History TearJerker / TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild

* A piece of Heartwarming that is also simultaneously Tearjerker. Whenever you're at a bridge and get on the edge of it while a friendly NPC is there, they'll immediately try to talk you off of it as if you're about to commit suicide... but let's look at why NPCs would say such a thing. It's clear that Hyrule REALLY hit the fan when Calamity Ganon showed up, and for the century afterwards, they've have been plagued by monsters who respawn every few nights underneath a [[BadMoonRising blood red moon]] making them have ResurrectiveImmortality, a Clan of Shiekah known as the Yiga who signed up with Ganon and decided to [[KillEmAll kill all Hylians who crossed their paths]] for a MistreatmentInducedBetrayal they suffered in the past, and absolute loads of monsters who could kill anyone with a single blast from their EyeBeam. The generally depressed state of Hyrule makes it sorrowfully clear that it'd be very hard not to fall off the DespairEventHorizon for those who are most affected by these events. Add the factor that many NPCs have the same reaction means that many people have been DrivenToSuicide.

** This game being in ruins AfterTheEnd has confirmed one thing: [[spoiler: Now that we know it is the farthest point of the Child Timeline, it means that in every history created by the Hero of Time, Hyrule is destroyed. By flood, by war, and now by calamity, the great kingdom of the series must ''always'' fall to evil at some point.]]

* The fact you can't find items in pots or by cutting long grass anymore. Why is this a TearJerker? In TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap, it's revealed Picori put out the items there, because they love humans. So either a race of [[AllLovingHero lovable mouse elves]] went extinct, or something happened that soured their views on humanity. Or maybe the world is just so bad that they don't have the resources to do it anymore.

* A piece of Heartwarming that is simultaneously Tearjerker. Whenever you're at a bridge and get on the edge of it while a friendly NPC is there, they'll immediately try to talk you off of it as if you're about to commit suicide...but let's look at why NPCs would say such a thing. It's clear that Hyrule REALLY hit the fan when Calamity Ganon showed up, and for the century afterwards have been plagued by monsters who respawn every few nights underneath a [[BadMoonRising blood red moon]] making them have ResurrectiveImmortality, a Clan of Shiekah known as the Yiga who signed up with Ganon and decided to [[KillEmAll kill all Hylians who crossed their paths]] for a MistreatmentInducedBetrayal they suffered in the past and absolute loads of monsters who could kill anyone with a single blast from their EyeBeam. The generally depressed state of Hyrule makes it sorrowfully clear that it'd be very hard not to fall off the DespairEventHorizon for those who're most affected by these events....and the factor that many NPCs have the same reaction means that many people have been DrivenToSuicide.

* Link is '''alone'''. Let that sink in. He's got no companion to accompany him during this dangerous quest. Previous ''Zelda'' games showcased Link's companion along with him in their respective trailers. This means that those Links had a friend to support him, to share in his burdens even if they themselves couldn't physically fight (ala King of Red Lions.) This Link? Completely and utterly alone. No one to travel with him, no one to support him. It's just him against an ungodly EldritchAbomination. Even WordOfGod stated that their intent was to make you feel isolated, like you're the only living human being/Hylian within miles.

** Worse? [[spoiler:Even when his human form never showed up, his Ganon form was typically still humanoid in ''shape''. Here, Ganon is so far gone in Demise's curse he can't even manage ''that'' anymore, only a barely humanoid monstrosity with the barest vestiges of his original self remaining.]]

* Throughout the story, Link is accosted by people who angrily accuse him of [[spoiler:letting the Champions die. It hammers home that Link, for the first time since ''Ocarina of Time'', utterly ''failed'' the people of Hyrule, and his failures have ''not'' been forgotten, but rather continue to be held over his head.]]

* The scene relating to [[spoiler:Link's near-death in the past is heartbreaking in multiple ways, but players of ''Skyward Sword'' are bound to recognize the musical chime the Master Sword emits to get Zelda's attention]].

* The Zora Armor's description states that it was "painstakingly crafted by each generation's Zora princess for her future husband." Let that sink in: [[spoiler:shy, sweet Mipha intended to propose to Link, but was killed before she could do so.]]

** You start to become attached to the Old Man in the opening plateau, he's always where you seem to be heading. Gives you tips on hunting, cooking, resting, shrines, exploring and so on. [[spoiler: Then he reveals who he really is, shares his sad story, before entrusting you to shut down Ganon for good, [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence then passes on]]. And when he's gone... you feel like you lost a dear friend. As you wander around the plateau area... you couldn't feel ''more alone''. .]]

* In some twisted manner, one could view Ganon's state of being by now as this. Born out of Demise's Curse, he was still a man, and once wanted his home, the Gerudo Desert, to prosper as Hyrule did... but the curse did not allow it, and he was doomed to always fight against Link and Zelda. Now, he's a mindless monster, without any shred of the thief king left beyond his own rotting skull. He was still an evil bastard, but... damn. Barely anybody that knows of the Calamity Ganon remembers he had, at one point, been a man, and refer to the Calamity Ganon as an ''it''.
** [[spoiler: It gets even worse. This is it for Ganon. He's using EVERY ounce of his power to try and defeat Link and as such has ceased reincarnating. This is his LAST STAND.]]

** You start to become attached to the Old Man in the opening plateau, he's always where you seem to be heading. Gives you tips on hunting, cooking, resting, shrines, exploring and so on. [[spoiler: Then he reveals who is really is, shares his sad story, before entrusting you to shut down Ganon for good, [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence then passes on]]. And when he's gone... you feel like you lost a dear friend. As you wander around the plateau area... you couldn't feel ''more alone''. .]]

* Prior to the game coming out, several users on 4chan managed to leak crucial elements of the game. Among them: [[spoiler: The Old Man (who is the King of Hyrule) and Zelda were DeadAllAlong. You only interact with their restless spirits: in truth, they died before Link was sealed.]]

** The Shiekah Slate was originally going to be said companion, but was scrapped. Wolf Link can technically count as a companion.

* Link is '''alone'''. Let that sink in. He's got no companion to accompany him during this dangerous quest. Previous ''Zelda'' games showcased Link's companion along with him in their respective trailers. This means that those Links had a friend to support him, to share in his burdens even if they themselves couldn't physically fight (ala King of Red Lions.) This Link? Completely and utterly alone. No one to travel with him, no one to support him. It's just him against an ungodly ElrichAbomination. Even WordOfGod stated that their intent was to make you feel isolated, like you're the only living human being/Hylian within miles.

* The fact you can't find items in pots or by cutting long grass anymore. Why is this a TearJerker? In TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap, it's revealed Picori put out the items there, because they love humans. So either a race of [[AllLovingHero lovable mouse elves]] went extinct, or something happened that soured their views on humanity. Or maybe the world is just so bad that they don't have the resources to do it anymore

* The fact you can't find items in pots or by cutting long grass anymore. Why is this a TearJerker? In TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap, it's revealed Picori put out the items there, because they love humans. So either a race of [[AllLovingHero lovable mouse elves]] went extinct, or something happened that soured their views on humanity.
** Or maybe the world is just so bad that they don't have the resources to do it anymore

* Or maybe the world is just so bad that they don't have the resources to do it anymore