Spoilers ahead forElden RingandThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
No fantasy adventure is complete without uncovering some ancient ruins or hearing about the local myths. This transfers to video games well, even outside of titles as focused on their stories as RPGs. Just about any fantasy title, from the recentElden RingtoThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, have references to their past worked into their present.Elden RingandZelda: Tears of the Kingdomare especially rife with mysteries, since both take place after great wars that ravaged much of their lands and cultures.
Being two of the most prolific fantasy open worlds titles, it’s interesting to compare howElden RingandZelda:Tears of the Kingdomtreat their backstories. Both of them are building on top of the real-life legacies of their developers, whether it’s the acclaimed Soulsborne titles made byFromSoftware or theLegend of Zeldafranchisepioneered by Nintendo.Zelda:Tears of the Kingdomhas a further wrinkle thrown in by being the direct sequel toBreath of the Wild, causing some interesting shifts in how it reveals its lore.
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Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Wants To Tell Players Its Lore
The first thing both of these titles share is their philosophy of unrestricted freedom. Players can venture in any direction they please in the Lands Between and Hyrule, finding some form of adventure even if they’re not prepared for it.Elden RingandZelda:Tears of the Kingdomshare a particular trait thatZelda: Breath of the Wilddoes not, in that they heavily suggest players start by taking specific paths through their maps. However,Tears of the Kingdomgoes a step further by displaying its lore in the same way.
FromSoftware’s tendency to hide most of their lore in item descriptions needs no introduction, but the recentLegend of Zeldatitles opt to show instead of tell. This manifests in flashbacks scattered throughout Hyrule. Massive sigils mark the areas where theseflashbacks are found inZelda:Tears of the Kingdom, but after finding what is intended to be the first, players are directed toward a temple that displays every sigil’s location, and the order in which they should be viewed. There is no compulsion to adhere to this, or even engage with the memories at all, but it speaks to a willingness to push players towardsZelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s story.
Elden Ring Leaves Tarnished To Pick Up Its Pieces
Anyone looking for clear and concise narrative details will be disappointed byElden Ring, but not as much as prior FromSoftware titles.Elden RingplacesSir Gideon Ofnir in the Roundtable Holdhub to serve as both mission control and a lore master, somewhat likeZelda’s various Sheikah researchers. His information is eventually revealed to be partially speculative, but he is still able to provide common knowledge on the major players in the Lands Between. Anything else will have to be dug out of item descriptions, and assembled through various disparate clues.
WhileZelda: Tears of the Kingdomshows more than it tells,Elden Ringopts to maintain an air of mystery. Major backstory events like the Night of Black Knives, Queen Marika’s initial series of conquests, and even the nature of the Tarnished themselves are left up to the player to figure out.
The open-worldZeldaduo have explored their Hyrule so thoroughly that little is left to discover, whileElden Ringcan easily support new revelations in its upcoming expansion, Shadow of the Erdtree. Only time will tell ifZelda: Tears of the Kingdomgains DLC revealsof its own, but it’s fascinating to see how these two similar games approach their lore with opposing philosophies.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomis available now on Nintendo Switch.
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