The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom picks up where Breath of the Wild left off, once again immersing you into the kingdom of Hyrule. Of course, there are a lot of similarities between the two games. They are in direct conversation with each other, after all.
Still, some things were lost in the years between Link’s adventures. Certain characters, mechanics, and places have disappeared into the aether. So, what does Breath of the Wild have that Tears of the Kingdom doesn’t?
10 Kass
Where is he? Is he okay? Does he need help, or is he on his own little adventure? Kass was such a joy in Breath of the Wild — hearing his distinctive accordion music could bring a smile to anyone’s face. Yet, he is completely absent in Tears of the Kingdom, barely mentioning where he went and why.
More than that, Kass features prominently in the Champions’ Ballad DLC, further prompting the question of exactly where he went. Not to mention that he gave out some of the best Shrine Quests in Breath of the Wild. Come back, Kass. We all miss you terribly.
9 Sheikah Towers
Tears of the Kingdom's Hyrule is a whole new beast — and not just because the earth has opened its maw to the Depths below. The Sheikah Towers, which used to unlock the local maps of areas in Breath of the Wild, aren't a factor. In fact, it’s implied that they were dismantled to build the new Skyview towers.
But, when you were so used to navigating the world by looking for the closest Sheikah Tower on the horizon, only to find them completely gone, everything felt a little disjointed. Yes, the Skyview Towers serve the same function, and there are more of them around, but it’s impossible to not miss the Sheikah Towers a little bit.
8 Sheikah Slate
RIP to a real one. The Sheikah Slate has been replaced by a newer, fancier model — much like how the WiiU was replaced by the Switch. Instead of that piece of ancient technology, you have the Purah Pad. Which is pretty much the same thing but slightly modified.
The Purah Pad is no longer the gateway to Link’s special abilities — now, these things just exist in his arm. Which is way more convenient than a tablet, frankly.
7 Abilities Changed
Speaking of powers, you don’t have nearly as many in Tears of the Kingdom. That said, though the abilities are fewer, they are generally better. Ultrahand feels so natural that going back to Magnesis feels awkward and stilted — plus, Magnesis never let you build cool stuff.
Still, even though the new Zonai-inspired abilities are pretty much better in every way, it does take some getting used to. Sure, it’s easier than ever to build a boat to cross a river, but sometimes you miss making a ton of ice blocks to navigate across a frozen lake with.
6 Infinite Bombs All The Time
This deserves its own entry. Tears of the Kingdom has bombs — namely, the bomb flower, which you can harvest in The Depths or in caves — but it doesn’t have the Bomb (especially the Square Bomb) rune, which recharged upon detonation. Once you use a bomb flower, it's gone forever, even if it’s by accident.
So there’s no way to cheese through a difficult encounter by staying out of reach while throwing countless Sheikah bombs at your enemy. Now, you have to carefully manage all your bomb flowers when exploring caves with breakable rock walls. Yeah, the abilities of Tears of the Kingdom are generally better, but who can honestly say they don’t miss infinite bombs?
5 Bowling
All the minigames we grew familiar with in Breath of the Wild are gone, with new ones taking their place. Of course, these new minigames are still fun — many involve using Ultrahand to build stuff, and experimenting is one of the truest joys of Tears of the Kingdom. But, there is a minigame that you can feel the deep absence of.
Bowling. Or, snow bowling, more accurately. Found in the Hebra region, the snow bowling minigame was decently fun, though it shone so bright for another reason. Namely, it was really, really easy to exploit. You could make thousands of rupees easy if you nailed the right place to stand. Now, no minigame lets you make that much money — which is a shame because inflation hit Hyrule hard.
4 The Divine Beasts
Okay, like the Sheikah Towers, these were probably meticulously taken apart by Purah and Robbie. Still, the complete absence of these behemoth machines is strange — they were such an important aspect of Breath of the Wild, and now they’re gone with no explanation.
While we don’t miss the Divine Beasts’ attack beam — as it would impede our aerial travel — we do miss their distinctive silhouettes on the horizon. After being freed of Ganon’s influence, they felt like beacons of hope.
3 Guardians
These terrifying machines of war could strike fear into anyone’s heart with just a single look. Not to mention their unsettling piano cue, which could spur you into warping away as quickly as possible. It didn’t matter what you were doing. The important thing is that you didn’t have to deal with these terrifyingly powerful ancient machines.
Though, Tears of the Kingdom did find an equally terrifying replacement — the Gloom Hands. And, unlike the Guardians, these things shift the world into a Blood Moon-esque landscape while on the hunt for you, screaming as they do. Um. Kind of wish the Guardians were here instead, actually.
2 Wolf Link
This only applies if you had the correct amiibo, but still. Wolf Link was a faithful companion to Breath of the Wild’s Link, acting as a combat partner and sniffing out treasure. He was adorable, kind, and, frankly, looked super cool.
This is why the fact that the Wolf Link amiibo just gives you pieces of meat in Tears of the Kingdom is, by all accounts, alarming. Where’s your wolf buddy? They didn’t turn him into slices of Prime Meat… right?
1 The Gerudo Outfit
While Link had to assume a vai disguise in Breath of the Wild, Tears of the Kingdom lets him wander around Gerudo Town unimpeded. He’s kind of a hero in these parts, you know, so he’s one of the few voe in the world who is given access to the Gerudo metropolis. That’s great for everyone involved.
Unless you really liked Link’s disguise outfit, then it’s kind of a bummer. The disguise wasn’t just nice looking; it also served an important heat-regulating function. Of course, you can still get desert-appropriate attire, but it’s just not as fashionable, you know?