Hyrule Warriors is a 2014 hack and slash game developed by Omega Force and Team Ninja and published by Nintendo for the Wii U. The game mixes settings and characters from Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda franchise with the gameplay of Koei Tecmo's Dynasty Warriors series, and features an original story following numerous Zelda characters as they team up to stop the resurrection of Ganondorf.
The game was announced in a 2013 Nintendo Direct presentation. Koei Tecmo's studios developed it with supervision from Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma, who hoped that it would provide a new style of gameplay that differed from mainline installments in the series. Nintendo promoted the game prior to release with appearances at E3 shows, and later supported it with downloadable content packs that were released from 2014 to 2016.
Hyrule Warriors was released in Japan in August 2014, and worldwide the following month. It received generally positive reviews, with critics praising its presentation and effective combination of Zelda and Dynasty Warriors elements, although the repetitive nature of its gameplay was criticized. The game was commercially successful and became one of the best-selling games on the Wii U. An updated port for the Nintendo 3DS, Hyrule Warriors Legends, was released in 2016. A second port, Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, was released for the Nintendo Switch in 2018. The game was followed by Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity (2020) for the Nintendo Switch, and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment (2025) for the Nintendo Switch 2.
Gameplay
Hyrule Warriors mixes the hack and slash gameplay of Koei Tecmo's Dynasty Warriors series of video games with settings and characters from Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda series. Amongst many other characters, the player controls an original iteration of Link in melee combat to take on large numbers of enemies from the Legend of Zelda series. While there is a much stronger emphasis on combat than other games in the Legend of Zelda series, the player may use common weapons from prior games in the series, such as a sword, bombs, and Link's signature spin attack. Enemy targeting also returns, in combination with elements from the Dynasty Warriors combat system. Obtaining items through discovering and opening chests is retained as well.
The game has a context-based combat system, in which the player character's abilities change depending on the weapon chosen. Role-playing elements such as weapons and character leveling also appear. Defeating certain enemies gives players weapon bags, which will grant a random weapon to the character, and materials bags, which can be used to power up characters. "Sealed weapons" may also be found in treasure boxes, which increase the types of weapons randomly generated for the player in the field. The game supports an asymmetric local two-player mode with one player using the Wii U GamePad and another using a monitor. The game is also compatible with Amiibo figures, with figures based on The Legend of Zelda series unlocking additional content such as new weapons.
The main campaign of Hyrule Warriors, "Legend Mode", allows players to progress through the game's story; these story chapters can be replayed with any character in "Free Mode". Additionally, the game features an "Adventure Mode", in which players explore a map based on that of the original The Legend of Zelda and complete specific objectives, such as defeating a certain number of enemies within a time limit or completing a mission with a specific character and weapon. An update released on the game's launch date added "Challenge Mode", which encourages players to collect as many rupees as possible in a set scenario. The in-game Bazaar allows players to forge new weapons, spend rupees to raise characters' levels, create potions to temporarily boost a character's stats in battle, and exchange materials for badges that augment characters' abilities. The game also offers an additional quest to collect 100 Gold Skulltulas, tokens that appear in specific Legend Mode and Adventure Mode levels after defeating enough enemies, which will unlock illustration pieces of several characters in the game and contribute to upgrading the in-game apothecary.
Plot The game is set in Hyrule, outside of the official Zelda timeline. Long ago, Ganondorf was defeated and his soul splintered into four fragments. Three of them were sealed at different moments in time, while the Master Sword trapped the fourth. Ganondorf plots his resurrection through Cia, a sorceress who protects the balance of the Triforce. Cia becomes fascinated with the spirit of the hero of legend, with her romantic feelings for the hero providing Ganondorf an opportunity to purge her inner light. As a result, Cia becomes consumed in her desires, opening the Gate of Souls, a portal to different time-space realities of Hyrule, to amass an army of monsters. Seeking to unite the Triforce and conquer Hyrule, she uses her subordinates Wizzro and Volga to wage war against Princess Zelda and the Hyrulean army.
As Cia's forces attack Hyrule Castle, Link, a Hyrulean soldier-in-training, rushes out to aid the other troops and discovers he possesses the Triforce of Courage. However, the castle is taken, and Princess Zelda is unaccounted for in the aftermath, so Hyrule general Impa asks Link to aid her in finding the princess. While searching, Link and Impa meet Sheik, a Sheikah warrior who claims to know Zelda's whereabouts, and Lana, a sorceress from the same clan as Cia. The group heads to the Valley of Seers hoping to close the Gate of Souls, but Cia traps Link and Sheik, the latter of whom is revealed to bear the Triforce of Wisdom. Cia steals both Triforce pieces, combines them with her own Triforce of Power, and uses the completed Triforce to open portals in time and space to the resting places of Ganondorf's spirit fragments.
