Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom Have Broken A Lot of Franchise Traditions

For six years and counting, The Legend of Zelda has occupied a distinct era compared to the rest of its life. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and its sequel The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom have stepped away from the linear, dungeon-crawling formula that has defined Zelda since its early days. Absolute freedom has become the core of these titles, and in the process of reinventing themselves a lot of traits had to be left behind. Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom walk their own path, and in doing so have pointed their franchise in a new direction.