Zelda: Link's Crossbow Training Could Have Had An Online Multiplayer FPS Sequel

"Link's Crossbow Training" is a strange little Wii game. Released shortly after "The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess," "Link's Crossbow Training" is a "Duck Hunt"-style game where players aim their Wii zapper at the screen to take out targets and enemies. Although it was a spinoff, not featured on the official timeline, it was a hit. Whether it was the gameplay or the Zelda name attached to it, the game did very well, earning its place as the fifth best-selling "The Legend of Zelda" game.

So, with the success of the game, it's no surprise that the team over at Nintendo toyed with the idea of a sequel. But as it turns out, the sequel would not have been more of the same. "The Legend of Zelda" game designer Eiji Aonuma reported that he wanted to make a sequel to "Link's Crossbow Training" — but make it more akin to an FPS. And he was thinking about making the game a multiplayer experience, forgoing the single-player experience of the first game. But apparently, Nintendo was not fond of the idea of a "Call of Duty"-esque "Link's Crossbow Training" sequel, leaving it on the cutting room floor.

Series developer Eiji Aonuma previously divulged information about a possible "Link's Crossbow Training" sequel to since archived NowGamer. After expressing his interest in making a sequel, Aonuma noted that the game would likely have been much different from the first. "I thought that we should do something more and better in the field of the first person shooter," Aonuma said. 

He also noted an interest in expanding the multiplayer aspect of the game, saying, "I thought that we could add a true multiplayer mode with multiple users playing together, from remote areas, over the Wi-Fi Connection." Although the original game had multiplayer, it was relegated to local play with just players taking turns to see who could get the higher score. So, this would have been a big change for the sequel.

According to Aonuma, the sequel never came to fruition because "a lot of people inside Nintendo insisted that I should work on a new 'Legend of Zelda' title rather than working on more 'Crossbow Training.'" One of these games that Aonuma likely shifted his attention to was "The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword," a game that also uses the Wii remote in a unique way to fire Link's bow — just not at other players over Wi-Fi.