Echoes of Wisdom, TotK Muddy the Waters for the Master Sword

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home January 19, 2025 2 Views 7 Min Read
Echoes of Wisdom, TotK Muddy the Waters for the Master Sword

Summary

  • Breath of the Wild downplayed the Master Sword’s importance, making it optional for players.
  • Tears of the Kingdom highlighted the Master Sword by shattering it and involving it in the main story.
  • Echoes of Wisdom completely omitted the Master Sword, deviating from the traditional Zelda narrative.

The Legend of Zelda is chock-full of memorable icons, and while the Triforce may hold the number spot on the list of the series’ most recognizable features, the Master Sword is probably a close second. Throughout The Legend of Zelda, the Master Sword has taken on a variety of forms, but has nonetheless remained a key element of the overarching narrative — for the most part. However, the last few games in the series have muddied the waters, so to speak, for the Master Sword, making it seem as though The Legend of Zelda can’t decide how it feels about the iconic blade.

The Master Sword isn’t the most important part of any Legend of Zelda story, but it is almost always a pivotal element of a Zelda game’s narrative. While this is very much true of Tears of the Kingdom, the title that came before it, Breath of the Wild, as well as the installment that came after it, Echoes of Wisdom, both took a different approach in their treatment of the blade, making it almost impossible to anticipate what the next game in the series will do.

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Zelda Can’t Seem to Decide How It Feels About the Master Sword

Tears of the Kingdom Puts the Master Sword Front and Center After BotW

Regardless of how important the Master Sword is to The Legend of Zelda, Breath of the Wild essentially left the legendary blade out of its story. In previous installments, the Master Sword would often be incorporated into the narrative and would serve as a pivotal plot point in the story. In Breath of the Wild, however, not only is the Master Sword not a key part of the game’s story, but acquiring it is also entirely optional. In fact, it’s possible for players to complete Breath of the Wild without ever obtaining the Master Sword.

Tears of the Kingdom went in a completely different direction with the Master Sword than Breath of the Wild did, choosing instead to make it one of the biggest and most important elements of the main story. The Master Sword’s legacy in Tears of the Kingdom begins at the game’s onset, when the blade is shattered during Link and Zelda’s encounter with Ganondorf beneath Hyrule Castle. From there, players seek out Zelda’s memories via Dragon Tears, which all serve as pieces of a broader narrative that sees Zelda transforming into a Light Dragon to restore the Master Sword.

The location of the Master Sword is then indicated on the map to players, embedded in the head of the Light Dragon, which they can then use to defeat Ganondorf.

Echoes of Wisdom Leaves the Master Sword Out Altogether

Breath of the Wild put the Master Sword on the back burner and Tears of the Kingdom brought it back into the spotlight again, but that ultimately makes what Echoes of Wisdom did with it even more interesting. Breath of the Wild might have given the Master Sword far less importance than the series was known to give it, but at least it was still present in the game. In Echoes of Wisdom, on the other hand, the Master Sword is absolutely nowhere to be found, which, on the one hand, makes sense, considering its story is led by Princess Zelda herself. However, there remains an argument that the Master Sword could have appeared in Echoes of Wisdom in some way, even if it only showed up in Link’s hand at the beginning of the game, before he was swallowed by a rift.

In a nutshell, the waters for the Master Sword are rather muddy at this point, as The Legend of Zelda can’t seem to decide whether it’s important or not. Of course, in some installments, this comes down to the ever-evolving timeline for The Legend of Zelda, but that still doesn’t excuse Breath of the Wild‘s treatment of the blade, as its story takes place only roughly five to six years before the events of Tears of the Kingdom. If nothing else, this just means it’s getting increasingly difficult to predict, not only whether the Master Sword will appear in a Zelda game, but also whether it will play a prominent role in the story.

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