The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

 Switch
User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 9840 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7,514 out of 9840
  2. Mixed: 734 out of 9840
  3. Negative: 1,592 out of 9840
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  1. Melle1000
    May 13, 2023
    7
    Zelda Totk is definitly a Great Game, but it have hard Problems with the Performance. Sometimes it feels like 10 FPS when u fight or build. I also have sometimes soundbugs.
  2. Steven_PF
    May 14, 2023
    6
    An almost complete retelling of BotW. Same prologue, same progress, same story for a 5 year old, almost identical map, ... TotK does not revolutionize anything.

    In addition, the game has many flaws: the narration still behind and far from current standards, the framerate which can drop to 20 FPS, many camera problems, heavy and unintuitive gameplay, and, the most serious in my opinion ,    An almost complete retelling of BotW. Same prologue, same progress, same story for a 5 year old, almost identical map, ... TotK does not revolutionize anything.

    In addition, the game has many flaws: the narration still behind and far from current standards, the framerate which can drop to 20 FPS, many camera problems, heavy and unintuitive gameplay, and, the most serious in my opinion , the game has no accessibility options.

    Impossible to adjust the size and color of subtitles, impossible to individually adjust the volume of sound tracks (music, voice, sound effects), ...

    Nintendo doesn't give a damn about the comfort of players, especially players with disabilities. It's an absolute shame in 2023. And it's even more shameful to see the media around the world saying nothing about this unconscionable lack.    … Expand
  3. Blompo
    May 13, 2023
    7
    This is gonna be one of those games where the user score will go down as time goes on.

    As someone who loved Breath of the Wild, I can't help but feel disappointed with Tears of the Kingdom. This really does feel like a $70 expansion to a BotW, or rather a different version of BotW, which is lame as half of the fun of the game was experiencing the world for the first time with all new    This is gonna be one of those games where the user score will go down as time goes on.

    As someone who loved Breath of the Wild, I can't help but feel disappointed with Tears of the Kingdom. This really does feel like a $70 expansion to a BotW, or rather a different version of BotW, which is lame as half of the fun of the game was experiencing the world for the first time with all new mechanics. I already feel like I've seen everything in TotK, the draw just isn't as strong. The gameplay is mostly unchanged, including all of its negatives. Cooking is still annoying, exploration can still feel pointless, durability is even more annoying, etc etc. Link does have new abilities this time around but I honestly think I prefer his old ones. TotK also has pretty bad performance issues, like way more than its predecessor. Dips, stutters, and moments of blurry picture quality are all too common.

    With all that being said, TotK is still a fun and (mechanically) polished experience, which is more than you can say for most AAA games being made these days. Just don't go in expecting something totally new and groundbreaking.    … Expand
  4. GreenMenace
    May 14, 2023
    7
    This is BOTW 2. As a long-term hardcore fan, I think there’s a lot more to be critical of than what I’ve seen from critics. Despite improvements to BOTW’s core formula, this game is not a masterpiece. It’s simply a sequel to a great game. Primarily because the puzzles did not deliver in this entry.

    Pros Story/Characters Improved Interface Greater Variety Cons Puzzling /    This is BOTW 2. As a long-term hardcore fan, I think there’s a lot more to be critical of than what I’ve seen from critics. Despite improvements to BOTW’s core formula, this game is not a masterpiece. It’s simply a sequel to a great game. Primarily because the puzzles did not deliver in this entry.

    Pros

    Story/Characters
    Improved Interface
    Greater Variety

    Cons

    Puzzling / Dungeons
    Music
    More Linear
    Safe

    TOTK improved upon monster variety. It’s much easier to switch items, the quests are passable, and the characters feel more likeable. Most importantly, the story in TOTK can go toe to toe with any other Zelda. The map feels significantly different from before, so I can confidently say it doesn’t feel “rehashed”.

    That said, this is BOTW. Even the tutorial is scarily close to BOTW. I’ve never been big on the futuristic theme. I can see why Nintendo’s given BOTW so much love considering its sales, but I think part of BOTW’s success was it’s fresh breath into the franchise, not the structure of the game. In other words, I don’t want 100+ hour long Zelda games. Especially considering how many of those hours are spent walking from place to place.

    Fusing is a large portion of the game. It’s helpful because it gives every item in your inventory a purpose. It’s somewhat annoying because most of the time, ALL of your items become ugly.

    I’m worried that Zelda is starting to lose its identity. The puzzles were heavily, heavily reliant on Ultrahand. It needed more materials to work with to allow a more diverse experience. Puzzles in TOTK revolve around machines. It didn’t feel like Zelda, and worse, it wasn’t satisfying to complete a puzzle—it was sweet relief I could stop using Ultrahand. Puzzling in TOTK feels much more linear than BOTW. Yes, linear. Machines are meant to be built one way to work. And that made shrines feel like an absolute drag.

    Of all the changes in the game, I feel like the music changed the least. I’m used to having beautiful Zelda music each game, but BOTW and TOTK have not delivered. The music was empty in BOTW, but the Sky Islands theme is nothing short of AWFUL. A good chunk of the score I can look you in the eye and say anybody, and I mean anybody, could write it.

    I don’t play Zelda to build modern technology. I play Zelda to play epic one on ones with exciting music, progress through a story, and complete dungeons. That’s what OOT was designed for in the first place. Link’s a knight, not an engineer. I like fast paced, satisfying puzzling that tests Link’s reflexes and skill. Not running around the map. Not taking thirty minutes as you fiddle around with Ultrahand to progress through three phases of a single shrine.

    It’s like TOTK was forced with the worst of two worlds. It avoided the influence of old school Zelda, and it couldn’t provide too much variety to work with since the open world game is already hard to design.

    All in all, I didn’t mind the “go here” “go there” attitude that TOTK developed to extend simple tasks like unlocking the Sky Towers. I’m satisfied with the BOTW formula, but it should place a much larger emphasis on puzzles. Not big lengthy physics puzzles, a simple chain of commands to get Link from A to D in five minutes. Time will tell whether vehicles in Zelda will be popular, but for me on a personal level, they’re a bust.    … Expand
  5. CoA
    May 16, 2023
    5
    As a long time Zelda fan, and someone who has played almost every game in the series(minus handheld), this is towards the bottom of my Zelda list. I feel like they said "Here's Breath of the Wild, and a bunch of cheap gimmicks... now make your own fun!". No music while running everywhere. No creative weapons when you fuse. It's just a floppy arm on the end of your Spear. You don't likeAs a long time Zelda fan, and someone who has played almost every game in the series(minus handheld), this is towards the bottom of my Zelda list. I feel like they said "Here's Breath of the Wild, and a bunch of cheap gimmicks... now make your own fun!". No music while running everywhere. No creative weapons when you fuse. It's just a floppy arm on the end of your Spear. You don't like backtracking? No worries! Just teleport through a ceiling. It's so boring... and tedious. I'm interested in the story, but not nearly enough to finish this black hole of fun. I would much rather play Breath of the Wild any day. If you think they were going to fix issues like weapon breaking from Breath of the Wild, think again. This is Breath of the Wild with cheap gimmicks for abilities. I kind of feel slapped in the face by Nintendo.… Expand
  6. DullahansXMark
    May 13, 2023
    7
    No one's here to read a college thesis, so I'll knock this one out, good/bad/ugly style (ugly being things that I wasn't a fan of but that don't affect the overall score).

    The Good: -if you liked BOTW, you'll be happy to know all of its mechanics have essentially returned. -the new runes are mostly pretty good and shake up exploration in inventive ways. -the remixed overworld isn't    No one's here to read a college thesis, so I'll knock this one out, good/bad/ugly style (ugly being things that I wasn't a fan of but that don't affect the overall score).

    The Good:
    -if you liked BOTW, you'll be happy to know all of its mechanics have essentially returned.
    -the new runes are mostly pretty good and shake up exploration in inventive ways.
    -the remixed overworld isn't perfect, but I am willing to admit they did more than I expected them to.
    -the new areas are pretty cool. Spelunking is really fun.
    -the dungeons, as the game calls them, are generally a big improvement on the Divine Beasts.

    The Bad:
    -if there were aspects of BOTW you didn't like, you'll be disappointed to know that every single core mechanic has returned.
    -using Ultrahand for building (it has other uses, which are fine) sucks. Stray from what the game *wants* you to make and it will rarely ever work. Just make bridges. They're funny and they actually work.
    -while it doesn't come into play often, there are parts of the world where it's very clear the game wasn't built with your toolset in mind. (hint: because it was built for BOTW's toolset)
    -the story is almost laughably bad. Same minimalistic approach as BOTW but with a far worse script. Ganondorf deserved better.

    The Ugly:
    -no matter what the game calls them, these still aren't dungeons as Zelda fans know them. The Divine Beasts weren't terrible, but they left me feeling hungry for something better. Dungeons in this game are basically the Divine Beasts without the control mechanism. They are generally better, though.
    -they took whistle-sprinting out. While it was a glitch and did need to be removed, it was really handy for getting around quickly. Having nothing replace it is really unfortunate.

    Overall a fun game, but six years and $70 is a big ask for what we ultimately ended up getting, which largely does play like an DLC rather than a proper sequel. Not in terms of scope (the game definitely has scope), but in terms of what the game actually is.    … Expand
  7. smahlt
    Jul 20, 2023
    5
    BotW version 1.1 It gets 1 point less due to it being the same game released again, and another point off for killing the Zelda series. Zelda is no longer its own entity: it is a generic open world gathery-crafty with a Legend of Zelda skin slapped on.

    Update: I finished the game, and have no desire to change the number. Still overrated mediocrity.
  8. pawnmessiah
    May 14, 2023
    7
    Tears of the Kingdom is a wholesome, mostly enjoyable adventure game. But six years of development should've resulted in more innovation and refinement. TOTK feels like a sidegrade or reshuffle of its predecessor (BOTW), not a true sequel.

    TOTK carries most of BOTW's strengths but also some of its flaws. Korrok seeds instead of unique rewards, simplistic combat and story, usage of menus    Tears of the Kingdom is a wholesome, mostly enjoyable adventure game. But six years of development should've resulted in more innovation and refinement. TOTK feels like a sidegrade or reshuffle of its predecessor (BOTW), not a true sequel.

    TOTK carries most of BOTW's strengths but also some of its flaws. Korrok seeds instead of unique rewards, simplistic combat and story, usage of menus interrupting the gameplay flow, breakable equipment that lacks progression, these issues still persist.

    As for new features, the sky islands are an afterthought aside from the tutorial area, fusing does not fix breakable weapons, and the Ultrahand feature absolutely wrecks the framerate. Manipulating the game through crafting contraptions is the best new addition, but it feels more like a cool novelty than something well slotted into the core gameplay.

    Disappointingly, these games continue to be held back by their hardware - playing TOTK would undoubtedly be a better experience on any of the outdated Switch's competitor machines, just like with the previous game.

    Despite these issues, Tears of the Kindgom is a good game that I would recommend to those who seek a mellow but magical adventure. (If you're someone who seeks a gritty or fast-paced experience, look elsewhere.)

