New fan theory suggests The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is a prequel to Skyward Sword

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Buckle up, we're headed back to the Zelda timeline

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom screenshot
(Image credit: Nintendo)

A Legend of Zelda fan thinks Tears of the Kingdom is secretly a prequel to Skyward Sword.

Welcome to another fan theory relating to the always-controversial Zelda timeline. In the TikTok below, a fan posits that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom actually leads into Skyward Sword, acting as the great calamity that sundered the world and caused the Goddess Hylia to send plots of land skyward for people to live safely on.

But there's more! The host points to the logo of Tears of the Kingdom, claiming that the circular design represents an ouroboros, also known as a snake that eats its own tale. Charming. This snake symbolizes the cyclical nature of the Zelda timeline, as the host claims that the entire overarching storyline is just one massive cycle, forever repeating itself.

Yes, we really found our way back to the Zelda timeline. This highly controversial feature first originated from the Hyrule Historia book, created by Nintendo, and has since been used by fans to basically argue forever about which games fit where in the timeline, including in particular Breath of the Wild, which seemed to just disregard the entire thing.

At the conclusion of Skyward Sword, the villain Demise curses Hyrule, and promises to return. This fan points to Ganon's demise in Breath of the Wild as letting loose Demise in Tears of the Kingdom, paving the way for Skyward Sword to take place, and eventually feed back into Breath of the Wild after Hyrule's population return to the surface at the conclusion of Skyward Sword.

The responses to the TikTok are understandably split. "I swear the Zelda timeline is so confusing," writes one comment we're sympathetic to. "This is pretty disheartening ngl," responds another, pointing to the world never knowing peace and Ganon/Demise getting the last laugh, if this theory is actually accurate. 

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom releases later this year on May 12, and it's then that we'll finally see if this new game connects to another Zelda game besides Breath of the Wild.

Check out our upcoming Switch games guide for a full look at all the other titles set to launch in the coming months. 

Hirun Cryer
Hirun Cryer
Freelance Writer

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.