Summary
Though Nintendo is leaving behind the Ultrahand ability that helped defineThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, this could be a second chance forBreath of the Wild’s Magnesis ability to return in the series' future. ConsideringZelda’s history of making signature mechanics exclusive to just one game, such asThe Minish Cap’s miniaturization orA Link Between Worlds' wall-merging, it was always possible thatTears of the Kindom’s Ultrahand would be retired. But while this allows Nintendo to keep the series fresh and interesting with new ideas, the Ultrahand’s absence inZeldapost-Tears of the Kingdomwill be difficult to ignore.
Rather, this could mean that other abilities fromThe Legend of Zelda:Tears of the Kingdom’s predecessor might resurface in future games, especially when several ofBreath of the Wild’s runes are already similar to existing mechanics, such as Cryonis,A Link Between Worlds' Ice Rod, or the series' traditional bombs. More specifically, as the precursor to Ultrahand,Breath of the Wild’s Magnesis ability could make a comeback as it offers nearly the same mechanic with natural limitations. By pushing Magnesis beyondBreath of the Wild’s initial scope, the nextZeldagame could have plenty to gain from this short-lived ability.
Swapping Tears of the Kingdom’s Ultrahand for Breath of the Wild’s Magnesis Makes Sense
When Ultrahand was first revealed in the lead-up toTears of the Kingdom’s release, it became clear that the new ability had evolved fromBreath of the Wild’s Magnesis, given that Link could now interact with and move more than metal alone. For a sequel, it made sense thatTears of the Kingdomimproved onBreath of the Wild. However, stepping back to the metal-only Magnesis ability means that the nextZeldagame could preserve a valuable mechanic with effective constraints.
Breath of the Wild’s Magnesis Still Has More to Offer
At their core, both Magnesis and Ultrahand provide the same ability to move in-game objects freely, but this only leaves players with the option of wrestling with the camera and the controls as they attempt to maneuver something. While this could remain a key feature in the series' future, thenextZeldagame should try something new, like exploring how realistic magnetism could be used. For instance, instead of the player moving something around themselves, the player could be pulled towards or pushed away from a fixed metal object as an inventive way of making the most out of the potential physics of magnetism.
Breath of the Wild’s Magnesis Could Be Adapted to New and Existing Mechanics
Broadening the versatility of Magnesis might even give it a chance to become the nextZeldagame’s central feature with the lessons learned fromBreath of the Wildand, by extension,Tears of the Kingdom. By streamlining old and new mechanics into an ability like Magnesis andUltrahand for a futureZeldagame, it could adopt the same all-in-one approach but with the unique attraction of magnets as a gimmick. With the standards set byBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdomcombined, the nextZeldagame could revamp Magnesis to encompass multiple features and mechanics:
