<br>The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom _ is still a ways off, but there are plenty of games similar to its predecessor, _Breath of the Wild , worth digging into in the meantime. Expanding on the much-loved formula of BOTW has already made TOTK one of the most anticipated games of the year. The sequel promises to incorporate new, inventive mechanics, while also improving on less popular aspects of the old ones. TOTK ‘s __ Ascend ability can fix BOTW ‘s climbing mechanic, while the Ultrahand ability allows for creative building to get around obstac<br><br> <br>When fighting enemies with a lot of health, a way to deal damage over time can be helpful. Using the new TOTK Fuse ability to combine a Crab with an arrow could create a Crab Arrow that has the Crab bite enemies to deal a small amount of damage over time. This can also prove useful against bosses with mechanics that require Link to move in order to avoid damage, as the Crab Arrow can keep dealing some amount of damage to the boss while Link is unable to properly att<br><br>There’s a downside to all these new Sheikah Slate abilities in Tears of the Kingdom: bad guys can use them. In past Legend of Zelda games, you could beat certain predictable antagonists by using specific weapons and combos in repetitive patterns.<br><br> <br>If Tears of the Kingdom leads to the flooding of Hyrule, then it could secretly be the prequel to The Wind Waker . This idea could play into the Tears of the Kingdom trailer from the most recent Nintendo Direct. Ganon’s minions are raging, and his influence is still strong across the land despite his defeat. That combined with the TOTK leak potentially hinting at time-travel could see the flood, and therefore the Wind Waker timeline as a future that Link must avoid. While Hyrule may get buried beneath the waves, it could be Link’s duty to make sure that it doesn’t stay that <br><br>Remember how Breath of the Wild made you cling to rainy mountainsides while trying to make sure your green stamina bar didn’t run out? Well, Tears of the Kingdom offers another option. One of Link’s new abilities with the Sheikah Slate is to phase through any space that has a roof via Ascend.<br><br> <br>The last ability shown in Tears of the Kingdom ‘s gameplay demonstration, which can also be seen in previous trailers, in-game Harley-Davidson is Ascend, which allows Link to go through ceilings, essentially «swimming» through until he reaches the floor above. The ability seemingly doesn’t let the player choose an angled trajectory, as the demonstration shows Link shooting directly upwards, and while thin ceilings and platforms will allow Link to phase through almost instantly, others will require more time. This can be seen in the demonstration, where Link uses Ascend on the ceiling of a cave to rise to the top of a small mountain, with Link going through a brief, portal-like transition before emerging at the <br><br>Link has apparently picked up a new hobby in Tears of the Kingdom: skydiving. With the addition of atmospheric land masses, Tears of the Kingdom also lets you travel via gliding in ways its predecessor didn’t.<br><br> <br>Sable boasts a unique, cel-shaded artstyle that’s entirely unlike BOTW ‘s and TOTK ‘s, but is beautiful just the same. The ancient ruins and megafauna skeletons dotted around the map lend it an awe-inspiring sense of scale, tempered with a feeling of quiet melancholy. In conjunction with the mellow, ambient soundtrack composed by indie pop musician Japanese Breakfast, Sable creates an evocative, memorable experience on PC, Xbox, and <br><br>Is Hyrule getting European medieval-style dragons now? If so, does this mean that Link can get snatched into the sky at any time? Are beloved horse companions subject to this overhead threat too? Guess only time will tell.<br><br> <br>Shadow of the Colossus may not be a completely open-ended game like BOTW and TOTK , but it does put emphasis on atmosphere and exploration. The game is structured in 16 ordered cycles: in each one, players must locate a particular Colossus, learn its weakness, and defeat it. There’s very little to be found off the beaten path, aside from items to raise max HP and stamina, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to explore. Finding these bosses is easier said than done, and the game provides scant hints as to their location. Getting to them often requires thoughtful navigation around obstacles, or lonely treks through forgotten ru<br><br> <br>Sable , released in 2021, follows its titular character as she undergoes a rite of passage: a treacherous, but relaxing and beautiful journey known as the Gliding. Much like BOTW and TOTK , Sable makes use of a variety of traversal mechanics: cliff climbing, dune surfing, and hovercraft riding. Players will have to guide Sable through barren desert and crumbling ruins, solving puzzles and using abilities creatively to cross its open world. Friendly NPCs color in the richly detailed world, and often grant side quests. Fishing and bug catching offer amusing diversions from the main story — and will prove irresistible to completioni<br>