One of the most impressive changes thatLegend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdommakes from its predecessor is the way that many of its characters are utilized in the main narrative. Although players canexploreZelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s Hyrulein any order and at any pace they want, the story beats from location to location tie together better, especially with characters like Purah who are more than a one-time NPC that passes off a valuable item to Link.
Purah’s role inZelda: Tears of the Kingdomespecially is a heavy evolution from both her utility in the story ofBreath of the Wild, as well as that of the last NPC to gift Link a paraglider. Even the replacement for King Rhoam from the previous title has a larger role in both the present storyline and the memories from Hyrule’s past.
RELATED:Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s Demon King Muddies the Calamity Ganon Lore
Link’s Paraglider in Tears of the Kingdom
UnlikeBreath of the Wild, the paraglider doesn’t come from the end of the tutorial section, as a ghostly, ancient king gifts it to Link in order to allow him to descend to the rest of Hyrule and start exploring. The version of that inZelda: Tears of the Kingdomis Rauru, although his role is to impart Link with his new magic tools that will apply to the puzzles to come. This leaves the paraglider to come from Purah, a character who received a glow-up after her previous appearance in the series that takes on a much more important role than just handing off a part of Link’s toolkit.
The start of the quest to even receive the paraglider from Purah is the one that sets the stage forTears of the Kingdom’s storyand equips Link with a new way to fill out the map. However, Purah doesn’t just give Link a handful of tools, she is also the central point of the main quest to explore the new dungeons that have appeared across Hyrule. This already sets the character up to have a much deeper connection to the plot than King Rhoam did when he disappeared after handing over the paraglider inBreath of the Wild.
Purah Leads Hyrule to Fight Ganondorf
Interestingly,Purah’s role inTears of the Kingdomdoesn’t end at starting Link on his journey through Hyrule and then standing to the side for the rest of the game. Instead, she is the center of many of the side quests and main questlines throughoutTears of the Kingdom, with players needing to come back to report their findings periodically. This is most notably the case after completing theRegional Phenomenaquest and exploring the four main dungeons of the game, where reporting back to Purah sets up for the final confrontation with Ganondorf.
The result of these interconnected questlines is that Purah as a character winds up having a much stronger impact on the overall narrative ofTears of the Kingdom. It helps to make this character more than the source for the paraglider or the newPurah Pad inZelda: Tears of the Kingdom, which helps her stand well above her previous role inBreath of the Wild. Outside of the narrative itself, Purah’s character also does quite a bit of heavy lifting, acting as a leading figure in Hyrule during the absence of Princess Zelda and the retirement of Impa.
Another key feature about Purah and the new Lookout Landing location she oversees is the way that it acts as a hub, both for Link and for other major characters in the world of Hyrule. Between the Zonai Survey Team andthe Monster Control Crew, Lookout Landing is the central point of this post-Calamity world. With Purah acting as the leader of this location inTears of the Kingdom, this helps to give this character much more impact on the player experience and world-building.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomis available now for Switch.
MORE:Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s Hylian Shield is Both Like and Unlike Any Other Shield in the Game
