Zelda: Breath of the Wild's Temple of Time looks like the one from Ocarina of Time

The nexus of the Zelda universe gets a new and improved look... or does it? Nintendo's trailer teases that fans should recognize the temple's design. 

David Craddock

August 12, 2016 4:10 PM

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Nintendo published a new trailer on its Facebook page showing off the Temple of Time from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The video's caption asks, "Does this seem familiar?"

It certainly does. As my screenshots illustrate, Breath of the Wild's rendition of the temple appears to be a derelict version of the same structure from Ocarina of Time. The angle is different, but don't let that throw you; play Ocarina of Time: Master Quest 3D on 3DS, which mirrors the game world, and you can behold the edifice from the exact same perspective.

Okay, let's get nerdy. Let me just crack open my leather-bound collector's edition Hyrule Historia of which only 4,000 were printed, here...

Assuming this Temple of Time does indeed come from Ocarina of Time, that adds merit to one of the popular fan theories that Breath of the Wild falls somewhere on the trifurcated Zelda timeline after Wind Waker, which follows Ocarina of Time on one branch. Let's look at the evidence.

One of the items you could find in the slice of the overworld Nintendo prepared for its E3 demo was a piece of rock salt, "crystallized salt from the ancient sea" per its description. Remember that at the end of Wind Waker, the King of Hyrule let the Great Sea flood Hyrule, burying it beneath the waves.

Also in the demo, Link ran into a Korok, one of the cute lil' tree critters that played an integral role in Wind Waker's story progression.

And then there's this guy, a mysterious old man Link encounters almost immediately after setting out on his quest in Breath of the Wild. This mysterious old man doesn't warn you about the dangers of wandering around alone and give you a wooden sword. He does, however, bear a striking resemblance to a certain red-sailboat-turned-king.

These and other theories won't be put to rest for another seven months, at least. Nintendo hoped to release The Game Formerly Known as Zelda U this year, but delayed it to March 2017, when it will launch for the Wii U as well as Nintendo's NX console, which looks to be a console/handheld hybrid as recent reports have suggested.

In the meantime, let the rampant Zelda timeline speculation continue!

David Craddock

Long Reads Editor

David L. Craddock writes fiction, nonfiction, and grocery lists. He is the author of the Stay Awhile and Listen series, and the Gairden Chronicles series of fantasy novels for young adults. Outside of writing, he enjoys playing Mario, Zelda, and Dark Souls games, and will be happy to discuss at length the myriad reasons why Dark Souls 2 is the best in the series. Follow him online at davidlcraddock.com and @davidlcraddock.