Nintendo Cancels Zelda Spin-off Project Featuring Ganondorf, Ubisoft Milan Disappointed
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- Ubisoft Milan dikabarkan pernah mengembangkan prototipe spin-off The Legend of Zelda yang menampilkan Ganondorf sebagai karakter utama, namun ditolak Nintendo pada November lalu.
- Penolakan ini mengakhiri kolaborasi yang sebelumnya sukses lewat Mario + Rabbids, dan memicu perpecahan tim serta spekulasi masa depan kemitraan kedua perusahaan.
- Penggemar Zelda tetap bisa menantikan remake Ocarina of Time untuk Switch 2 yang dijadwalkan rilis 5 November mendatang.
Nintendo reportedly canceled a The Legend of Zelda spin-off project that was being developed by Ubisoft Milan, the studio behind the Mario + Rabbids series. The project, codenamed Goliath, was said to feature Ganondorf as a playable character before it was ultimately rejected last November. The news was first reported by Insider Gaming and marks the end of a new chapter in the two companies' collaboration.
According to the report, Ubisoft Milan initially pitched an original spin-off concept with a new protagonist who had never appeared before. Nintendo gave an initial green light but asked that the main character be changed to Ganondorf—the iconic antagonist who until now has only been playable in spin-off games such as Hyrule Warriors and Super Smash Bros. Ubisoft Milan then spent a year building a prototype, but Nintendo rejected it without a clear reason.
This failure is not the first for Nintendo. Previously, Retro Studios—the developer of Metroid Prime—had also worked on a Zelda spin-off centered on Sheik and the origins of the Master Sword, but the project was deemed "a mess" by one of its developers. The similar pattern shows that Nintendo is highly selective in protecting the Zelda franchise, even when outside parties offer a new approach.
After the Ganondorf project fell through, Ubisoft Milan reportedly turned to other options, such as working on a game featuring Mario or Star Fox characters. However, communication between Nintendo and Ubisoft began to deteriorate in late 2023 through early 2024. The Ubisoft Milan team also split: some developers were reassigned to Beyond Good and Evil 2, while others left and formed the studio Day 4 Night, which is now working on Bradley the Badger.
"The reason behind Nintendo's decision remains unclear," Insider Gaming wrote in its report, citing an unnamed source.
For the global gaming industry, this incident highlights how tightly Nintendo controls its IP, especially Zelda, which is one of its most valuable franchises. Partnerships with external developers did once produce Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle (2017) and its commercially successful sequel (2022), but that apparently was not enough to convince Nintendo to continue similar experiments.
The impact is also felt in the Indonesian market. Gaming fans in the country, which is one of the largest markets in Southeast Asia for Nintendo products, may have to put off hopes for a Zelda spin-off offering a new perspective. Even so, enthusiasm for the franchise remains high, as shown by consistent Nintendo Switch sales in Indonesia. Going forward, Nintendo's decision to cancel this project could spark speculation about the direction of the company's strategy: will it focus more on internal development or keep the door open for external collaboration?
What is clear is that fans will not have to wait too long for the next Zelda adventure. The remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is scheduled for release on Nintendo Switch 2 on November 5. However, whether Nintendo will again look at the potential for a spin-off featuring an antagonist like Ganondorf in the future remains a big question mark.
