BOTW 2 Really Is That Similar to Skyward Sword

It’s common knowledge Breath of the Wild 2 pulls ideas from 2011’s Skyward Sword, and a lot of them. There could even be a reason why Skyward Sword was chosen for a Switch rerelease in 2021 rather than Wind Waker: to prepare us for BOTW 2’s connecting storyline. So, hey, listen to this: here’s every SS reference so far in BOTW 2’s teaser trailers (oh, please no, don’t bring back the motion controls).

10. The Old Goron

I’m sure you BOTW 2 fanatics have heard the news, but Daruk’s Italian voice actor Joe Hernandez just broke the silence on the sequel. He told YouTuber Lega Hyrule that he is going to be reprising Daruk’s role and another Goron whom he doesn’t remember the name of, but he is “a bit more serious Daruk.” Is this Gorko, the merry traveler Goron from Skyward Sword? It could be possible with the likely time travel theme, in which Link can meet figures of the past. Out of all of the Gorons out there, Gorko probably isn’t coming back, but it’s impossible not to make parallels between the two brothers of the same race.

9. Using Symbols

Skyward Sword became famous for the use of symbols: Fi’s words are in Hylian symbols, and there are foreign symbols everywhere across Skyloft. BOTW 2 returns to that. While the language in Ganondorf’s green magic is likely not SS’s Hylian language, it’s still interesting to see that the sequel wants to start using symbols again. And we want to decode them.

8. The NPC Who Knew About Skyloft

NPCs have always had something suspicious to them, but this one is especially suspicious. Shamae at the Woodland Stable tells you about a “kingdom in the sky” that only “good kids” can see; what does this mean? Is this an easter egg to Skyloft with no meaning, the Oocca city from Twilight Princess, or a hint at BOTW 2? Not only this, but she also tells us that people lived in the sky a long time ago (Skyloftians), and she wants to ride a big bird (a Loftwing) when she gets there. It’s likely that this one innocent little kid is giving us a huge preparation for BOTW 2.

7. Zelda and Link, Side by Side

Everyone knows that Zelda and Link are quite the lovebirds in Skyward Sword, growing up as adorable equals in the paradise of Skyloft. That is, until Zelda falls from the sky and Impa helps her discover her true purpose. Sounds familiar? Well, it should: BOTW 2 seems to follow the same pattern. Zelda and Link work together side by side and are separated when Zelda falls… in the same position as she does in SS. Perhaps there are some intended parallels between the two games.

6. Dragon Wormholes

If you look up in the sky right after a dragon has finished its daily journey, you’ll see it goes home into… a giant wormhole. Yes, a giant wormhole. This hole in the clouds is exactly what makes the dragons so disturbing, as well as the fact it might just symbolize a connection to Skyward Sword. Remember that in SS, Link uses a hole in the cloud barrier when traveling between the Surface and the Sky. This hole awfully resembles the dragon wormholes, so much that we can even picture the dragons flying around BOTW 2’s floating islands. Is this really getting out of hand, or is it called reasonable theorizing?

5. About Time

Literally: BOTW 2 is about time. With the old Goron and the black-and-white Stasised world to prove it, the game is likely going to focus on the aspect of time. Part of Skyward Sword also revolved around time: the Lanayru section of the main questline involved Timeshift Crystals and changing the time periods to solve the dungeons. It’s very likely that BOTW 2 will heavily rely on time, and even bring back the crystals for dungeons and the overworld (Age of Calamity already did, too), evoking a very SS-esque theme. It’s about time a Zelda game was about time.

4. Link Skydiving

If Zelda falling wasn’t enough for you, Link falling/skydiving has to be. Link free-falls from the sky down to Hyrule exactly like he does in Skyward Sword, which is almost an identical parallel universe or something. There’s no way this isn’t intentional! While this is a small detail compared to the (hopefully) giant sequel, it could simultaneously be a hint to something bigger. BOTW 2 could honestly bring SS on full-circle, with skydiving from Skyloft (um, sorry, floating islands) only maintaining its role as solid evidence.

3. Demise

For those unfamiliar with SS lore, Demise is the first incarnation of Ganondorf who started this cycle of Link saving Zelda, then defeating Ganon, then Ganon resurrecting himself to begin again. He’s the one who has been annoying us with his constant reappearances. Demise also closely resembles a man, unlike the pig Ganon, leaving us to believe BOTW 2’s mummified corpse could be… Demise? Could the sequel at last break the cycle as Zelda and Link face the man behind the curtain?

2. Fi

The shocking revelation dawns on you: Fi was in Breath of the Wild. Wait, what? Rewind: in Memory #13, “Zelda’s Awakening,” the Master Sword glows to alert Zelda that Link can still survive. Fans widely believe the source of this light is Fi, Link’s robotic partner from Skyward Sword who alerts Link by making his sword glow. The Goddess Hylia (who is reborn as a mortal in Zelda) also sent Fi to guide Link on his journey. This makes all the more sense why Zelda could interpret the light’s message. She, being the incarnation of Hylia, innately can understand Fi.

The twisted new Master Sword in BOTW 2 also glows the same color as the original, signifying that the source is also the same. True, the sword may have a mysterious new guide residing inside of it, but diehard Zelda fans can’t stop thinking that Fi really is making her (less intrusive) comeback.

1. Duh, Skyloft!

It’s impossible to watch the BOTW 2 trailers without at least one thought of, “Hey, that looks a lot like Skyloft!” And if you didn’t think that, it means you need to catch up on your Zelda knowledge. There’s nothing “huge floating islands above the clouds” screams louder than Skyloft vibes: this is the first time it has made such a clear return in years. Well, if you don’t count the Oocca’s City in the Sky, that is, but that looked significantly different already. Either way, BOTW 2 proves that just because you can’t see something doesn’t mean it’s gone: Skyloft still exists, proof here!