    If you observe Tears of the Kingdom in total isolation, it's a good game. As someone who played BOTW and waited six years for a sequel, I cannot help but feel short-changed, as if Nintendo started resting on their laurels after BotW's universal acclaim.    … Expand
  9. Celebis
    May 13, 2023
    6
    The creation tools and other new mechanics are fun to use, if you liked the first Breath of the Wild you will like this game. HOWEVER it is not acceptable to charge next-gen prices for a game that is not running on next-gen hardware in fact it only runs at 720p, to add insult to injury the game struggles to run this game at times dropping to 20 FPS. This is a legitimate concern, I can'tThe creation tools and other new mechanics are fun to use, if you liked the first Breath of the Wild you will like this game. HOWEVER it is not acceptable to charge next-gen prices for a game that is not running on next-gen hardware in fact it only runs at 720p, to add insult to injury the game struggles to run this game at times dropping to 20 FPS. This is a legitimate concern, I can't personally justify the upcharge because they are not offering you anything more than they previously were.… Expand
  10. RealDealMcKeel
    May 13, 2023
    7
    The game is just not fully there. I know people hate to hear this, but it’s just a DLC. The underground is boring with nothing going on, and the sky is hard to traverse with nothing going on. Also, why are so many characters (hestu, etc) acting like they don’t know who Link is? This is a sequel. My biggest problem is that the Fuse system is so annoying. Just let me collect weapons insteadThe game is just not fully there. I know people hate to hear this, but it’s just a DLC. The underground is boring with nothing going on, and the sky is hard to traverse with nothing going on. Also, why are so many characters (hestu, etc) acting like they don’t know who Link is? This is a sequel. My biggest problem is that the Fuse system is so annoying. Just let me collect weapons instead of fusing them to EVERYTHING. Stop adding more and more. Sometimes more simple is better.… Expand
  11. KumaWilson
    May 14, 2023
    6
    Tears of the Kingdom is a really tricky situation. Does it deserve a higher rating than BotW because there's clearly just more to do? Or does it deserve a lower rating because every criticism of BotW hasn't been addressed at all? (Weapons break, rain interrupts climbing, and ridiculous/nonexistent rewards for exploring)
    Due to the increased price, I'd go for the latter, which always    Tears of the Kingdom is a really tricky situation. Does it deserve a higher rating than BotW because there's clearly just more to do? Or does it deserve a lower rating because every criticism of BotW hasn't been addressed at all? (Weapons break, rain interrupts climbing, and ridiculous/nonexistent rewards for exploring)
    Due to the increased price, I'd go for the latter, which always deserves a lower rating if it doesn't come with a noteworthy increase in quality. This is just a standalone expansion after all. A decent one, but not $70 decent.    … Expand
  12. MungGames
    May 13, 2023
    7
    The Negatives

    No post game, 4 glorified divine beasts with 4-5 terminal unlocks, The underground is mostly empty and is a literally inverted copy of the over world in which the devs add 120 light roots to specifically make it harder to realize it. Sky islands are very sparse and do not have much to do in them other than some main story stuff, same old **** shrines and the gacha ****    The Negatives

    No post game, 4 glorified divine beasts with 4-5 terminal unlocks, The underground is mostly empty and is a literally inverted copy of the over world in which the devs add 120 light roots to specifically make it harder to realize it. Sky islands are very sparse and do not have much to do in them other than some main story stuff, same old **** shrines and the gacha **** Story is still told through garbage memory system rather than actually trying something different.

    The Positives

    Big open sandbox like botw, cool to build stuff, if you like puzzles then you will have a fun time. Its a solid 7/10 but im confused as to why its getting universal 10's this game does not do enough to justify it having nearly a PERFECT SCORE when it does nothing to evolve gaming like ocarina of time or other games of the past.    … Expand
  13. tsubakikasugano
    May 13, 2023
    6
    Just an above average open world game if you liked the botw IP you'll like this one. Whats disgusting is nintendo charging you 70 USD/90 CAD and 6 years for what is essentially a rom hack. 6-7/10 is a fair score without the inflation it gets for carrying the zelda name.
  14. beliatcho
    May 13, 2023
    5
    Unfortunately the game did not give me anything new Zelda needs a new world because throughout the game I felt that I was still in the previous part
  15. arumando21
    May 13, 2023
    5
    creating things and interacting in this game is something wonderful, music, gameplay, fun, adventure and discovery. Great game.
  16. crunkyam
    May 15, 2023
    5
    everyone has already discussed the positive attributes of this game extensively, so I'll mosly get into the negatives. still has motion controls.. ugh...the level before you get to hyrule is pretty boring and way too long. there's an insane amount of unskipable tutorials. the graphics on weather and lightning are really blurry. much harder to see than botw. I don't like the buildingeveryone has already discussed the positive attributes of this game extensively, so I'll mosly get into the negatives. still has motion controls.. ugh...the level before you get to hyrule is pretty boring and way too long. there's an insane amount of unskipable tutorials. the graphics on weather and lightning are really blurry. much harder to see than botw. I don't like the building mechanics or weapon fusion. it feels too goofy for a normal zelda game. like a rock too heavy to move, becomes light as a feather because i glued it to a sword? idk feels kind of cheesy. it's like i have to stop playing zelda to do a poorly functioning little big planet level every 10 minutes. also it works very poorly. the games physics cant keep up . things are constantly getting stuck to things they aren't supposed to. the fan boats seem to gravitate towards walls and ledges amd just get stuck there and need reset. i frequently have to kill myself to reset glitches on puzzles that aren't working. like once every 2 hours i have to do this..... that's just plain shamefully lazy game design. never once did a puzzle glitch out on breath of the wild (a substantially better game). this should have been a new windwaker game instead. would have been a better fit for this gimmicky building mechanic. huge drops in framerate anytime something happens. like just turning the camera too much makes the framerate drop. you can only sprint for 3 seconds early in the game and exploration is tedious. took far too long to unlock the glider. which absolutely never should have gotten taken away. this is probably a good game, but a very bad sequel in my opinion. if botw is like playing an expensive oil painting, then totk is like playing a looney tunes episode. it's more in your face and crazy, but lost all the artistic wonder i loved breath of the wild for. also $70 is uncalled for and undeserved for ANY Nintendo switch game. that just isn't right. its very obvious that this game was stuck in development limbo for 6 years. it's extremely dated, and messy. the more i play it, the more it feels like a chore. rather than a fun videogame i want to get home to play. the combat is ridiculously easy, and has no strategy whatsoever anymore because all the fused weapons are so overpowered. totk has completely lost the plot of what made link special. it's a pretty big "screw you" to every other zelda game and their developers. it's also a huge drag that the sheikah slate, and all it's fun abilities are gone. no explanation, its just gone. replacement with the "purah pad" which is literally a smartphone with no abilities like the sheikah slate. i just dont understand what makes this game deserve all the praise it's getting. totk just plain doesn't deserve it. middle of the road game. nobody seems to be calling it out for its horrible physics, unwieldy gameplay mashup, and having more glitches than any zelda game that has ever existed. possibly more glitches than any 1st party Nintendo game that has ever existed. polish is the thing Nintendo always prided itself on, so I don't understand why this was allowed to remain so sloppy upon release. it perplexes me. i don't have an epic amount of $ to spend on games, and I'm feeling buyers remorse... from a zelda game? those words together would have made my skin crawl one year ago, but here we are. i sincerely hope this is a one-off and doesn't influence the future of the series. sorry everyone. don't mean to ruin it for other people enjoying totk, but i just don't see it as a truly good game.… Expand
  17. Yourmomsucks445
    May 13, 2023
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Dead and empty just like botw, reskinned enemies and unchanged issues. Don't trust the "critics" they're payed shills to get you to buy any game from a big company. Honestly saddens me that this is how games have become that IP alone can get you awards. Care into making a fun experience is all thrown out the window for pretty graphics. Open world games should tell a story in a non forced manor.

    That removal of dungeons for the arguably worse temples and shrines is something they didn't fix and addition of bigger floating landmass with the same map from 2017 with barely any changes is a **** joke for a non remake.

    The combat is still uninteresting and the game still as easy. Difficulty comes to "are a game journalist? no, the game is piss easy", "are you a game journalist? Yes, the game is normal difficulty"

    The new fusion mechanic is boring and barely helpful.

    The new powers are cool but again barely useful.

    The construction/engineering mechanic is interesting but needs to be fleshed out more.

    Only good things about the game is it's graphics(which looks worse than botw) and ganondorf.    … Expand
  18. Slimester
    May 13, 2023
    7
    My main concern prior to playing was that Tears would feel more like an expansion or DLC than a true sequel. The pre-existing overworld remained, and the visuals appeared mostly unaltered.

    These fears were (mostly) dispelled after a few hours of playtime. The game encourages you to think and improvise in a way that few others have done before, including BoTW. The world is truly vast,    My main concern prior to playing was that Tears would feel more like an expansion or DLC than a true sequel. The pre-existing overworld remained, and the visuals appeared mostly unaltered.

    These fears were (mostly) dispelled after a few hours of playtime. The game encourages you to think and improvise in a way that few others have done before, including BoTW. The world is truly vast, probably twice the size of the original and the sense of freedom is intoxicating. You won’t get more than a few minutes into a task or journey before becoming distracted with something new, and yet somehow the game never feels overwhelming.

    The Sky Islands are beautiful and awe-inspiring, The Depths are vast, despite having a repetitive procedurally-generated feel about them.
    Some of the new concept mechanics are ingenious in a way that only Nintendo could conceive, and must be experienced first-hand to fully appreciate their brilliance.

    I would point out however that the game has failed in doing what all great sequels are in fact required to do: and that is to address its predecessor’s shortcomings:-

    The clunky and banal combat system, the tedious cooking routine, overly brittle weapons, feeble voice acting and occasional FPS issues are a few examples of drawbacks which remain unrectified.

    It’s a very fun and inventive game, easily a top 5 Zelda title without question, but in my opinion has failed to show sufficient separation from an already imperfect first title to be considered an all-time great.    … Expand
  19. ND3G
    May 16, 2023
    7
    Meh. BotW while being technically impressive is far from my favorite Zelda game. Tears is just more of the same. I mean it is literally the same game 90% of the time.

    The building mechanic is interesting for a while but it gets old pretty quick. The crap cooking system is back as is the ridiculously low weapon durability. I thought after 6 years they could have figured out how to    Meh. BotW while being technically impressive is far from my favorite Zelda game. Tears is just more of the same. I mean it is literally the same game 90% of the time.

    The building mechanic is interesting for a while but it gets old pretty quick.

    The crap cooking system is back as is the ridiculously low weapon durability.

    I thought after 6 years they could have figured out how to use the engine to make some kick ass dungeons but no. This is divine breasts+.    … Expand
  20. LuisZepeda12
    May 13, 2023
    5
    Doesn’t capture the same magic as botw, real shame the FPSA being unplayable half the time..
  21. ALonelyOrphan
    May 16, 2023
    5
    I wanna love this game I really do but once again I can't find myself exploring this vast open world similarly to that of BOTW. The world is gigantic but so much is just empty space and wandering aimlissly. The main reason I can't fully enjoy this game is the absolute complete control to do anything you want... I mean this totally ruined the game for me. YOU LITERALLY CAN CHEESE ANYI wanna love this game I really do but once again I can't find myself exploring this vast open world similarly to that of BOTW. The world is gigantic but so much is just empty space and wandering aimlissly. The main reason I can't fully enjoy this game is the absolute complete control to do anything you want... I mean this totally ruined the game for me. YOU LITERALLY CAN CHEESE ANY DUNGEON ANY SHRINE and solving the "puzzles" hardly ever feel rewarding because they don't have one clear solution. The side quests are boring and the NPCs are so abundent they all just blend together and have very few memorable characters outside your teammates. To put it simply this game is to big for it's own good. They really should of just shrunk the map by like 10 times and filled it with much more interesting stuff to do. This is a prime example of quantity over quality. Comparing this to a Read Dead Redemption or Grand Theft Auto or any open world game in the last 5 years does not do it any favors.… Expand
  22. gpucci0
    May 14, 2023
    7
    A good game, with lots of Zelda vibes. A game every Nintendo/Zelda fan would rate a 10.

    Leaving fanaticism aside, it's a good game, but with outdated technology, shallow storyline, and with no real breakthrough in mechanics.
  23. CirilUnbrok
    May 14, 2023
    7
    It's not 10/10. If you like BOTW, you will like TOTK.

