Since the Switch 1 was released, The Legend of Zelda series has been going strong, with both of the Wilds Era games finding a mighty audience on the console, along with the Hyrule Warriors titles and Echoes of Wisdom. While many of these games have upgrade packs for the Switch 2, the console has a lot to live up to as far as the Zelda series is concerned. It's hitting the ground running with Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, but there's still a lot more that the new console can do with a series as storied as Zelda.

Remasters and remakes are all the rage right now, with Oblivion Remastered being one of the largest gaming talking points in 2025, and the Zelda series is known for dipping into this market occasionally. The 3DS saw Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask remasters, while the Wii U got Twilight Princess and Wind Waker remasters. After Echoes of Wisdom demonstrated an appetite for the more classic, top-down Zelda formula, Nintendo should look to one of its most underrated titles to help carry the IP forward onto the Switch 2: The Minish Cap.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap Deserves A Switch 2 Remake

It Would Be Perfect For A Hybrid Console

Despite being commonly considered one of the best top-down Zelda titles, The Minish Cap is still frequently underrated. As a handheld game smaller in scale than the 3D titles of its day, like Wind Waker, Minish Cap was always positioned as a relatively minor entry. Like the Oracle games, it was developed by Capcom rather than Nintendo, but this didn't stop the game from delivering the classic Zelda experience, with a few interesting twists and turns. While quite a lightweight Zelda title, only around fifteen hours for non-completionists, The Minish Cap provides a unique experience in Zelda's modern scene.

The Minish Cap was released in 2004 on the Game Boy Advance.

Players have gotten used to the idea of fighting variations of Ganon, with the two Wilds era titles pitting Link up against Calamity Ganon and Ganondorf, but The Minish Cap offers an alternative. Instead of Ganon, who is absent throughout The Minish Cap, Link faces off against Vaati, a villain who makes recurring appearances in the Four Swords games. While Vaati gets involved with Ganon in the other Four Swords games, it's all about him in The Minish Cap, with the game serving as his origin story.

After seeing Ganon everywhere for some years now, a change of pace would be ideal, and The Minish Cap is the perfect title to deliver this reprieve. As a massively underrated top-down Zelda title, it is far from the direction the Wilds era has been going in, and Vaati as the villain is just one way that it would provide variety. It's a similar kind of Zelda game to Echoes of Wisdom, and a Minish Cap remake would follow in the tradition of the Link's Awakening remake to continue consistent top-down formula releases in between the massive main titles.

The Minish Cap Could Use Echoes Of Wisdom's Artstyle

The Perfect, Modern Artstyle For The Whimsical, Classic Zelda Titles

Echoes of Wisdom was simultaneously a return to the classic formula and a grand departure for the series. The departure element lies with making Princess Zelda the protagonist and finally letting the limelight shine squarely on her, but the top-down nature of the game made it reminiscent of the classic, pixel-art Zelda games of old. With 3D assets and a very vibrant world, Echoes of Wisdom expands on the groundwork of Link's Awakening remake to give classic Zelda games an aesthetic that befits modern consoles, and The Minish Cap could further build on this base.

According to the Zelda Timeline, The Minish Cap is the second game chronologically, taking place after Skyward Sword.

While The Minish Cap has some stunning pixel graphics, the vibrancy of its world and the whimsy of its shrinking mechanic make it perfect for an aesthetic similar to Echoes of Wisdom. The Link and Zelda seen in Echoes of Wisdom aren't a world away from the one seen in The Minish Cap either, and with some changes to their eyes to give the characters the Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass, and Spirit Tracks look, Nintendo would practically be there already. Embracing old-school Zelda after Echoes of Wisdom seems like the logical move.

​​​​​​​The game should also be relatively inexpensive to remake, as it's shorter than Echoes of Wisdom, and most of the R&D in its art style has already been done. Echoes of Wisdom's aesthetic suits a game with a lot of charm, which is exactly what The Minish Cap has in spades. While it is a mainline title as far as the convoluted Zelda timeline is concerned, The Minish Cap does feel like a spin-off in many ways due to Ganon's absence and its handheld nature, making it a great game for bolstering the Zelda catalog without distracting from the main attraction.

The Minish Cap Remake Could Give Modern Gamers A Taste Of Retro Zelda

Zelda Is One Of Nintendo's Hottest Properties Right Now

After the Wilds Era games, Zelda may be the most popular it's ever been, with Princess Zelda's haircut almost breaking the internet when the first trailer for Tears of the Kingdom was shown. While the Hyrule Warriors games are a decent enough buffer, it will be a long time before another main Zelda title, given that Tears of the Kingdom was released six years after Breath of the Wild (although Covid likely lengthened development somewhat). In the meantime, remakes of classics could be a way to tide people over.

Some modern Zelda fans might be more familiar with Wilds Era Link and his blue tunic, or partially bare chest, rather than the green hat icon older fans grew up with. A remake of The Minish Cap could be the perfect way to introduce newcomers to the classic Link and the whimsy of earlier Zelda, especially because it would feel so different without Ganon and with its shrinking mechanics. With it originally being a handheld title, it would be perfect to play on the go on the Switch 2.

The Minish Cap is one of the most underrated games in The Legend of Zelda series, and while Capcom's involvement might make for some complications with a remake, it's a game that deserves more love. Remaking it could even lead to remaking the whole Four Swords trilogy, setting up the remakes for close to a decade while the main team continues work on Wilds Era titles or whatever other direction the main Zelda games will go in. It's the era of remakes, and The Minish Cap feels like the right way for the Zelda series to stay involved.