The Legend of Zelda franchise has become one of Nintendo's most reliable money printers, and the Switch ecosystem proves why. What started as a single launch title in 2017 has sprawled into a catalog that spans mainline adventures, action spinoffs, rhythm-based roguelikes, and tactical warfare games. With the Switch 2 arriving and a major Ocarina of Time remake on the horizon, the series shows no signs of slowing down.
Nintendo launched Breath of the Wild alongside the original Switch in 2017, fundamentally reshaping what a Zelda game could be. The open-world structure let players traverse to any visible location, stripping away traditional progression barriers. Link awakens from a century-long slumber tasked with confronting Calamity Ganon and rescuing Princess Zelda. It became the blueprint for modern action-adventure design and moved millions of units.
The Switch quickly accumulated Zelda spinoffs that established their own identities. Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition arrived in 2018, bringing the Wii U's hack-and-slash spectacle to Nintendo's hybrid console with Breath of the Wild costumes added to the roster. That same year spawned Cadence of Hyrule, a genuinely wild collaboration between Brace Yourself Games and Nintendo that grafted roguelike rhythm gameplay onto the Zelda universe, complete with a villain named Octavo and an original soundtrack.
Link's Awakening released in 2019 as a charming remake of the 1993 Game Boy original. Developer Grezzo preserved the dungeon-crawling structure and Koholint Island mystery while giving it modern presentation and controls. For players unfamiliar with the portable classic, it remains one of the series' most distinctive experiences.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity followed in 2020, positioning itself as a prequel to Breath of the Wild and dramatizing the catastrophic war against Calamity Ganon that occurred 100 years prior. Every major Breath character became playable, from Link and Zelda to the four regional Champions.
The Skyward Sword HD remaster landed in 2021, bringing the controversial Wii original to Switch with both motion-controlled and button-only options. Set at the chronological start of the Zelda timeline, it follows Link's quest to save Zelda and ultimately reveals the origin of the Master Sword.
Tears of the Kingdom exploded onto shelves in May 2023, selling 10 million copies in three days and moving special edition hardware. Picking up years after Breath of the Wild, it sends Link searching for Zelda after Ganondorf's resurrection. The game exploits both sky and underground traversal to create one of gaming's largest maps, sustaining hundreds of hours of exploration.
Nintendo closed out the original Switch's lifecycle with Echoes of Wisdom in 2024, a full mainline entry that handed the protagonist role to Princess Zelda. Despite its 2D art style and unconventional presentation, it functions as a legitimate Zelda adventure with creative puzzle-solving mechanics.
The most recent release came in 2025 with Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, another entry in the Warriors spinoff line that Nintendo explicitly positioned as canon. The game explores the Imprisoning War and sends Zelda into Hyrule's past to confront Ganondorf alongside new allies.
Looking forward, Nintendo confirmed an Ocarina of Time remake for Switch 2 arriving sometime in 2026. Producer Shigeru Miyamoto suggested recent remakes are intended to lay groundwork for future original titles.
Beyond games, a live-action Legend of Zelda film heads to theaters on March 26, 2027, directed by Wes Ball (Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes), who has described his vision as grounded and reminiscent of live-action Miyazaki. Nintendo has already cast the leads.
In total, five mainline Zelda titles, three Hyrule Warriors games, and one standalone spinoff launched on Switch between 2017 and 2026. Every one runs on Switch 2. The Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack also grants access to Zelda deep cuts from NES, SNES, N64, Game Boy, and GameCube, letting completionists chase the entire lineage.
Author Emily Chen: "The Switch's Zelda library is basically a masterclass in how to sustain a franchise without running it into the ground, even if remakes are starting to outnumber original games."
Comments