The sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild finally has an official release date and title. Nintendo unveiled The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom on Tuesday, during a Nintendo Direct presentation. The name of the BOTW sequel had previously remained under wraps, as it “might give away too much,” Nintendo said. The game is coming to Nintendo Switch on May 12, 2023.
Nintendo also shared a new trailer for Tears of the Kingdom, showing Link soaring through the skies of Hyrule in new ways. A trailer released in June, during E3 2021, had shown Link flying through the skies of Hyrule, among other new powers and weapons.
A Breath of the Wild follow-up was first announced at E3 2019, and remains highly anticipated. Initially released in 2017 on Nintendo Switch and Wii U, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was wildly successful, and has sold more than 25.8 million copies to date. The game masterfully brought together so many classic elements of the broader Zelda canon, like special abilities and puzzle-solving, but placed them all in an open world.
Rather than overwhelming players with its massive map, the action-adventure game managed to be both welcoming to newcomers and satisfying for Zelda devotees. Link’s climbing and gliding abilities made Hyrule a dream to explore — gliding around is particularly breathtaking — and the game’s many environmental regions, shrines, and collectibles made player efforts well worth it. Expansive lore, delightful character and enemy designs, and robust cooking mechanics round it all out.
So what will be in this sequel? Nintendo has already given Link long, luscious hair. So I guess I only have one more specific request: no more breaking weapons, please.