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The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom got a new trailer in last night's Nintendo Direct, and right toward the end, it sounded as though there was a hidden message playing backwards. Reversing it, you can make out what sounds like "Must kill us", but listening closer, it may even be Hylian or Gerudo.Hylian is the fictional language of the Zelda world that both Link and Zelda herself speak. That's who it sounds like in the reversed audio, so it may be something unintelligble that requires translating. It also sounds somewhat like singing, with strange distorted noises inbetween each repeat of the phrase. The same goes for Gerudo, the language that Ganon speaks, though why Link or Zelda would be speaking in Gerudo is a mystery in of itself. English then seems most likely, but the words being said are foreboding and unclear - who must kill them? And why? Or is it something else entirely - maybe a phrase less unsettling, like 'Must give us... you'. There are more questions than answers.
Back in 2019, then-dubbed Breath of the Wild 2 trailers also had what sounded like hidden messages buried in the trailers. These sounded like "Help us please" and chanting of the same phrase, not unlike in the new Tears of the Kingdom teaser.Those phrases were easier to make out, but also left people with more questions.
There's also the possibility this is a new language, something we haven't heard in any Zelda game. If that's the case, we definitely won't be able to make out what's being said until we find out more.
The trailer has just dropped so theories will no doubt continue to crop up over the coming days, but whether they're saying must give us, must kill us, or something completely different is up to you right now. Wherever you land, having played that reversed audio on loop for an hour is sure to give me nightmares.