The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Lore & Background

Tears of the Kingdom takes place a number of years after Breath of the Wild, at the end of the Zelda timeline. Link and Zelda explore a cavern beneath Hyrule Castle from which a poisonous substance called gloom has been seeping, causing illness. They find murals depicting the founding of Hyrule and the Imprisoning War, an ancient battle against the Demon King. A mummy restrained by a disembodied arm awakens and attacks; Link's right arm is wounded, the Master Sword is shattered, Hyrule Castle is raised into the sky, and Zelda falls into the depths. Link is rescued by the arm, awakening on the Great Sky Island where it has replaced his damaged limb. He meets the spirit of Rauru, a Zonai, who helps him traverse the island.

Link learns that the event in the cavern, known as the Upheaval, has wrought chaos upon Hyrule. He reunites with allies Sidon, Tulin, Yunobo, and Riju, and ventures into ancient Zonai temples. After defeating monsters, they find secret stones and meet spirits of ancient sages who appoint Link's allies as successors. Link discovers that an illusion of Zelda at Hyrule Castle is created by Phantom Ganon, a servant of Ganondorf. Through Mineru, the last ancient sage, and Dragon's Tears, Link learns that Zelda was transported to the distant past, met Rauru and Sonia, and after Ganondorf killed Sonia and became the Demon King, Rauru sacrificed himself to seal Ganondorf. Zelda received the shattered Master Sword from the future, swallowed her secret stone to undergo draconification, becoming the immortal Light Dragon to repair the sword and bring it to Link.

In the present, Link retrieves the repaired Master Sword from the Light Dragon and confronts Ganondorf below Hyrule Castle. With aid from Sidon, Tulin, Yunobo, Riju, and Mineru, Link battles an army of monsters and then Ganondorf himself. Nearing defeat, Ganondorf swallows his secret stone, becoming the Demon Dragon. With help from the Light Dragon, Link shatters the Demon Dragon's secret stone, killing it. The spirits of Rauru and Sonia help return Zelda to normal and restore Link's arm before fading away. Link and Zelda reunite on the surface. Later, Mineru bids farewell and fades away, while the new sages vow to protect Hyrule.

Reader's Guide

Tears of the Kingdom was developed by Nintendo EPD after the completion of Breath of the Wild. The gameplay concepts originated from ideas for Breath of the Wild downloadable content that exceeded the scope. The developers were inspired by social media posts to create mechanics that encouraged experimentation, and drew inspiration from Wii Sports Resort (2009), The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011), and Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018), seeking to develop a game similar to but distinct from Breath of the Wild. Nintendo announced the game via a teaser at E3 2019, before its full reveal at E3 2021. It was released on May 12, 2023, to acclaim, with praise for its expanded world, new mechanics, scale, and story, though the frame rate received criticism. It sold over 10 million copies within three days and 22.71 million by June 2026, making it the Switch's eighth-bestselling game. An enhanced version was released for the Nintendo Switch 2 in June 2025, while a spin-off, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, was released in November 2025.

Did You Know?

• The game sold over 10 million copies within three days of release.
• It introduced five new powers: Ultrahand, Fuse, Ascend, Recall, and Autobuild.
• The Depths is a dark underground area that requires items to illuminate and contains hazards such as lava and gloom.