    The problem is BOTW was industry changing game. TOTK isn't. It wouldn't be so bad, if it came 2 years after BOTW, but 6 years? That's too long for amount of changes aplied to BOTW formula. If Elden Ring would come out this year, than Elden Ring would still be GOTY. Nintendo sells game without full voice acting and with horrible    It's not 10/10. If you like BOTW, you will like TOTK.

    The problem is BOTW was industry changing game. TOTK isn't. It wouldn't be so bad, if it came 2 years after BOTW, but 6 years? That's too long for amount of changes aplied to BOTW formula. If Elden Ring would come out this year, than Elden Ring would still be GOTY.

    Nintendo sells game without full voice acting and with horrible performance (drops to 15-20fps in cutscenes!) for 70$. This is a joke. I am not planning buying next Nintendo console, if they still gonna treat customers like that.

    In summary, people saying that TOTK is 10/10 are just simply lying.    … Expand
  24. Zkhzkhzkh
    May 15, 2023
    6
    Plays too much like previous one. Limited improvement and horrible console experience.
  25. Llanoco
    May 13, 2023
    7
    I’m enjoying the game, but I feel like playing BOTW again, like somebody said here, is the same game from a different time line, the story is basically the same, you have to do the same you did before with the sanctuaries to improve link, visit the same 4 regions to solve something, the big dungeons are being solve as you already know, etc. The new mechanics make you think, that’s true.I’m enjoying the game, but I feel like playing BOTW again, like somebody said here, is the same game from a different time line, the story is basically the same, you have to do the same you did before with the sanctuaries to improve link, visit the same 4 regions to solve something, the big dungeons are being solve as you already know, etc. The new mechanics make you think, that’s true. The puzzles keep being great, it’s a fun game, but it’s like they forgot about the existence of BOTW and made the same game with news tricks so it can feel “different”… Expand
  26. Mike_Rotch
    May 14, 2023
    5
    Just like with Breath of the Wild they lacked the true essence of a Zelda game. Completed the story in 2 days and the rest is just a scavenger hunt. There was always collecting in the games but it wasn’t 90% of the game. Found it very boring as I did with BOTW. Hopefully they will revamp the next one.
  27. rinneshisui
    May 14, 2023
    7
    i had a weird feeling about this sequel. While the trailers at first teased interesting twists in the story, game structure/progression & some aspects of the world, I just wondered how they were gonna refresh a game with essentially the same map, enemies & combat, without entering in redundancy & shallowness.

    And after putting the hours on this game, I can confirm that this weird    i had a weird feeling about this sequel. While the trailers at first teased interesting twists in the story, game structure/progression & some aspects of the world, I just wondered how they were gonna refresh a game with essentially the same map, enemies & combat, without entering in redundancy & shallowness.

    And after putting the hours on this game, I can confirm that this weird feeling developed to disappointment, as much as I wanted to love the game.

    For starters, if you didn't like BOTW, you probably won't like TOTK, and that's a huge let down for people who wanted something different, considering the years of development.

    Exploring the world hasn't changed that much, the feel is quite similar, & while the sky islands & the underground provide new areas for traveling, there isn't something really refreshing, & the reward for exploration feels unbalanced. You are just gonna find some shrines, some enemies (lots of recycling) or some weapon that you probably won't use, or be excited about. Nothing too transcendental.

    The story is there, but the open world shenanigans & the structure of the game progression makes it feel like it is far in the background in your gameplay experience, a problem that BOTW had.

    I had some hopes for the dungeons, & some leakers where claiming wild takes about them, but in reality, they are glorified divine beasts with little to zero difficulty. The lead ups where a bit more interesting though.

    The new abilities have their charm, but if you are not interested (like lots of people) in distracting yourself with infinite builds & fuses that don't provide any substance or meaning to your quest, you probably going to find it tedious & useless quickly. And there are TOO many options with various weapons anyway, so you won't find something really challenging that makes the difference in effectiveness.

    This is without even mentioning the graphics & performance issues that i think they are just unacceptable for any major franchise/major game development. Dips in fps & aged graphics.

    So here we are, with more questions than answers,

    Why is this game getting 10s almost everywhere, with no objective review in sight?
    Why is everyone assuming that an infinite sandbox & open world "experience" automatically gives a game a greatness status?
    What happened to the mystic & sense of transcendence that made past Zeldas so great?

    The thing is, this is a game that is perfect for streamers & people that make memes, because the potential of making jokes & crazy situations is very much there. But it seriously lacks the feel of something transcendental, of the experience of being a hero on a mission, a magical journey with high stakes & immersive places. The customization options are amazing, but they should not be the main point of the game, since i am not interested in minecraft zelda edition.

    Still, there are many moments of charm & there are many opportunities to express yourself & enjoy the ride. But in no way this is a perfect game.

    Reviewers & fans have to take a step back & really analyze this game better, because we are sending Nintendo the wrong message & there's a huge room for improvement.    … Expand
  28. plagioni
    May 13, 2023
    5
    Like BOTW, but removes the fun abilities and replaces them with a lot of time wasted with clunky controls and menus.
    'I found a new weapon - great now I have to fuse it with something to make it viable. Let's go through my fusion items.. ah who cares, it's gonna break in 5 minutes anyway, let's just choose a random one. Select it, drop it on the floor, change ability to fuse, aim, fuse    Like BOTW, but removes the fun abilities and replaces them with a lot of time wasted with clunky controls and menus.
    'I found a new weapon - great now I have to fuse it with something to make it viable. Let's go through my fusion items.. ah who cares, it's gonna break in 5 minutes anyway, let's just choose a random one. Select it, drop it on the floor, change ability to fuse, aim, fuse it'. One minute wasted for no reason. Why must something that should take 2 seconds within the menu itself take 30 seconds of awkward repetitive motions? Baffling. You can tell Miyamoto is not involved in the development of Nintendo games and busy with theme parks and movies these days, something like this would have never gotten past him.

    After a few hours, after the same repetitive enemy camp, the same cave with a million useless trinkets to collect, and yet another minute wasted attaching some piece of junk to a rusted sword, I dropped the game. I already work all week, playing a game that feels like work is not a fun way to pass the free time.

    No doubt this game can offer moments of absolute emergent brilliance, I'm just not willing to wade through hours of tedium to get to them.    … Expand
  29. ig0tfish
    May 13, 2023
    5
    Pretty fun game so far but it’s basically BOTW 1.5. If you like doing mindless open world content and liked BOTW you can expect a similar experience here
  30. Zquaranteneuf
    May 13, 2023
    6
    So far I can't shake the feeling that this game is literally just Breath of the Wild from a parallel dimension. SO MUCH of it is thematically, mechanically, or aesthetically the same, reskinned as a sequel.

    Some of the new stuff I like, some not so much.

    Fingers crossed that the story is better and more substantial this time around - too early to tell.
  31. Persona5Royal
    May 13, 2023
    6
    I just don't understand all the hype for this game; not only does it heavily inconvenience the player with fragile weapons and limited stamina (just like BotW), but it's also incredibly grindy when it comes to resources and Zonai devices, not to mention bringing back the downright-awful Korok Seeds. It also neglects to give the player a sense of direction, by deliberately leaving outI just don't understand all the hype for this game; not only does it heavily inconvenience the player with fragile weapons and limited stamina (just like BotW), but it's also incredibly grindy when it comes to resources and Zonai devices, not to mention bringing back the downright-awful Korok Seeds. It also neglects to give the player a sense of direction, by deliberately leaving out developer-placed map markers, meaning if you can't see something you would have no idea something is even there; not great, for a huge open-world game with multiple layers.
    This game is a 6/10 at most, not 9, and definitely not a 10 - it's way too flawed for that.

    If weapons and shields were significantly more durable, and there were ways to repair damaged equipment, then that wouldn't be as much of an issue - just look at Minecraft, which is also an open-world game with stamina, breakable equipment, and zero direction given (even less than BotW/TotK), but wisely gives its equipment more than a hundred uses each, and even then has the Unbreaking enchantment to reduce the chance of durability loss, the Mending enchantment to auto-repair the equipment piece with it by absorbing EXP, and multiple ways to straight-up repair equipment (combine the same two tools in the 4x4 inventory grid, at the cost of all enchantments, or the Anvil to repair with the same type of resource [iron armour requires iron ingots, for example] or combine the same two equipment pieces and keep enchantments).
    That's way more player-friendly than what BotW and TotK offer, where every weapon and shield you find just feels like disposable trash that WILL break after a mere handful of uses, sucking the excitement out of earning powerful gear from defeating tough foes, or making your way to secret areas.

    As for stamina...face it, the game would work _just as well_ without this unnecessary green wheel. Sure, it can be upgraded to last longer, but that's just delaying how long you have before you're forced to slow down and wait for it to refill. This makes exploring this huge, multi-layered land even more tedious, for no benefit.
    It's telling when other open-world games, such as Assassin's Creed and Ghost of Tsushima, don't even bother with stamina, allowing the player to rush around their large worlds however they damn well please with no need to slow down and wait.

    Open-world games are already massive time-sinks; this one didn't need to be artificially lengthened further by forcing the player to grind rare resources, or wander this massive multi-layered world without an adequate number of map markers to guide them. That's just needless padding for padding's sake, and serves as a major turn-off for time-poor players (which is a large proportion of the adult customer base, and likely a large number of children too these days) as well as players without much patience.

    Due to all of this, TotK just doesn't deserve 9s or 10s when it's far from perfect or ideal; at the most, it's 6/10 and easily skippable. If you've already trudged and suffered through BotW, this is largely more of the same tedious crap.    … Expand
  32. mac1appula
    May 13, 2023
    7
    Great game worth playing if you have or haven't played Breath of the Wild

    Sanctuaries are a step up from BOTW, has some interesting new gameplay mechanics. Other than that the game is BOTW 2.0 Same map, mostly the same music, also mostly the same ennemies and the same boring secondary quests and storyline! It also runs really bad on the Switch, and when i say bad it is bad (mostly    Great game worth playing if you have or haven't played Breath of the Wild

    Sanctuaries are a step up from BOTW, has some interesting new gameplay mechanics.
    Other than that the game is BOTW 2.0
    Same map, mostly the same music, also mostly the same ennemies and the same boring secondary quests and storyline!

    It also runs really bad on the Switch, and when i say bad it is bad (mostly 20fps but sometimes dips under)
    It is also not looking that great, thanks to the cell shading art direction kinda saving the look of it.

    It is not worth a 0/10 but definitely not a 10/10.    … Expand
  33. Bonbaro
    May 13, 2023
    7
    M y score is a 7.5 . This is a Great game that is sadly deeply flawed like botw and doesnt quite live up to much of its potential.

    From a technical standpoint this game is very impressive with how everything looks and runs. The artstlye isnt my cup of Tee but its unique. This games brings back shrines and they are much like in botw. Most of them are great and fun but there is one    M y score is a 7.5 . This is a Great game that is sadly deeply flawed like botw and doesnt quite live up to much of its potential.

    From a technical standpoint this game is very impressive with how everything looks and runs. The artstlye isnt my cup of Tee but its unique.

    This games brings back shrines and they are much like in botw. Most of them are great and fun but there is one gigantic flaw with them. They all look the same. Something as simple has giving us different shrine themes in different Regions would have really helped from them eventually feeling stale.

    Sadly this games biggest flaw is enemy veriety . They added maybe 4 new enemys and 3 new minibosses. Its baffling that for a game this gigantic it has so few enemys. Becouse of this flaw , combat get stale after a while when youre only fighting the same enemys over and over again. This is a gigantic flaw and makes me take away 1 and a half points.

    The caves in this game are really well designed and funt to play but yet again they suffer from little veriety. they all have the same enemys and goals. finding satori frogs and finding shrines. It would have been so much more exciting exploring the caves if there were unexpected minibosses or enemys or the shrines themselves had unique different themes.

