Just over six years after the release of Nintendo's incredible The Legend of Zelda: Breath of The Wild came the much anticipated sequel, Tears of The Kingdom. Although there are many difference between the game, some beloved features have been kept on across games. The adorable Koroks and Wildlife has made a return, and more practical features such as cooking and runes have returned.
However, the runes in Tears of The Kingdom are completely new from Breath of The Wild. It could be debated which games runes are better, however some of the Tears of The Kingdom runes demonstrate clear development and progress between games as they are much more complex. Although it is hard to decide which game has better runes, the runes all in, are much easier to rank, with some being fan favorites, and others being under used. Here is a ranking of all of the best runes in the two games.
8 Magnesis
Magnesis is the first rune that players will unlock when playing Breath of The Wild. This rune allows players to move large metal objects, chests, doors and grates. Magnesis had a few other benefits such as allowing link to drop heavy objects on enemies, or even use said objects as a weapon themselves.
However, Magnesis unfortunately does not have any other uses. Although helpful in specific situations, players will not really find themselves to use this rune unless it is to receive an underwater chest or within a shrine. Thankfully, the equivalent of Magnesis which is featured within Tears of the Kingdom, Ultrahand, has many more benefits and is a rune players cannot get enough of.
7 Recall
Much like Magnesis, Recall is mostly beneficial in specific shrines or puzzles. Unlike other runes can be used for a variety things throughout out the game, making them more practical for players. Recall is a new rune within Tears of the Kingdom which allows Link to temporarily place and object in reverse. Meaning a cog can be made to rotate backward, or a moving cart sent in another direction.
Although sometimes helpful, this rune only really has specific uses. An interesting alternative would perhaps be a rune that sets time back a few seconds or allows players to manipulate more that just set objects. For example players could move a river or water fall in reverse. These concepts could be interested in future games, however for now, it is just the set objects gamers are given with Recall.
6 Cryonis
One other of the four Breath of the Wild runes is Cryonis, a rune which allows players to freeze water into a block of ice. This rune has a few uses. Firstly, Cyronis can be used to cross fast moving bodies of water which Link would normally not be able to swim in. Likewise, Cryonsis can allow players to cross water with low stamina without using up any stamina. Cryonis can also be used to get high ground over water based enemies such as a water octrorok.
Finally, Cryonis is helpful for fishing as one strike to the water with a shock weapon or arrow from a Cryonis block will send all the fish to the surface. Cryonis is certainly a practical rune with many uses and is one that players are bound to miss when playing Tears of the Kingdom.
5 Fuse
Fuse is another rune that was introduced in the sequel, Tears of the Kingdom. This rune essentially allows players to create weapons by merging a pre-existing sword or arrow in the game. This allows players to create a huge amount of new weapons such as flame throwing swords.
Crafting weapons has been a common discussion among Zelda players, so fans were excited to see fuse in Tears of The Kingdom. However, Fuse unfortunately has some downsides. For example, in Breath of the Wild, players could source or buy special arrows, including ancient arrows, ice arrows, bomb arrows, shock arrows and fire arrows. These arrows now need to be crafted using Fuse. This would be a fun addition to the game, however, they cannot be fused in bulk. This means mid enemy fight, players need to quickly Fuse arrows. Likewise, weapons need to be fused per situation and after said situation are sometimes useless. That being said, the Fuse rune is still great fun and allows players to experiment with creating different weapons and exploring which works best.
4 Stasis
A rune that is missed by players is Stasis, a rune from Breath of the Wild that has since been replaced by the recall rune in Tears of the Kingdom. Stasis would temporarily freeze and object or an enemy, aiding players in enemy fights and shrine challenges. When hitting an object frozen by Stasis, players could hit the object, charging it up and sending it flying once the Stasis rune has lifted.
This was a fun way of sending enemies back and one that players loved. This rune was helpful and could be used in a variety of situations. While Stasis is sadly gone from the game for now, it could make a potential comeback in future Zelda games.
3 Ascend
Ascend is by far one of the weirdest runes gamers has seen from the game. Ascend allows players to float through whatever object is directly above Link. Although the visual of watching the games' protagonist emerge from the ground is rather strange, Ascend is one of the best runes brought to the game. Both for the issues it solves and the convenience it brings to players.
One of the more frustrating aspects of Breath of The Wild was the amount of climbing required to fully explore the map and to reach certain shrines. Rain making surfaces slippy and limited stamina only made this problem much worse for players and the new ascend run completely solves these issues. This is a rune gamers will also find themselves using alot making it practical, helpful and one of the best.
2 Remote Bombs
Remote bombs is a rune from Breath of The Wild that is truly missed by players and its absence in Tears of The Kingdom has not gone unnoticed. Remote Bombs do exactly what it says on the tin. This beloved rune allows players to leave bombs and ignite them from a distance, destroying enemy camps, hidden entrances and master difficult boss fights. The best part is that Remote Bombs are unlimited so even with no sword or arrows, players would never be left unarmed.
Bomb flowers attached the arrows and swords is the closest equivalent Tears of The Kingdom has to offer for Remote Bombs. Although this rune is missed by players, without them there is a level of challenge and difficult added to the game, pushing fans out with their comfort zones.
1 Ultrahand
Unlike any other rune Zelda players have seen before, the Ultrahand rune takes The Legend of Zelda franchise to a new level by introducing a completely new element to the game. Limitless crafting. Ultrahand is the first rune players will receive in Tears of The Kingdom and this rune allows players near limitless crafting, allowing players to merge together different objects and items to create something new.
This rune allows players to make boats, ships, cars and tows, adding ease and allowing Link to save stamina. This is especially helpful early on when players have fewer heart containers and stamina bars. Although Ultrahand can be challenging to catch the hang of at first, after a short while player's can easily master the art of using the Ultrahand rune.
Both Tears of the Kingdom and Breath of the Wild are available for Nintendo Switch