Zelda Was Selling Like Nothing Before Breath of the Wild

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake has become the fastest-selling Nintendo Switch 2 game so far. Former Nintendo of America marketing executives Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang discussed the series on their podcast. Reported by Eurogamer, The Gamer and WCCFtech Gaming.

Speaking on their podcast, Ellis said "There has been some revisionist history out there lately." He was responding to fans who reckon "the Zelda team ripped away" series staples, like classic dungeons and linear worlds, at the height of their popularity.

Ellis recalled going to focus groups during what he called "a really dark moment." He said the feedback was "The fan base is dwindling. This is not bringing in new players." He also said "interest in the audience was getting smaller and smaller" with each new entry. "They had to do something dramatic," Ellis said.

Yang said the series was "selling, like, nothing" before the launch of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Twilight Princess sold roughly 8 million copies at the beginning of the Wii generation. Skyward Sword sold roughly 3 million copies at the end of the console's life. Breath of the Wild sold 34 million copies one console generation later.