While players have been looking to the skies asThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, it seems that a new opportunity to better explore the Leviathans was hiding right beneath Link’s feet and is now freshly unearthed thanks to the sequel’s floating islands. Despite potential links to previousZeldagames such asSkyward Sword’sLevias' uncanny resemblance to the Eldin Great Skeleton or the similarly whale-like Wind Fish inLink’s Awakening, the Leviathans' only confirmed canonical appearance was their introduction inBreath of the Wild. But just likethe mystery of the Zonai, there was little for players to discover.
As a result, a sequel toBreath of the Wildpresents the ideal opportunity to revisit just a few of these mysterious loose threads across the game’s lore. Given their enormous scale inZeldaboth figurative and literal, one of these threads ought to be allowing players to explore the Leviathans' history in greater detail, even if their backstory is not integral to the main plot ofThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. To go beyondBreath of the Wild’sthree skeletons,Tears of the Kingdomand its sky islands could expose hidden caves below Hyrule and some Leviathan archeology.
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Underground Exploration Teased in Tears of the Kingdom’s Trailers
ThoughBreath of the Wildgave more than enough to explore across its open world, there were still some limitations such as the lack of underwater or subterranean exploration. Since the likes of caves and lakes hiding secrets have been commonplace throughoutZeldaand their absence felt forBreath of the Wild, it was hoped thatTears of the Kingdomcould explore more than just the sky. What was therefore promising was the recurring sight of underground areas throughoutTears of the Kingdom’strailers, including its latest which featured footage of Link battling a Stone Talus in a cavern.
A potential answer to the question of why these caves were missing fromBreath of the Wildbut are now accessible inTears of the Kingdomcould lie with the sequel’s floating islands. Having already seen Hyrule Castle being lifted into the air in previous trailers, it’s likely that this will be the same forTears of the Kingdom’sother islands, meaning that craters will be left in their absence which will consequently expose hidden caves. With any luck, this could be how Link ventures below Hyrule and uncovers buried secrets fromnew dungeons likeBotW’s The Champions' Ballad DLCto more remains of the Leviathans.
Leviathans Could be Zelda’s Literal Link to the Past
SinceBreath of the Wildhas been positioned as a distant endpoint of the series' different timelines, it has a unique degree of creative freedom and canonical flexibility. The Leviathans are one ofBreath of the Wild’svaguest mysteries, which givesTears of the Kingdomample to explore, whether it’sexplaining the Leviathans' extinctionor establishing newZeldalore by connecting these Leviathans to previous games. Already speculation is running wild surroundingTears of the Kingdomas some fans believe it will be one of the series' most interconnected games, with possible ties toTwilight Princess, Skyward Sword,andOcarina of Time.
However, whileTears of the Kingdommay not wind up fulfilling these fan theories, the Leviathans could be a potential compromise that explores potential links back to previousZeldagames. Specifically, given the similarities betweenTears of the KingdomandSkyward Sword, Leviathan lore would be an ideal way of not only addressing the Eldin Great Skeleton’s likeness to Levias, but it would be a significant canonical secret to unearth and incentivize player exploration. After all, as returning players will already be familiar with the world inBreath of the Wild,Tears of the Kingdomwill need to offer more to discover across, above, and below Hyrule.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomis set to release onMay 12, 2023, exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.
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