Four Ways That The New Tears of the Kingdom Trailer Builds Excitement for The Game’s Release

It has been six years since Nintendo dropped the story trailer for Breath of the Wild, which I consider to be the best video game trailer ever made. This story trailer proved to be an extremely effective tool for building anticipation for Breath of the Wild, and the three-minute video gave fans their first real look at new design elements like voice acting.

After years of leaving fans in the dark about the sequel to Breath of the Wild, Nintendo has pulled back the curtain on the secretive project. The promotional rollout has culminated with the Tears of the Kingdom Trailer #3, which was released on April 13th. Much like the story trailer for Breath of the Wild, Tears of the Kingdom Trailer #3 is filled to the brim with new enemies, areas, characters, and story hints about a huge upcoming game. It has been a joyful experience reflecting on how this new trailer addresses key questions about Tears of the Kingdom, as well as how the trailer highlights new design ideas and developments in the series.

This article will break down some of the most exciting revelations from a trailer that will likely go down as one of Nintendo’s best. With less than a month to Tears of the Kingdom’s release, here are four elements of the trailer that should make everyone excited for the game’s impending release.

 

1. Ganondorf Is Officially Back

The most significant revelation from the Tears of the Kingdom trailer is the official confirmation that the Great King of Evil has returned. For years, there has been evidence to suggest that the mummified figure shown in the initial announcement trailer for “the sequel to Breath of the Wild“ was some variation of Ganon or Ganondorf, but Nintendo has been frustratingly vague on the identity of this character. The second official Tears of the Kingdom trailer revealed the harsh and gravelly voice of the villain (it has since been confirmed that notable voice actor Matthew Mercer will provide Ganondorf’s English language voice). In this final trailer, the audience is shown what seems to be Ganondorf’s resurrection, and the video lingers long enough to show viewers a figure with a familiar red beard as he is restored to health. After the trailer was shown, Nintendo released a tweet confirming the identity of the character and showcasing his new design. This new version of Ganondorf has a wild mane of red hair (including a topknot), golden jewelry, and a broad, muscular physique.

The Ganondorf reveal is arguably the most exciting element of the Tears of the Kingdom trailer, and this new version of Ganondorf could address one of my major criticisms of Breath of the Wild. One of the biggest disappointments in Breath of the Wild was its main villain: Calamity Ganon. The beast has no real personality for the player to build a connection to, and it feels like an afterthought in Nintendo’s vividly designed open world. Calamity Ganon’s lack of a voice and personality make the monster relatively forgettable, particularly because Breath of the Wild is the first mainline Zelda game to include significant voice acting. It is disappointing that Princess Zelda and other key characters received voice acting while the main villain remained voiceless. We cannot say with absolute certainty that Ganondorf is the main villain in Tears of the Kingdom, but it is a fair assumption to make at this point in time. If the character is not the main villain of the upcoming game, then his role in the story becomes even more intriguing.

Since A Link To The Past, some of the best games in the Zelda series have succeeded by having humanoid  villains, or some type of villain capable of speech, who can taunt and confront Link at different points in the story. When a player sees villains like Ganondorf, Zant, and Ghirahim being cruel to Link or Zelda, these simple encounters help build anticipation for the inevitable final battle with these hated foes. By giving Ganondorf a voice, as well as a familiar form (at least for part of the game), Nintendo could be giving the Zelda community a new version of the iconic villain that they can look forward to having a strong emotional connection to.

 

2. New Locations and Enemies

One major question leading into Tears of the Kingdom‘s release is: “How different will the game be in terms of world design and mechanics when compared directly to Breath of the Wild?” Nintendo has been their own worst enemy in this department, with Nintendo’s lack of communication leaving gaming websites and YouTube channels to wildly speculate on the game’s design, mechanics, and story. This new trailer goes a long way in assuaging some of the concerns about the two games being too similar. While it is true that the trailer shows some of the same overworld locations from Breath of the Wild, it also showcases some of the changes in the overworld, as well as revealing new sky areas and enemies. Ultimately, it will be up to each player to decide how they feel about a game that reuses the art style and uses a similar game world as its predecessor.

Overall, the trailer shows a variety of new locations in the sky islands; these floating landmasses appear to be the most significant additions to the world of Hyrule in Tears of the Kingdom. After seeing the trailer and gameplay demonstration, it seems like there will be plenty of areas to explore in the skies above Hyrule. The new ability “Recall” seems like an exciting new mechanics that players will enjoy experimenting with. Some of the locations in the sky looked wild, including a massive sphere and a Mission Impossible-esque parachute descent down a pit riddled with lasers. The trailer also shows what appears to be new underground areas or transformed areas found in the overworld. There are several shots of a massive building rising out of the ground, and another shot of strange holes forming in the Gerudo Desert. My favorite footage from the trailer is Link waiting for some type of flying ship (1:30), which I hope serves as the equivalent of a dungeon in Tears of the Kingdom. In short, while it seems to be a geographically similar Hyrule, it seems like exploration will take different forms in Tears of the Kingdom.

