Unleashing Zelda's Earthwake Technique: A Mesmerizing Journey Beyond Comprehension

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom reinvents itself despite being a direct sequel to one of Nintendo's most popular games. The reused base map becomes inconspicuous with the introduction of an entirely new game's worth of content, forming the first layer of the game's three-dimensional world. This installment dares to revisit an existing Hyrule, surpassing expectations with its unique style that would make other titles envious.

Moreover, Tears of the Kingdom offers more than just novel level design. Link's character receives a fresh upgrade through the Zonai Rauru, gaining a new arm that enhances physics puzzles and combat tactics. Fans continue to explore the full potential of this system, making it difficult to envision another Zelda game surpassing Tears of the Kingdom's diverse set of tools. Although the game excels in most areas, it falls slightly short in developing new weapon systems on top of the ones inherited from Breath of the Wild.

Earthwake Was A Pleasant Surprise in Tears of the Kingdom

While Tears of the Kingdom does bring some improvements to combat with its Fuse ability, it falls short in terms of introducing new attack categories. However, there is one exception - Earthwake. Obtained as the second-to-last reward in a hidden Yiga questline, Earthwake allows Link to execute the same techniques as the formidable Yiga Blademasters. With the right sword, players can almost experience what it's like to play as one of the game's elite enemies.

The implementation of Earthwake is brilliantly subtle and completely original in the Zelda franchise. To use this ability, Link must have an empty hand, enabling players to charge and launch a grounded projectile by holding the attack button. While The Wind Waker introduced two-handed swords and spears, both of which received praise, Earthwake represents a whole new dimension that Zelda is only just beginning to explore. It's unfortunate, however, that TotK doesn't take further steps to expand the combat even more.

Zelda Should Do More With Unlockable Fighting Styles

The Earthwake technique is impressive on its own, but it seems like Nintendo included it as a one-time experiment without much purpose. It would have been great if they had introduced a secret set of abilities for bare-handed gameplay, which could be unlocked through hidden manuals similar to the advanced blade techniques in previous Zelda games. These new abilities wouldn't be limited to just martial arts but could also include revamped spells like Nayru's Love, Farore's Wind, and Din's Fire. Instead of duplicating the elemental Sages' functions, they could focus more on combat utility.

Rather than just individual tricks, it would be amazing if at the end of a game-spanning Side Adventure, Link could acquire an entirely new fighting style. Along with Earthwake and the proposed magical techniques, a complete bare-handed moveset could be achieved with a brand new Zonai, Yiga, or even Sheikah fighting style. It could possibly be activated as an additional power on Link's Zonai arm, or by assuming a specific stance that allows different buttons to execute different strikes. The possibilities are endless, and hidden technique manuals would have a much more significant impact compared to the often generic treasures found throughout Tears of the Kingdom. Hopefully, a future Zelda game or DLC can fulfill the potential that Earthwake hinted at.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is available now on Nintendo Switch.