Nintendo’s new Zelda game is almost out in the wild, but fans are looking back instead with a Tears of the Kingdom demake mockup. YouTubers Channy and Kimberly posted a short trailer with a mix of Game Boy Color-style cinematics and Tears of the Kingdom gameplay that looks just like it came out of Oracle of Seasons.
The trailer starts with a look at Zelda herself standing in a grassy plain, before switching to Link, Ganondorf, and Urbosa in some short, slick animated sequences. These are, admittedly, rather more refined than the kind of animations that play at the beginning of Link’s Awakening and the two Oracle games, but the gameplay sample is pure Game Boy Color.
Link hops off a Sky Island and lands in a field, with a pixelated Hynox nearby and some grass squares begging to be cut. In true Game Boy fashion, the toolbar at the bottom only has two slots, corresponding with the “A” and “B” buttons – not ideal for Link’s expanded moveset in Breath of the Wild.
The map is divided into squares, the screen scrolls when you reach the edge, and there’s even a brief bit of Metroid 2-style pixel art showing Link and Zelda in the cave before the princess falls into the depths.
It’s an impressive piece and a nice bit of nostalgia for those who grew up with that style of Zelda game – and even the younger ones who found them later.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom launches for Nintendo Switch on May 12, 2023.
Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF
