Oh, I'm certainly not saying I couldn't see the *benefits* to Retro pioneering a Zelda title. I'm saying that it seems highly unlikely that Nintendo would hand it off to them given the history of games that go to Retro. Games that go to Capcom are different. I see a higher likelihood that Capcom would be asked to develop, say, Zelda 3DS (although still pretty unlikely). Retro seems to be Nintendo's go-to studio for franchises that are in dire need of rebooting. They did that with Metroid, and did it again with Donkey Kong (though it was kind of a retro-reboot).

If this is true, however, I'll put my foot in my mouth and be pretty happy to see what Retro comes up with.

This rumor happened a while ago. Sorry, but it's definitely untrue. Nintendo hands off its languishing franchises to Retro; ones it hasn't developed titles in for a while. It was more surprising that they didn't hand off Kirby to Retro (Kirby is seriously starting to languish). Zelda isn't changing hands, especially after the blockbuster that was Skyward Sword.

Oh, and to clarify: I'm posting this as a random guy, not as owner of ZU commentating on a story he should have already read :B

YEAH! :D when you upgrade, all of our staff can buy ramen noodles. Yum.

We shall look into it!

Yup! Basic accounts are free if you're invited. You can upgrade at any time though. It supports us! :D (And ZU by proxy since GS now funds ZU)

Thanks! Spread the word :D we hope it takes off, too, but it needs your help!

Yeah, we got a lot of comments on this and, based on feedback, we've eliminated the four-month plans. It's just monthly now. Simpler :)

Looks like Adventure Time :D

This timeline is missing about six more splits around when Link had a donut that turned out to be a time portal. That was a mess.

Zelda is more complicated than Doctor Who.

The other reason why technology can be "advanced" while not being, say, a gun, is because there's an uncanny valley surrounding realistic weaponry. Nintendo will never add bullet-shooting guns to Zelda because it doesn't fit in the world - a highly stylized representation of a fantasy realm. When you've got magic, it's hard to imagine a need for bullets and such. There will never be a gun in the Zelda series.

There will, however, be various incredibly "advanced" things powered by all sorts of fussed magic. Like electricity powering time shift stones powering hover carts. All ridiculous, but awesome. You won't ever see tech that isn't like that in Zelda. Even the train in Spirit Tracks is explained as only being able to move since it's on mystical tracks.