The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has been nothing but one giant mystery ever since its announcement, as Nintendo has only seen fit to reveal scraps of information. While dozens of question marks remain, the final trailer for Tears of the Kingdom is loaded with information, and quite a few new faces.
Amid the return of favorites like Ganondorf and Sidon, there’s one particular character that we’ve never seen before, who also seems especially interesting. While she may seem unfamiliar, the mysterious elf might actually be a critically important character from the Zelda franchise.
The character in question is seemingly an elf that sports at least some likeness to Zelda, especially considering they’re wearing the same earrings we see on Zelda at one point. This has led many to think Zelda may have fused with some other character, and while that’s possible, this scene could also be some kind of flashback that shows a character who gives her power to Zelda.
The most likely candidate is that this character could be one of the legendary Goddesses of Hyrule, major characters featured throughout the lore of the Zelda franchise. Generally referred to as the “Golden Goddesses,” they are: Din the Goddess of Power, Nayru the Goddess of Wisdom, and Farore the Goddess of Courage.
While this trio usually plays a minor role in the story, they’ve appeared in various forms. In Ocarina of Time, there’s a cutscene explaining how the Goddesses made the land of Hyrule, and Link gains access to a unique power from each.
In Twilight Princess, the four Light Spirits are appointed by the Goddesses, and they created the Mirror of Twilight that links Hyrule with the Twilight Realm. Further, in Wind Waker, we see statues of the three and learn they warned the people of Hyrule to escape the Great Flood. Although they never appear directly in the stories, the Goddesses have been crucial to the lore at every turn.
Although they aren’t technically the same characters, the three Oracles in Oracle of Seasons and Ages also bear the names of the Goddesses. Din, in particular, bears somewhat of a resemblance to the new character in Tears of the Kingdom’s trailer.
There is, of course, another option here — the Goddess Hylia from Skyward Sword, another divine entity that was reborn as the very first Zelda. Hylia is essentially the being that first sealed away the Demon King Demise, but she was grievously wounded in doing so. With the last of her power, she created Fi and the Goddess Sword, which would help the Chosen Hero on his journey in the future.
It’s possible that Zelda is channeling the power of a goddess, and as such it changes her appearance. This certainly wouldn’t be the first throwback hinted at in Tears of the Kingdom, as there are rampant theories about the game bringing back tons of elements.
Previous trailers have suggested the return of Fi from Skyward Sword and the introduction of the Twilight Realm. There’s even a shot at 1:19 in the latest trailer that features a long-haired villain that looks suspiciously like Demise from Skyward Sword. If all of these disparate elements really are coming together, it makes complete sense that either Hylia or the Golden Goddesses would play an important role.
It’s interesting how low-key Nintendo has been about marketing Tears of the Kingdom, which seems to suggest the company really doesn’t want this story spoiled in any way. There’s a lot of speculation we can do, but at this point, nothing is set in stone until we know what’s really going on when Tears of the Kingdom launches in May.
