The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom launched last month, and has taken the gaming world by storm. Offering players a complex and intuitive creation system, the game takes what made its predecessor great and adds unparalleled freedom to tackle its challenges as players see fit. Like Breath of the Wild, many of those challenges take the form of Tears of the Kingdom's shrines. While some of these shrines serve to acclimate Link and the player to the title's Ultrahand ability and unique combination systems, others challenge players in more traditional ways. One such shrine is Tears of the Kingdom's Mayachin Shrine, which pays tribute to another popular game by adapting Link's Ultrahand abilities to a classic skill-based challenge.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is the sequel to 2017's Breath of the Wild, a title that revolutionized open-world gameplay and is considered by many to be among the greatest titles ever made. Somehow, Tears of the Kingdom built upon this legacy, and delivered an experience that goes so far as to challenge its predecessor's spot at the top. Though some concepts, such as shrines and the primary setting, were carried over, Link's Ultrahand abilities and the addition of the sky islands and depths make Tears of the Kingdom a highly explorable, and endlessly creative, new benchmark in the history of gaming.
The Mayachin Shrine Challenges Link to Pinball
Tears of the Kingdom's Mayachin Shrine is one of several shrines found in Hyrule Field. The goal of the Mayachin Shrine is to use Ultrahand to propel a ball off of a ramp and into a target. However, the shrine differs from the others as it challenges players to use both their brains and reflexes to accomplish this task. Also called "A Fixed Device," players must use the materials on-hand to make a "flipper" akin to those used in the popular game of skill, pinball.
The Mayachin Shrine is among Tears of the Kingdom's most satisfying puzzles. To solve it, players must construct a "flipper" by using sticks on the ground, or a dropped weapon, then timing their activation of its Zonai energy so that it hits a rolling ball off of a ramp and strikes a target on the wall. Successfully completing this challenge takes a bit of practice, but once players hit the target, a door to the shrine's exit will open. While players can tackle this shrine in a variety of ways, many players have found success in activating their "flipper" when the ball reaches the second to last white tile as it rolls towards the player.
The Mayachin Shrine Includes a Hidden Tribute to Another Classic Game
Upon completing the Mayachin Shrine's core puzzle, players shouldn't rush to the exit. When players successfully hit their first target, another one appears on the right-side wall. To hit this target, players must move a swinging panel, so that it does not impede the rolling ball's access to the new target. Then, using the previously constructed mechanism, players must create a "bat" to smack the rolling ball as hard as possible toward the new target, transforming the pinball-like challenge into one reminiscent of baseball.
Tears of the Kingdom features 152 shrines, each offering players a unique challenge. While some, like the Mayachin Shrine, require players to flex a particular skill, many allow for open-ended solutions. It has yet to be seen where The Legend of Zelda franchise can go from here, as Tears of the Kingdom has already seemingly accomplished the impossible in improving on Breath of the Wild. Fans of Tears of the Kingdom hope that Nintendo will adapt another feature of its predecessor in the near future, adding DLC that put its wealth of creative tools to the ultimate test.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is available now on Nintendo Switch.