Breath of the Wild made a few nods to Skyward Sword, but Tears of the Kingdom has a lot more.
Skyward Sword was one of the more controversial Legend of Zelda games when it came out in 2011. However, since then, most fans have come to like it a lot more. And it even got a remastered version for the Nintendo Switch 10 years after it came out.
Even though it wasn’t as popular as some of the classic games that came before it or Breath of the Wild, which came out a few years later, Skyward Sword’s influence can still be seen in the latest game in the series, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, where Nintendo made a few references to Link’s journey across the Skyloft and the airborne islands.
The map of Hyrule in Tears of the Kingdom is so big, though. That it’s unlikely that players will catch all of these references in a single playthrough. Some of these references are well-hidden easter eggs that need to be found. While others are built into the game’s design, art, and story.
Thrilling Minecart Sections
No one who has played Skyward Sword will ever forget what it was like to ride the Rickety Coaster or any of the other minecart parts that tested how well the player knew how to use the Wii motion controls and how time worked in the game.
Tears of the Kingdom‘s new physics-based gameplay has made minecarts even more fun to use. But it’s clear that they were heavily influenced by how they worked in Skyward Sword. Some of the more difficult cart rides, like the one at Mine-Cart Land, are very similar to the visually stunning minecart minigames that were a big part of Skyward Sword.
Skyward Sword Outfit
Link’s Skyward Sword outfit was officially available in Breath of the Wild. But it could only be gotten by buying an Amiibo. In Tears of the Kingdom, however, it can be gotten in-game by looking for a few chests in three different places. It’s important to note that getting the Sky clothes is very hard. Because all of the pieces are in the Depths. Which is a dangerous place full of monsters.
The first chest is in Retsam Grove, next to a big tree stump that is right under Hateno Village. The second part is under the road that goes to the Korok Forest in the Minshi Grove. And the third part is in the Crenel Canyon Mine. It can be very hard to get all three pieces without getting hurt. But the game is still a great tribute to Link’s look in the game that inspired many parts of this one.
White Sword Of The Sky
After getting the Skyward Sword outfit, players can find the White Sword of the Sky by either scanning the Link Skyward Sword Amiibo or finishing the Mother Goddess Statue side quest. This will complete the Skyward Sword look. This quest will require the player to move around and fight a few times. But it shouldn’t be too hard to complete as long as they have good weapons and armor sets.
In this long side quest, the player has to find several Dragon Claws and give them to the Statues of Courage, Wisdom. And Power in return for the Sword of the Sky, which looks almost exactly like the first version of the Goddess Sword that Link uses in Skyward Sword. Even more interesting is that when Link finally gets the sword after all his hard work. He finds it in the Forgotten Temple. Which many people think is the same as the Sealed Temple from Skyward Sword.
Fi Residing In The Master Sword
In almost every Legend of Zelda game, Link has a friend who helps him on his journey to save Princess Zelda and get back together with her. In Skyward Sword, that friend is the humanoid spirit Fi. Fi was made by the goddess Hylia along with the Goddess Sword. Which is where she lives. Link would find and use this sword as the Master Sword in the end.
In Breath of the Wild, Fi is indirectly mentioned when Zelda talks about a legend. That says you can hear a voice coming from the Master Sword. Fi’s presence becomes even more clear when you finish the Trial of the Sword and her sound effect plays and the sword starts to glow. In Tears of the Kingdom, Fi is mentioned more than once. For example, Zelda will start calling the sword “she” instead of “it,” and when Zelda talks to the sword. It glows bright blue, which is how Fi talked to Link in Skyward Sword.
Taking To The Skies
When early trailers came out, fans of Skyward Sword may have noticed that Penalty Kick Online put a lot more focus on exploring the skies, which was one of the game’s main ideas. Link spends most of his time in Skyward Sword traveling between different flying islands. The Skyloft and Pumpkin Island are two of the best known. Not only are these islands important to the plot and story of the Skyloftians. But you can also find a lot of hidden items and side quests by visiting them.
What’s especially interesting about this is that the idea of traveling across a wide-open environment that wasn’t on the ground came from Wind Waker. Where Link spent most of his time navigating the open seas. It looks like Nintendo has kept building on this idea. As it was a big part of Wind Waker, Skyward Sword, and now Tears of the Kingdom.
Story Influences
The story of Skyward Sword is all about Link and Zelda cleaning up the ground so that the Skyloftians. Who live in the sky, can finally come down and live on the ground. Making the Kingdom of Hyrule in the end. Even though the details aren’t exactly the same, there are still a lot of similarities between the stories of Tears of the Kingdom and Skyward Sword. This is especially true when you consider that Rauru and Sonia were sent by the gods to start the story in Tears of the Kingdom, and Zelda was a reincarnation of the goddess Hylia in Skyward Sword who helped get rid of evil and defeat Gano’s predecessor.
Due to the obvious inspiration, this has led to a lot of talk among Zelda fans about whether Tears of the Kingdom could even be a direct sequel to Skyward Sword. Some have even said that some of the Hylians who were seen returning to the sky at the end of Skyward Sword, like Groose, would be the ones to evolve into the Zonai. As of right now, it’s not clear where Tears of the Kingdom fits in the storyline. But the overall plot of getting rid of evil and getting help from a god-like being is still the same in both games.
