The Biggest Plot Holes In Zelda Tears Of The Kingdom

Highlights

Gameplay and overall success of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom praised, but plot holes annoy fans.
Missing explanations for plot holes include absence of ancient hero, disappearance of Divine Beasts, and vanishing Sheikah technology.
Lack of clear timeline, weakened Master Sword, and inconsistent treatment of Breath of the Wild's story also noted as frustrating plot holes.

The much-anticipated sequel to Breath of the Wild, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom succeeds in almost every aspect. While the game has achieved awards for good reason, it does not mean the plot is without error. Various plot holes are clear in the game, from both a casual and fan perspective, ranging from a mild nitpick to completely annoying. The most obvious plotholes mentioned increase in just how annoying they are, and how much a fan of both of these modern Zelda games will notice the missing explanations.

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No plot hole ruins the story in the slightest, but with some of these gaps in narrative logic, it can easily annoy fans of both the former game and the sequel. With both a continuing and time-travel-focused storyline, TotK has several notable plot holes for players to stumble into.

6 No Hero In Ancient Hyrule's Past

There Are Ancestors To Modern Hyrule Characters, But No Link Of The Past

legend-of-zelda-tears-of-the-kingdom-totk-armor-ancient-heros-aspect-unlocked

One plot hole that flies under the radar for many players stems from an omission that only becomes more and more obvious as the player progresses. Even though there's an armor reward that shows a Zonai hero of an ancient Hyrule, presumably a previous incarnation of Link, there's never a hero shown in the cutscenes of ancient Hyrule, despite the presence of Ganondorf and Zelda.

Link holding a Naydra Blade and a Naydra Hammer

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While there are ancestors of Zelda and the various Sages in the current day, the lack of an ancient hero only stands out more and more as each flashback plays out, especially as Ganondorf and Rauru approach their fates in the past, with no hero to truly stop the great evil.

5 The Location Of The Divine Beasts

A Complete Disappearance Of The Most Striking Feature

One of the most apparent missing features from Breath of the Wild's Hyrule is the disappearance of the titanic Divine Beasts. While their presence in the first game was somewhat divisive as a new iteration of the classic dungeon, the physical presence of these giant mecha animals was a positive addition to the world, both as a landmark and as lore. In Tears of the Kingdom, however, the seemingly sudden disappearance of the Beasts is immediately obvious.

The worst part of this vanishing act is how it's not addressed in the game's story. Various fan theories come to the logical conclusion that the Divine Beasts have been dismantled due to their fatal flaw of being susceptible to Ganon's possession. Still, that lack of detail in Tears itself is sorely needed.

4 The Remnants Of Sheikah Technology

The Most Powerful And Plot-Focused Tools Now Missing

As one of the defining new additions to this iteration of Hyrule, the sudden vanishment of all sorts of Sheikah technology certainly raises a few eyebrows, especially given how integral and powerful the equipment was in the first game. While the newly accessible Zonai technology functionally replaces Sheikah technology in every way, the disappearance of the seemingly integral machinery to Ganon's defeat is still strange for fans of Breath of the Wild.

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Following along with the Divine Beasts going missing, the loss of the Sheikah tech remains a mystery, but unlike the powerful mechs, bits and pieces of Sheikah devices can still be found throughout Hyrule. While the director of Tears of the Kingdom has commented on this sudden disappearance, a lack of an in-game answer persists. At the very least, the lack of the terrifying Guardians isn't too much of a downside.

3 The Time Gap Between Breath Of The Wild And Tears Of The Kingdom

No Concrete Answer To How Different This Once-Familiar Hyrule Is

The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom TOTK Link driving custom-built vehicle in Akkala

One of the more perplexing plot holes for fans of both Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom is the exact time skip between the first game and the sequel. While it seems that, for the most part, TotK takes place only a handful of years after the annihilation of Ganon, there are strange little details that don't suggest a concrete number of years since the original.

Phantom Ganon's introduction and title beside a King Gleeok

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Some NPC characters from Tarrey Town will suddenly have an older child, but at the same time, locations such as Castle Town look like time has only passed by a year or two. The vague timeline may allow for flexibility with what has changed in Hyrule since the Calamity's end, but it doesn't clear up the overall story.

2 The Power And Purpose Of The Master Sword

The Master Sword Fails At It's One Job

Since this plothole happens within the first ten or so minutes of Tears of the Kingdom, the issue of just how strong the Master Sword is supposed to be is glaring. Despite having such grand titles including the Sword that Seals the Darkness and having divine power specifically made to destroy the powers of evil, the Master Sword shatters the moment it's used to defend Zelda and Link from Ganondorf.

Although it's up for debate that Ganondorf not using any power for thousands of years has made this first direct attack especially powerful, hence the disastrous effect on the Master Sword, it's still strange. Of course, this entire sequence serves as a power reset from the events of Breath of the Wild, along with setting up a later plot for the Master Sword's rebirth, but the fact that the sword fails instantly is puzzling.

1 The Relevance Of Breath Of The Wild's Story In The Sequel

A Continuing Story That Doesn't Commit To Being A Sequel

Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild Main View of the Overworld from Cliffside

The most annoying plot hole of all within Tears of the Kingdom is just how much it is or isn't a direct sequel to Breath of the Wild, and all the vague ways NPCs and the game will treat the events of the first game's story.

Important characters from the first game, such as Prince Sidon and the other sages, instantly recognize Link and reference the shared past they have, but other side characters have no idea how important the princess's bodyguard is. Even though Zelda and Link literally lived in the same house, a house that Link bought in Hateno Village, the Hero of the Wilds may as well be any adventurer in the slowly rebuilding Hyrule.