The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom[b] is a 2023 action-adventure game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. The sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017), Tears of the Kingdom retains aspects including the open world of Hyrule, which has been expanded to allow for more vertical exploration. The player controls Link, who must help Princess Zelda to stop Ganondorf from destroying Hyrule.

Tears of the Kingdom was conceived after ideas for Breath of the Wild downloadable content (DLC) had exceeded its scope. Its development was led by Nintendo's Entertainment Planning & Development (EPD) division, with Breath of the Wild director Hidemaro Fujibayashi and producer Eiji Aonuma reprising their roles. A teaser was shown at E3 2019 with a full reveal at E3 2021. Tears of the Kingdom was initially planned for release in 2022 before being delayed to May 2023. It received acclaim for its improvements, expanded open world, and features encouraging exploration and experimentation. It sold more than 10 million copies in its first three days of release.

Gameplay

Tears of the Kingdom retains the open-world action-adventure gameplay of the previous Zelda game, Breath of the Wild (2017). As Link, players explore Hyrule and two new areas, the Sky Islands and the Depths, to find weapons, resources, and complete quests. Link can explore on foot or by climbing, horseriding and using paragliders.[1]

New to Tears of the Kingdom are the Zonai devices, which the player can use for combat, propulsion, exploration, and more. The previous game's runes are replaced with five new powers: Ultrahand, Fuse, Ascend, Recall, and Autobuild. Ultrahand allows the player to pick up and move different objects, and attach different objects together. This can be used with the Zonai devices to create different vehicles or other constructs. Fuse allows Link to combine materials, equipment, or certain objects in the world to a shield or a weapon to increase its attributes and durability. For example, fusing an explosive object to an arrow will cause the arrow to explode on impact. Autobuild instantly recreates a device crafted with Ultrahand, at the cost of zonaite. Ascend allows the player to move upwards through solid surfaces. Recall can be used on an object to "rewind" its movement.[2][3]

Shrines and Korok Seeds return. When cleared, Shrines grant players a Light of Blessing; when four are obtained, Link can use them to either increase the amount of hearts he has by one or expand the size of his stamina wheel. Korok Seeds can be used to increase the inventory capacity of Link, allowing him to hold more melee weapons, shields, or bows.

The Depths, which are accessed via chasms on the surface, house a new threat, a goopy substance called Gloom. Whenever Link comes into contact with or is attacked by enemies covered in Gloom, his maximum number of hearts temporarily decreases by one. This affliction is removed only when Link returns to the Surface or travels to a Lightroot, a large light-emitting plant found in the Depths to regain his maximum health.[4][5]

Plot

Link's victory over Calamity Ganon in Breath of the Wild has allowed Hyrule's residents to begin reconstruction of the kingdom. Several years after Ganon's defeat, an unknown substance causing illnesses seeps out from beneath Hyrule Castle, with Link and Zelda investigating a cavern beneath the castle where the substance originated. There, they find Zonai ruins telling the story of a great battle, and witness a mummified Ganondorf's awakening. Ganondorf's powers corrupt Link's right arm and shatters the Master Sword, with Hyrule Castle being sent floating upwards into the sky. Link and Zelda fall below; Zelda vanishes with a mysterious artifact, while Link is rescued by a disembodied arm, which had been restraining Ganondorf. Link awakens in the newly appeared Sky Islands with the shattered Master Sword and meets the spirit of Rauru, a Zonai, who gives Link his right arm to replace the latter's corrupted organic right arm. Rauru's spirit assists Link in navigating the Sky Island, with the shattered Master Sword vanishing at the end. Link also receives a vision of Zelda receiving the sword.

Link returns to Hyrule, learning that the earlier event, the "Upheaval", has caused chaos in Hyrule. Link then goes to investigate mysterious reports of disturbances and Zelda's appearance throughout Hyrule. In the process, Link defeats four monsters occupying ancient Zonai temples with the aid of four acquaintances – Tulin of the avian Rito tribe, Sidon of the aquatic Zora tribe, Riju of the desert-dwelling Gerudo tribe, and Yunobo of the mountain-dwelling Gorons. With each defeated monster, Link finds Secret Stones, Zonai artifacts that increase the innate power of their users. Spiritual forms of ancient sages appear to Link and his companions, appointing Link's companions as new sages and passing down the Stones. After handling the monsters, Link tracks down Zelda to Hyrule Castle. At the castle, "Zelda" reveals itself to be an impostor in Ganondorf's service before being defeated by Link and his companions. Link further encounters Mineru, an ancient sage utilising spiritual projection to stay in the physical world, and provides her with an artificially constructed mechanical body.

Through Mineru, the sages' spirits, and a number of dragon tears scattered throughout Hyrule, Link learns of Zelda's fate. The mysterious artifact which vanished with Zelda was a Secret Stone, and she was transported through time to the distant past. There, she meets Rauru who is revealed to be the first king of Hyrule. In the past, Ganondorf murdered Rauru's wife, Queen Sonia, and acquired her Secret Stone, turning himself into the "Demon King". Rauru sacrifices himself to seal Ganondorf. Zelda then receives the Master Sword, and in order to restore it she transforms into a dragon by consuming her Secret Stone. Prior to her transformation, she tasked the past sages to provide aid to Link in the future.

In the present, Link retrieves the Master Sword from Zelda's dragon form, and heads to Ganondorf's location far beneath the castle. There, Link fights Ganondorf's army with the aid of the Sages' successors and Mineru before engaging in combat with Ganondorf himself. Nearing defeat, Ganondorf transforms himself into a demonic dragon in an attempt to beat Link. Zelda's draconic form assists Link in defeating Ganondorf. With the help of Rauru and Sonia's spirits, Zelda regains her true physical appearance, Link regains his right arm, and the two fall onto the surface of Hyrule.

Some time later, on the Sky Island where Link had awakened, Mineru bids goodbye to Zelda and Link before her spirit disperses, while the Sages' successors vow to protect Hyrule.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening[a] is an action-adventure game developed by Grezzo and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It was released on September 20, 2019. As of March 2020, the game has sold over 4 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling Nintendo Switch games.

Link's Awakening is a remake of the 1993 game for the Game Boy. It retains the original's top-down perspective and gameplay, along with elements from the 1998 re-release Link's Awakening DX. The game features a "retro-modern" art style unique within the series with toy-like character designs, diorama-like world designs, and tilt-shift visuals that evoke the original game's presentation on the Game Boy. It also features customizable dungeons which the player can create and then complete for rewards.