Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Best Builds
Image: Nintendo Life

It was in the second official trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (the one that closed out the February 2023 Nintendo Direct) where we first got a snippet of Link driving around on what appeared to be a hand-made vehicle. We couldn't make sense of it. Are these cars dotted around Hyrule? Will someone make them for us? Is this just Zelda: Nuts and Bolts?

Some of these questions were answered in the 10-minute gameplay demonstration, in which Eiji Aonuma showcased a small amount of what the new Ultrahand ability would be capable of. We were amazed at the thought of being able to stick two logs together and whack a fan on the back. Maybe two or three. "It can't get more creative than this", we thought.

We were wrong.

Tears of the Kingdom has been out for less than a week at the time of writing and it's fair to say that the community of Zelda fans have delivered on the creativity front. Most of us here at Nintendo Life have been perfectly content so far with slapping four wheels on a pallet and calling it a "car", but others have been far more imaginative.

Below, we have collected together some of the very best, most creative builds that we have seen over the past few days. We have tried to order them in terms of how impressive they are, though bear in mind that anything which works to its intended purpose has got us green with envy at the moment. Let us know in the comments if you've spotted something especially impressive — we may add to this list over time.

Get those Ultrahands at the ready, inspiration is about to strike...

Korok Liftoff

We begin modestly with something simple that just made us laugh.

Yes, we wouldn't be able to put together a 'Best Builds' list without addressing the elephant in the room (no, not all the, ahem, NSFW constructions): most of the clips online are all about dreadful Korok torture.

Now, we have tried to steer clear of too much Korok Kontent [Nice - Ed.] in this list, but we felt it was only right to start off slowly with this simple, but effective number:

If you want to see a rundown of other Korok torture devices (no judgement here), then be sure to check out our round-up below.

Forklift Frenzy

If the "forklift certified" meme had just started to slip from your mind, welcome back. It might not be the most creative design out there, but Hyrule's warehouses won't know what's hit 'em.

Link Of Troy

Yes, this absolutely deserves a place purely because of how much it made us laugh. We love the thought of @RobFletch1393's tactic actually working against Ganondorf. Come on, Nintendo, you said that we could come up with our own solutions...

Trucks Of The Kingdom

Why ride a horse when you can drive a truck? That's the question that Twitter user @Schlobster_ has asked, and the results are every trucker's dream. Need to get that shipment of Ironshell Crabs from Lurelin Village to Hyrule Castle? We know the man for the job.

Sky Island Shipments

Sure, trucks are great, but what if you needed to transport goods between the Sky Islands? Not to worry, @Schlobster_ once again has you covered...

Lawn Management

We like to think that in-between adventures, Link goes about his daily chores as if nothing has ever happened. Until somebody builds a washing machine in the game, @Wolfblur's fully-functional lawn mower is the best shot we have at living out this fantasy.

You CAN Pet The Dog

If you were disappointed that there is no option to pet the dogs found outside of many-a TOTK stable, then @noah________a's build might just solve your issue. Just go easy on that little guy, please.

Ride The Big Wheel

There's no point in messing around with multiple wheels when you could just have a single massive one, right? It doesn't look like the smoothest ride, but you've got to respect the effort from @liccnuke on this one.

Calamity Canon

Ok, now things are getting really clever. If you can build anything that moves as intended and grants a boost in combat then you're onto something in our book. Bonus points for looking as cool as @chrysaoravioli does while doing it.

Top Gun: MavLink

*'Danger Zone' by Kenny Loggins plays in the background*

Gleeok Gunner

So far, we have only had the nerve to get in one swift hit on a Gleeok before running for the hills, so seeing this "orbital strike" machine posted to Reddit by 0KdQ6 has got us thinking that maybe we should try a different approach next time.

Stealth Bomber

Who would have thought that nine fans, a couple of bits of wood, and a cannon could look so cool? Hope you're prepared for a dogfight, Ganondorf.

Pacific Rim

Epona can sit happily in retirement, looking at Link ride around on his new Pacific Rim mech, safe in the knowledge that she did the best that she could. A number of questions spring to mind when watching this one, namely what?, how? and arms?

They Fly Now?!

Ok, we give in. You lot are far too clever for your own good...

That is but a brief selection of some of the very best builds that we have seen in TOTK so far, but we can expect to see many, many more over the coming weeks/months/years.

Which one of the above is your favourite? Did we miss any beauties? Let us know in the comments and we might just add them...