In a few short months, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be out. Fans everywhere are eagerly anticipating seeing more about this mysterious game, especially as the full extent of its new additions remain unclear. Tears of the Kingdom will have to differentiate itself from Breath of the Wild in big ways, and while it has begun to roll out previews of new mechanics, the games still look very similar. Hopefully, Nintendo will be able to put some of these concerns to rest in the coming weeks, as many anticipate that Tears of the Kingdom will receive its own dedicated Zelda Direct very soon.
Even without a lot of new features being confirmed yet, there are still plenty of new adventures to be had in Tears of the Kingdom. Hyrule has expanded vertically, featuring a number of sky islands climbing high into the air and seemingly also a network of underground tunnels. To cross these vast distances, Link can now employ vehicles that seem to have a crafting system straight out of Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts. With all the potential crafting projects and abilities from Link's new arm, classic Zelda items with similar uses have fallen by the wayside. That said, Tears of the Kingdom would be the perfect place to bring back a signature traversal tool notably absent from Breath of the Wild.
3D Zelda’s Standby Aerial Tool Has Been The Hookshot
Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom aren't the first times that players have been able to traverse Hyrule's skies, though unlike flying with a Loftwing in Skyward Sword, the open world titles worked gliding directly into Link's kit. Aerial mobility is a special privilege in The Legend of Zelda, with the simple concept of a permanent jump button only featured in a couple of titles. The Game Boy and Game Boy Advance Zelda games often included the function as a major mid to late game power, enabling the player to access areas they couldn't before. However, both 2D and 3D Legend of Zelda games share a common method of soaring over impassable gaps.
Hookshots have been a part of the Zelda series since its early days. Almost every major game between A Link to the Past and Skyward Sword has had some form of Hookshot present. While these can be used on distant enemies and loose items, their main purpose always pertains to movement. Using a Hookshot, players can use certain targets to hurtle across the environment and reach new areas.
The top-down 2D games mostly used this as another method to cross gaps, but in 3D titles Hookshots are often positioned as the only method to travel upwards in later dungeons. Having taken many forms over the years, Hookshots and their variants are always a welcome sight, as they promise exploration of new areas and reaching new heights.
Tears of the Kingdom Plays Up Zelda’s Verticality
That pitch should sound very familiar to modern Zelda players, as it's roughly how one would describe Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. Scaling vertical surfaces during adventures are a regular part of the open world Zelda games, and Link has never had so many ways to get around before. Breath of the Wild alone brought Skyward Sword's Sailcloth back as the endlessly useful Paraglider, which could then be coupled with any high ledge or Revali's Gale to soar across the wilderness. That's not even getting into advanced travel techniques that bring in other abilities like Stasis launching.
While Tears of the Kingdom is adding on to those traversal methods with various flying machines, floating platforms, and ways to zip into the sky, fans are wondering if it could go further. Plenty of classic Legend of Zelda items have yet to make their way into the latest version of Hyrule, though only a few holdouts would bring something new to TotK. There's no need for things like the Spinner or the Roc's Feather when automobiles and free jumping are on the table. However, even with multiple ways to reach the sky, the Hookshot would still add a lot to the airborne experience.
How The Hookshot Could Work In Tears of the Kingdom
As Link's Sheikah Slate abilities appear to have been subsumed by his new arm, it stands to reason that said arm could produce effects based on past Zelda items like Breath of the Wild's Bombs. The Hookshot, which could be manifested as a chain from Link's palm, would be perfect for this setup. Having a Hookshot could complement Tears of the Kingdom's existing climbing system, allowing Link to alleviate some of climbing's tedium by chaining together risky leaps. Adding on to this, aerial Hookshot use could trigger the slow motion associated with archery, and an upgrade could be found to change it into the even more versatile Longshot.
Grappling to one wall and then turning around to grapple to another recalls Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword's Double Clawshots to mind. Serving as the most advanced form of Hookshot in 3D Zelda, fans would love to see the Clawshots make a return, and Tears of the Kingdom could make it happen. Not only does this allow Link to grapple between his various flying machines and sky islands like he was Rico from Just Cause, it also opens the door to even larger setpieces than those offered in BotW. Players could truly go anywhere and do anything, and the epic sky battles capable with just a Clawshot and the climbing mechanics alone would make Tears of the Kingdom tough to pass up.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be released for the Nintendo Switch on May 12, 2023.
