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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2’s Demise Return Rumors Explained

Fans know almost nothing concrete about The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. Nintendo says it doesn't even want to reveal Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2's official title yet because it'll spoil some elements of the game. If the title itself is going to stir up conversation, Zelda fans are probably right to expect big surprises and dramatic reveals. Since it's at the latest point in the Zelda timeline, it's totally possible that a past villain could return and get acknowledged in the game's title. As a matter of fact, many Zelda fans think Breath of the Wild 2 will resurrect the franchise's biggest, oldest villain: Demise.

The demon king Demise has only appeared in one Zelda game to date, Skyward Sword, but his influence is felt throughout the franchise. Skyward Sword marks the earliest point of the Zelda timeline, establishing tons of important lore, including why Ganon eternally comes into conflict with Link and Zelda. That's because Ganon is the resurrected heir to Demise, enacting his curse on Link by seeking vengeance for the demon king's defeat. Demise himself could be preparing for a comeback, though. Between theories about Demise's connection to Malice and Breath of the Wild's mysterious ties to Skyward Sword, Demise's return seems likelier by the day.

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Demise and Breath of the Wild's Malice

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Many fans point to Malice as a good sign that Demise has something to do with Breath of the Wild 2. Skyward Sword's introductory cutscene describes how Demise led the first monsters into the human world, and Fi later describes Demise as the source of all monsters. Demise's place as the forefather of monsterkind is awfully familiar to Malice and some of its core purposes.

Malice creates endless streams of cursed monsters in Hyrule Castle and the Divine Beasts, and more importantly, it's responsible for the Blood Moons that resurrect monsters all across Hyrule. Malice's seemingly bottomless ability to conjure evil creatures makes some fans believe that its ultimate source is Demise the demon king. It doesn't hurt that Skyward Sword's monsters sometimes drop purple Evil Crystals described as physical malice.

Fans believe that the Breath of the Wild 2 trailers reinforce Demise's ties to Malice. Breath of the Wild 2's trailers show Link and Zelda coming into contact with what appears to be Ganondorf's corpse, buried beneath Hyrule Castle and bleeding Malice profusely, suggesting it's a source of the mysterious power. Considering the physical similarities to Demise, from hair to facial features, some fans think the corpse isn't Ganondorf; it could be Demise instead. Demise was first destroyed in Skyward Sword when part of Skyloft crushed him by plummeting to earth. Some fans believe that Demise's corpse has been buried under that spot for all these years, since Hyrule Castle was built on the site of Demise's destruction. Even if it's the corpse of Ganondorf, his implied burial site could intentionally reference Demise's resting place.

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Breath of the Wild's Skyward Sword Ties

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The Demise theory isn't just helped by potential references to Demise himself; Breath of the Wild has other connections to Skyward Sword that could foretell Demise's influence. For instance, Breath of the Wild features Demise's nemesis Hylia as a major character. The goddess Hylia bestows greater strength on Link when he completes challenges set by her dozens of monks. She was responsible for Demise's original defeat and sealing, but she has a very small presence in the overarching Zelda franchise. Until BotW released, Skyward Sword was Hylia's main appearance. If Nintendo decided to revive Hylia and give her a greater presence than the classic Farore, Din, and Nayru, it's clearly tying BotW to Skyward Sword.

The Master Sword's role in Breath of the Wild also hints at Skyward Sword by pointing fans toward the distant impact of Fi. During a couple points in Breath of the Wild, Zelda mentions a guiding voice coming from within the Master Sword. That seems like a pretty obvious invocation of Fi, the spirit of the Master Sword who accompanied Link throughout Skyward Sword. The notion that Fi could still be alive was reinforced by BotW's Trial of the Sword DLC, where one of Fi's signature sound effects can be heard once Link finishes honing the Master Sword. Fi is also a major enemy of Demise who could prove pivotal in defeating him a second time.

Finally, Breath of the Wild 2 seems like it's referencing Skyward Sword in new ways. The first BotW2 trailer showed Hyrule Castle beginning to fly into the sky on a cloud of Malice, but the E3 2021 BotW2 trailer shows there's a lot more flying islands being created. For all the fantastical settings that The Legend of Zelda has gone through, none of them emphasized flying islands nearly as much as Skyward Sword. Some fans believe that Demise is recreating Hyrule in the image that he remembers. It seems hard to imagine that Nintendo would put all of these Skyward Sword references in Breath of the Wild if Demise wasn't returning too.

Demise Could Define Zelda's Future

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If Demise really is coming back, it could signify a tremendous change of course in The Legend of Zelda's future. Zelda is no stranger to reusing villains, but bringing back the franchise's original evil in Breath of the Wild 2 would be fundamentally different from Ganon's various incarnations or Vaati's past schemes. Some fans think that Demise's return hails the end of The Legend of Zelda's timeline as fans know it. Nintendo surely isn't going to abandon The Legend of Zelda after Breath of the Wild 2, but it might want to start a new chapter. Destroying Demise and changing Ganondorf's fate as Demise's heir would be the perfect way to end the current age of Zelda and move on to wholly new storylines.

Of course, fans won't know for sure if Demise has something to do with Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 until Nintendo confirms it. Even so, there's an overwhelming amount of evidence that Breath of the Wild and its sequel ultimately might have something to do with Skyward Sword. The two games share many aesthetic choices and lore points to be coincidental. Even if Demise himself isn't the main antagonist of the game, it wouldn't be surprising if his power has something to do with the evolving threat of Malice and whatever other challenges Link and Zelda face.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 releases in 2022 for Nintendo Switch.

MORE: Fi Could Tie The Master Sword Into Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2's Plot

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