The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomdoes a great job of utilizing established lore while still managing to create a compelling original story. TheZeldafranchise has become known for doing just that over the past 38 years, with each installment standing on its own while building up an overall universe with recurring themes and imagery. Though not always clear, theLegend of Zeldagames are all connected in one way or another through an ever-evolving timeline. With the release ofThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom,it seemed there were going to be some big reveals to fill all the gaps between each game and neatly unify the timeline.
Tears of the Kingdomintroduced the Sky Islands, floating lands that are connected to the ancient Zonai people of Hyrule. They’re reminiscent of those fromSkyward Sword, though the connection is never explicitly made. Appearing suddenly after the Upheaval event, these islands become a source of mystery for the current inhabitants ofHyrule’s surface kingdom. Though oddly, no one besides Link is seemingly ever able to reach them, regardless of the tools at their disposal. The Sky Islands are left empty aside from the ancient constructs left behind, which seems to miss a big opportunity.
The Sky Islands Miss An Opportunity To Feature Three NPC Types
The Rito
The Rito are Hyrule’s bird-like people with the ability to fly high in the sky and make a home on the tops of mountains. It seems a no-brainer that they would be able to send some of their people to explore the sky islands once they appear. Of course, some islands were impacted by a storm and inaccessible, but by the time the Rito joined up with the rest ofthe Hyrule citizens, it seemed likely that they could be enlisted by the Zonai research team to explore them.
Zonai Survey Team
Speaking of the Zonai research team, they would seem to be the most likely NPCs for Link to encounter on the Sky Islands. As the group’s sole purpose is to study the Zonai, traveling up to the Sky Islands would seemingly be a top priority. With allthe Zonai devicesthat appear throughout the land of Hyrule, there is no shortage of means to get there. Certain Zonai devices that are particularly plentiful and useful for getting to the Sky Islands include:
Random NPCs
In addition to the Zonai devices lying around Hyrule, there are also completed vehicles like hot air balloons that random NPCs could presumably use to fly up to the sky. Though not everyNPC inTears of the Kingdomwould make sense to see traversing the skies, there theoretically would be some that would want to explore the new lands. NPCs like merchants, explorers, or even Beedle could have an interest in seeking out the unknown.
Although there could be many other characters for Link to interact with on theSky Islands inTears of the Kingdom,the gameonly focuses on the constructs. This does lend itself well to the feeling of isolation in the sky, which may have been the goal. However, it does feel like not having anyone else reach the islands is a bit of an oversight and one that may have been a missed opportunity.