    Overall the Overworld of hyrule just feels too samy to botw with exeptions of caves. Age of calamity showed the potential of how they could change the map like having rebuilt ruins or a rebuilt hyrule castle but much of the game just feels like they only aded sky dabree.

    Speaking of the sky , what a disapointment. The opening Skypllateu is amazing but otherwise there is very little to do in the sky. The skyislands feel like an afterthought that they mostly used for marketing. The underground in this game is just as big as the base botw map but is very empty. Its frustrating becouse it has an extremely cool astetic and atmosphere and the Idea of that you cant see anything and constantly need seeds and checkpoints too light up the map is really cool... but most of the time thats the only thing youre doing. There is a really cool lengthy side adventure in the underground but other then that most of the underground is just walking around and sometimes finde patents or costumes.

    The dungeons in this game are a big mixed bag. On the one hand they fixed botw biggest issue with the dungeons having destinct themes this time around. on the other the dungeons design itselft just isnt as good as in the old 3 zelda games. I think the five terminal sytem really limits the potential of these dungens and that you can solve the puzzles in any order you want. The puzzles are fun but easy. Now the gameplay segment leading up to these dungeons are fantastic and really fun. They give me my zelda dngeons fix but not they just dont reach the highs of the dungeons in twighlight princess , Skyward Sword , Oot. The bosses on the other hand are fantastic and this game has some of the best and most creative bosses in the franchise. And this game has arguably the best ending and final boss in the entire series so thats a humongus step up from botw.

    The story in this game is frustrating. This game has imo the best opening and ending to any zelda game however just like in botw the story is told through memorys and it just cuts any tention the story could have had because its not really relevant to what you are doing at the present moments. The cutscenes are fantastic and add alot to the zelda lore but it would have been so much more effective if it would have been told in the present and in a linear fassion.

    The new fuse mechanic is incredible but it feels like Nintendo spent much more development time on the new mechanics then everything else. I feel like the game would have felt alot better if it came out 3 or 4 years after botw but after 6 years it feels like this game has so much wasted potential. My biggest fear was that this game just eels like dlc and sadly atleast for me , it does just feel like really big dlc most of the time.    … Expand
  34. MazzLink68
    May 14, 2023
    5
    About 15 hours in and I will say that it has exceeded the hype. Zelda fans and fans of BOTW will undoubtedly rate this a 10, while casual gamers new to it will enjoy various aspects of the mechanics and gameplay. It takes a bit to learn the mechanics and get on track with the story but once you do the sky is the limit! Hidden secrets and various new areas and moments of awe have alreadyAbout 15 hours in and I will say that it has exceeded the hype. Zelda fans and fans of BOTW will undoubtedly rate this a 10, while casual gamers new to it will enjoy various aspects of the mechanics and gameplay. It takes a bit to learn the mechanics and get on track with the story but once you do the sky is the limit! Hidden secrets and various new areas and moments of awe have already been a part of my experience. Hoping the many hours I play coming up will be as enjoyable.… Expand
  35. ss93
    May 14, 2023
    7
    Tears of the Kingdom is very disappointing. My worst fear came true with this game. Nintendo played it too safe with Tears of the Kingdom and it feels almost exactly alike Breath of the Wild. This game is one of the least innovative Zelda games ever. Instead of a new Hyrule we're in almost the same exact one as Botw. Combat is the exact same with no new moves for Link to use in battle, theTears of the Kingdom is very disappointing. My worst fear came true with this game. Nintendo played it too safe with Tears of the Kingdom and it feels almost exactly alike Breath of the Wild. This game is one of the least innovative Zelda games ever. Instead of a new Hyrule we're in almost the same exact one as Botw. Combat is the exact same with no new moves for Link to use in battle, the food system is the same as BOTW, the shrines are the same where you get 4 orbs or as they're called here blessing of light and trade for stamina or heart upgrade. The bosses are better in this game though than BOTW. The new powers like the ultra hand and having to make raft devices suck cause the rafts go crashing sideways into a wall even when I set it up correctly and you're forced to do this at many point. Every Zelda prior to this introduced new mechanics like Majora's mask introduced the masks and the forms Link could transform into, wind waker introduced sailing and rolling during combat, skyward sword had motion controls and flying through the sky, ocarina introduced 3D zelda and horseback riding on Epona. In Tears of the Kingdom? Nothing. There is really no new gameplay mechanics, not much of a new world and the game is severely lacking innovation.… Expand
  36. MrDuckHunt
    May 14, 2023
    5
    I'm a little surprised of all these 10 scores around.

    When you buy a Zelda, if isn't a remake of an old one, you await for something new, in terms of world, story and something unexpected that surprise you.

    This isn't, this is Zelda Breath of the Wild 2.

    I'll surely play it till the end and with all side quest and so on, but i'm not really have the impression of have bought a new game.
  37. franknbean
    May 15, 2023
    6
    Pros:
    The game makes you think about how to complete some objectives
    Ambient music
    no bugs or glitches so far
    crafting lets you turn weak gear into stronger gear

    Cons:
    Graphics
    Empty world
    basic combat
    limited voice acting
    Feels like DLC
  38. Donttalk2
    May 16, 2023
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. More LEGO than legend. I´ve played the game for about 15 hours, I don`t think I can carry on. This game has a great pre title - sequence, a beautiful soundtrack (the music is rather jazzy, this time), lovely designs, some kind of story, memorable NPCs and some really nice ideas.
    But it is really boring. And I really hate "Ultrahand". Life is to short to master the unfair made up - physics of an unfair made up- videogame-world where nothing really matters. In my opinion the first ZELDA without a hook. Including "Phantom Hourglass" (yes, and I know, there are a lot of hooks and you have to glue them to the back side of leafs to juggle some stones under an alien - volcano or the like). Enthusiasts say that you can create strange and obscene things within the game. You can scribble and write strange and obscene things in each book, if you like. That doesn`t mean you`re creative. And that doesn`t mean it`s a good book.    … Expand
  39. Juan19892020
    May 13, 2023
    5
    Overhyped game. This is BOTW 1.5, graphics technically the same. Controls suck. The new glueing/weapon fuse thing is a waste of time not fun after the first 10min. Weapons break after 5 hits WTF. I would say this is a wait for a deep deep sale but we know Nintendo will never drop the prices on their overrated franchises.
  40. Batsu4
    May 13, 2023
    6
    Jeu très sympathique mais de gros bug le monde à évoluer mais pas Nintendo qui reste avec ses vieilles cartouches du coup beaucoup de détails ont été gommé du jeu bref sympa mais pas irréprochable comme ont pourrai laisser l'entendre
  41. mario1892
    May 13, 2023
    6
    Good game, not a masterpiece as everoyone is saying, worth sequel of breath of the wild the best switch game
  42. 0nlyOneHere
    May 14, 2023
    6
    It's more of the same. There's some really great new features but at the same time it feels far too similar to breath. The story also gets old quick, after you've experienced one of the 4 objectives you've seen them all because they just keep recycling the same plot for each area.
  43. Glayd
    May 15, 2023
    7
    Good enough. Far away frombeing a master piece.
    I am 10 hours in that game. Enough time for an assessment of what I played. Will change when I progess.
    In general adventure games are rare these days. I understand why BotW gained such a big fan base. I am a big Zelda fan since more than 20 years. Even played all the handheld titles. So Nintendo had even less power and created nice    Good enough. Far away frombeing a master piece.
    I am 10 hours in that game. Enough time for an assessment of what I played. Will change when I progess.
    In general adventure games are rare these days. I understand why BotW gained such a big fan base. I am a big Zelda fan since more than 20 years. Even played all the handheld titles. So Nintendo had even less power and created nice adventures with that.
    TotK is a loveletter to all those hype fans from BotW. It totally misses you if you're not part of that fan base. Controls are a mess. Immersion gets destroyed by the ubiquitous use of this editor functions like ultra-hand and synthesis. Fiddly and with ugly UI elements. Then those elements like combining an individual arrow with each shot with an item you have come on top. That is useability hell.
    Well the graphics are good for people who are only used to playing on switch. I would say it is as beautiful as Pokemon Arceus. Anyone being used playing on current-gen consoles or PC might miss a lot that we are used these days.
    And I won't even start with reusing the world, textures, assets,... Fair enough doing that. But despite the new functions it feels too plain to me.

    Good things are... There still is enough good adventure inside. A lot of work went into breathing new live into the world. In my opinion this could easily be way better in 6 years. But hell... I played and loved Halo infinite and that game is far away from being perfect. Not mentioning the time it took for production.
    For me the right way of playing Zelda TotK is lowering my expecations a lot, not trying to get annoyed by the bad controls and trying to only look on the positive sides like a very big altered world I already know but can re-discover. The triangle-world-formula still works and it is fun letting my daughter play and see what happens when she tries to find solutions for the challenges the world throws at her.    … Expand
  44. dragonborn3551
    May 14, 2023
    7
    Tears of the Kingdom is very innovative and is a vast improvement from Breath of the Wild. However, the game still has some flaws. The writing is very lackluster and retcons many of the other games and while that is not necessarily a bad thing; the lore in this game just feels inferior to what the previous games had built. I specifically find Ganondorf to be much less compelling as aTears of the Kingdom is very innovative and is a vast improvement from Breath of the Wild. However, the game still has some flaws. The writing is very lackluster and retcons many of the other games and while that is not necessarily a bad thing; the lore in this game just feels inferior to what the previous games had built. I specifically find Ganondorf to be much less compelling as a character compared to his old interpretation that was fleshed out in Wind Waker. You can always count on Nintendo games to be outstanding mechanically, but in terms of writing and artistic direction, I feel like they have developed into something less interesting than how they were on the N64 and Gamecube.… Expand
  45. misazx
    May 14, 2023
    5
    It's an amazing game, why? Because it's extremely similar to BOTW.
    What is wrong with that? It's extremely similar to BOTW! This game was ready years ago, they were just waiting a good time to releas it.
  46. rolican
    May 15, 2023
    5
    - this is basically a DLC to BOTW, with some new abilities
    - exploring the world is still fun, just like it was in the previous game
    - underground areas make it look like the game was developed for PS2 - performance is questionable during certain parts of the game - story is pretty uninteresting - was disappointed that it's the same recipe as the previous game: 1) get your abilities    - this is basically a DLC to BOTW, with some new abilities
    - exploring the world is still fun, just like it was in the previous game
    - underground areas make it look like the game was developed for PS2
    - performance is questionable during certain parts of the game
    - story is pretty uninteresting
    - was disappointed that it's the same recipe as the previous game: 1) get your abilities from shrines in an isolated area 2) receive your paraglider 3) beat 4 divine beasts 4) face final boss

    If you liked BOTW then you'll probably like this one too. However, I don't think the game is worth full price. It's literally just a DLC    … Expand
  47. ChuddNelson
    May 17, 2023
    5
    I would have given this game a 6 but almost everything in the game is recycled from BOTW. Same map, same graphics, same enemies, same weapons, and pretty much the same mechanics other than crafting, which gets old very quick. On top of that the game suffers from major framerate issues. This all wouldn't be as bad if they fixed a lot of the problems with BOTW, but alas they did not. TheI would have given this game a 6 but almost everything in the game is recycled from BOTW. Same map, same graphics, same enemies, same weapons, and pretty much the same mechanics other than crafting, which gets old very quick. On top of that the game suffers from major framerate issues. This all wouldn't be as bad if they fixed a lot of the problems with BOTW, but alas they did not. The open world still feels empty, there are still too many shrines with a lack of real dungeons, and weapons still feel like they are made of glass and break after just a few uses. To make matters worse crafting is now a huge part of this game, and it's clear they only did this to appeal to the younger Minecraft crowd. BOTW really didn't feel like a Zelda game, and TOTK feels even less like one. To add insult to injury they had the nerve to charge $70 for this recycled garbage, and the fact that I spent $70 on it is the only thing keeping me playing it. Nintendo, you can do better.… Expand
  48. max1c
    May 13, 2023
    7
    The game is alright. Definitely not a 10/10. It's 90% the same game as BotW so if you want more of the same this game is definitely for you. Otherwise there's not much to see here. The biggest issue with this game is the controls. Controller was, is, and always will be a terrible input mechanism for a 3D game like this.
  49. abowman
    May 18, 2023
    7
    If you liked BOTW, you will like this game.

