The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Sends Mixed Messages to Shippers
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom sends some very mixed messages to fans of the two most popular 'ships from Breath of the Wild. Players are diving into the world of Hyrule once again with the release of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, which is a direct sequel to the 2016 release The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Most of the main cast from Breath of the Wild returns in the sequel, including the first game's versions of Link and Zelda and supporting characters like Prince Sidon of the Zora. Of course, the real question that players are asking is the status of the relationship between Link and Zelda, as well as the relationship between Link and Prince Sidon, both of which have been the subject of countless pieces of SFW and NSFW fan art. Obviously, SPOILERS follow for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, so click away if you don't want bits of the story spoiled.
The relationship between Link and Zelda is obviously at the heart of Tears of the Kingdom, with Link once again called into action to find Zelda after Ganondorf awakens from an extremely long imprisonment. While we won't dive into the main storyline, a very tantalizing clue about the nature of Zelda's relationship with Link can be found in Hateno Village. There, we learn that Link's house from Breath of the Wild now belongs to Zelda, although it seems like Link can often be found at the house as well. Not only are there signs that Link lives at the house (his hair tie from Breath of the Wild can be found there and the dining room table is set for two), the bed is also of a notably bigger size than it was in Breath of the Wild. Curiously, Link can sleep in this bed, something he can't do anywhere else in Hateno Village. Obviously, it's not stated outright that Link and Zelda are in a romantic relationship but the clues certainly seem to suggest that.
Of course, fans of Prince Sidon, the fish-man who Link rode for lengthy periods of time in Breath of the Wild, won't be happy about this development. Nor will they be happy to learn that Sidon now has a fiancee – a female-presenting manta ray-headed Zora named Yona. Yona and Sidon seem to be happy together, although Yona mentions that Sidon brings up Link nearly every single day and even had a large statue of Link riding Sidon built to replace the statue of Mipha in the Zora Domain. While Sidon's seeming love of Yona actually holds Sidon back at times, players are given one more mixed message at the conclusion of the Water Temple arc of the game, when Sidon literally gets down on one knee, takes Link by the hand, and asks Link to accept a sign of his vow to be by Link's side...which takes the form of a ring. Immediately after that very intimate and private moment, Sidon is crowned the king of the Zora and Yona is named as his queen while Link stands on Sidon's other side, so folks can make their own conclusions about the exact nature of Link's relationship with Sidon.
Of course, Sidon and Zelda aren't the only potential partners for Link in this game. A number of characters make passes at Link as he gathers flowers and runs around in a new tunic that shows off his bare chest. Since this is a Zelda game, Tears of the Kingdom won't make any relationship canon, but this game might open the door for even more speculation and shipping than Breath of the Wild did, which is very impressive.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is available now on the Nintendo Switch.