There’s little doubt that The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom is one of the most successful games of 2023. It sold about 18 million copies in about six weeks... that doesn’t just happen if the game is not good. Plus, it’s a frontrunner for Game of the Year, which many would enjoy if it got. But even with that uncertainty looming, many gamers expected the title to get DLC content eventually. The reason being that Breath of the Wild had a two-part DLC, which added new gameplay challenges and even an extra storyline for players to enjoy.
But according to Tears of the Kingdom producer Eiji Aonuma, that’s not going to happen this time. He sat down with Famitsu and revealed that no DLC was coming:
“There are no plans to release additional content this time, but that’s because I feel like I’ve done everything I can to create games in that world. The reason why we chose this as a sequel to the previous game is because we thought there would be value in experiencing a new kind of play in that place in Hyrule.
Then, if such a reason is newly born, it may return to the same world again. Whether it’s a sequel or a new work, I think it will be a completely new way to play, so I’d be happy if you could look forward to it.”
While this may not be what fans expected, they can take heart that Nintendo is going to just “rush out DLC” for the sake of having it. Plus, Aonuma implied that early work is already being done on the next game so they can come up with a “new way to play.” So that could mean they’re already preparing for Link’s return on whatever console comes next.
That said, Tears of the Kingdom is a massive game and, honestly, doesn’t need any DLC. And just because Nintendo doesn’t have anything planned yet, doesn’t mean it won’t happen. Nintendo is a company that has been known to say one thing and then do another.