    These Zelda games have a lot of charm but completely lack basic character progression mechanics. Zelda has always had its puzzles, but these recent iterations really feel more like puzzle games than they do RPG's. Enemies are sparse and non-threatening. In the 2 main temples I've done so far, there was probably 4-5 enemies in total throughout    If you liked BOTW, you will like this game.

    These Zelda games have a lot of charm but completely lack basic character progression mechanics. Zelda has always had its puzzles, but these recent iterations really feel more like puzzle games than they do RPG's. Enemies are sparse and non-threatening. In the 2 main temples I've done so far, there was probably 4-5 enemies in total throughout the ENTIRE dungeons. I spent the VAST majority of the time navigating the environment and solving puzzles. The bosses themselves are EXTREMLY easy and again play more out like a puzzle than they do an RPG boss.

    There's a lot to do, but rarely does it feel like any of it is worth doing. They did improve on this aspect with TOTK by adding in multiple armor sets, some of which can be found randomly throughout the world. However, all of the armor essentially has the same armor rating, and all your swapping is special effects or resistances.

    The weapon system, while improved from the first game, still unfortunately feeds into the lack of character progression. Just like BOTW, all weapons break. Between this and the armor system, it basically makes the entire gear system feel pretty underwhelming. You will open chest after chest to find a stack of arrows, a basic building component, or maybe an ore of some type. Chests very rarely feel rewarding or exciting a result.

    Outside of hearts and stamina upgrades there is essentially ZERO character progression. Just like BOTW they give these upgrades by making you do... wait for it, dozens of puzzle shrines! Atleast the puzzle shrines are much more interesting this time around, but its essentially the same exact mechanic.

    The performance issues are also noticeable. Particularly in the fire temple, I was dropping to about 5-10 frames in some spots. It's always amazing to me that consumers let Nintendo get away with this. This is unacceptable in a 70 dollar AAA game.

    It's hard to imagine what they spent 6 years on here. The level design is phenomenal. Basically, everything else is reused from BOTW. It's always shocking to see the critic reviews on these games as well. I just don't see this being anywhere near a perfect experience, but to each their own I guess. I consider TOTK average all the way around.    … Expand
  50. XRaiden193x
    May 14, 2023
    6
    Pros: New abilities to enjoy crafting and a lot of new gameplay mechanics. A few more new areas to explore and the original BOTW map has been slightly altered.

    Cons: same graphics, overall same explored BOTW map, the constant need to craft id a bit tedious knowing full well that BOTW didn't force this on the gamers to reach areas. Overall I am very dissapointed. I wanted a new map to    Pros: New abilities to enjoy crafting and a lot of new gameplay mechanics. A few more new areas to explore and the original BOTW map has been slightly altered.

    Cons: same graphics, overall same explored BOTW map, the constant need to craft id a bit tedious knowing full well that BOTW didn't force this on the gamers to reach areas.

    Overall I am very dissapointed. I wanted a new map to explore but releasing the same map shile claiming 6 years of development and a higher pricetag is just a slap in the face to people.    … Expand
  51. KingSmerte
    May 14, 2023
    6
    This game is far from the masterpiece critics claim this to be. It does have some innotative and creative mechanics, but they don't compensate for how bland and generic the world and story are.
    The story is really slow and predictable. You're told the same story about Ganondorf beating everyone like 3 times, the fourth time with some more context. It's not until the last fourth of the    This game is far from the masterpiece critics claim this to be. It does have some innotative and creative mechanics, but they don't compensate for how bland and generic the world and story are.
    The story is really slow and predictable. You're told the same story about Ganondorf beating everyone like 3 times, the fourth time with some more context. It's not until the last fourth of the game that it actually starts to get interesting, but then again, it'll end exactly as you think it will. because Ganondorf doesn't stray from a stereotypical villain you'd see in a Disney movie.
    Doesn't feel much like a Zelda game if i can be honest. 90% of your time you'll spend building and cooking stuff, which if you're into that, it's a good thing, but if you're not, like me, it's kind of a chore.
    The positives about this game are the creativity of some puzzles, the wide combinations of properties you can give to your weapons, and that Ganondorf looks cool. But that's pretty much it.
    Don't feel like complimenting the artstyle because it's literally the same as BOTW, not much new there.    … Expand
  52. irekk
    May 18, 2023
    7
    I played BotW years ago. I completed the story multiple times. I hit 100% completion once. I spent roughly 200 hours playing the first open world version of Zelda games.
    I got mixed feelings about TotK though. Is pretty much the same game, but I'm not the same person. It's simply waste of time to find 100+ shrines, hundreds of Koroks all over again. It's the same game, but yet I got    I played BotW years ago. I completed the story multiple times. I hit 100% completion once. I spent roughly 200 hours playing the first open world version of Zelda games.
    I got mixed feelings about TotK though. Is pretty much the same game, but I'm not the same person. It's simply waste of time to find 100+ shrines, hundreds of Koroks all over again. It's the same game, but yet I got impression that is the same game but with so many cool features, it makes visuals worse. Playing in hand held after all these years just make you tired and irritated.
    I love the mechanics but I'm too old to play this game again. I spent around 10 hours so far and I know already I won't make 100%, im more likely not complete the storyline. All this sandbox idea does not impress me.    … Expand
  53. YarHar707
    May 13, 2023
    5
    -6 new bosses, 6 new enemies (that's 2 enemies per year of dev time)
    -bosses are just generic "shoot the eyeball" and then the boss staggers for 20 seconds
    -dungeons are just 5 shrine puzzles stapled together -Sky Islands look cool but are 5% of the game map, most of them just have a "move the green crystal to the shrine using a garry's mod plane" -Underground is barren wasteland with    -6 new bosses, 6 new enemies (that's 2 enemies per year of dev time)
    -bosses are just generic "shoot the eyeball" and then the boss staggers for 20 seconds
    -dungeons are just 5 shrine puzzles stapled together
    -Sky Islands look cool but are 5% of the game map, most of them just have a "move the green crystal to the shrine using a garry's mod plane"
    -Underground is barren wasteland with just red sludge, darkness and reskinned enemies

    They really worked 6 years on this? How is that possible?    … Expand
  54. braybray1590
    May 15, 2023
    6
    I’ll try to be short and sweet. Honestly if you loved botw you will probably at least like this one. But after I spent 100+ hours in botw since release this feels like a chore to play. It feels boring and uninspired. Everything disliked in the first game returned. I feel like the hyper got this game much higher reviews than it deserved. It really does just feel like a dlc. Maybe theI’ll try to be short and sweet. Honestly if you loved botw you will probably at least like this one. But after I spent 100+ hours in botw since release this feels like a chore to play. It feels boring and uninspired. Everything disliked in the first game returned. I feel like the hyper got this game much higher reviews than it deserved. It really does just feel like a dlc. Maybe the feeling will change later into the game, but as it stands right now about 10 hours in it doesn’t feel fun to play.… Expand
  55. Nimmgreen
    May 14, 2023
    5
    Simply brilliant. A fantastic sequel to BotW. This will have unbelievable replayability and keep engagement high.
  56. Kido164
    May 14, 2023
    5
    This game has a lot of the old ones abilities just labeled as something else plus the fps drop is very irritating(i get that its on switch but still you gotta be prepared).
  57. GreaserPirate
    May 14, 2023
    5
    Best game I've ever played
    Love all the new moves and the size of the worlds Great game
  58. Taffarelu
    May 14, 2023
    5
    It’s the perfect sequel too yet another perfect game. it’s certain that it’s botw sequel and yet it’s different in many ways. Solving problems that it’s predecessor had in clever ways. Making it an amazing experience. It should have a 10/10 but as always great things have dumb haters behind it, give your self a favor and ignore any 0/10 review cause they clearly haven’t even bought theIt’s the perfect sequel too yet another perfect game. it’s certain that it’s botw sequel and yet it’s different in many ways. Solving problems that it’s predecessor had in clever ways. Making it an amazing experience. It should have a 10/10 but as always great things have dumb haters behind it, give your self a favor and ignore any 0/10 review cause they clearly haven’t even bought the game.… Expand
  59. ColinBerry
    May 14, 2023
    5
    A game well worth your time. If you liked Breath of the Wild, you’ll love this one. Not only are there significantly more areas to explore (or re-explore), pretty much every part of the previous game was improved and expanded.
  60. Emilyros
    May 15, 2023
    5
    Ive honestly just been blown away by this game they took the magic of breath of the wild and widly expanded it. Theres just more or everything, more dungeons, more bosses, more story, more side quests, the entire overworld was heavily expanded upon, they added the sky islands and the underneath both of which, particularly the underneath are vast and filled with loot. I had some concernsIve honestly just been blown away by this game they took the magic of breath of the wild and widly expanded it. Theres just more or everything, more dungeons, more bosses, more story, more side quests, the entire overworld was heavily expanded upon, they added the sky islands and the underneath both of which, particularly the underneath are vast and filled with loot. I had some concerns with the game, I was worried it wouldn't have enough content to justify it being a sequel or the hefty price tag but honestly they reworked and added so much it feels like three games all stacked together.… Expand
  61. NowiFate
    May 16, 2023
    6
    Since the game reuses a lot of old assets without fixing any problems the previous game had, I find it strange to see so many 100/100 reviews. The game is fun to play, most of the time. However, there are a lot of flaws right under your nose while you play this.

    First of all, the game reuses art assets, textures, characters, locations, the whole map, music, and a lot of its gameplay.    Since the game reuses a lot of old assets without fixing any problems the previous game had, I find it strange to see so many 100/100 reviews. The game is fun to play, most of the time. However, there are a lot of flaws right under your nose while you play this.

    First of all, the game reuses art assets, textures, characters, locations, the whole map, music, and a lot of its gameplay. For a Triple-A production that took 6 years, this is very little originality. This is all done without addressing a lot of the problems and mechanics that were bothersome in the first game.
    There is another direct Zelda sequel that also reused assets. While some found this controversial, the game did bring completely new characters or sides of previously established characters, a new world and new map, a completely different story, new music, different characters to play as, and a different way to progress through the story. This game used concepts and assets but built upon them. Something I found lacking in TotK.

    There are a lot of things that break gameplay, like menus and having to craft mid-battle. Since the new machines completely revamped the transport throughout the world, the Stamina meter feels like an unnecessary restraint to gameplay.

    The few points of dark and mature themes in BotW have mostly been removed when it seems characters have forgotten about the champions who died 100 years before BotW. (Which felt rude at times) The cross-dressing and potential male Link-admirer have also been shoved into the background to refrain from LGBT topics. And the story makes it very clear 'nobody got hurt' which eventually made the stakes not feel very high. Especially compared to the stakes of previous games, where Hyrule and its races were threatened with death and world-ending endeavors.

    Overall, if you enjoyed BotW a lot and want to do 240 shrines and 1800 Koroks instead of what we had before, this game is perfect. It adds new ways to explore what we got before and allows you to see the map from a different angle. But for people who expect (traditional) Zelda gameplay, a whole new game, people who didn't like BotW, or people who have played BotW a lot, this game won't have a lot for you.

