Highlights

  • The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom draws inspiration from Skyward Sword, featuring floating Sky Islands that add a unique element to the game's world.
  • The implementation of the floating islands in Tears of the Kingdom feels fresh and immersive, showcasing the advancements and new approach of Nintendo in recent years.
  • Wind Waker's setting of a world covered in water and the sense of discovery it provided could serve as a perfect template for a future Zelda game, offering players a fresh take on the open-world formula.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was one of 2023's biggest releases. Following up Breath of the Wild, one of the games that has defined the Nintendo Switch's legacy as a console, was no easy task, but Tears of the Kingdom's new mechanics that allow players to combine and build objects set it apart as one of the most open-ended sandbox games ever made. This is not to say that it is above criticism, however. Some have criticized Tears of the Kingdom for its similarity to BotW, most notably its reuse of the map. This critique is interesting because Tears of the Kingdom's biggest inspiration is in many ways Skyward Sword, a Zelda game first released on the Wii.

Skyward Sword has a complex legacy. Some players remember the game extremely fondly for its unique take on Zelda lore, serving as an origin story of sorts for the timeline. The game also featured unique design decisions that made it feel fresh and set it apart from other entries in the series. One of its defining characteristics was that it was set on floating Sky Islands. On the other hand, Skyward Sword's difficult controls are controversial. Its use of Wii Motion Plus made it immersive, but there was a lot of fatigue around motion controls at the time, and the implementation often felt clunky. The HD remaster released on Switch navigated this situation by allowing players to use more traditional control methods.

Tears of the Kingdom Link and monsters falling from Sky Island
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Tears of the Kingdom Learned a Lot from Skyward Sword

Tears of the Kingdom brought back the Sky Islands that defined Skyward Sword and built on the concept. Players can launch themselves into the air from the land below, seamlessly implementing the floating islands into the game's larger world. Navigating around in the air always feels high stakes because, outside certain scripted content, there's always the threat of plummeting back down to Hyrule. TotK presents a more immersive version of what Nintendo first dreamed up back on the Wii. Sky Islands are one of the best parts of Tears of the Kingdom, and their excellent design can be attributed in large part to the foundations laid by Skyward Sword.

Skyward Sword inspired one of the best parts of Tears of the Kingdom, but that never made it feel unoriginal. The leaps in technology and Nintendo's new approach to the series in recent years make TotK's implementation of floating islands feel unique. For their next Zelda title, Nintendo should revisit some of the ideas present in another one of their older games. Wind Waker was set in a world flooded with water, requiring Link to sail around to various islands and other locations. The setting of Wind Waker and the ambiance it lends the game still stand out as unique to it, even though sailing is in TotK as well.

Wind Waker is the Perfect Template for a New Zelda

The Legend of Zelda Movie Wind Waker Adaptation

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker begins on a small island before Link acquires a boat and sets out on his adventure, allowing players to discover the rest of the world. At the time, it was expansive and to this day it remains one of Zelda's best overworld maps. Placing Link into another world covered with water would be an exciting way to follow up Tears of the Kingdom. Open-world Zelda games have thrived because of the sense of discovery they provide. Allowing players to sail all over a new version of Hyrule and discover new islands and their secrets would feel like a fresh take on the open-world Zelda formula.

A New Zelda Game Could Do More With an Aquatic Setting

A new Zelda game set at sea could allow players to dive underwater to discover things or feature naval combat. It's been a long time since Wind Waker released and Nintendo's innovations in the time since would make revisiting the idea a thrill for players. The Link of Wind Waker is a unique one as well, as is the Zelda of that world, Tetra. While Tetra herself is unlikely to return, a new Zelda game could draw inspiration from her and provide a more rough-around-the-edges version of the character. Borrowing from Wind Waker would make the next game in the series a refreshing departure.