The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (contains spoilers)

He stole the Secret Stone from Queen Sonia (after he stabbed her in the back) and turned it into his gem on his forehead. The Secret Stone amplified his magic to god-like levels, turning him into the Demon King (with the appearance of Demise no less). Demon King Ganondorf used his newfound powers to create an army of demonic monsters to wipe out all resistance as he attempted to conquer Hyrule. Rauru and the Six Sages fought Ganondorf, but were overwhelmed by the Demon King. In a last ditch effort, Rauru sacrificed himself by personally turning his body into a seal, freezing Ganondorf with his hand. That seal, however, was finite with the next several millennia. That's how Calamity Ganon was born. It was malice and gloom that escaped from Ganondorf's body as Rauru's body and seal gradually decayed over time.

Basically:

Ganondorf: You thought Calamity Ganon was the product of Demise's hatred, when it was me, Ganondorf! It was MY hatred that spawned him!

The best part is that he barely acknowledges Calamity Ganon and acts like this is the first time he's fought Link. Calamity Ganon is basically a glorified Phantom Ganon. And Ganondorf can make multiple.

Edited by RedHunter543 on May 12th 2023 at 10:12:11 PM

Look, do we know if there are dungeons yet or not?

I was really lukewarm on BOTW, but even I can't help but feel some hype for this. Especially knowing it's not like it'll go on sale much in the future.

I will say the wing gliders are really cool, even if in practice they dont handle all that great.

I do really like Rauru, he comes as a lot more warm and empathetic than most precursor types. The same goes for the Constructs who have much more personality than typical helper robots.

One even makes a food joke when teaching Link about cooking.

Edited by ArthurEld on May 12th 2023 at 9:23:42 AM

Not reading anyone's comments right now, just giving my progress report. Uh.. just cleared the tutorial area. Didn't expect the Zonai to be Gacha fans, but it seems to be the case. Still have no idea what's going on. Zelda's in some kind of world similar to the Silent Realms from SS. I somehow just passed the broken Master Sword to her inside that world. I don't know what her role in the plot is yet, but I hope this isn't about to be just a repeat of her role in Skyward Sword.

LMAO everyone going "OOOO WHERE IS ZELDA OOOO" as if it isn't blitheringly obvious she's gone back in time.

Went to Rito Village first, I think the game gently points you in that direction after the tutorial. The Temple of Wind was a pretty fun dungeon, slightly more complex than the Divine Beasts but not by much. The boss was great though, much better than the Blights, and "Colgera" is such a great name.

I like that weapon combinations dont just increase damage, but they also enhance the durability, sometimes by three times or more.

The silliness of it all also helps things feel light, which is important after the somewhat downer beginning, and most of all, they're just plain fun.

I'll be honest, that is more than a little rude. Conclusions that come easily or quickly to you might not be the same for others.

Edited by ArthurEld on May 12th 2023 at 3:46:58 AM

THEN HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN ZELDA RIGHT NOW IN THE PRESENT?

Especially during the blood moon.

I think Asterism is talking about the game characters?

Edited by RedHunter543 on May 12th 2023 at 6:47:42 PM

Yeah the vibe I got was making fun of the NP Cs.

So are the Zonai hot or not I haven't gotten a good look.

Not a furry, so I couldn't tell you.

Personally.....no.

This face is just perfect. I mean, this is kind of face someone makes when a Zelda game outright contradicts all the fan theories made in the hype and even the previous games for good measure.

Oh have fun spamming that face when the inevitable timeline debates happen.

There's just no way Skyward Sword happens here. I think at best, Breath of the Wild is either it's own universe OR it's just so far past all the other games in any timeline, that it's possible Hyrule got founded TWICE. Or thrice if we follow the Adult timeline.

I say a hard Continuity Reboot with the other Zelda games being just fairy tales told in bedtime stories at best. It's easier on the mind than finding some convoluted way to fit TOTK and BOTW on the already convoluted Zelda Timeline. If I really need to connect BOTW with the rest of the Zelda games that ain't references, then go with the Multiverse theory. And hey, let's just make everything Zelda-related canon while we're at it. With the Multiverse model, everything is canon! And yes, that includes the CD-I Zelda games because Wynaut.

Well now that you mention it, I can see the BOTW timeline being a continuity reboot since it does have that feeling of a streamlined continuity with nods for long time fans that most reboots have. That said, I prefer the idea that BOTW and the other 2 games take place in it's own universe instead of just outright turning all the other games into fairy tale territory.

@Shadao: I can't help but be reminded of Moro the wolf's Evil Laugh◊ from Princess Mononoke when I see that face. Makes sense,withhow Ghibli inspired BOTW and TOTK have been.

Back on the lore bit, it does amuse me that Zelda's line about Calamity Ganon being born from a demon's curse takes on a different meaning since we learn that Hyrule misremembered Ganondorf as the demon king. What people thought was a reference to Demise's curse in SS is now referring to Ganondorf's curse. Hijacked by Ganon indeed.

The thing I find Fridge Brilliance is Impa saying in BOTW that the history of the Royal Family is also the history of Calamity Ganon. At first, it seems to be generalizing since the Royal Family existed way before Ganondorf arose to prominence unless you count Demon King Demise in Skyward Sword as Ganon. But now it turns out that Impa wasn't exaggerating. The Royal Family started with Zonai Rauru and Hylian Sonia, and guess who was around during the literal beginning of Hyrule?

Okay so... I guess I'll spoiler this because everyone's spoilering everything despite this being the spoiler thread... Sonia is a Hylian and it's not some Bizarre Sexual Dimorphism going on?

Edited by ShirowShirow on May 12th 2023 at 2:08:44 PM

Well, I would like to not use spoiler tags, but I can't be sure just how far everyone is before they enter the spoiler thread (it's a big game after all, and not everyone completes the game in the same order).

But to answer that: According to TOTK, the Royal Family of Hyrule is literally founded by the wedding union of Zonai Rauru and Hylian Sonia. Rauru has light powers that can banish evil while Sonia has time powers. That's how Princess Zelda has both light and time powers. In fact, TOTK seems to imply the whole Blood of the Goddess thing is really just Zonai blood because the ancient legends stated that the Zonai were considered to be gods at one point.

Wait, so where is Kass?

No one could find him yet.

I just got the Fuse ability. Taking a rusty sword and attaching a giant boulder to it in order to break a wall.

This is so God damn stupid, I love it.

Can anyone tell me if you can make an axe with a Stone Talus Heart. Everyone's just slapping them on shields.

Watching my fiancee play, since I didn't like Breath of the Wild and don't really want to play this one.

I got giddy when Ganondorf mentioned Rauru, but then it turned out he was talking about a kangaroo man. What a cocktease!

The game seems a bit more heavy handed in pointing you what region to go first then Breath of the Wild did. You're still free to go whichever way you want, you still get all the main quest map markers right away, its just... "Rito Village this, Rito Village that".