    It's best described as a glorified, expensive DLC of BotW.    … Expand
  62. Jochmx
    May 16, 2023
    7
    One word, padding, padding the length with long walks, padding the difficulty with high damage, padding the fun with constructable solutions that break anyway. Its a good game, has good bosses, but u will struggle for hours to get to those exciting moments, i dont think its the best game ever created, so much 10 from official media just makes me wonder are this just from playing a demo,One word, padding, padding the length with long walks, padding the difficulty with high damage, padding the fun with constructable solutions that break anyway. Its a good game, has good bosses, but u will struggle for hours to get to those exciting moments, i dont think its the best game ever created, so much 10 from official media just makes me wonder are this just from playing a demo, havent they played alttp, didnt they see this is a rehash of everything else, in 97' shrines were called virtual missions in metal gear solid.… Expand
  63. PizzaBaratheon
    May 19, 2023
    7
    I'm now totally convinced the reason Nintendo delayed the release of Tears of the Kingdom a full year was because they knew Elden Ring was a superior game in every way.

    Where Elden Ring shines in exploration, traversal, and rewards, TOFK misses the mark. Getting around this massive world feels extremely tedious and the rewards for discovering a new cave, defeating an enemy camp, or    I'm now totally convinced the reason Nintendo delayed the release of Tears of the Kingdom a full year was because they knew Elden Ring was a superior game in every way.

    Where Elden Ring shines in exploration, traversal, and rewards, TOFK misses the mark. Getting around this massive world feels extremely tedious and the rewards for discovering a new cave, defeating an enemy camp, or unlocking a hidden chest in one of the many shrines just doesn't feel worth it. Players should feel rewarded for spending 15 minutes climbing a mountain or solving a puzzle and this game really fails at it.

    Resource management in this game is a chore. You'll find yourself constantly scrolling through the item menu to create space for new weapons or shields that are going to break ten minutes later. It was annoying in BOTW but for some reason Nintendo made it 10X worse in TOTK.

    The new abilities don't feel flushed out. Mechanics for the new "ultra hand" ability are clunky and at times infuriating. Lining up the parts of a vehicle you're trying to craft is extremely tedious and aggravating. The worst part about the new vehicle system is that you constantly have to manage energy supply levels or the thing you just spent a half hour making will break. It's basically like a more aggravating version of breakable weapons.

    I could look alot of these problems aside if the story was compelling, but 40 hours in, there just isn't enough here to make me care about what i'm doing. Nobody in this world seems to be too worried that their capital got blown up and all this crazy **** is happening. All the NPCs do is hammer you over the head with repetitive dialogue and silly side quests. It's like Nintendo completely overlooked giving context to the people of apocalyptic Hyrule while making this Frankenstein of a game.

    In summary, I think Nintendo would've been much better off creating an entirely new game based around the archipelago sky islands instead of making people pay $70 for a Breath of the Wild DLC, which is ultimately what Tears of the Kingdom is.    … Expand
  64. MasterJed
    May 14, 2023
    5
    BOTW left the old school Zelda formula and became a massive hit but Tears of the Kingdom just rehashed and tweaked everything BOTW has and offered it as a $70 game. Totk feels like a huge dlc update nothing surprising nothing to wow on! Just a massive time sink. Let's face open world games are becoming more lifeless, dull and boring.
  65. Carcrasher34
    May 14, 2023
    5
    Overall, it's Zelda. Some meaningful changes and new features make it somewhat stand apart from its predecessor, but it's major performance issues along with it's 30fps nature make it quite hard to stomach over such a grandiose adventure. Die hard fans will enjoy it regardless of it's issues, but others may want to look elsewhere for their next adventure experience.
  66. Greenherb
    May 21, 2023
    5
    This and BotW are nothing like the previous 15+ Zelda titles. Not only did they ruin the Zelda series but they are not even enjoyable to play (BotW is even less enjoyable). Its like they hired an entirely new staff (and perhaps inexperienced) to make these 2 games that have never played other Zelda games. Just as ugly design and graphics as previous game. Tedious and convoluted mechanics.This and BotW are nothing like the previous 15+ Zelda titles. Not only did they ruin the Zelda series but they are not even enjoyable to play (BotW is even less enjoyable). Its like they hired an entirely new staff (and perhaps inexperienced) to make these 2 games that have never played other Zelda games. Just as ugly design and graphics as previous game. Tedious and convoluted mechanics. Voices and characters/story are very unlikeable but cant really say other Zelda games didn't have this problem. But BotW and Tears of the Kingdom are in a league of their own in terms of terrible story/characters.

    Edited: I raised the score to 5 because, even though I still wouldn't change my negative comments, some puzzle concepts are relatively fun and improved from BotW. It also simply has more to do and discover.    … Expand
  67. TheCrownedGamer
    May 14, 2023
    5
    It's just Breath of The Wild with incremental updates, what else is there to say?
  68. TornadoII
    May 15, 2023
    6
    Reused assets. Music is the same, sound effects are the same, the menu is the same, combat is the same, enemies are mostly the same, the map is the same, graphics are the same, and the core game is the same (Shrines for hearts, towers to unlock the map, the weather system, cooking, stamina, the horrendous breaking weapons system, etc)

    People saying the map is super fresh and new are    Reused assets. Music is the same, sound effects are the same, the menu is the same, combat is the same, enemies are mostly the same, the map is the same, graphics are the same, and the core game is the same (Shrines for hearts, towers to unlock the map, the weather system, cooking, stamina, the horrendous breaking weapons system, etc)

    People saying the map is super fresh and new are delusional.
    It is the exact same Hyrule field with some debris and new stuff here and there. The underground sector is a significant area of nothingness, with little to do, and only for grinding materials.

    The sky Islands are just rocks scattered and all look more or less the same. At least going there or diving to the ground is fun and fresh.

    Same world, exploration was replaced with new mechanics and gameplay gimmicks. I know this world, I've been here 6 years ago, and I don't feel it new at all, the sense of awe and exploration is mostly gone, is way too familiar.

    The weapon system is the worst mechanic of the botw game and persists here, the fusing mechanic doesn't really help to improve things.
    Having nice weapons is meaningless, they brake with a couple of swings, and you spend half of the time browsing the menu disrupting constantly the flow of the battle, then you fuse stuff and the cycle begins again.
    Honestly, I avoid engaging with many enemies because I found the mechanic so annoying and meaningless, which is a huge red flag for me.

    You spend half of this game browsing the menu, cooking, and grinding materials constantly, which I feel is a chore and has terrible pacing.

    720-900p with fps around 25-30 and sometimes less is terrible, Nintendo really needs to bring in some new hardware, this game is too big for this outdated console.

    The story is nice, I love the art direction, outfit design etc. Nintendo improved the dungeons too. Which is a good thing.

    By any means this game is bad, is not just straight out 10 and the best game ever created as many people say.    … Expand
  69. Tehemai
    May 15, 2023
    5
    Sadly, this game feels like more of an expansive overhaul mod of botw than it does a sequel. And it still suffers performance issues, which is pretty unacceptable from the very people that also designed the console that struggles to run it.

    This overhaul also doesn't really rectify most of the issues fans highlighted with the first, resorting instead to band-aids at best: - The music    Sadly, this game feels like more of an expansive overhaul mod of botw than it does a sequel. And it still suffers performance issues, which is pretty unacceptable from the very people that also designed the console that struggles to run it.

    This overhaul also doesn't really rectify most of the issues fans highlighted with the first, resorting instead to band-aids at best:

    - The music is again sparse, largely reused and still not comparable to Koji Kondo's classic work.
    - The "dungeons" are little more than texture and gimmick swapped divine beasts.
    - The weapon breakage system while modified is still abrasive & disincentivizes exploration and combat.
    - The obnoxious koroks are back, often reusing the same already overused puzzles from the last game.
    - The barebones story is delivered again through the poorly received memories system.

    The pattern seems to be minimizing development costs. But that's not to say there is no new content. There's still new enemies, new features such as vehicle crafting and dark treacherous caves. Fine additions to be sure. Just not really groundbreaking enough to make it feel like a new experience. It also comes at a ridiculously high menuing cost that makes you miss the convenience of Ocarina of Time's iron boots.

    That said the original was still very fun for all its flaws. So I'd say it may be worth the pick up if you've either never played botw or if you're already in the mood to play it again. Though even then, I'd consider maybe waiting for Nintendo's next console in the hopes of experiencing this without the performance issues.    … Expand
  70. xellos81
    May 14, 2023
    7
    I need to write my review because I've just read another guy talking about TOTK as BOTW 2.0 which is exactly how I felt playing it.
    Gameplay is the same, combat is the same, music is the same, and also audio effect etc.
    For me, the biggest problem in this game is that feels completely disconnected in his different parts. Totally looks like a production with a certain direction but then    I need to write my review because I've just read another guy talking about TOTK as BOTW 2.0 which is exactly how I felt playing it.
    Gameplay is the same, combat is the same, music is the same, and also audio effect etc.
    For me, the biggest problem in this game is that feels completely disconnected in his different parts.
    Totally looks like a production with a certain direction but then they started adding stuff on top of it. Maybe Nintendo thought that adding everything together in an open world made sense but no, it didn't .
    Is still the same, but like a cheap copy of it. You already had the original in BOTW.
    The sages stories are the same, plus are shallow and totally not even comparable to the struggle that the characters had in Botw trying to help you because the failed in the first place. The real last chance. Nobody have the emotional strength of Mipha.
    Here the characters have minor emotional impact on Link, is mostly like that you help each other but without being interconnected.

    I also want to say that walking around Hyrule for the first time in Botw was astonishing.
    When in BOTW I arrived in the Zora's domain I was like: Wow... This place have his own poetry and I was honored to have the possibility to walk around and feel the magic of the artists that invented such a beautiful place.
    Now in totk instead, everything is empty, without a soul, because every place is well known and Nintendo also ruined the magic of the experience adding totally different game dynamics over a place that had a different purpose.
    As I said, they added on top, not in the mix.

    The demonstration is that the sky islands aren't actually connected with the game itself, is just something they added to have different panoramas for the marketing.
    And also the Zonai tech is almost skippable because it's not intertwined with the game itself and vehicles are more similar to a cheatcode in GTA than anything made with love for the Zelda's saga.

    Plus, we totally need new hardware.

    That said, I'm playing it
    But I'm not engaged    … Expand
  71. CyberRobotnix
    May 14, 2023
    5
    It's about the same as last game, it's not any better or any worse TBFH. Maybe they could've tried instead of being lazy.
  72. nnja
    May 26, 2023
    5
    MY SCORE IS 5/10 not 10/10 : please metacritic DO NOT CHANGE THIS!!!

    All the other 5-7/10 reviews nailed all the aspects of my review : This feels like BOTW 1.5 All the core mechanics are the same as BOTW; Link has no voice (WTF); People saying graphics are so much better are only talking about draw distance, not actual graphics quality (no HDR, unstable 30 FPS); The switch    MY SCORE IS 5/10 not 10/10 : please metacritic DO NOT CHANGE THIS!!!

    All the other 5-7/10 reviews nailed all the aspects of my review :

    This feels like BOTW 1.5
    All the core mechanics are the same as BOTW;
    Link has no voice (WTF);
    People saying graphics are so much better are only talking about draw distance, not actual graphics quality (no HDR, unstable 30 FPS);
    The switch becomes very hot, watch out in summer days;

    Hopefully I will update my review with more hours on this game but so far 100$ with taxes in canada i WAY too much to ask for this...

    PS : Davie504 said "behind each hate comment is a sad person" : YES! I am sad. Nintendo disapointed me, Skill Up disapointed me, MVG disapointed me. I'm selling my copy 24 hour after I have bought it. I'll never buy a nintendo game ever again.    … Expand
  73. Elawarai
    May 15, 2023
    6
    When Nintendo announced BOTW, I firstly was excited then sceptical when I played at it. Since my childhood, Zelda games used to be a big event : epic adventure, interesting characters, best OST ever, brilliant gameplay. True masterpieces from Link's Awakening to WindWalker.

