Everyone remembers where they were on January 12, 2017. Or, at least, every Nintendo fan does. That was the day the final Zelda Breath of the Wild trailer dropped during the Nintendo Switch Presentation in Tokyo. It wasn't just a commercial. It was a cultural reset for the entire gaming industry. Honestly, it’s kinda wild to look back and realize how much that three-minute clip changed our expectations for open-world games forever.
The music starts with those soft, lonely piano notes. Then it builds. And builds. By the time the Master Sword appears, rusted and chipped against the backdrop of a soaring orchestral swell, people were literally crying in the audience.
The Zelda Breath of the Wild Trailer That Changed Everything
Most game trailers are boring. They’re basically just checklists of features—look at these graphics, look at this combat, buy the DLC. But the 2017 Zelda Breath of the Wild trailer did something different. It focused on a feeling. It captured the sheer scale of Hyrule without ever feeling like it was bragging.
You saw Link running across a vast meadow. You saw a massive bird-like mechanical beast in the sky. You saw Zelda sobbing into Link's chest—a moment that launched a thousand fan theories. It was the first time we really heard voice acting in a Zelda game. That was a huge deal. Hearing the King of Hyrule’s booming voice or Zelda’s desperate pleas added a layer of emotional weight we just weren't used to in this series.
Why the Music Matters So Much
The soundtrack of that specific trailer is a masterpiece of sound design. It uses a mix of traditional Japanese instruments and a full Western orchestra. It’s discordant at first, mirroring the broken state of the world Link wakes up in.
Then, at the 2:10 mark, the main theme kicks in with the brass section. It’s triumphant but also a little bit melancholic. It perfectly summarizes the game’s core loop: the joy of discovery mixed with the sadness of a kingdom that has already fallen. If you watch it today, even with Tears of the Kingdom out, it still gives you chills. It’s just that good.
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Decoding the Secrets We All Missed
Back in 2017, we spent weeks frame-by-frame analyzing every second. Remember the "Bird Man"? People thought he was a Falco crossover or something. We didn't know the Rito were coming back in this specific way. And the Sheikah Slate? We all thought it was basically a Wii U gamepad (which it was, originally), but the trailer showed Link using it to move metal objects and freeze time. It looked like magic, but it was presented as "ancient technology."
There's a specific shot of a massive dragon, Farosh, spiraling around a bridge. At the time, we didn't know if that was a boss or a god. The trailer didn't tell us. It just showed us that the world was alive with things much bigger than the player. That's the secret sauce. Most trailers show you what you can kill; this one showed you what you could witness.
The Mystery of the Voice Acting
When Zelda cries out, "Everything I've done... it was all for nothing!" it set the internet on fire. Was she talking about her research? Her relationship with her father? The trailer was masterfully edited to suggest a story of failure rather than a typical hero’s journey. Link didn't look like a legendary warrior. He looked like a guy who had already lost and was trying to pick up the pieces.
Impact on the Gaming Industry
Since that Zelda Breath of the Wild trailer debuted, almost every major open-world game has tried to copy its "vibe." Look at Genshin Impact or Sonic Frontiers. You can see the DNA of that 2017 presentation everywhere. It shifted the industry away from "map icons" and toward "curiosity-driven exploration."
Instead of a mini-map cluttered with dots, the trailer showed Link standing on a high peak, looking out at a smoking volcano in the distance. The message was simple: if you can see it, you can go there. That wasn't a new concept in gaming, but the way it was shown—with that sweeping camera and the wind whistling through the grass—made it feel revolutionary.
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The Technical Magic
It's easy to forget that this was running on what is essentially a handheld tablet. The trailer didn't hide the art style. It leaned into the cel-shaded, Studio Ghibli-inspired look. This was a smart move by Nintendo. By not chasing photorealism, they created something timeless. A trailer for a realistic game from 2017 looks dated now. The Breath of the Wild footage still looks like a painting come to life.
Comparing the Different Trailers
While the "Final Trailer" from January 2017 is the one everyone talks about, there were others.
- The 2014 E3 teaser: The one with the Guardian chasing Link on a horse. It was mostly a cinematic, but it established the "sci-fi fantasy" blend.
- The 2016 "Life in the Ruins" trailer: This one focused more on the environment and the quiet moments. It showed NPCs for the first time, proving that Hyrule wasn't totally empty.
- The Switch Presentation Trailer: The GOAT. The one with the music, the story beats, and the release date.
Each of these served a purpose, but the final one was the closer. It's the one that convinced millions of people to pre-order a console that many were skeptical about after the Wii U's failure.
Why We Keep Going Back
The Zelda Breath of the Wild trailer is a masterclass in "show, don't tell." It doesn't explain the stamina bar. It doesn't explain the weapon durability (thank god, or people might have been annoyed early). It just shows a world that needs help and a hero who is clearly outmatched.
There's a certain "honesty" to the footage. It wasn't heavily doctored like some infamous Ubisoft or EA trailers. What you saw in the clips—the way fire spreads through grass, the way Link fumbles when he's out of energy—is exactly how the game played. That built a level of trust between Nintendo and the players that still exists today.
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The Emotional Core
Ultimately, the reason this trailer sticks in the brain is Zelda herself. In previous games, she was often a distant figure or a goal to be reached. In this trailer, she's a person. She’s angry, she’s scared, and she’s clearly the main character of her own tragedy. Link is just the protector. That shift in perspective was subtly baked into every frame of the marketing.
How to Experience This Feeling Again
If you're feeling nostalgic, don't just re-watch the trailer on YouTube. Try this instead:
- Listen to the "Selection from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild" on vinyl or high-quality streaming. Specifically, the track "Nintendo Switch Presentation 2017 Trailer." It’s a different experience without the game sounds.
- Go back to the Great Plateau. Start a new save file. Don't look at the map. Just walk until you see something interesting, exactly like the trailer promised.
- Check out the "Making of" videos on Nintendo's YouTube channel. They show how the developers used a 2D prototype to test the chemistry of the world's elements. It makes you appreciate the trailer's "everything reacts to everything" philosophy so much more.
The Zelda Breath of the Wild trailer wasn't just a hype machine. It was a promise. And for once, a game actually kept that promise. It reminded us that games aren't just about winning; they're about the quiet moments between the chaos. Whether you're a hardcore fan or a casual player, that three-minute video remains one of the most important pieces of media in gaming history.
Go back and watch it one more time. Notice the way the music pauses when Link looks at the Master Sword. Notice the scale of the Divine Beasts. It's a reminder of why we play games in the first place—to feel like a small part of a very big, very beautiful world.
Next Steps for Zelda Fans:
To truly appreciate the legacy of this marketing, compare the 2017 trailer with the final "Launch Trailer" for Tears of the Kingdom. You'll see how Nintendo evolved their editing style from "lonely exploration" to "creative chaos." Also, look for the "Creating a Champion" art book; it contains the original storyboards for the trailer's most famous scenes, revealing how they carefully choreographed the music to match Link's movements. This level of detail is exactly why the game remains a benchmark for the industry nearly a decade later.