To restore Hyrule to normal, Link, Impa, and Lana each lead their own campaign to drive out Cia's armies and close the Gates of Souls in each era. Along the way, they are aided by each time period's native heroes, including Darunia and Princess Ruto from Ocarina of Time, Agitha and Midna from Twilight Princess, and Fi from Skyward Sword. During this time, Sheik reveals herself to be Zelda in disguise, and Lana explains that she and Cia were once the same person, with Lana embodying the light Ganondorf purged from Cia's heart. Meanwhile, three of Ganondorf's spirit fragments are released, allowing his body to be resurrected. No longer needing Cia, he attempts to take the Triforce, but Cia sends Link and Zelda's pieces back to their owners and uses her own piece to lock Ganondorf away.
After retrieving the Master Sword, whose power is strengthened by his bonds of friendship, Link prepares to confront Cia, who is weakened after being abandoned by Wizzro and Volga and using her own life force to strengthen her troops. He defeats her, and she fades away, with Lana inheriting her piece of the Triforce. Using the completed Triforce's power, the time-displaced heroes are sent back to their own periods, and Hyrule is restored to normal, with Lana once again closing the Gate of Souls.
However, due to the Master Sword's removal, the last of Ganondorf's spirit fragments is released, and Ganondorf is fully resurrected. Summoning Ghirahim from Skyward Sword and Zant from Twilight Princess to aid him, Ganondorf takes all three Triforce pieces from their bearers and uses them to strengthen his army and take over Hyrule Castle. Lana summons the heroes from Hyrule's history, and the combined group of heroes defeats Ghirahim and Zant before venturing towards Ganon's Tower. Overpowered by Link, Ganondorf uses the Triforce to transform himself into the dark beast Ganon. Link defeats Ganon with the help of Zelda's light arrows, and the heroes use the Triforce to seal him away once more. The heroes of the past are returned, Lana resumes watching over the Triforce in Cia's place, and Link and Zelda return the Master Sword to its pedestal to prevent Ganondorf's escape.
Hyrule Warriors Legends During Cia's siege on Hyrule Castle, a Cucco farmer named Linkle receives word of the invading army. Believing she is the newest incarnation of the legendary hero, she equips her grandmother's compass and sets off for the castle. However, her poor navigational skills cause her to travel in the wrong direction, and she is attacked by the Skull Kid, who attempts to steal her compass. During the struggle, Linkle discovers the compass's magical properties and reclaims it. After she continues to get lost, aiding many of the heroes from Hyrule's past she encounters along the way, she arrives at Hyrule Castle just after Ganon's defeat and assists Impa against the remaining monsters. When they are ambushed by an invincible Dark King Dodongo, Linkle's compass reacts and purifies the creature, allowing them to defeat it and drive the monsters off. Linkle celebrates with the rest of the army as Link and Zelda return from restoring the Master Sword to its pedestal.
Shortly thereafter, an unknown figure steals the Triforce of Power from Lana while she is searching for clues behind Cia's disappearance. At the same time, a new rift is opened and pulls pieces of the Great Sea landscape from The Wind Waker into Hyrule. Allying with Tetra and King Daphnes, Link and Lana eventually restore Cia, who explains she had vanished because her magic was stolen by Phantom Ganon, the mastermind behind the recent events. The group defeats Phantom Ganon, returning Cia's magic and the Triforce of Power. Tetra and the King are returned to their native time, while Cia, Link, and Zelda use the Triforce to restore Hyrule to normal. Having made peace with everyone, Cia returns with Lana to the Valley of Seers to watch over the Triforce together.
Development and release Hyrule Warriors was announced in December 2013 in a Nintendo Direct video as a collaboration with Koei Tecmo. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said that the game would not be the next main series installment of The Legend of Zelda, but rather a spin-off from the main series. Long-time Zelda producer, Eiji Aonuma, was the supervisor of the title. The concept for Hyrule Warriors was first proposed by Team Ninja lead developer Yosuke Hayashi while he and Koei Tecmo executive VP Hisashi Koinuma, who was in charge of the Warriors franchise, were discussing a possible Dynasty Warriors cross-franchise game with Nintendo. The Zelda franchise was chosen due to the fact that Hayashi, Koinuma, and many staff at the company were fans of the series.
When Warriors was presented to Eiji Aonuma, Koei Tecmo used their cross-over game One Piece: Pirate Warriors as an example of how the game would feel. In contrast to previous collaborations, Nintendo was confident in Koei Tecmo's ability to make the game, leading them to have "far more expectations than uncertainties". This confidence was shared by Aonuma, who readily accepted being offered a place in the game's development by Shigeru Miyamoto. Part of the reason behind Aonuma's strong support of Hyrule Warriors was an ongoing push by him to break away from many traditions that have become attached to the Zelda franchise since its inception. Along with Omega Force, the main developers for the Dynasty Warriors series, Hayashi and Koinuma brought in help from Team Ninja, who had developed the Dead or Alive series, to help with one-on-one combat and inject new ideas into the development process. Koei Tecmo's president Yoichi Erikawa said that he hoped Hyrule Warriors would appeal to fans of both franchises and go on to sell at least one million copies.