As the sequel toBreath of the Wild,The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdombuilds upon the foundation of its predecessor both mechanically and from a story perspective. Link’s new abilities like Fuse and Ultrahand feel like a natural progression from those ofBreath of the Wild, but the way the world of Hyrule and its inhabitants seem to have grown following the events of the previous title are very minimal overall. While there are some characters who have changed from the previous game toThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, the progression of time is best represented by Master Kohga.
Master Kohgamakes an appearance in bothBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdomas the leader of the Yiga Clan, a group who swears allegiance to Ganon and seeks to prevent Link from defeating him. After Kohga’s defeat inBreath of the Wild, it appeared that the clan was disbanded for good, but with the rise of the Demon King inTears of the Kingdom, Kohga and the Yiga clan were reinvigorated and took on a new purpose in service of Ganondorf. Although tackling the Yiga Clan quest line is optional inTears of the Kingdom, it provides one of the clearest connections toBreath of the Wild.
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Master Kohga Ties Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom Together Better than Any Other Feature
After defeating Kohga inBreath of the Wild, the Yiga Clan leader falls down a giant pit in the middle of the arena where Link battles him, promising to hunt Link to the ends of Hyrule. Although it was not known at the time, this pit seems to have led to theDepths below Hyrule. Now that the Upheaval fromTears of the Kingdomhas revealed chasms leading to the Depths, players are able to head down there for themselves where they will find Kohga and the Yiga clan waiting to exact their revenge.
Picking up right where he left off, Master Kohga appears to attack Link after discovering the Great Abandoned Central Mine and acquiring theAutobuild ability. Kohga claims to be seeking the power to build devices from Zonai parts much like Link in order to create a machine worthy of aiding the Demon King. To this end, the player will have to face off against Kohga in several battles wherein the Yiga Clan leader will build various different contraptions to try and squash Link with.
WhileTears of the Kingdomdoes give the world of Hyrule some connecting elements showing its growth fromBreath of the Wild, such as theRito’s Tulingrowing up between games, none are quite as clear of a connection as that of Master Kohga’s status between games. His circumstances inTears of the Kingdomare directly related to his fate inBreath of the Wild, and he even references the fact that he has been training in order to get his revenge on Link for his actions in the previous game. It’s interesting to see one of the clearest connections between the two games come from a side antagonist like Master Kohga.
Master Kohga acts as the perfect bridge between the two titles both from a story perspective and a mechanical perspective. His quest line inTears of the Kingdomnot only directly follows up on his fate at the end ofBreath of the Wild, but he also serves to introduce the player toTears of the Kingdom’s important vehicle crafting mechanicthrough his boss battles.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomis available for Nintendo Switch.
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