At the moment, there are a couple bigThe Legend of Zeldagames on their way. The first one isThe Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD, a remaster of the Wii classic with a few new quality of life features. Players will be able to return to Skyloft and re-experience the first chronological game in the series, currently only predated by ashort manga piece included with theHyrule Historia. Link, Zelda, and the ancient curse that bore Ganondorf all feature in this game, as well as a sky-and-land gameplay loop that, until the next upcomingZeldagame, was mostly concentrated inSkyward Sword.
That upcoming game is none other thanThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2.Breath of the Wild 2has been known about for a couple years now, but nothing came of it until this past E3. The show ended on a short trailer that was light on solid details, but was full of promise and ideas for fans to mull over. Until the 2022 release date draws near, there’s not going to be a lot of solid details on what exactly the various things teased in the trailer are. However, it seems like the decision to bringSkyward Swordback beforeBreath of the Wild 2was no idle decision; the games seem to share a lot of the same DNA.
RELATED:The Legend of Zelda: The Skyward Sword and Breath of the Wild 2 Are Inherently Opposites
Two Zelda Games With A Focus on The Sky
One of the most obvious elements shared betweenSkyward SwordandBreath of the Wild 2are their focus on ground and aerial exploration.Breath of the Wildwas always known for its massive focus on verticality, and itowes that foundation toSkyward Sword. The Wii title first introduced enhanced stamina movement and brought limited paragliding back fromThe Wind Waker.
Breath of the Wildadded climbing and more controlled flight elements, andBreath of the Wild 2looks to synthesize all of that by making the open air navigable by Link himself. No longer stuck on a Loftwing, it seems Link can sail and skydive in Hyrule’s skies to his heart’s content. This is a fascinating return to the Skyloft concept, and could be done a lot better now thanks toBotW’s preference for making its open world feel full.
There’s a lot that could, and most likely will,return fromSkyward Swordon this front. Skydiving from the air to the earth, teleporting from the earth to the sky, and exploring the aerial islands on various wind currents will all probably make a return. At least one aerial town is likely, judging byBreath of the Wild 2’s trailer, though whether it was lifted up alongside the rest of Hyrule or there the whole time is another matter. Aerial dungeons weren’t inSkyward Sword, but there was technically an aerial boss in the form of Levias’ parasite.Breath of the Wild 2could easily have dragons roaming between sky and earth, which would definitely give players a fright.
RELATED:Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2’s Playable Ganondorf Theory Explained
Does Breath of the Wild 2 Have A Time Travel Plot?
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2’s reveal trailer had an air of mystery around it. Fans couldn’t help but notice that it seemed like Link had an extremely different design at some points in the trailer. It almost looks like the ancient mural display of a red-haired hero fighting Calamity Ganon in the past that has been prominent inBotWlore. While Link is still blond and doesn’t have waist-length hair like this figure (theGanondorf-like mummy monsterseems to fit the bill more), he is wearing the same clothes and general hairstyle.
Fans have also noticed that in the new trailer, Link is in his old get-up while exploring a Hyrule conspicuously devoid of floating islands. It may be that Hyrule Castle is the only area floating in present times, and to solve that, Link needs to take on the role of an ancient hero in the ancient skies.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Swordisno stranger to time travel, and features quite a lot of it in one specific area. The Lanayru Desert is full of time travelling opportunities thanks to the Timeshift Stones that dot the region, allowing Link to visit a surprisingly mechanized version of the past. In parallel toBreath of the Wild 2possibly letting players sail the skies in its ancient past,Skyward Swordgave players the chance to sail through an ancient sea.
Timeshift stones on vehicles could be used to turn sandy areas back into water, and enable the mechanisms that allowed old vessels to sail the sea. There’s also the memorable ending sequence, which also takes place in the past. It’s not clear how Link can travel through time and space inBreath of the Wild 2, but the answer probably lies in some ancient pieces of tech interfacing with his new arm and shooting him into the sky.
Themed Dungeons Like Skyward Sword’s Could Return in Breath of the Wild 2
One major feature everyone wants to see back inBreath of the Wild 2is the themed dungeonsof 3DZelda’s past. These were largely absent fromBreath of the Wild, being replaced with the aesthetically similar Divine Beasts and Sheikah Shrines. Apart from these, there were the three labyrinths, Eventide Island, and Hyrule Castle. Nothing else was quite as grand as a typicalZeldadungeon, and even the shrines and Beasts became repetitive.
WhileSkyward Swordlacked dungeons in the sky, it did have some of the strongest ones in the series by fan reckoning. These include the beautiful, Buddhist myth-based Ancient Cistern, theinteresting Timeshift Stone-focused Lanayru Mining Facility, and the incredibly cool time-travelling Sandship. It remains to be seen whetherBreath of the Wild 2can match any of these incredibly strong dungeons, but with the sky and seemingly beneath the earth open to it now, the upcoming open worldZeldacan give players plenty of interesting places to explore.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2is due out for Nintendo Switch in 2022.
MORE:The Biggest Gameplay Differences in the New Breath of the Wild 2 Trailer
