I have poured hundreds of hours into The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom since it launched, and even now in 2026 I still find myself gliding across the Sky Islands and delving into the Depths. Like many ordinary players, I keep thinking about what Nintendo could add if the development team ever reversed course on downloadable content. The previous game, Breath of the Wild, received the Champion's Ballad expansion with sixteen additional shrines scattered across Hyrule. Tears of the Kingdom has not received that same treatment, and Nintendo has tempered expectations about any major DLC. Still, imagining new Shrines of Light is a wonderful way to revisit everything that makes this version of Hyrule so compelling.

🏝️ Where New Shrines Could Appear in 2026

In Breath of the Wild's DLC, the new shrines were spread across the surface from the Great Plateau to the Gerudo desert. Players had to search far and wide, but by that point most of us already knew every corner of the map. Tears of the Kingdom's Sky Islands open a much more exciting possibility. Nintendo could place every new DLC shrine high above the clouds. This would give players a reason to keep exploring floating ruins, low-gravity puzzles, and Zonai architecture that many of us only visited once during the main story.

The Depths could also become a bigger part of the endgame. Instead of only adding surface shrines, Nintendo could hide entrances in the dark, requiring players to launch brightbloom seeds and navigate gloom-covered terrain. The contrast between sky and underground would make a DLC shrine hunt feel fresh even after three years of exploration.

Element	Breath of the Wild DLC	Hypothetical Tears of the Kingdom DLC
Shrine count	16 new shrines	16 or more Shrines of Light
Location	Surface Hyrule	Sky Islands, Depths, surface
Unlock method	Combat, riddles, quests	Zonai builds, Sage powers, physics puzzles
Main reward	Champions' Ballad gear	New devices, armor, Lightroot expansion

🔓 Unlocking DLC Shrines Should Be a Challenge

Part of the fun in Breath of the Wild was unlocking each DLC shrine. Some appeared after clearing an enemy encampment, others after solving a riddle or surviving a combat trial. Tears of the Kingdom could push that further with Ultrahand, Fuse, Recall, and Ascend. I would love to see a shrine that only materializes after I build a specific Zonai contraption or use Recall to reverse a falling pillar. The game's physics sandbox gives Nintendo countless ways to make shrine unlocks feel like mini engineering projects.

Imagine a shrine locked behind a Zonai-powered drawbridge, or one that requires me to attach rockets to a stone slab and launch it into a socket. These are the kind of creative tests that would keep DLC shrines from feeling like simple collectibles.

⚔️ Inside the Shrines: Harder Puzzles and Major Tests

Once inside, DLC shrines should be noticeably tougher than the base game. Many Shrines of Light in Tears of the Kingdom are simple blessings or one-room puzzles. A downloadable expansion could introduce Major Test of Strength-style combat shrines with Captain Constructs, Soldier Constructs, and even gloom-infested enemies. Others could be sprawling multi-room gauntlets filled with spike traps, lava flows, and rotating platforms.

I dream of a shrine where the floor disappears if I use the wrong Zonai device, or one that combines water and electricity to punish careless movement. After beating the final boss, I want a reason to master the combat and building mechanics. Hard DLC shrines would do exactly that.

🧙 Sages Could Finally Join Shrine Puzzles

In the main adventure, players assemble a party of Sages with powerful abilities, but those companions are not available inside shrines. DLC could change that. Tulin's gusts could push turbines or lift Link across wide gaps. Riju's lightning could chain through a room full of Soldier Constructs. Yunobo could roll through cracked walls, and Sidon's water shield could protect against fire traps. Mineru's Construct might even be required to solve a puzzle that needs a second body.

Using the Sages in shrines would make the DLC feel like a true expansion rather than just extra content. It would also finally give these characters more mechanical purpose outside the dungeons.

🛠️ New Zonai Devices Could Be the Star

A Tears of the Kingdom DLC would also be the perfect chance to introduce new Zonai devices. Fans have wanted more building components since launch. Nintendo could add an elevator platform that moves vertically on a fixed track, a boat hull for water travel, or a cannon that fires projectiles. These devices could be taught inside new shrines, just like the base game teaches springs, batteries, and fans.

Here are a few ideas I would love to see:

• 🚀 Elevator platform: slowly moves up and down a vertical shaft

• ⛵ Boat hull: lets players cross large bodies of water without wooden planks

• 💣 Cannon: fires bombs at distant targets or breakable walls

• 🧲 Hookshot device: pulls Link toward a target or grabs faraway objects

These new devices would not only enrich shrines but also inspire hundreds of new player creations across Hyrule.

🌑 Lightroots and the Depths Connection

In Tears of the Kingdom, every overworld Shrine of Light has a matching Lightroot in the Depths. If Nintendo added new shrines, we would likely uncover new Lightroots too. That would illuminate more of the underground map and make exploration less intimidating. It might also open new Depths-specific challenges, like using a lightroot's glow to reveal hidden Zonai ruins or dispelling a permanent gloom patch.

As an ordinary player in 2026, I know the chances of a full Tears of the Kingdom DLC seem low. Nintendo has moved on to other projects, and the game's story already feels complete. But that doesn't stop me from imagining what a few dozen new Shrines of Light, fresh Zonai devices, and Sage-powered puzzles would look like. If Nintendo ever changes its mind, I'll be first in line to dive back into Hyrule.