Zelda fans furious as Skyward Sword HD appears to lock massive feature behind amiibo

The Legend of Zelda fans were outraged after Nintendo unveiled the Zelda & Loftwing amiibo on May 18. Players became furious after it was revealed that a major feature for the Skyward Sword HD remaster on Nintendo Switch may be locked behind the figurine. 

Originally making its debut on the Wii in 2011, Skyward Sword is being revived on the Nintendo Switch in July 2021. The HD remake not only gives the classic title a fresh coat of paint, but it will adapt its infamous motion controls to the handheld hybrid’s Joy-Con.

However, some fans have become frustrated with the project after it was discovered that a major new feature may be locked behind an amiibo. To add salt to the wound, the massive quality of life mechanic fixes one of the game’s biggest flaws back when it released a decade ago.

Zelda Skyward Sword HD may lock feature behind amiibo

On May 18, the official Nintendo Twitter account announced that a Zelda & Loftwing amiibo would release alongside Skyward Sword HD on July 16. While an incredible surprise for fans at first, the attached trailer then revealed that the figurine would also unlock a new fast-travel feature for the remaster.

“This adventure takes place in the sky, and on the surface beneath the clouds. You can travel from the surface to the sky from specific locations in the game. But if you use the amiibo while adventuring on the surface, you can return to the sky from wherever you like!” the nearly 2-minute clip announced.

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Seeing as one of the biggest complaints about the 2011 title was how tedious it was to travel back to the sky, this new feature is actually a pretty massive improvement. However, many players quickly became angry when they realized that major quality of life mechanic could be locked behind the Zelda amiibo which costs $24.99 retail.

The Zelda community immediately begin to voice their frustrations on social media, such as one fan who wrote, “Considering Skyward Sword is the ONLY 3D zelda without on-demand fast travel, locking this feature behind an amiibo when it wasn’t there before and probably would have been much appreciated quality of life addition just makes Nintendos case even worse.”

Another player also pointed out, “I know there were a lot of complaints about the back and forth – in the original game, so this is a *huge* quality of life addition, and its locked off. C’mon Nintendo you either make your games more accessible or don’t bother.” Some users even said they were boycotting the HD remaster: “Locking a quality of life change behind an amiibo is terrible. I’m gonna just stick with my copy for the Wii.”

At the time of writing, Nintendo has not announced whether the fast-travel feature can be unlocked another way without paying for the $24.99 figurine. While past Zelda titles have used amiibo to unlock in-game bonuses, the Skyward Sword quality life feature has many feeling that the series has gone too far.

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It should also be pointed out that there is a high chance that the merchandise will sell out quickly. So for many players, they may have to shell out big bucks to scalpers online if they want access to what many are calling a “must-have” mechanic for the HD remaster.