It’s finally happened! We have reached the home stretch before Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is released, and, boy, oh boy, has Nintendo brought it again. The gameplay reveal shows Hyrule is as gorgeous as ever, its lush rolling fields and rugged mountain lines just as pristine as the day they first graced the screens of Nintendo Switches everywhere in Breath of the Wild. The picturesque landscape is now shaded by the Sky Islands dotting the sky above the largest adjustment to the land of Hyrule as we know it.
Throughout the demonstration, plenty of expected moments crop up. Tears of the Kingdom still relies on the somewhat frustrating stamina meter and, yes, weapons do still break. Those expected deficiencies seem inconsequential next to the new mechanic the folks over at Nintendo have cooked up that appears to be one of the most groundbreaking we have seen in a while.
Link’s Sheikah Slate is now equipped with a Fuse ability that operates exactly how you’re thinking — but promises to be as limitless as the person wielding it. Nintendo watched fans creatively murder opponents for years and decided to give us more of what we wanted, but instead of pausing boulders so they can be blasted at enemies catapult style, it’s all onwards and upwards to dangling them out the back of a homebrewed air balloon.
Fuse allows players to combine multiple objects with one another. It does more than simply visually combine two objects; it actually melds the two to create a hybrid whether it be combining multiple logs into a raft or mashing a feather and an arrow together into an unhelpful wispy bolt, it appears the sky is the limit for creatives.
Combine weapons to add length, durability, and even make your own specialty arrows. Gone are the days of scouring the world for chests or wasting your money at the Gerudo archery shop. Besides, those gorgeous ladies could only dream of the wild things players have the potential to make. The ability stretches to shields, finally giving players a real reason to stockpile all those monster parts. The ability to combine fire, ice, smoke, and whatever other surprises arise, will give players a multitude of ways to strategically take down enemies.
Combining Fuse with another new ability, Ultrahand, allows players to attach or detach items so players can reconfigure their creations. The gameplay reveal featured several flying, floating, and rolling vehicles, so it really does seem that players have an obscene number of creative possibilities. The whole thing gives notes of classic survival crafting titles like Minecraft, Valheim, and No Man’s Sky but with the added benefit of actually adding story — it could be the only foray into Survival/Craft we ever get from a AAA effort.
It’s not all fun and games. Tears of the Kingdom promises to be more difficult than its predecessor. Enemies can use the same fused weapons as Link, so be wary with any overpowered weapons when near powerful enemies. The video has certainly reinvigorated the hype around the game for most players. As usual, it’s impossible to please everyone, and some Twitter users felt the need to rain on the Zelda parade. While we understand that everyone has their own tastes, at this point, if a potential player doesn’t see the worth in the endless possibilities, we invite them to find their way to the theater for the performance of the world’s smallest violin. The rest of us will even build the car to get them there.