Link’s Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Ultrahand machines know no bounds

Tears of the Kingdom: The Legend of Zelda appears to put few limits on the innovations created using Link’s Ultrahand ability. How about a handful of slabs rock from Hyrule. Slap ‘em together, grab, some wheels, a steering mechanic, and glue on some arms and you’ve got… something!

Nintendo presented its final Tears from the Kingdom trailer before the game’s May 12 launch, and the nearly four-minute trailer showed off plenty more detail on what Ultrahand and weapon fusion can do. Previous trailers had Link driving a car, a hot air balloon, a drone, and several different boats — all of them created using Ultrahand. You won’t find any of these just rusting away in Hyrule, but you will find the parts.

Until Tears from the Kingdom is released, we won’t know exactly what Ultrahand and weapon fusion’s limits are, but judging from the trailers, there seem to be few. You can make whatever you want with the right parts, even a wheeled block of stones. For now, we can analyze and learn from what we’ve seen in the trailer.

Carts pulled by horses

Image: Nintendo

Link is able to provide taxi services for the Hyruleans, transporting them in a horse-drawn carriage. You can clearly see the connection points in how the cart’s put together — they’re growing green. It’s such a simple vehicle that we’ve seen in plenty of video games, but it has major implications for Tears from the Kingdom. There’s always been people in Hyrule, common folks who live in the villages. The trailer shows Link not only ferrying the people around but also fighting alongside him.

Rocket ship

Image: Nintendo

Link’s holding onto a rocket ship or missile in this quick clip from the new Tears from the Kingdom trailer. It’s clearly powered by the green light, again, and thrusting Hyrule’s hero right into the sky as a Bokoblins looks on in amazement. This tool is great for reaching high platforms quickly, such as the ones here.

Janky tank

Image: Nintendo

Link… What is it? It is an unprotected stone vehicle with at least one flailing leg and wheels. Link controls from the top, entirely unprotected, as he comes face to face with several bokoblins, who’ve built their fort on top of one of the game’s impassive stone Talus monsters. Look, not every Ultrahand invention will be top notch, but you can’t deny that Link is a true innovator.

Shield sword

Image: Nintendo

Link’s impressive sword has an upgrade: It’s also part shield. It looks to be the Master Sword fused together with a shield to create a shield sword — hopefully a weapon that’s got some serious durability. It’s just one of the many weapon combinations possible with the new fusion ability. Some of the others we’ve seen in previous trailers include an arrow and a keese eyeball to make a homing arrow, a stick and a rock to make a hammer, and a shield and a puffshroom to make a smoke bomb.

Glider

Image: Nintendo

There aren’t obvious green connection points on this flat, eagle-like glider, but it seems likely it’s one of the vehicles Link can make in the game. It looks to be a ride-on glider that’s a more advanced version of Link’s fabric one, a lovely way to get around Hyrule’s sky islands or to descend to the ground.

Tractor-esque car

Image: Nintendo

From an early trailer, Link’s got a sick car with a variety of wheels — it looks somewhat like flat tractor. The car seems to be an interesting way to get around Hyrule’s flat areas without trouble, but maybe not something you’d want to take over rocks or up hills.

Boats, rafts, and other watercraft

Image: Nintendo

Nintendo has shown several different boats and rafts that’ll help Link traverse the rivers and lakes of Hyrule. Most of them have used fans to power them, but the one above also has a sail that’ll surely be handy for windy areas.

Hot air balloon

Image: Nintendo

We saw Link again in an earlier trailer taking to the skies using a hot balloon and other flying equipment. This fan-powered item is used to make a hot air balloon. Clever! It’s probably not the speediest way to get around, but you cannot deny the beauty of it all.

Hovercraft

Image: Nintendo

The design of Link’s hovercraft puts four powerful fans on the edge of a platform, with Link at the helm steering the vehicle among the clouds. Get it now This looks like it’ll be fun to navigate around Hyrule with, darting between sky islands.