fans that the content will also be in other versions of the game, but it will play slightly differently due to different control schemes.

"As an effort to make the most of being a launch title for the Nintendo Switch 2, I really wanted to try do something special," he writes. He says the difference in content lies in being able to use mouse controllers on both of the Joy-Cons at once. All non-Switch 2 versions of the game will have the exact same content. Before the FOMO kicks in, though, Fox goes on to say, "There is no meaningful difference in content amount, dialogue, setting, music etc between any version, so you will have a full package of fun no matter which you get! No one gets left out!"

Read more