In an interview with Gameblog (via Nintendo Life), Zelda’s producer Eiji Aonuma explained why the feature was not present. “Of course, if the game had been created exclusively for [Nintendo] Switch, we could have benefited from the particular features of the console, especially HD Rumble.”
“But, the problem is that the purpose of the [Nintendo] Switch version was to provide exactly the same experience as on Wii U, and vice versa. If we had started to adapt the game to the [Nintendo] Switch features, it would not have been the same game. So, beyond the graphic differences, we did not really explore the specifics of the new console.”
It is a bit unfortunate that the launch game for the Switch will not be able to take advantage of one of the console’s newer features, but we guess Nintendo is being fair that they don’t want Wii U gamers to feel too left out. That being said, we’re not sure how good HD Rumble is to begin with or how it might be used, so it’s hard to be a bit bummed out about a feature we’re not sure will or will not enhance the game.