The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom is the direct sequel to Breath of the Wild, and it carries over everything that made the first game great. Nintendo holds the Zelda franchise close to the chest, and most of the things players see in the sequel are a rehash of the first title, with some added features that make this game worth replaying in 2025.
While the setting is essentially the same, Nintendo pulled an impressive feat by expanding the map with new sky islands and an expansive playground hidden beneath the Kingdom of Hyrule. The developer struck gold with Breath of the Wild and intended to double dip on the idea of creativity and player freedom for the sequel.
Disclaimer: The writer has shared their personal and subjective opinions about the game.
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The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom is another timeless masterpiece
A few years after the Breath of the Wild, Princess Zelda decides to explore the underground ruins with Link by her side. The pair ventures deep below to locate the source of the gloom, a deadly substance plaguing Hyrule.
As the duo descends further, Zelda discovers ancient ruins that tell the story of the Imprisoning War involving the Zonai, an advanced race, and Ganondorf, also known as the Demon King.
Link and Zelda spot a mummified figure as the source of the gloom, and it immediately attacks the princess. Link and the Master Sword are no match for its power; it shatters to pieces as Link loses his right arm in the fight.
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The Demon King awakens and lifts the entire castle into the air, which makes Zelda lose her balance as she falls into the abyss until she is sent back in time. Link is weakened, and this is a clever way for Nintendo to take away all the progress he has made since the first game.
Players are sent to a floating island where Link is given a new set of abilities courtesy of Rauru of the Zonai race. The first few hours serve as a tutorial to teach players to control Link's new powers, which opens countless doors for opportunities to create wild contraptions, war machines, and other structures.
- Ultrahand - With this ability, Link can lift any object and attach it to another. This ability can be useful for exploration and traversal since Link can craft any vehicle to get around.
- Fuse - It wouldn't be a bad idea to fuse certain items to make each hit count, especially given the limited durability of each weapon.
- Ascend - Exploration is the heart of The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom and players can find themselves lost or stuck in a cave. Fortunately, they can ascend to easily reach the top instead of running in circles.
- Recall - Time travel is a heavy theme in this installment and this ability is the trippiest ability yet. Link can use recall to hop on a falling platform to reach sky islands, reverse time to cross environmental puzzles, or return incoming projectiles to enemies in combat.
The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom has the same revolutionary open-world design and non-linear structure.
After leaving the tutorial area, Link can go anywhere he pleases. The surface is nearly identical to Breath of the Wild with new optional missions for players to accomplish; however, the exciting parts to explore are the new sky islands and the depths.
Nintendo surprised fans with a new map directly under the kingdom of Hyrule, but navigating it is a hassle since it is pitch black with zero visibility.
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Link can hop from one sky island to the next by crafting a plane with Ultrahand or use Recall to hop on a falling boulder. The developer wanted players to feel free as they explored Hyrule and passed with flying colors.
Conclusion
The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom is the perfect successor to Breath of the Wild. Nintendo struck gold with the revolutionary open world and non-linear structure and decided to go all in for the sequel. Improved abilities, player freedom, and more mission variety are enough to make this experience not feel like a rehash but a refinement.
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The developer didn't want to make a rehash of the first game; however, it was wise to realize the benefits of reusing older features.
It wouldn't be a bad idea to grab both The Legend of Zelda games before the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 and revisit this timeless masterpiece.
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