When Nintendo announcedThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomas a direct sequel toBreath of the Wild, it was immediately under pressure to innovate. PastZeldasequels have sometimes been able to get around this kind of sequel pressure by introducing an all-new setting that works with the previous narrative, butTotKconfirmed early on that it intended to reuseBotW’s map. Though that risked feeling repetitive,Tears of the Kingdomrose to the occasion by adding vast constellations of sky islands, as well as the Depths, a cave system as big as the surface world.
The Depths serve as a dark reflection ofTotK’s surface – literally. It’s quite a bit harder to navigate thanks to the shortage of lighting and the pools of Malice that stand in Link’s way. Unwelcoming as it is, though, it perfectly supports a major part ofBotWandTotK’s spirit, emphasizing the climbing and platforming elements thatBreath of the Wildset up andTears of the Kingdomfleshed out. Both games are in the rearview mirror now, but ifZelda: Echoes of Wisdom’s mapis anything to go off of, verticality isn’t leavingZeldayet. That means the Depths may have more to say about futureZeldagames.
The Depths, Tears of the Kingdom, and Future Zelda Games
Breath of the WildmadeThe Legend of Zeldaabout climbing in a major way. It wasn’t the first game to highlight climbing –Skyward Sword’s stamina system was a point of contention in its day – but its true open-world format made climbing more useful and engaging than ever.Tears of the Kingdomonly took that further by tripling the map’s verticality. Not only can players useUltrahand devicesto navigate the sky islands, but they’ll spend hours moving up and down from Hyrule’s surface to the Depths.
As great as the sky islands are, though, it’s the Depths that might make a bigger influence on futureZeldagames. Its particular lore aside, the Depths makes a more universal case for vast cave systems as a new core part ofZeldagames that retainBotWandTotK’s emphasis on climbing and navigating hostile terrain. It contributes in a few ways:
All in all, the Depths make it clear that futureZeldagames would be wise to keep experimenting with underground areas if they intend to stay open-world and involve lots of vertical level design.Zelda: Echoes of Wisdomstrongly suggests that this will be the case; though it also borrows fromoldZeldaclassics likeA Link to the Past, its heavy use of platforming makes it a clear descendant ofTotK’s sensibilities.
Echoes of Wisdom’s Echoes and Automatons also reflectTears of the Kingdom’s blend of magic and machines, but the end result is very different.
The Depths is Only The Legend of Zelda’s First Draft
The Depths may have fit intoTotK’s gameplay loop, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement. Aspects of the Depths' lore remain murky after all this time, so a futureZeldagame could make its underground sections more crucial to the main plot. Perhaps it can bring backSkyward Sword’s Mogmas to populate friendlier areas of the underground, or feature an array of dungeons inspired by real-world underground structures, like a callback tothe Ancient Cistern. Now thatTotKhas opened the door to vast cave systems,The Legend of Zeldashould be sure to run with the idea.
