Throughout the years, we've seen a ton of unique items come and go through The Legend of Zelda series. While Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom have largely strayed away from the series' old formula, but we hope that doesn't mean never seeing some classic Zelda items again. Here's ten items that we hope will make their way back into the next Zelda game!
10 Zelda Items That Need to Come Back
10. Deku Nuts
This item seemed like an afterthought when playing Ocarina of Time as a child, but only in later life replays did I realize how good this item was, allowing you to paralyze enemies and also deal incredible damage to the final boss when the Master Sword is knocked out of your hands.
Honestly it's kind of a shame that this classic item was right there, and they decided to make a new item (the Dazzlefruit) in Tears of the Kingdom instead of just bringing it back. Sure it would be redundant to have both, but the deku nuts could have served fine as both a cooking ingredient and as fuse / throwing items in TotK, and not seeing them come back as a legacy item feels like a huge missed opportunity.
9. Titan’s Mitt / Gaunlets
The simple ability to pick up rocks and other objects on the ground is something Zelda fans nowadays probably take for granted. But back in the day, you would need to obtain items such as power bracelets in order to lift even small rocks and sometimes jars, eventually upgrading to better equipment like the Titan's Mitt or Gold Gauntles in order to lift and throw even heavier objects.
With abilities like Ultrahand or Yonobo’s Vow allowing you to lift or blow up most rocks, it would be hard to fit this power up into a game like Tears of the Kingdom, but there was something cool about seeing Link get so strong he could just pick up tower sized boulders and yeet them into oblivion.
8. Pegasus Boots
Once upon a time, this was your go-to item for speed running through areas quickly in Zelda games. The Pegasus Boots were an item that allow you to sprint straight ahead with your sword held forward, causing a huge impact when crashing into a wall, tree, or other obstacle. It was absolutely essential for challenges that required doing something in a short amount of time, and also was helpful for knocking things down from high places.
Unfortunately, the Pegasus Boots never made the transition to 3D Zelda, but it was a cool item for hasty movement that would allow you to smash into things and sometimes discover hidden items.
7. Bombchus
Bombchus are an item originally from the N64 Zeldas, which made a comeback in Oracle of Seasons and later Phantom Hourglass. Sadly, they went mostly under-utitlized, with Phantom Hourglass being the only time they were ever actually required. These mouse shaped bombs would move forward from where they were placed, even climbing up walls and ceilings to explode in far away places.
While BotW and TotK already offer plenty of options for blowing things up from a distance, there was something fun about finding that perfect angle and trajectory to set things off in the Bombchu Bowling Alley, and it would be great to see them make a comeback in the next Zelda game.
6. Water Dragon’s Scale
Water levels are... a bit of a controversial topic in Zelda history, to say the least. While the Water Temple of OoT could be considered a series low for many, the Ancient Cistern of Skyward Sword is objectively one of the best designed dungeons in the whole series. Swimming in BotW/TotK can sometimes feel like a drag at times, and while you can always build something to get around that, the Zora’s Tunic doesn’t improve swimming in a noticeable way.
In older 3D Zelda titles, items like the Zora’s Mask or Dragon’s Scale were available to increase water mobility and make diving possible, and giving us more options to explore the water would be a great way to expand Tears of the Kingdom's already huge world.
5. Hover Boots
The Hover Boots are another item that feel a bit underutilized, having only ever appeared in Ocarina of Time. As their name implies, they will allow you to walk on air for a few seconds, allowing you to more easily get across platforms in high places.
While their use could feel redundant when you can just build a bridge to get to a new area, walking on air to crass a gap could add an extra layer of creativity to puzzle solutions. With all of the cool effects gained through armor in BotW / TotK, we'd love having a dedicated legwear to bring these bad boys back.
4. Roc’s Feather / Roc's Cape
Like the Pegasus Boots, these items have never seen their debut in a 3D Zelda, but until BotW, Roc's Feather / Roc's Cape was the only way to jump aside from running off of a ledge. This item really made those 2D sections of Link's Awakening feel like a Mario game (stomping... GOOMBAS included).
Being able to get a boosted high jump into a paraglide feels like a shoe-in for big exploration title like Tears of the Kingdom, and improved jumping is almost always welcome, so it would be fantastic to see this item's return in some manner. However, there is one question still on our mind after all these years... Who the hell is Roc?
3. Ocarina / Flute
Instruments have always been a big part of the Zelda series, with two of the titles of games even coming from the instruments found in-game. The Ocarina of Time, the Wind Waker, and the Spirit Flute are a few of the instruments in the series that have given us a wide variety of new power−as well as the power to spend countless hours churning out in-game renditions of your favorite tunes.
While fast traveling has (thankfully) been streamlined in newer Zelda games, there were so many cool things you have been able to do with instruments in the series, such as changing the time of day or flow of time, altering the wind, commanding allies, and even duplicating a (super creepy) copy of yourself, which we'd love to see again. And certainly most Zelda fans would kill to be able to make it stop raining on command…
2. Bunny Hood
Masks were first introduced in Ocarina of Time as part of a side quest, with only the Mask of Truth having any actual effect outside of getting funny responses from NPC. It was in Majora's Mask where each mask was given a unique effect which could be used to aid Link's quest to save Terminia.
While this item first appeared in Ocarina of Time, the Bunny Hood was given the ability to make you go fast in Majora’s Mask, making it an essential item in your c-slots for that game. It might be hard to have it be used alongside the stamina system implemented in newer games, but any player would appreciate the ability to move faster, especially when the map is bigger than your hometown.
1. Hookshot / Clawshots
The Hookshot is a staple item of the Zelda series that never gets boring. It’s been altered throughout the years, but it’s always been an amazing item for both combat and exploration, allowing you to clip to walls and travel high up, and pull items closer to you. In Twilight Princess, we saw them truly up the ante with the introduction of Double Clawshots, which allowed Link to effectively become Spider-Man.
While some say the re-introduction of the Hookshot could break exploration in a big open world game like BotW / TotK, aren’t we already doing that with Revali’s Gale and Hoverbikes? At any rate, we hope we haven't seen the last of the Hookshot or the other aforementioned items. Upon making this list, one thing became certain however−maybe I just need to go back and play Ocarina of Time again.
