Nintendo announced today that it would be delaying the long-awaited Zelda: Breath of the Wild sequel to Spring 2023, but a brief bit of footage included in the announcement has led to fans across the internet coming together with a common question – what's going on with the Master Sword? Some of them already have intriguing theories.
Today's footage shows Link holding what appears to be a destroyed (melted? Corrupted?) Master Sword near an orb of light, leading many fans to wonder if his quest (or part of it) could end up revolving around reforging the series' classic weapon.
Reddit users Zeldatroid and Capable_Afternoon687 even speculate that a journey to reforge the sword could ultimately be leading up to a final showdown with Ganon to see him defeated once and for all, opening the way for future games to include fresh villains.
More concerning is the question of what could've possibly caused such damage to the series’ all-powerful sword. Malice – a corrupted sentient goo found around Hyrule in Breath of the Wild – reaches out and grabs Link's arm in a previous trailer, which could explain why the character appears to feature an arm cover or prosthesis of sorts in the new footage. It's possible, then, that this attack on Link led to the destruction of the Master Sword as well.
Meanwhile, Ratio01 points out that the scene is similar to the moments in Zelda: Skyward Sword wherein Link bathes the Goddess Sword in sacred flames to help create the Master Sword. Given that references to the Goddess Hylia appears in both Skyward Sword and Breath of the Wild, it's certainly not out of the question that Link could be calling upon her to aid in repairing the sword. If that turns out to be the case, it could make for a powerful and nostalgic moment for franchise fans.
While other fans may eagerly seek out any bit of information they can find, Reddit user Slimehorn keeps things light with a simple joke: "Master Sword now inflicts tetanus." The sword does look pretty dangerous even in its destroyed form, so maybe it's best to stay careful.
Right now, we can only speculate on what lies in store for Link when he sets off on a new expansive adventure in the follow-up to Breath of the Wild, but we'll get a chance to find out when the game launches in Spring of 2023. Hopefully, we'll learn more about the story before then, though.
The sequel to Breath of the Wild (which still doesn't have an official name) was first announced in 2019, and was made because the team for the original game had too many ideas for DLC. We got the original 2022 release window last year, alongside the first gameplay. Nintendo patents have since given us more of a sense of the new mechanics it may introduce.
Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.