Shrine of Resurrection in TOTK Receives Downgrade from Breath of the Wild

Fans of The Legend of Zelda series have seen many iterations and adventures, but with Tears of the Kingdom, players find a sequel that takes nearly everything adored in Breath of the Wild and elevates it. However, there remains a slight disappointment within this extraordinary game: a key location from the prior game wasn’t given the revitalization that some might have expected.

In the often stand-alone Zelda saga, Tears of the Kingdom stands out by being one of the rare direct sequels, reusing a substantially similar world map as its predecessor. While the familiar Hyrule sprawls before players once again, it’s transformed, not just by the passage of time but by new elements like sky islands and hidden depths. These additions kept the landscape fresh with new events and quests. Regrettably, one significant site was left largely unchanged. The Shrine of Resurrection, essential in Breath of the Wild for being the place where Link awakens, received minimal updates in the sequel, slightly tarnishing an otherwise impeccable map.

Players returning to this iconic world eagerly investigated how well-loved locations had evolved. This led many to the Great Plateau, the setting of Breath of the Wild’s tutorial. Despite the fresh quests and shrines peppered throughout the region in Tears of the Kingdom, the Shrine of Resurrection failed to dazzle with its lack of substantial difference. While there’s now a hot spring and a hidden Yiga clan area providing minor rewards inside, fans felt the opportunity to truly reward exploration and nostalgia was missed.

The legend surrounding the Shrine of Resurrection has always been a bit enigmatic. We know that Sheikah technology seemingly played a role in its restorative properties, yet much remains unexplored. With Tears of the Kingdom, the stage seemed set to elaborate on this with perhaps the introduction of a Zonai shrine at the site, enriching both new and ongoing narratives. However, instead of enhancements, the area became a simplistic hideout for the Yiga clan, detracting from its mystery.

Between Breath of the Wild and its follow-up, it appears Sheikah technology, including the powerful guardians and towers, vanished from the world for unclear reasons. While Tears of the Kingdom’s spotlight shifted to the Zonai, many fans felt curious about the absence of other tech forms. The loss of these elements left players pondering what could have been.

Avid gamers even ventured to recreate some of this missing technology themselves using Zonai devices, showing a yearning for those earlier innovations. The potential to seamlessly weave and explain these shifts within the game’s lore was left somewhat unexplored, leaving the Shrine of Resurrection as a unique blip in an otherwise exceptional game experience.