Unique shop details in A Link Between Worlds

After the wealth of information revealed about A Link Between Worlds in the recent Nintendo Direct, long-time series producer Eiji Aonuma took to Miiverse after the airing of the direct to reveal additional info about the upcoming title. In his post, Aonuma revealed a cryptic screenshot from the game, along with a message discussing the significance of the location shown. The concept of the two worlds and their relationship in the game was also mentioned. Hit the jump to read the message and to see the screenshot.

One more thing, new information about The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds was also revealed in this Nintendo Direct.
We talked about how Link will be travelling between two worlds. And as you can see from the video, Link’s ability to transform into a drawing will play a huge role in the game.

The presence of two worlds like light and dark have been a recurring theme in Zelda games in the past, and this time, a kingdom exists in the other world in the way Hyrule exists in the main world. The story will revolve around the events that will unfold in that kingdom, and I think you’ll have fun experiencing the game’s distinctive world that is like no other in the series.

I also have a screenshot to show you today.

This shows the item shop that are common in Zelda games, and the character standing next to Link is looking very suspicious.

We’ll be talking about this character at a later time, but for now take a closer look at the items that are on sale. There’s the bow and arrow, the boomerang and the hookshot that are all familiar to the series.

If you noticed something strange with this picture, you’re quite the Zelda fanatic!

That’s right, shops in the past Zelda games sold things that would run out once you use them like arrows and bombs, items that needed replenishing. They have never sold an item that doesn’t go away after each use like the boomerang or the hookshot.

This shop is a very important place in this game, and we hope to talk more about it soon. Until then, I hope you’ll use your imagination wondering what this shop is all about.

Out of all the things to be taken from this screenshot and Aonuma’s tantalizingly vague explanation, the most significant aspect is probably the idea of being able to choose which item Link receives, in what order. Recruiting items is a process which is usually fixed, much like the order in one plays through the dungeons of a game, so this screenshot may be the first hint in genuine non-linearity in the series.

Another interesting detail to note is that Link is not wearing his usual green tunic, but is instead donning some sort of brown apparel which we have not seen before. This is juxtaposed with the fact that he appears to be wearing his standard green hat, along with green sleeves. Of course, the only thing we can do is speculate until further details about this shop are revealed.

But what do you think? Do you believe that this is a nod to true non-linearity in terms of item acquisition and/or dungeon order? Just who is that mysterious purple figure standing beside Link? Tell us your ideas in the comments below.

Source: Nintendo Everything