WhileThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomhas impressed critics and fans alike as a soaring follow-up toBreath of the Wild, it still falls short of allowing players to explore Hyrule’s uncharted regions. As an ambitious new direction forZelda,Breath of the Wildinitially divided players with its open-world design, stamina and durability mechanics, and all-new voice acting, though it ultimately secured itself as a fan favorite as arguably one of the best games in the series. So as a sequel, expectations were high forThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomto polish its predecessor’s rougher edges.
Following early trailers giving players a preview of what to expect from the upcoming sequel, certain details stood out that seemed to hint toward potentialunderwater exploration forTears of the Kingdom. However, as this was never explicitly confirmed before launch, and now withTears of the Kingdomofficially released, it seems that going any deeper into Hyrule’s waters beyond a simple swim was never on the cards for the sequel. This still hasn’t assuaged demand for underwater exploration to return toZelda, especially since most of the mechanics, animations, and assets already exist to make diving a reality.
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Zelda: Breath of the Wild Seemed Close To Underwater Exploration
As a newcomer to theZeldaseries and its uniquely diverse range of game styles and designs,Breath of the Wilddidn’t exactly bear any expectations to include every single mechanic that otherZeldagames had. So while underwater exploration had featured in the likes ofOcarina of TimeandSkyward Sword, it didn’t factor intoBreath of the Wild’sgameplay. However, through the efforts of determined fans and the inevitable nature of glitches, players discovered that they couldglitch underwater inBreath of the Wildto reveal a whole new world populated with fish, coral, and more.
Theories following this suggested that, though this may have just been meticulous attention to detail for environmental design, these also could have been leftover elements of underwater exploration. Support for this theory could be found from comments made by developers such as how certain ideas didn’t make it into the final game such as the eventual addition of the Master Cycle as DLC, or how other ideas were inspired by developers' interests in spelunking and skydiving. As a result, while sky and cave exploration factored intoTears of the Kingdom, fans hoped theBreath of the Wildsequel would finally explore the seas.
Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Came Even Closer to Underwater Exploration
Ultimately, players were never able to dive underwater inTears of the Kingdom, though this didn’t stop the sequel from significantly expanding the open world by introducing both sky islands and a vast underground expanse. The lack of underwater exploration, therefore, wasn’t a pressing concern for most fans, but it does seem thatTears of the Kingdomhad practically everything it needed in place to introduce this. For instance, the diving animation that fans mistook as a hint toward underwater exploration inTears of the Kingdomstill has interesting water-related uses, such as tutorials andshrine challengesencouraging players to aim for water to break their falls.
In addition to this, other small design details seem to hint toward underwater exploration having been a possibility forTears of the Kingdom.Link’s new Ascend abilitywhich allowed vertical travel has an animation for this transition that shows Link “swimming” upward, while players eventually learn that they can intentionally go down sinkholes and whirlpools to reach hidden areas. Developers have also confirmed that once again there are leftover ideas that didn’t make it intoTears of the Kingdom, which means that Hyrule’s unexplored rivers, lakes, and seas open the door to potential DLC or even an ambitious threequel.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomis available now on Nintendo Switch.
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