The Hyrule Warriors spin-off game has always been an interesting proposition for Zelda fans, one that was met with largely positive reception. Like the other Dynasty Warriors games, the first game was a simple beat ’em up that also felt like a greatest hits condensation of The Legend of Zelda franchise into a Musou framework. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity is doing something drastically different this time around, instead following in Breath of the Wild‘s footsteps with a canon spin-off in the storied Zelda franchise. Age of Calamity aims to answer many of the questions about what happened 100 years before Breath of the Wild, and also apparently ask some new questions as well.
One of the most recent trailers for Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity showcased a whole bunch of new features coming to the game this November, but also hinted at a mysterious new villain in the game. Alongside the Moblins and the Yiga Clan challenging Hyrule, there seems to be another hooded Gerudo-looking figure working behind the scenes. The trailer never makes it abundantly clear who this figure is, as their clothing and appearance is just vague enough that it’s hard to tell what part of Zelda‘s universe they’re from. It’s clear they’re some kind of important villain for Age of Calamity, perhaps an envoy to Ganon, or something far more sinister.
Much like some of the new Yiga Clan assassins and the younger Impa, it seems Age of Calamity is introducing a new original character. Except this time, it’s a completely new character to the Zelda canon, not a character who was present in Breath of the Wild‘s story at all. Koei Tecmo introduced original characters in the first Hyrule Warriors game, but due to the nature of the game’s story, they were by no means officially considered “canon” to the original Legend of Zelda games they drew from. However, it was officially confirmed by series producer Eiji Aonuma that Age of Calamity is a canon prequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
There’s a very real possibility that this mysterious figure is an entirely original character designed for the Age of Calamity storyline, unrelated to any previous Zelda games or characters. Obviously that’s a huge deal, especially for a canon spin-off in the Zelda universe, but it’s not unrealistic considering the previous Hyrule Warriors also had completely new characters. With this game being an official spin-off, it’s clear Koei Tecmo worked very closely with consulting Nintendo producers like Aonuma when designing the character, as this mysterious figure fits in well with the Breath of the Wild world. The original characters in the first Hyrule Warriors didn’t exactly fit well into the official Zelda universe in any capacity, but this new character design could be more on par with official Zelda/Breath of the Wild characters.
Alternatively, this mysterious hooded figure in Age of Calamity could be shrouded for the express purpose of hiding their character reveal. If that’s the case, then it’s very possible this villain could be an existing character in the Zelda canon. Theories vary as to where Breath of the Wild lands on the overarching Zelda timeline, so that makes this particular option a bit nebulous compared to just being a wholly original character for Age of Calamity. Since The Legend of Zelda‘s overarching timeline diverges between games, and Breath of the Wild is an ambiguous endpoint, it’s hard to tell which existing character it could be. Some believe Breath of the Wild follows the same timeline where Twilight Princess takes place, others believe it takes place in the timeline where Wind Waker takes place.
So if this villain is indeed an existing character in the Zelda timeline, there’s two major paths and six canon Zelda titles where a villain could be sourced from. Vaati could certainly be a viable option if the hooded figure in Age of Calamity‘s trailer truly is some kind of mage. Vaati, the main villain from Four Swords and The Minish Cap, is a mage and was the main antagonist of those games, and his character aesthetic (cape/shroud with a jeweled headdress) matches up with the character in the trailer. There’s also the very small possibility that this character is indeed Ganon/Ganondorf in a humanoid form. There’s not really much evidence to back this up other than the character looks vaguely like a Gerudo character, but there is the faintest possibility.
Other than determining who the character’s potential identity could be, it’s clear they have to be related to Calamity Ganon in some way. Whether that makes this new character an envoy to Ganon, or potentially even Ganon himself, it’s impossible to say at the moment. However, the “calamity” that occurs 100 years before the events of Breath of the Wild culminates in the summoning of Ganon and his onslaught on the Hyrule Kingdom. That leaves two options: this character has to be some kind of character pivotal to the true summoning of Ganon (someone like a mage), or perhaps this person becomes Calamity Ganon themselves, either through some kind of transmogrification or shapeshifting process.
Speculating from the character’s appearance in the trailer alone, the possibility of this new character being Vaati does seem like a likely outcome. They do appear to be some kind of mage/summoner, with a mysterious magical device imbued with the dark “malice” seen in Breath of the Wild. As mentioned previously, their aesthetic design does resemble a sort-of modernized Breath of the Wild iteration of the humanoid Vaati from The Minish Cap. Comparing Vaati’s official character artwork alongside the character in the trailer does show some uncanny similarities. Fans will likely learn soon enough when the game launches, but it is interesting to see a potentially new character enter as an official addition to The Legend of Zelda canon and Breath of the Wild universe.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity releases on November 20, 2020, for Nintendo Switch.
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