The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom continues an epic story that started in its predecessor, Breath of the Wild. It truly is historic that a Zelda game got a sequel, adding more significance to an already epic narrative. The more I came to the stunning conclusion, the more the game had me inching toward the edge of my seat in anticipation of the final crescendo.
For those wanting to see an explanation for the bombastic story and ending, proceed with care, for there will be epic spoilers ahead!
Does Zelda become a Dragon in Zelda Tears of the Kingdom?
To answer the question that became one of the first major spoilers in Tears of the Kingdom, yes, Zelda becomes the Light Dragon. But why would she take such a drastic step, especially after being advised by Mineru that such a transformation is irreversible and would cause her to lose herself forever? To answer that, we must return to the very beginning of TotK.
Zelda Tears of the Kingdom story, explained
At the start of the game, Link and Zelda accidentally unleash the Ganondorf fused with the Demon King onto the Kingdom upon discovering his corpse deep beneath the Hyrule castle. After falling into the temporal rift back to the distant past and receiving the damaged Sword from the future, Zelda had no means of returning to the present day to help Link in an upcoming battle. To defeat the Demon King, Zelda takes it upon herself to repair the Master Sword, which Gloom decayed. As an act of desperation and selfless sacrifice—in a cinematic that made me forget to breathe—she swallows the Secret Stone, transforming her into the immortal Eternal Dragon.
Zelda Tears of the Kingdom ending, explained
After defeating Ganondorf in a one-on-one duel near the ending of Tears of the Kingdom, the Demon King refuses defeat and transforms himself into a Demon Dragon. After retrieving the now fully repaired Master Sword from Zelda's dragon form, Link reunites with the Light Dragon once again, fighting and defeating Draconified Demon King in an epic air duel. Weakened by combat, the Light Dragon is healed by Link's right arm, returning to normal.
Related: How old is Link in Zelda Breath of the Wild (BOTW) and Tears of the Kingdom (TOTK)?
The secret Zelda TotK (Tears of the Kingdom) post-credit true ending, revealed
You must sit through the credits to see the true, secret ending for Tears of the Kingdom. It is revealed that after Link catches Zelda in mid-air, her dragon form isn't as permanent as initially presumed. Link restorative power has apparently reverted her to her Hylian form again, with the help of Rauru and Sonia.
Despite a remarkable conclusion that had me sigh with relief, Tears of the Kingdom still left several questions unanswered, in the proper fashion of the Zelda franchise. Did Link finally manage to break Ganondorf's cycle of reincarnation? Will he pose a danger to the Kingdom of Hyrule ever again? And more importantly, how would such a story continue, or will the developers leave the concluded story arc and move on with another equally epic story? Only time will tell.
Looking for more lore guides for Tears of the Kingdom? Look no further; you've come to the right place! Check out Legend of Zelda TotK – Who is Rauru? Answered (TOTK), and Should you play Zelda Breath of the Wild before Zelda Tears of the Kingdom? here on Pro Game Guides!
Luka Rakocevic works as a full-time staff writer at Pro Game Guides and is a new-generation gamer. Backed with old-school gaming knowledge, his oldest gaming memories are on SNES, trying to beat Super Mario. Games are his big inspiration, and he frequently draws from that well to create new art. He prefers narrative-driven games like God of War, Killzone, Half-life, Uncharted and similar.
Luka mainly writes science fiction in his free time. When he's not home banging away at his computer keyboard, you will most likely find him at a local pub or a metal concert in the middle of a mosh pit.