Nostalgic Gaming Revival: The Case for Wind Waker's Return
Sophia Vance
Updated on May 17, 2026
By Published May 15, 2026, 6:30 AM EDT James is a gaming writer from London who has spent thousands of hours exploring titles from every genre. Though he has a particular affinity for multiplayer titles like World of Warcraft, Destiny 2 and League of Legends, he has also put thousands of hours into single-player experiences, from deep RPGs to epic PC strategies. When he's not playing or writing, he can usually be found supporting his beloved Brentford FC. Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap
is celebrating a big birthday, as the 40th anniversary of the franchise arrives with what many people hope will be a bang. Though there hasn't been too much in the way of exciting announcements thus far, fans are expecting some big things at some point this year, and they may well be in luck.
As part of that, thoughts have begun to turn to the older games, and which ones may return in some capacity moving forward. Top of that list for many is , and a recent tease has some in the community thinking that it could be about to return for the relatively soon.
As first by The Gamer (via ), The Legend Of Zelda: Wind Waker HD may still be on the table as a potential port for the Switch 2, after a Nintendo representative claimed that "all options are on the table," when it comes to bringing older games back to the console.
Over on the Famiboard , fans reacted to the news, and they're that heady mix of excited and disbelieving that only game rumors can generate. "I think this raises the probability of a hypothetical WW HD + TP HD double pack. Granted, I’m still disappointed we got WW in GCN NSO," one comment .
"This means it'll happen.... Right? I just want Twilight Princess HD at LEAST I can see it now 3D all stars Zelda. Limited time," another .
"My guess is the play is launching NSO with Wind Waker, and then putting out HD on retail, and then a few years down the line, they do vice versa. WWHD in stores and TP on GC/Wii NSO. They can have their cake and eat it too, and we will, eventually, get every version playable depending on preference," a third .
There's no doubt that there has been a significant move towards bringing back older titles on the part of Nintendo, and every other game manufacturer in the industry. It's undoubtedly been a nice trip down memory lane so far, and there are still plenty of titles out there that could do with a return in some form.
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If Wind Waker is next on that list, it'll be a storied return for a brilliant game, with many believing it should also serve as the foundational inspiration for the next main game in the Zelda series.
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