How Would You React if the Next Zelda Game Was Rated M?

[Dragoncat]

TP had a T rating, and it didn't deserve that. Animated blood? I don't see any blood.

The enemies bleed a little bit. Next time you play TP, look closely. Also, Ganondorf's execution.

Would Zelda show cleavage, burp, and cuss like a sailor?

I can see Tetra doing that lol. She IS a pirate xD And she would go to Link and be all: "Yo lad, is that a peg leg in your britches, or are you happy to see me?" Seriously, that would be funny.

 

[Ventus]

Well, let's see. Like others, this hypothetical M-rated Zelda would need to have certain themes attached to it and also certain elements removed from it for it to garner any "outrageous" response from me. So, it's a little more realistic. So, it has blood. So, it has guns. So, we see a little bit of cleavage here and there, or maybe even a naked woman. None of this is BAD, and none of it takes away from the theme of Zelda in any possible way. Telma has a truckload of cleavage showing, and she's flirtatious to boot! There's blood in TP though I've no clue where. We have cannons and even bazookas in TP, so what will a gun do but amplify the experience tenfold? Cursing, I don't know for sure but hey, Link talks in Adventure of Link which is equally as blasphemous.

So in short, I'd basically support this M-rated Zelda all the same. Just don't pull another 2011 Zelda on me [or worse], and I won't scream.

TP had a T rating, and it didn't deserve that. Animated blood? I don't see any blood.

Ganondorf bleeds white blood as a pig when you cut him up; you can see the white stuff drip everywhere as he runs from portal to portal. Aside from that, nothing remotely visible to the one focusing on combat.

 

[RegalBryant]

If you applied bleeping to the swear words and it sounded like R2-D2, no. And the enemies can't be blood pinatas, either. Blood and swearing are fine. Just not gratuitous blood and swearing.

 

[Kupsacker]

I'd be taken aback, but I'd get it no doubt.

 

[PhantomTriforce]

I wouldn't be too upset. I mean, the game might not be as popular as previous games due to much of the audience not being able to play it, but I personally wouldn't mind as long as it is for good reasons (like upped violence) and not for bad reasons (like useless swearing).

 

[Link-of-Lylat]

It STILL wouldn't be as bad as the CD-I games.

 

[LnktheWolf]

i'd still buy it no matter what

 

[A Link In Time]

I honestly can't picture an M-rated Zelda game. Knowing Nintendo this will never happen but if such a situation occurred, I'd likely abstain from purchasing the title. M-games are the dregs of the industry. Each one is the same old, same old profanity, drugs, and sex hence why I rarely purchase them anymore bar the exceptional Halo. I'm not fond of the notion of Bokoblins smuggling marijuana or getting down and dirty with an octorok before slaying it.

By shifting focus to a more "mature" environment, fantasy elements are lost in transition. Nintendo has always been phenomenal at communicating maturity in more subtle, appropriate ways for general audiences and I'd prefer if the company continues that trend.

 

[Azure Sage]

Actually, around the time I joined, I wanted an M-Rated Zelda game. Now? Not so much. Being with this site has gradually shaped my outlook on the Zelda series, and for the better, I think. Now, I would rather not have an M-Rated Zelda game. It simply isn't the series' style. The Legend of Zelda is supposed to appeal to all ages. If an M-Rated Zelda game came out, the younger fans who have parents that don't allow them to get M-Rated games wouldn't get to play it for a long time. And I think that would be pretty unfair.

 

[bunny]

A Zelda game rated M... Will never happen... But I guess if it ever did happen, I would only buy it depending on what it's rated for.

If it's because of blood and language (Zelda with language... xD!) then I'd probably go ahead and purchase it. However, if it were rated for sexual content of any kind, I would write Nintendo a very lengthy strong-worded letter with a lot of complaining.

 

[Dan]

I honestly wouldn't mind at all, my response would simply be "let's see where this takes us". If you don't take a risk you may never know the outcome. That's pretty much alll their is too it, If it's done right it can be amazing.

 

[Sydney]

I wouldn't mind it, but I'd question whether or not it would actually work. I've always felt that the Zelda series was targeted towards a family friendly audience. Of course there was an exception with Twilight Princess being teen rated, but that was understandable. What I would expect out of an M-Rated Zelda game is some serious violence, blood-shed, and whatever else seems to fit in that category. I can visualize seeing it, but I can't visualize playing it. I'm not against it, I just believe that they'll have a very difficult time producing, nonetheless creating a Zelda game with an M rating.

 

[Turo602]

I honestly can't picture an M-rated Zelda game. Knowing Nintendo this will never happen but if such a situation occurred, I'd likely abstain from purchasing the title. M-games are the dregs of the industry. Each one is the same old, same old profanity, drugs, and sex hence why I rarely purchase them anymore bar the exceptional Halo. I'm not fond of the notion of Bokoblins smuggling marijuana or getting down and dirty with an octorok before slaying it.

By shifting focus to a more "mature" environment, fantasy elements are lost in transition. Nintendo has always been phenomenal at communicating maturity in more subtle, appropriate ways for general audiences and I'd prefer if the company continues that trend.

You accept Halo as an M-rated game, yet you assume sex and drugs are apart of all mature games. Does Halo have any of what you described? A mature rating doesn't say anything about the quality of a game. It's even sadder that you would put a game down for its ESRB rating...

 

[Lonewolf92]

I think it'd be fine, unless there was anything particularly horrible in it such as nudity or whatever. Just swearing or blood, yeah fine.

 

[A Link In Time]

You accept Halo as an M-rated game, yet you assume sex and drugs are apart of all mature games. Does Halo have any of what you described? A mature rating doesn't say anything about the quality of a game. It's even sadder that you would put a game down for its ESRB rating...

There is nothing inherently wrong with an M-rated Zelda game but my opposition to such a proposal closely resembles why I'd rather not see another darker installment. By transitioning to a higher ESRB rating, increased emphasis is placed on gritty executions rather than refined gameplay and narrative.

Twilight Princess tried too hard to be dark and failed to recreate the same sentimental effect I experienced while playing Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and The Wind Waker. An M-rated game would be far from the most mature Zelda. That title is currently held by The Wind Waker, a classic coming of age tale told through an intricate lens of love, betrayal, and sacrifice. Ironically it's the "kiddiest" looking installment of them all.