Eiji Aonuma, the developer behind recent Legend of Zelda games has hinted that the next game in the franchise might offer “more than just a single-player experience”, causing many to speculate that the next game could feature some form of multiplayer.

In a recent chat with Game Informer promoting the release of Hyrule Warriors, Aonuma was asked about the co-op in the Dynasty Warriors/Zelda crossover, and if that would influence the as yet un-named Wii U entry in the franchise.

In reply, he said:

“The two-player functionality of Hyrule Warriors is actually something that has traditionally been done in the Dynasty Warriors series, but they’ve changed because of the hardware and the second screen on your GamePad.” He continued to say that, “Instead of having a splitscreen on the television, you have one-player playing on the television and one on the GamePad. When I was talking back about making Zelda more than just a single-player experience? That’s something you will see in the future, maybe next year.”

Of course, the new Zelda was only just revealed at E3 and Nintendo is notoriously tight lipped when it comes to releasing early details on major franchises such as Zelda. Needless to say, this is a story we’ll be following closely.

What do you think? Do you like your Zelda the way it is, or would multiplayer in an open world Zelda interest you? Sound off in the comments section!