Highlights
- Nintendo's Tears of the Kingdom is a monumental achievement with a beautiful open world and refined gameplay, making it one of the Switch's best games.
- The decision to take off Link's fused arm feels like a misstep, as it had a lot of potential for future installments and could have added to the game's open-ended philosophy.
- Rauru's arm in Tears of the Kingdom offers endless possibilities and could have been a means to introduce new abilities for Link, expanding on the franchise's direction and keeping it fresh.
Though there have been plenty of critically and commercially acclaimed titles in The Legend of Zelda franchise, it's hard to think that Tears of the Kingdom isn't a monumental achievement from Nintendo. Its beautiful open world, refined gameplay, and endless potential for creative ideas make it one of the Switch's best games, and one that will likely stand the test of time in the years and decades to come.
While the Sheikah Slate is the catalyst for the tools and abilities in Breath of the Wild, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom takes a different approach, having Link fuse with Rauru's arm to grant him the abilities of a Zonai. It's a great inclusion, both mechanically and narratively, but the final decision to take it off Link's hands feels like a misstep as it had a lot of potential in future installments.
Link Sacrifices His Newfound Powers
One of the key narrative components of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom's surprisingly great story is Link's new arm, bestowed upon him by Rauru, the first king of Hyrule and the leader of the Zonai. This gives the protagonist access to abilities such as Fuse, Ascend, and Ultrahand, which each make getting around the world and overcoming its obstacles far easier. However, at the close of Tears of the Kingdom, Link's arm is restored as the characters seemingly ride off into the sunset in preparation for another inevitable adventure.
It wasn't surprising, as most Zelda games aren't closely connected, meaning it's cleaner to have Link give back these powers so that he can be rebuilt with other ideas in future entries. The series is known for innovation and never staying with a particular style or format for too long, but with Zelda seemingly adopting a more open-ended philosophy moving forward, it would have made a lot of sense for the abilities, or even some new ones, to make a return. Traveling through Hyrule without them would feel like a huge restriction now that players have tasted the freedom they bring.
Rauru's Hand Granted Endless Possibilities
The abilities that are bestowed upon Link at the beginning of Tears of the Kingdom are immensely useful, but are largely supplemental to make traversal and exploration easier. This makes them more of a necessity than a luxury, and subsequent evolutions on the 2023 masterpiece have to either include them or find a way to replace them. Rauru's arm could also be a viable means to introduce different abilities that are in keeping with the setting of the next title, giving Link more power than his conventional sword and shield set-up. He's had the same skill set since the first game in 1986, and as the franchise takes a new direction, it could be the best time to expand on what Link can do.
Rauru's hand also goes a long way to connect players to the history of Hyrule, as dense as it may be. Different incarnations of Link are scattered across the land's storied past, but none have been as steeped in heritage as Rauru is. Instead of the hero giving the arm back at the end of Tears of the Kingdom it could have been a fun, and progressive plan to have him keep it a while and integrate it into his character. Like Nero in Devil May Cry, a celestial arm is an interesting trait and one that can offer so many gameplay benefits to keep The Legend of Zelda fresh for years to come.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is available for Nintendo Switch.