    BOTW and TOTK followed a new gameplay paradigm of minimalist scenaristic exploration games. It's not really bad    When Nintendo announced BOTW, I firstly was excited then sceptical when I played at it. Since my childhood, Zelda games used to be a big event : epic adventure, interesting characters, best OST ever, brilliant gameplay. True masterpieces from Link's Awakening to WindWalker.

    BOTW and TOTK followed a new gameplay paradigm of minimalist scenaristic exploration games. It's not really bad but it more looks like an independant €10 steam game than a Zelda game. Though the artistic direction is neat, the technical aspects of graphics are totally overaged, music is boring, controls of Link are quit bad, the inventory and menus are too complex. You spend your time to solve puzzles or to find nuts but the game is empty of any epic Arthurian quests or bosses, only cooking or spending time wandering.

    I'm not convinced at all by this new paradigm of Zelda.    … Expand
  74. Soul_Viper
    May 18, 2023
    5
    In only 1 word: DISSAPOINTED. But not only with this title but with previous Breath of The Wild too. Why I say that? Well, I'm essentially referring to the direction in which the franchise has evolved.

    I consider myself a huge fan of The Legend of Zelda, in fact my personal top 5 games of all history includes Ocarina and Majora's. In my opinion the following games of the saga were only    In only 1 word: DISSAPOINTED. But not only with this title but with previous Breath of The Wild too. Why I say that? Well, I'm essentially referring to the direction in which the franchise has evolved.

    I consider myself a huge fan of The Legend of Zelda, in fact my personal top 5 games of all history includes Ocarina and Majora's.
    In my opinion the following games of the saga were only a bit step behind those ones, but we are talking about truly masterpieces too. I refer to Twilight Princess, Wind Waker, Skyward Sword and Link's Awakening.

    It seems the company has forgotten that one of the hallmarks of the saga is the innovation. Every game launched since Ocarina of Time is very very different from the previous one. The originality and uniqueness present on each release is over. This TOTK is just a copy-paste of BOTW with very little mods and it's very sad.

    In the first 3 hr of playing this TOTK, I only talked with 8-9 stupid automatas and a spirit (not counting the intro when Zelda talks to you). The rest was boring and basic exploration, 2 tiny dungeons and 5 min combat. In my opinion the evolution taken by the company on this saga is clearly wrong.

    This huge world is too much for Link, most part is empty and the gameplay is mainly based on exploration, gathering, cooking, climbing, walking and repeat and then repeat again. Don't expect here to see an Elden Ring universe full of life with very different and captivating scenarios but without forget including those great "closed" areas of previous Soul's games. Because one of the funniest and challenging parts of an adventure game like this one was supposed to the challenge of complete the great dungeons/temples that now are a mere shadow of those ones. In adittion final bosses are way too easy and derivative.

    The landscapes now are all very similar within itselves and the gameplay is boring. Why they left behind all the charming stories that was a key element of the game? Because don't forget that The Legend of Zelda is a game about stories, relationships with people and all vested with an awesome halo of fantasy and magic with hints of epic and sometimes tragic. Now all these elements gone and it doesn't seem to come back soon (at least while people continue loving the path they have taken with last 2 games...)

    Even the epic music that featured most of the Zelda videogames and made us to fall in love with it (how to forget saria's song, bolero of fire, gerudo valley, ballad of the goddess, kakariko village, romani ranch...) has now turned into boring and typical tunes without soul.

    Definitely I can't recommend anyone to play this game.    … Expand
  75. DanterY
    May 18, 2023
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I am disappointed that in the trailers this game looks very promising and ended up being the same as we had in 2017 sold as a new game… Expand
  76. ThisDragonfly25
    May 20, 2023
    7
    I enjoyed BOTW but this feels too similar in all the worst ways. Often find it tedious and frustrating. But it is clearly well-made.
  77. jacobhaskins222
    May 15, 2023
    5
    I'm a fan of Zelda. I can get behind BOTW, but not TOTK. And yes, I've experienced every aspect of both games (shrines, plot, exploring the world, quests, sky, depths). After 30 hours in this game, I know I'm in for a building slog.

    The framerate isn't gamebreaking. It's mostly noticeable for me with the camera because I can't turn lol. But that isn't what holds TOTK back. What holds    I'm a fan of Zelda. I can get behind BOTW, but not TOTK. And yes, I've experienced every aspect of both games (shrines, plot, exploring the world, quests, sky, depths). After 30 hours in this game, I know I'm in for a building slog.

    The framerate isn't gamebreaking. It's mostly noticeable for me with the camera because I can't turn lol. But that isn't what holds TOTK back.

    What holds TOTK back is Ultrahand. Ultrahand = SS motion controls. And I like Fi more than most of this cast. SS is a low bar that TOTK should be able to beat, but doesn't. Ultrahand takes far too long because it introduces a linear way to puzzle in a BOTW format. You have to gingerly aim where you place objects or risk having to start over. Maybe I'd like Ultrahand more if there were other items I could use to impact puzzles. But Ultrahand's gravest offense is that it promises a fun time because it allows for "player creativity", and then eats the player's time by requiring them to build exactly as the game designed. And despite a brilliant start, the plot felt lazy (the story did do better than BOTW though. At least Nintendo tried).

    The world is emptier. It is straight up harder to collect materials AND materials are worth less (prices are the same btw). Luminous ore, for example, used to be worth 70 rupees but now grants only 20. Your best bet for money is probably cooking, but to do that you have to travel quite a ways across open space to gather sparse materials.

    This game won't age well. It can't for the reasons I've mentioned. Once the rabid excitement of the game wears off, I don't think this game will be seen favorably. Sure, I might spend more time with it than BOTW, but that's because this game doesn't respect my time. A long game with Ultrahand puzzles building the same machines got old fast for me, and I wager it'll be the same for a large portion of the player base.

    That said, this game is salvageable--if it takes a leaf out of SS's book and streamlines Ultrahand, combines the content with DLC I'm sure is coming to address some of the emptiness, then maybe TOTK has life. That leaves a bad taste in my mouth though, since TOTK took 4 years to develop and it took players only a few days to notice that Ultrahand is supposed to take 20+ hours of a serious player's playthrough, but is NOT fun with trial and error.    … Expand
  78. vincepouni
    May 17, 2023
    7
    More of the same. Lots more of it.

    Seems like the critics didn't play BoTW.
  79. Syxx1129
    May 15, 2023
    7
    Enjoying the building mechanic. Most likely a GOTY contender. However if any other game released with frame drops, artifact shimmer, and pop in etc., reviews wouldn’t be throwing out as many 10’s
  80. XxRenardezu
    May 14, 2023
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The gameplay is a 10/10 but. the story have a huge flaw the game blatantly ignores botw , no champions mentioned , no divine beasts , no guardians , nothing , they disappeared and no one talks about it… Expand
  81. Ewjones212
    May 15, 2023
    5
    It's kind of just the same game as BotW, I give this game the dungeons are reasonably better but some of the boss fights are more brain dead than anything else. Why can't we expect more novelty from the games industry, that what amounts to a pallet swap for most of the powers and a return to a somewhat more classic style of dungeons being celebrated as some monumental achievement. DirectIt's kind of just the same game as BotW, I give this game the dungeons are reasonably better but some of the boss fights are more brain dead than anything else. Why can't we expect more novelty from the games industry, that what amounts to a pallet swap for most of the powers and a return to a somewhat more classic style of dungeons being celebrated as some monumental achievement. Direct sequels to Zelda games used to be such a departure for the franchise that i relished them now it seems it's just more AAA cash grabs with no payoff.… Expand
  82. Kimkatt94
    May 15, 2023
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A must buy just like BOTW but better music is awesome and cutscenes are chef’s kiss. You know get a Huge! map not only the land of Hyrule but now you get to explore the depths and skies 10/10!!!… Expand
  83. devilsculpted
    May 15, 2023
    5
    Been playing for 24 hours, and the gameplay was best, this game I believe will win the 2023 GOTY awards. The storyline, plot, and gameplay mechanics are innovative. With wide open world experience filled with so many features that will not make players feel bored. can't wait to complete this game, since I was so addicted and after waiting for year since the announcement I get the copy ofBeen playing for 24 hours, and the gameplay was best, this game I believe will win the 2023 GOTY awards. The storyline, plot, and gameplay mechanics are innovative. With wide open world experience filled with so many features that will not make players feel bored. can't wait to complete this game, since I was so addicted and after waiting for year since the announcement I get the copy of the game at first day and been enjoying so far.… Expand
  84. mrwho995
    Jul 4, 2023
    7
    A fun enough experience, but not worth the 6 year wait.

    The game uses the same gameplay mechanics, physics and chemistry engines, assets, and overworld as its predecessor, which makes things feel stale. The re-use of the overworld especially, after the longest wait for a new Zelda ever, makes this game impossible to rate too highly. However, it does also add a lot of new stuff. The    A fun enough experience, but not worth the 6 year wait.

    The game uses the same gameplay mechanics, physics and chemistry engines, assets, and overworld as its predecessor, which makes things feel stale. The re-use of the overworld especially, after the longest wait for a new Zelda ever, makes this game impossible to rate too highly. However, it does also add a lot of new stuff.

    The best thing about this game are the Side Adventures. There's a huge amount of them and they have good variety. From a nice little contained story in Tarry Town, to the extensive adventures you get up to with the Lucky Clover Gazette; from a war between a fashionista and a traditional mayor, to infiltrating the Yiga Clan; from fighting with regular townspeople against monsters, to soloing an entire priate camp that has taken over Lurelin Village, and then rebuilding it. The Side Adventures are truly exceptional.

    The biggest weakness of the game is exploration rewards. They are almost always not worth the bother. The game is massively bloated with useless costumes, and if not that, rewards are one specific item you don't need, a bad sword/bow/shield. a map to something useless, or at best a Sage's Will. This heavily disincentivises exploration and makes the game feel empty and unrewarding.

    The Depths are a welcome addition, and can be good fun to explore. However, after a while they start to get slightly tedius and repetitive, with very little content in them beyond combat encounters and yiga camps.

    The dungeons are a vast improvement on Breath of the Wild's divine beasts, and were genuinely enjoyable to play, one of the highlights of the game. But unfortunately they are still quite far the standard set by Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword. However, the Water Temple is very underwhelming and worse than the divine beasts, and the Spirit Temple simply isn't a dungeon at all, although the leadup to it was great. The highlight of the temples has to go to the Lightning Temple, which comes closest to feeling like a traditional dungeon. The Fire Temple and Wind temple are also good.

    The memories are far better implemented and far more interesting than in Breath of the Wild, but ultimately I still find them to be a bad way of telling a story in an adventure game; I'm not engaged if the story isn't contemporaneous and related to the actions of the player. The main questline is shockingly repetitive between the different regions, with an extremely fomulaic and repetitive story structure, and using almost the exact same cutscene four times; it's unbelievably lazy at points. The final few hours of the game are good fun however, with a great final boss followed by an epic and cinematic setpiece.

    Despite the Sky Islands being the main marketing draw of the game, they are really quite underwhelming and there's not that many of them. The exact same islands are copy-pasted countless times, which is honestly shockingly lazy for something that is supposed to be the main marketing draw of the game. They're a decent addition but could have been much, much better.

    The Fuse and Ultrahand abilities are fun to play around with, and very impressive from a technical, design, and art perspective. They can transform how you play the game and allow for a lot of fun gameplay experiences. They both must have taken a significant amount of work. Ascend and Recall are also technically impressive, and fit well in to the game; they make you quite fundamentally rethink how you approach exploration and combat respectively.

    Unfortunately, although the home building feature is an amazing idea, is executed utterly abysmally. They honestly shouldn't have allowed this feature to be released in such an underdeveloped, awkward, and restrictive state.

