With the follow-up to 2017's Breath of the Wild, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, a little more than a month away from launch, we now get one the first extended exhibits of its gameplay. The anticipation for what the latest venture through Hyrule has in tow are now answered, to some degree. Game director Eiji Aonuma hosted a 13 minute gameplay demonstration, placing a spotlight on a few of Link's new skills.  

With the map seeing great changes, unique challenges are afoot.

Recall is an ability that can allow Link to turn back the time on an object. There was a similar ability in the same spirit from Red Faction Armageddon's Nano Forge, which could reform destroyed structures. This could potentially aid in solving puzzles, or helping Link reach the sky islands.

One of Breath of the Wild's greatest criticisms was weapon degradation. While melee weapons were very commonplace, it left the combat with little personality. Now with Fuse, Link can stick objects together and create new weapons which extend the durability of items, and can also serve different functions, both in and outside of combat.

This creates a much more engaging world that builds a relationship between player and environment, as seen with the ability to craft a boat using Ultrahand. With its predecessor boasting a lot of potential with the game engine it's running on, Tears of the Kingdom appears to capitalize on what players can do to solve puzzles or take down enemies. Such as the Ascend ability, Link can warp through walls and appear at the top of mountains or hills (limitations may apply), so as long as it has a ceiling. 

Despite Aonuma's 11 minute showcase, there's still a lot about Tears of the Kingdom's world and functions that can be fascinating. This may be one of the last major releases for the six year old Switch, and it has great promise going for it.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom releases May 12th exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.