Zelda Tears of the Kingdom fans spot changes to Hyrule Castle and Death Mountain

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Both locations look different from Breath of the Wild, though

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

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom fans think they've found Hyrule Castle and Death Mountain in the sequel trailer - both heavily changed from Breath of the Wild.

Yesterday at a new Nintendo Direct showcase, a full trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was unveiled, revealing the game's official name, and release date of May 12, 2023. Buried in the new trailer, though, as one Reddit user has pinpointed below, was a brief display of Hyrule Castle and Death Mountain, both looking decidedly different from in Breath of the Wild.

Firstly, Death Mountain appears to be chock full of Malice now. You might remember Malice as the tar-like substance from Breath of the Wild, which hurt Link whenever he came into contact with it, and was generally seen as an extension of Calamity Ganon to purge and get rid of.

Secondly, it looks like Hyrule Castle is floating above the ground. Back when Breath of the Wild 2 was first revealed, one common fan theory suggested that Link and Zelda accidentally awakened Calamity Ganon's corpse underneath Hyrule Castle, which basically brings about the chaos we're now seeing unfold throughout Hyrule.

Could it be that this fan theory is accurate, and Calamity Ganon ends up ascending from underneath Hyrule Castle, causing it to rise up into the air? That's certainly one plausible theory, but it's worth remembering Tears of the Kingdom features large new chunks of land high in the sky of Hyrule, so Hyrule Castle rising up above the ground could merely be in keeping with this new theme.

Thankfully, there's not long until we find out what really is going on with Calamity Ganon, Hyrule Castle, and Death Mountain. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom launches next year on May 12, and there's already theories doing the rounds that the titular "Kingdom" isn't even referring to Hyrule at all.

Even with this new title revealed, Tears of the Kingdom fans are still confused after Nintendo played it coy with the name for so long. 

Hirun Cryer
Hirun Cryer

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.