    Graphically, the game is certainly showing the Switch's age, and the successor can't come soon enough. Despite the ancient hardware the game can still manage to look really nice in parts, and although performance issues are more common than in BoTW, they're still relatively rare. The draw distance can sometimes be very poor. But usually, the experience is a good one. This game definitely shows the Switch's age but it *just about* gets away with it.

    There is a lot to like about the game, but ultimately it's an underwhelming experience for me. It feels too similar to Breath of the Wild to justify waiting so incredibly long for it. The new abilities are very impressive from a technical perspective, and must have taken a lot of time, effort, and trial and error to work so well. The dungeons are a huge improvement to the Divine Beasts. And the side quests are by far the best in Zelda history. But this doesn't make up the lazy, repetitive, and underwhelming story, the terrible rewards for exploration, the dry soundtrack, and the extremely extensive re-use of content, especially in the context of the longest ever wait between 3D Zeldas and with no 2D entry to plug the ga    … Expand
  85. Kramirez87
    May 14, 2023
    5
    2nd only to Ocarina of time. Breath of the wild feels like a demo. This game builds on the BOTW blueprint and gives it a better story and some traditional zelda elements that we're missing in BOTW.
  86. Deji6775
    May 13, 2023
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Great game great visuals I love how big the world is and creative it is the action in the game is phenomenal I love it so much the people you meet along the way is fun and breathes fresh air in the world of zelda I love the rich and dramatic story telling the game presents… Expand
  87. Divine_rose
    May 16, 2023
    5
    It's just a masterpiece, a great game, but I think that Zelda is going in a different direction now, I really miss the dungeons, but if you like TLOZ: breath of the wild. You will love this game
  88. howdyzach
    May 17, 2023
    7
    I've been reading a lot of fawning reviews of this game and there aren't any reviews that's willing to be honest about the problems that it has. The world is barren and boring to traverse, the characters and narrative are insufferable and the combat doesn't seem to be balanced in a way that makes sense to me. I am constantly getting one shotted by seemingly low level enemies, I find itI've been reading a lot of fawning reviews of this game and there aren't any reviews that's willing to be honest about the problems that it has. The world is barren and boring to traverse, the characters and narrative are insufferable and the combat doesn't seem to be balanced in a way that makes sense to me. I am constantly getting one shotted by seemingly low level enemies, I find it very frustrating. I don't get how people think this is a good looking game, the textures are muddy and the world is low contrast. There's good art direction and it's definitely a fun game but it is far from perfect and most reviewers seem like they are in a competition to out-praise this game.… Expand
  89. Bollywongaloid
    May 16, 2023
    6
    “Only your imagination is the limit.” No, more like my motivation is the limit. The entire Ultrahand mechanic is annoying, only really works well when you do what the game expects you to do (which ironically defeats the object of the entire mechanic) and is superfluous to what could have been a good Zelda game. Also the writing/story is pretty terrible. Apart from that it’s essentially“Only your imagination is the limit.” No, more like my motivation is the limit. The entire Ultrahand mechanic is annoying, only really works well when you do what the game expects you to do (which ironically defeats the object of the entire mechanic) and is superfluous to what could have been a good Zelda game. Also the writing/story is pretty terrible. Apart from that it’s essentially more BOTW with all of the same features and flaws carried over, but if you enjoyed that one then you’ll most likely love this too.… Expand
  90. Tbrew87
    May 17, 2023
    7
    The entire world+story feels forced, and carried by a gimmick which distracts you from how empty and lifeless TOTK really is
  91. ZimSan
    May 16, 2023
    7
    Generally improves on a lot of the weaker aspects of Breath of the Wild. The issue is that the new content is mostly pretty empty and/or gets recycled often. The depths genuinely might be one of the worst open worlds I've played in recent times. Everything looks the same, the enemy variety is very low there and you only want to visit it to increase your battery life and look for randomGenerally improves on a lot of the weaker aspects of Breath of the Wild. The issue is that the new content is mostly pretty empty and/or gets recycled often. The depths genuinely might be one of the worst open worlds I've played in recent times. Everything looks the same, the enemy variety is very low there and you only want to visit it to increase your battery life and look for random treasure chests in mines for some costumes. Otherwise there is nothing of real interest. Certainly no big vistas of meaty content of the overworld. Hell not even shrines. At least proper dungeons are back. They might not have any interesting loot to plunder but the puzzles are good and not so gimmicky again. Do you like expermenting with funny mechanics in a huge sandbox you will like this 100%, I just wish it had more Zelda elements to it. And a real story instead of flashbacks.… Expand
  92. Toastedturtles
    May 14, 2023
    6
    If you liked Breath of the Wild, then you'll like this, as it's more of the same. If you didn't, like me, then you'll probably dislike this even more.

    The days of old Zelda game design philosophy are gone. I have to accept that, but I don't have to like it. Rather than creating interesting puzzles for players to solve, we just create our own solutions. Sounds great on paper until you    If you liked Breath of the Wild, then you'll like this, as it's more of the same. If you didn't, like me, then you'll probably dislike this even more.

    The days of old Zelda game design philosophy are gone. I have to accept that, but I don't have to like it. Rather than creating interesting puzzles for players to solve, we just create our own solutions. Sounds great on paper until you realize how shallow the system really is. Materials right next to a bottomless pit. Gee, I wonder what I'm supposed to do. It's so brain-dead simple, I'm genuinely amazed at how many people consider this the "next level" of adventure games.

    Rather than address the complaints of weapon durability (one of the stupidest mechanics of any video game), Nintendo double down and force you to use its "fuse" system to "fix" the problem yourself. Now only it's worse since fusing requires you to pause the action to do it. Bomb arrows? Going to need to pause every single time you craft one, taking you out of the experience each time. Horizon Zero Dawn and Days Gone solved this problem by having a radial wheel that only slowed down the action to craft, rather than stopping it, but Nintendo think they know what's best.

    Cooking in BOTW was easily broken by using hearty ingredients, and if you knew where they spawned, then great, because you now have a steady supply of meals that remove the entire point of experimentation, rendering the entire system moot. Instead of making this more interesting by adding in a sort of tolerance system where meals become less effective over time until you make something else, they left it the exact same. You also need to pause the game to heal again, which is just... lovely.

    General combat has been completely unchanged from BOTW. Flurry rush, an easily abused mechanic, is no different, even the animations are the same as well!

    Perhaps the worst thing about all of this is how people give Nintendo a pass with a 30 FPS target, but expect other triple A developers to have a stable 60 FPS, showing how two faced a lot of the gaming industry really is.

    Honestly, Nintendo should be held to a higher standard going forward, and despite this game obviously selling millions of copies, I think it just shows how little a developer can change and people will simply accept it because of name alone. But when Ubisoft does it, people drag them through the mud for not changing enough.    … Expand
  93. SaltyMarky
    May 18, 2023
    5
    All these years waiting for this - a BOTW map-pack. It's not innovative enough for a sequel. They've changed nothing about the feel of the BOTW gameplay. Bad swimming controls? Check. Bad starting stamina and slow regen speed? Check. Inexcusable slow camera movement, even at the highest setting? Check. Poor combat? Check. It's basically identical. Pity. BOTW was good, but flawed, and itAll these years waiting for this - a BOTW map-pack. It's not innovative enough for a sequel. They've changed nothing about the feel of the BOTW gameplay. Bad swimming controls? Check. Bad starting stamina and slow regen speed? Check. Inexcusable slow camera movement, even at the highest setting? Check. Poor combat? Check. It's basically identical. Pity. BOTW was good, but flawed, and it had a lot of improving to do. I guess they got more fawning praise and didn't feel the need to change anything.… Expand
  94. BT302
    May 20, 2023
    6
    Too much like BOTW to hold my interest. It's a decent game but it seems they've just taken the BOTW world and crammed it full of stuff to try and fill out the world. The characters are samey and it just feels like they're trying to squeeze out a 2nd game from BOTW.
  95. cooperaa
    May 17, 2023
    6
    I find myself standing around a lot trying to figure out what the game wants me to do (primarily in dungeons). The rest of the time I'm reloading from past autosaves so I don't have to re-ascend a mountain or I'm moving a door and rewinding it to get across any gap or up to a higher level. Feels boring and like I'm cheating. I avoid combat at all costs and quickly lost any motivation toI find myself standing around a lot trying to figure out what the game wants me to do (primarily in dungeons). The rest of the time I'm reloading from past autosaves so I don't have to re-ascend a mountain or I'm moving a door and rewinding it to get across any gap or up to a higher level. Feels boring and like I'm cheating. I avoid combat at all costs and quickly lost any motivation to complete the game.… Expand
  96. funkata
    May 14, 2023
    5
    Does very little to build on what we got in BotW, feels a lot more like DLC for that game than it's own.
  97. FadingDawn
    May 14, 2023
    6
    it's not a new Zelda game as much as it's a DLC to / reskin of BotW.

    The game gets better once you manage to escape the very poorly optimized tutorial area (shadow flickering is nauseating), but if you had a hard time finishing BotW, you might just list it on Ebay for half the price. I liked BotW but the jury's still out for this one, so giving it a conservative 6, mainly because it    it's not a new Zelda game as much as it's a DLC to / reskin of BotW.

    The game gets better once you manage to escape the very poorly optimized tutorial area (shadow flickering is nauseating), but if you had a hard time finishing BotW, you might just list it on Ebay for half the price.

    I liked BotW but the jury's still out for this one, so giving it a conservative 6, mainly because it hasn't really brought anything new to the table so far.    … Expand
  98. IxAMxNIGHTMARE
    May 14, 2023
    7
    If you liked Breath of the Wild, you will like this, because this is clearly just BotW DLC. Nintendo simply realized that they could release it on Switch as it's own game rather than waiting for the next system to sell it as DLC. And of course in Nintendo fashion it will also be re-released on the next system.
  99. Arat_Ntor
    May 16, 2023
    7
    The game has a different feel than BotW. BotW is more polished and aligns more to the previous games, but it is ofc. also hard refresh a well established IP genre yet again.
    Both are great games, but if you have to compare them, then the original wins out in my opinion and that's why I'm giving it a 7
  100. d4v3z02
    May 14, 2023
    6
    The game is basically breath of the wild with a new gimmick. It's graphics are underwhelming due to the platforms limitations. It's a good game, but not as breath taking as breath in the wild was back in 2017 because no open world mobile game like this existed back then. At this point we even have phone games which have better graphics than tears of the kingdom. Nintendo needs to startThe game is basically breath of the wild with a new gimmick. It's graphics are underwhelming due to the platforms limitations. It's a good game, but not as breath taking as breath in the wild was back in 2017 because no open world mobile game like this existed back then. At this point we even have phone games which have better graphics than tears of the kingdom. Nintendo needs to start innovating again. Also the price tag of 70€ is not worth a rehash of botw since they reused alot of software for this more expensive new game. I wouldn't recommand this game due to the economic implications.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best Switch Game of 2023
1
#1 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2023

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
96

Universal acclaim - based on 150 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 145 out of 150
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 150
  3. Negative: 0 out of 150
  1. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Mar 18, 2024
    100
    I wasn't sure how Nintendo would find a way to top their work in Breath of the Wild back when it came out, but I feel they have here – with years of more polish applied and refined exploration. [Issue #66 – July/August 2023, p. 71]
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 22, 2024
    100
    The good thing is that, thanks to the limited possibilities, the creators couldn't go crazy and swing for hundreds of game miles. Instead, they created what could be called Elden Ring in a travel pack. [Issue#328]
  3. Shacknews
    Dec 28, 2023
    100
    The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has lived up to the high expectations created by the success of Breath of the Wild with its exquisitely intertwined gameplay systems, outstanding music, and a legendary story culminating in a magnificent denouement. It's not every day that such a special video game like this comes around. Truly the stuff of legend.
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