The ex-Retro concept artist Sammy Hall gave some interesting information on both the Boo and Zelda games. Sammy insists that “Nintendo proper” never really saw the conceptual pieces. However, Hill did say that the Zelda game was in the pre-production stage from 2005 to 2008.

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The concept art for the unfinished Zelda project that unsurfaced was very dark and gritty, perhaps comparing closer to Majora’s Mask and Twilight Princess. The art showcased Sheik, and the title was apparently going to take place within the dark timeline of Ocarina of Time. Sheik would be traveling across Hyrule as a new Gannon is birthed within a Dark Gerudo tribe. The game would be an action-JRPG.

To be fair, Nintendo hasn’t done a lot to stretch outside of the normal Legend of Zelda formula of games, so this project seems like a pipe dream. Link is pretty much always the playable hero. However, many fans would love to see a Zelda game in between some of the “gaps” within the Zelda timeline, including the aforementioned Dark Timeline or even a game that takes place before Wind Waker is flooded.

The canceled Boo “Haunt” project was perhaps going to be a handheld game. Boo would take center stage in this Mario spin-off as he would learn how to scare his opponents.

The Boo game seems like something that was more possible to come to fruition, as Mario has seen many spin-off titles, some of which have become the best spin-offs in gaming. Additionally, the hand-held consoles were often the location of silly and fun Mario games such as Mario vs. Donkey Kong and the Mario & Luigi RPG titles.

According to Hill, both the Zelda and Boo games were canceled the week that ex-Retro leads Mark Pacini, Todd Keller, and Kynan Pearson left the company. It is likely that these games will never come to light, but just looking at the old images and information is intriguing. Nintendo usually doesn’t let ideas go to waste, however, as it often cancels ideas and implements them into other titles. The sequel to Breath of the Wild will be hugely important for Nintendo, and hints point to Zelda being playable within the game. Still, running around as Shiek in Hyrule also sounds like it would be a blast.

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Source: IGN