Soapbox options allow our particular person writers and contributors to voice their opinions on sizzling matters and random stuff they have been chewing over. As we speak, Jim sings the praises of one in all Tears of the Kingdom’s later-game areas…
I’ll preface all of this with a thanks to each Zelda fan on social media. As I labored my manner by The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s ‘Regional Phenomena’ quest, I had no concept the place the sport may take me subsequent, nor that what would come would introduce me to one in all my favorite new areas on this all-too-familiar Hyrule. This may have been a simple factor to spoil on-line, particularly within the sport’s early weeks, so thanks, fellow Hylian explorers, for preserving it below your (Minish) caps.
With that in thoughts, let me stress the next: when you have not been informed to go to the Thunderhead Isles, began the ‘Secret of the Ring Ruins’ quest, or battled your manner by a heavy storm to seek out out what’s inside that perilous-looking cloud that swirls over the Faron area, don’t learn on. The content material of this questline is an actual deal with to expertise first-hand, so take it on for your self earlier than studying the next article as a result of, sure, there are spoilers forward.
Now that’s out of the way in which, I will say it: the Thunderhead Isles are superior. This late-game space — like most issues in Tears of the Kingdom — is technically accessible from the second you contact down in Hyrule and get your Paraglider. However, in the event you play like me, then the intimidating swirl of clouds was sufficient to make you suppose “That appears cool, I wager I will be informed to go into it afterward”. I did not wish to spoil the shock for myself and I’m glad that I made this name.
Sure, the Isles are cool in and of themselves due to how they present simply how a lot of the sport you continue to must go after the ‘Regional Phenomena’ quest — as confirmed by ‘dehydrated’ Phantom Ganondorf in Hyrule Citadel — however they had been cooler for me as a result of they served as one thing of a victory lap to the sport’s major questline. That is continued into the following Assemble Manufacturing facility and Spirit Temple, sure, however it’s on the Thunderhead Isles that I actually felt like the sport was saying “Let’s have a look at what you’ve got realized because the Nice Sky Island, then”.
I had a good time placing these abilities to the check, and I do not reference the sport’s opening space by mere coincidence. Thunderhead Isles performs equally to Hyperlink’s Rauru-led tutorial, however with the problem dialled up a few notches. The Constructs are a lot stronger (assuming you’ve got put in a great ~40 hours of playtime by this level), the puzzles to get from one island to the following do not maintain your hand almost as a lot as earlier than, and all hopes of climbing any partitions to bypass the Isle’s challenges are made futile by a painfully inconvenient however fantastically atmospheric thunderstorm. Appears becoming, given the identify, actually.
The puzzles nonetheless have comparable options to the Nice Sky Island however there’s an additional component of problem introduced on by the setting which serves to create a collection of throwbacks to the whole lot that you’ve needed to work out up till this level. One part presents you with two equivalent railings, one in all which has a ready-made ‘cart’ on it so that you can use however the steel supplies that it is constituted of imply that Hyperlink shall be struck by lightning if he stands on it. So, what do you do? You copy the design with some close by planks of wooden and glide on by, unscathed. Positive, there’s most likely a way that you possibly can Ascend by a close-by roof and render the puzzle irrelevant, however I wasn’t about to stroll previous some superb sport design like that for the needs of smugness now, was I?
The throwbacks will not be restricted solely to earlier Tears of the Kingdom moments both. The entire swap flipping and wall breaking felt like a extra conventional Zelda dungeon, the place the answer was clear, however the best way to obtain it was a problem. Positive, modern-era dungeons have a sure attraction, however figuring out the best way to set off a swap in order that Hyperlink can use a close-by transferring platform (or large catapult-like gadget on this case) is a sure-fire strategy to hit this Zelda fan proper within the feels.
And so I trekked on throughout the thundery islands, constructing a bridge right here, triggering a swap there, all of the whereas painfully conscious that if I took a tumble off the sting, there was no manner that I used to be going to have the ability to climb again up in all that rain. No, I did not have the Froggy Armour by this level and sure, I too decide myself for it.
The Thunderhead Isles are punishing like this, however… in a great way? Regardless that it was right here that the sport’s measurement actually started to take its toll on my little outdated Change — utilizing Ultrahand in amongst that climate system results in some fairly important body drops — I nonetheless discovered myself having fun with every little puzzle. Utilizing Ascend and Ultrahand had been hardly essentially the most revolutionary options at this level within the sport, however the truth that the setting made me depend on them a lot introduced a new-found love for a few of TOTK’s most simple options.
However all of this might be not more than a cool journey from level A to B was it not for the ultimate (when you have performed it the suitable manner spherical) dive right down to Dragonhead Island. If the soar level on the Nice Sky Island was a manner of dropping you into the true starting of your Hylian journey, the one on the finish of the Thunderhead Isles is lining you up for its remaining chapter. Touchdown within the water under to understand that the storm had lastly stopped was bliss — and do not even get me began on regaining the flexibility to climb for greater than two seconds with out slipping down the wall.
A part of me was stunned to see that Dragonhead Island was not the ultimate dungeon itself — it had definitely been a Wind Temple-esque journey attending to that time — however as I picked up Mineru’s Masks and commenced the glide right down to the Assemble Manufacturing facility, my respect for the world that I had simply explored grew even higher. It wasn’t some dungeon, it was only a path; did it have to go that tough? No manner, however I beloved all of it the identical.
By calling again to the whole lot that the sport had taught me earlier on and dialling up the problem sufficient for me to suppose that I used to be doing one thing clever (I actually wasn’t), the Thunderhead Isles grew to become a victory lap for TOTK’s first ~40 hours in my thoughts. There are definitely extra memorable moments on provide on this Hyrule, however few of them had me fairly as nostalgic as one.
When did you first tackle the Thunderhead Isles? Tell us within the following ballot:
Did you benefit from the islands as a lot as Jim? Zap your ideas within the feedback under.
See Additionally
Associated Video games