NINTENDO Switch’s upcoming game The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be released in May and fans are excited to see what it has to offer.
Tears of the Kingdom is the sequel to the latest in the Zelda series, The Breath of the Wild. The game’s plot revolves around the adventures of protagonist Link, a hero who has lost his memories after waking up from a century-long slumber.
Nintendo Switch is a hybrid game console developed by Nintendo in 2017 that can be used as a tablet, a home console, or a portable device for gaming and video streaming.
With minimal game instructions, Zelda players are free to roam around the game’s universe. They have the goal of recovering Link’s memories and preventing the imminent destruction of Hyrule from the Ganon Calamity.
After the success of The Breath of the Wild in 2017, fans of this series were elated to hear about the impending release of the latest game and the continuation of Link’s journey in Hyrule.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom recently won the “Most Anticipated Game of the Year” in the 2022 The Game Awards.
Tears of the Kingdom fan theories
The Zelda franchise is well-known for its interconnected but independent gameplays. Because of this, gamers can play a Zelda console game independently or in any order.
However, Tears of the Kingdom will not have this kind of privilege as it has been described by Nintendo as a follow up to The Breath of Wild. With this, fans have high expectations regarding the continuity of the plot from the prequel to sequel.
Fans have long been theorizing about the possible storyline, challenges, and surprises that the sequel will have after watching the 96-second trailer released on Nintendo America’s Youtube channel.
Based on the trailer, Tears of the Kingdom is set in the sky. Fans speculate that the new Zelda game’s central theme would be about birds and flying.
Zelda’s protagonist, Link, riding a bird-looking plane. | Screengrab from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom trailer
According to gaming blog Nintendo Life, this theory is strengthened by the cape that Link has been wearing in a poster released by Nintendo. There are two well-known capes in the Zelda universe — the Magic Cape that turns Link invisible and the Roc’s Cape that lets the protagonist fly.
An image of Link with his cape and sword in Tears of Kingdom. | Photo courtesy: Nintendo
Fans have also noticed Link’s newly acquired skill in the recently released trailer of the game. This involves the power to rewind time as seen in the scene involving a rock and a rope.
Link clinging to a rock as it ascended a rope. | Screengrab from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom trailer
Another thing that caught Zelda fans’ attention is the ouroboros logo flashed at the end of the trailer. A Nintendo Life article theorizes that this insignia that is also shown in the game’s logo represents the “eternal cycle of destruction and rebirth.”
Nintendo Life believes the new Zelda game will feature a time loop where the evil forces, who were previously defeated in the former Zelda series, will return. This is in reference to Demise’s curse, a villain in another Zelda franchise Skyward Sword, in Hyrule:
“My hate…never perishes. It is born anew in a cycle with no end! I will rise again! Those who share the blood of the goddess and the spirit of the hero… They are eternally bound to this curse. An incarnation of my hatred shall ever follow your kind, dooming them to wander a blood-soaked sea of darkness for all time!”
The ouroboros insignia. | Screengrab from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom trailer
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be available in the market in May 2023 but players can now pre-order from various online sites including Amazon for US$59.99.
