Look, it’s time to sharpen your blades. Koei Tecmo and Nintendo are back at it with another collaboration, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, arriving on the Nintendo Switch 2 this November 6th. The project is led by the AAA Games Studio, a new outfit established by Koei Tecmo in 2024, now under the stewardship of Yosuke Hayashi—the same producer who brought us Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity.

Just as Age of Calamity served as a companion piece to Breath of the Wild, this new entry ties directly into the lore of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. It dives deep into the 'Imprisonment War', a pivotal era mentioned only in whispers during the main game, finally fleshing out those ancient, untold events.

The setting here is the Imprisonment War, the heart of the narrative in Tears of the Kingdom. You’ll see the Zonai descending from the skies to forge the Hyrule Kingdom alongside the Hylians, only for everything to spiral into chaos when a great evil emerges. With Princess Zelda time-traveling from the future to meet King Rauru and Queen Sonia, the stage is set for a showdown against the Demon King Ganondorf—promising to reveal truths that remained buried in the main game.

The roster includes the time-traveling Princess Zelda, the founding King Rauru, Queen Sonia, and Rauru’s sister, the researcher Mineru. Zelda wields the Zonanium sword and the power of time, while Rauru commands the power of light and a Zonanium spear. Mineru, meanwhile, puts Golems and various Zonai devices to work. We’ll also see the ancient sages of fire, water, and wind—previously just names in lore—taking the field, alongside Ganondorf, the Chief of the Gerudo.

A handful of original characters have also been revealed. We have Zelda’s attendant, Ranalia—presumably the one who recorded the stone tablets in Tears of the Kingdom—and Ardi, a Gerudo warrior who wields the weapon of the Lightning Sage despite swearing loyalty to Ganondorf. Keep an eye on her. We also spotted a 'mysterious golem' with a striking resemblance to Link that can transform into a flight mode, and a Korok named Calamo, likely the Great Deku Tree in his youth, hitching a ride on top of a golem.

Combat focused on Zonai devices and co-op

The core gameplay remains the classic 'Musou' style of carving through massive armies. However, the Sheikah Slate from Age of Calamity has been swapped out for Zonai devices and character-specific skills. You can combine these to devastating effect; for instance, pairing a fan with a Lightning Gleeok head to conjure up a localized lightning tornado. It’s all about tactical experimentation.

Enemies with distinct attack patterns can be countered with specific directional skills, rewarding those who pay attention. A character-switching system is baked into the combat, and you can even coordinate with allies like the brave Koroks. In keeping with the 'hand-in-hand' theme of Tears of the Kingdom, you can trigger 'Sync Strikes' with nearby allies, which vary in damage and effects depending on your character pairing.

Two-player local co-op is supported, and thanks to a game-sharing feature, only one person needs to own the game for both of you to play on separate consoles. Plus, if you have save data from Tears of the Kingdom, you’ll unlock the 'High-Grade Guard’s Sword', while Age of Calamity players get the 'High-Grade Guard’s Claymore' as a bonus.