‘The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’ Release Date Announced

Bob Mackey
Games Nintendo
Games Nintendo

After seemingly endless delays, the next entry in Nintendo’s beloved The Legend of Zelda series, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, will launch alongside the Nintendo Switch on March 3, 2017. Originally destined for the Wii U alone, this latest sequel marks the first console game in the series since The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, which launched for the Nintendo Wii in fall of 2011.

Breath of the Wild amounts to a fairly big departure for the Legend of Zelda series. While most Zelda installments guide you down a fairly linear path—with some intriguing branches along the way—Breath of the Wild opts for more of a go anywhere, do anything open-world model. The Legend of Zelda’s 1986 debut took this same approach by giving the players a sword and letting them figure out the rest of the game as they saw fit, providing an experience focused on the joys of exploration. With any luck, Breath of the Wild will capture the same magic that made The Legend of Zelda such a hit right out of the gates.

Of course, if you don’t plan on buying a Nintendo Switch, you may be wondering about the fate of Breath of the Wild on its original platform, the Wii U. This version of the game will be releasing the same day as the Nintendo Switch Breath of the Wild, so if you can’t make up your mind on Nintendo’s new hardware before then, you won’t be missing out on anything. Regardless of your platform choice, though, 2017 is a huge year for The Legend of Zelda—and Nintendo as well. Be sure to check back with Fandom for more coverage of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and a full review when it launches this March.

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Bob Mackey
Bob Mackey is Games Editor at Fandom. Since joining the games press in 2007, he's written for sites like 1UP, Joystiq, The A.V. Club, Gamasutra, USgamer, and many others. He also hosts the weekly podcasts Retronauts and Talking Simpsons. Follow him on Twitter @bobservo.