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Building Hyrule

POSTED ON:  July 13, 2024

by: omgitsmokica

I think one of the things that draws so many of us into the Legend of Zelda games and finds us so enchanted with them is the overworld. Whether you’re dutifully keeping to the main quest line, going off on tangents during side quests, or simply getting lost exploring, the land of Hyrule truly is nothing short of incredible.

Call it personal bias as the Legend of Zelda games were one of the series that sparked a love of gaming within me, but the worlds we’ve gotten to experience and explore through Hyrule always seemed so wondrous to me and let me experience adventures I’d never normally be able to in real life. I know the games were inspired by Shigeru Miyamoto’s own childhood adventures exploring the spaces around his hometown, Sonobe, in the Funai District, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Whether they were forests, caves, or lakes; I think this intention of exploration and play comes through so clearly in so many of the games. The secrets hidden off the beaten paths always entice us to play just a little longer and discover just a little bit more, immensely building into the charm of the games.

The progression of the games over the years truly is incredible, and I think it’s such a fantastic choice that they have come full circle with games like A Link Between Worlds, Breath of the Wild, and Tears of the Kingdom, giving the player the choice of where they explore in Hyrule in a way that’s not linear and prompts discovery and progress through exploration. Want to run immediately to Hyrule Castle and fight Ganon? Sure, go for it! Want to do literally everything there is to do in the game EXCEPT fight Ganon and save Hyrule? It’ll be a long time before you clear out everything, but it really is a great way to immerse yourself into the game if you want to live vicariously through exploring - it’s cheaper than a plane ticket to another continent and still scratches some of the same itches. 

The thoughtfulness and attention to detail in environments is absolutely something that sets Zelda games apart and I think seeing how they draw inspiration from places in the real world, doing the best they can to capture and share the wonder of those places will always be a standout as to what helps build into Hyrule. 

It really has been captivating to see what more has been expanded upon in the games as the years go on, as every time playing a new game feels like you get to experience so much more of the overworld as you’re discovering it while interacting with it in new ways to reach new areas. 

I think another factor in how Hyrule has grown in terms of being built is how the dungeons we’ve tackled have evolved over the years as well, often becoming more elaborate in design of the environment or the puzzles you experience in them as well. There was so much critique on the dungeons in Breath of the Wild, but it was so interesting to see how the Divine Beast dungeons interacted with the different parts of Hyrule they were placed into and how just entering the dungeon really did feel like a part of the dungeon as a whole. Admittedly, I have yet to finish Tears of the Kingdom, but it’s definitely been a treat to experience how they’ve built upon the dungeons we experienced in Breath of the Wild. 

As much as Breath of the Wild built a Hyrule that it seemed nearly impossible to build upon, it was such a treat to have more exploring to do in Tears of the Kingdom with places like wells, caves, familiar and new places, the Sky Islands, and the Depths; I’ve heard criticisms that the Depths felt like they were tacked on to compete with the release of Elden Ring after Tears of the Kingdom’s release date was pushed back. In my personal opinion, I think of it more as Nintendo being a little more experimental so the next game may surprise us even more in terms of what they’ve built into the overworld. Admittedly, my hope in the next large scale Zelda game would be to see some more underwater exploration or some new geographical wonders that we haven’t yet seen in a Zelda game. 

All this being said though, I think most of us can’t wait to see what’s in store for us as we explore a new version of Hyrule as Princess Zelda in Echoes of Wisdom. They do explicitly say “Hyrule” and in my opinion the trailer really looked like the same map as A Link to the Past so I’m left wondering as to if it will be the same map, a completely new one, or just one with a few similar areas. In any case, I feel like most of us can probably relate; I cannot wait to see what’s been built into this version of Hyrule for us to experience and discover!