Former Nintendo Employee Reveals Tears of the Kingdom Was Kept Secret From Almost Everyone

Nintendo went to extraordinary lengths to keep The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom a secret before its reveal, according to former Nintendo of America employees Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang. Speaking about the game's surprise announcement at E3 2019, the pair revealed that fewer than 10 people at Nintendo of America knew the sequel even existed before the trailer premiered. The rest of the staff—including senior managers—discovered the game at the same time as fans watching the presentation.

Ellis explained that the project was protected by an unprecedented level of secrecy. Because so few employees were informed, he personally handled tasks that would normally be shared across multiple departments, including preparing marketing assets, press materials, and social media content in complete secrecy. Meanwhile, Yang recalled that even after reviewing the rest of Nintendo's E3 presentation in advance, the final "one more thing" reveal remained hidden from her until it appeared live, making it one of the biggest surprises of her career.

The trailer itself only deepened the mystery. Nintendo showed a dark cinematic teaser featuring Link and Zelda exploring ancient ruins but revealed neither the game's official title nor a release window. At the time, the sequel was known simply as "The Sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild," fueling years of speculation before it was officially renamed Tears of the Kingdom in 2022.

According to the former employees, Nintendo had never before maintained such a high level of internal secrecy for a game announcement. The strategy ultimately paid off, as the unexpected reveal became one of E3 2019's biggest moments and generated enormous excitement among both fans and Nintendo's own staff. The story offers a rare glimpse into how carefully the company protects its most important projects until the moment they are ready to be unveiled.