The trailer also provides some footage of new enemies and potential bosses. Seeing some of these enemies has already helped address some of my criticisms about the lack of enemy diversity and enemy variety in Breath of the Wild. In addition to the Bokoblins, Octoroks, Lynels, and other standards enemies from Breath of the Wild (some of which have new design elements), viewers also got a better look at some of the constructs introduced in the gameplay demonstration. There is even a shot of a construct attacking a Chuchu early in the trailer, which makes me wonder how these robots will interact with more dangerous enemies. In terms of larger enemies or potential bosses, the trailer showed a massive robot/construct (1:46), a massive bone-like monster/shark chasing Link through the sky (2:40), some type of crocodile Link  is fighting on a sky island (3:05), and a massive three-headed dragon. While the three-headed dragon (since confirmed to be Gleeok) was partially visible in the previous trailer, it is thrilling to see the creature in more detail. Breath of the Wild relied on its relatively small pool of enemies for its numerous combat encounters, so it is exciting to see some new creatures being introduced to help give the combat more variety in Tears of the Kingdom.

 

3. Fighting Alongside Link’s Allies

One of the other intriguing details Trailer #3 is footage of Riju and Sidon fighting alongside Link. Riju and Sidon are both well-liked characters, and it is great that they are returning in Tears of the Kingdom. The footage of Sidon and Riju in Tears of the Kingdom is another parallel to the story trailer for Breath of the Wild, which also included some of the first footage of the two characters. There is also a shot of a Rito flying alongside Link, who has now been confirmed to be Tulin, Teba’s son, which has lead many fans to question where Teba is during the events of Tears of the Kingdom. Link’s journeys in the Zelda series have usually been solitary, so it is out of the ordinary to see other characters fighting alongside Link, especially in gameplay. Having characters fight with Link can help build a connection between the player and key NPCs, and it can help make the world feel interconnected. While I expect these characters to only assist Link during key sequences, having Link fighting alongside beloved allies has the potential to be a dream come true for many players.

In addition to key characters like Sidon, Riju, and Tulin fighting side by side with Link, there are hints that some individuals on the ground may be battling Ganondorf’s forces. At 1:38 in the trailer, there is some footage of Link riding towards Fort Hateno, with Bokoblins and a Moblin facing off against Hylians. While there were some Hylians fighting Bokoblins in Breath of the Wild, there was usually only one or two Hylians facing off against one or two Bokoblins, so it looks like the scale of these conflicts may have grown in Tears of the Kingdom. At 3:13, there is also a shot of Link standing with a coalition that includes a Goron, Gerudo, and several Hylians. It will be interesting to see if Link will have some side quests that relate to helping Hylians (or individuals from other Zelda tribes) defeat enemy forces. If that is the case, it would add another type of quest to Tears of the Kingdom. Breath of the Wild greatly expanded the world of Hyrule, and its successor can continue building out the world by giving Link more ways to interact with NPCs.

 

4. Story Hints and Mystery Characters

The story of Tears of the Kingdom has been shrouded in mystery for its entire development. This latest trailer gave some hints about the direction of the story, but it still leaves many unanswered questions. With a game as anticipated as Tears of the Kingdom, having some mysteries surrounding the upcoming story gives the community something to discuss right up to the game’s launch. Much like Breath of the Wild‘s story trailer, Trailer #3 includes some voices-overs that hint at the overall conflict of the story. Princess Zelda in particular has several key lines of dialogue in the trailer. The resurrection of Ganondorf seems to be an important part of the story, and it is showcased prominently in the second half of the trailer.

The trailer also shows several shots of mysterious gray-skinned individuals who have some unnamed role in the story (1:41). The figure seen in the mural of the original Tears of the Kingdom trailer bears a striking similarity to the woman with the glowing palm shown at 3:09. These characters have not yet been identified or named by Nintendo, though one character is shown placing their hands on Zelda’s shoulders in a familiar gesture. Zelda’s role in Tears of the Kingdom has been a key discussion point in the community for years, but the trailer did not provide any definitive answers. There are some shots of Princess Zelda with ancient jewelry, as well as a more primitive outfit compared to the blue outfit she wears in Breath of the Wild. From the dialogue and footage, it looks like Link and Zelda will be separated at some point in the game (perhaps through time or space). The story trailer for Breath of the Wild also showed Zelda in two different outfits, and these two outfits ended up being primarily used in the two different time periods, so it is possible that Zelda’s outfits in Tears of the Kingdom will also relate to two different time periods.

The trailer also shows what might be the game’s key collectible: tears. At 2:48, Princess Zelda is shown to be holding what looks like a tear in her hands. Some fans have noticed some small glowing objects are visible in different scenes from throughout the trailer. In the first official trailer for Tears of the Kingdom, a mural was shown with a figure surrounded by seven tear-like objects, so perhaps players will have to gather all seven tears as a part of their quest to save Hyrule from Ganondorf. Seven is a significant number in the Zelda franchise; there are seven maidens in A Link To The Past and seven sages in Ocarina of Time. Like Breath of the Wild‘s story trailer, this trailer sets up a dramatic battle for Hyrule, with the connection between Link and Zelda being at the heart of the game’s stakes.

 

Conclusion – It’s Finally Here

Tears of the Kingdom will launch on May 12th, marking the end of a massive six year gap between mainline Zelda games. The road from Breath of the Wild to Tears of the Kingdom has been a rocky one, with multiple delays and a frustrating lack of communication from Nintendo. It is still unclear how players will be feel about the new crafting mechanics revealed for Tears of the Kingdom, but Nintendo has finally given Tears of the Kingdom the epic, eye-popping trailer that the game deserves. Just like Breath of the Wild‘s story trailer, this final Tears of the Kingdom trailer is grand in scope and filled to the brim with new footage for the community to discuss. It is amazing how just three minutes of footage can exponentially increase the excitement for a game. Buckle up Zelda fans, Tears of the Kingdom is almost here.

What things in Tears of the Kingdom Trailer #3 made you the most excited for the game’s release? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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