If this rumor is to be believed, it could be 1-3 months after the Nintendo Switch launch before we get to play The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. According to Nintendo tipster Emily Rogers (who has been correct every time we've written about one of her tips) says that Nintendo's localization of the game is taking much longer than they anticipated. Rogers says she first received word that localization was more of a challenge than originally anticipated back in September, and that progress has not improved much since then...
"That brings us to the month of November. More sources have now come forward and corroborated my information. They’ve told me that localization for Breath of the Wild might not be finished until the end of December. After localization is completed, this game will require between (at least) four-to-six months of testing. As I mentioned earlier, this is one of Nintendo’s largest and most ambitious games ever. The amount of testing required for a huge open-world game like this is enormous. Nintendo’s intention is to have the game as bug free as possible."
The Switch is going to launch in March, which means best case scenario we see the game in April, worst case after E3 in June. Historically, Nintendo has a flawless track record with bug-free first party launches, so I don't see any chance in hell this game is released before it's absolutely ready.
Assuming the rumor is true, that's a big blow for Nintendo Switch at launch. It looks like Nintendo has a bunch of other third party titles ready to go when the console releases, but without a first party title, it's gonna lack that punch that really delivers the "this is why you buy Nintendo" factor.
Disappointing news, but it would be more disappointing if Nintendo rushed a new game and launched it in a broken state...especially one as ambitious and daring as this new Zelda title. If Nintendo responds this week and says the rumors aren't true....remember Nintendo lies.
