In a few months, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is set to be released. There are no signs of a delay yet, so fans could finally get their hands on the sequel to the 2017 hit Breath of the Wild. It's not a stretch to say that Breath of the Wild was one of the most impactful games on the Switch, and ranks among the most influential Zelda games as well. Reimagining the old action-adventure franchise as an open world title, Breath of the Wild’s sequel Tears of the Kingdom will take place shortly afterward, and will continue Link and Zelda's struggles against the forces of darkness.
That's about all the fans know right now. Even this close to the launch of Tears of the Kingdom, Nintendo remains tight-lipped about what has changed with this game. Trailers have revealed that Link will get a new arm with special powers, the Master Sword will be wrecked, and Malice will surge through Hyrule once again. Link’s journeys will take him beneath the earth and into the sky, presumably to restore the Master Sword and confront what appears to be Ganondorf. Based on the common direction of Zelda stories, it's easy to put these scattered details together, but it's still conspicuous that Tears of the Kingdom hasn't had its plot properly summarized in a trailer yet.
Tears of the Kingdom Has Had Strangely Sparse Marketing
Three months before the release of Breath of the Wild, fans were swimming in footage of Link's adventures on the initial Great Plateau. Some smaller clips were present to parallel those that Tears of the Kingdom got, but Nintendo had made very sure that fans knew how Breath of the Wild would play. Hyrule was established to be in ruins, and Link had to both survive in the harsh wilderness and help save the kingdom by retaking Hyrule Castle from Calamity Ganon. Some teases of Link's past life with Zelda were also seen, but the major focus was on gameplay. It took until one month before Breath of the Wild was released for a pure story trailer to release.
While Tears of the Kingdom seems to be repeating these steps, its details are even more scant. There has been a cryptic air around all the Tears of the Kingdom trailers, with many feeling more like early teasers. Every gameplay snippet has been so scattered and short that it's easy to miss the newer details. It's still unclear how much Tears of the Kingdom has changed from BotW, how players will progress through it, and why. This confusion may have something to do with the lack of voiceover explaining what's happening, something that was a heavily advertised addition to Breath of the Wild. Fans would be happy with anything at this point, but they shouldn't need to wait long for more.
Nintendo Can't Keep Tears of the Kingdom Hidden Any Longer
Rumor has it that a Nintendo Direct is coming soon. There have been February Directs for the past couple of years, and both Tears of the Kingdom and Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp got slight updates on their Nintendo eShop pages. Anticipation for a big Zelda blowout is high right now, and if Tears of the Kingdom is going to hit its May release date, it needs another trailer. There's a good chance that the varied marketing Breath of the Wild had in the year before its release will be mirrored in Tears of the Kingdom's lead-up.
A trailer covering story and gameplay with accompanying narration will likely appear in the next Nintendo Direct, while a Nintendo Treehouse stream could air later to supply further details on how Tears of the Kingdom's mechanics and world have changed. Whatever the case may be, fans shouldn't need to wait for much longer to get some answers regarding this hotly anticipated title. Soon enough, the Zelda series will see its next journey begin.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom launches May 12 for Nintendo Switch.
