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. Snowboarder08
    May 20, 2023
    10
    MILD SPOILERS: Alright so I just want to say for anyone saying, "This game is 70$ dollar dlc" "There's no innovation". Just stop your embarrassing yourselves at this point because they have not only changed hyrule up a lot they've added two new areas to explore being the depths and the sky islands. On top of that though with links new zonai abilities you are given so much freedom that itMILD SPOILERS: Alright so I just want to say for anyone saying, "This game is 70$ dollar dlc" "There's no innovation". Just stop your embarrassing yourselves at this point because they have not only changed hyrule up a lot they've added two new areas to explore being the depths and the sky islands. On top of that though with links new zonai abilities you are given so much freedom that it almost feels like you can do anything or build anything. Also the story is so interesting and it makes you want to explore the world in depth and find all the information you can. When I played Breath Of The Wild for the first I got lost in it's world explore in the vast open hyrule. This get's expanded on even more whether finding new towns, finding the changes of hyrule, the whole underground map, the sky islands and the list goes on. They also added dungeons back which was obviously exciting for many (Myself included). The bosses being more diverse rather than fighting blight ganons. Speaking of ganondorf he's back and looking better than ever before. I would say more but don't want to spoil too much so I'm gonna rap it up. I 100% recommend you won't regret it .… Expand
  2. CouldBeYourName
    Jul 20, 2023
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. - Bad performance on Switch (not even 20 fps at times)
    - boring disappointing story
    - reused map and assets with little new content added
    - full pricing    … Expand
  3. garoslayer
    Jul 11, 2023
    0
    I can't believe I am giving a Zelda game such a low rating but this game has cemented the fact that Zelda as we know it is dead.

    This game is a complete chore, grinding for material to create stuff to grind for more materials just to repeat the same thing over and over. Want to upgrade your inventory then grind, want to get new weapons then grind just bear in mind that you will break your    I can't believe I am giving a Zelda game such a low rating but this game has cemented the fact that Zelda as we know it is dead.

    This game is a complete chore, grinding for material to create stuff to grind for more materials just to repeat the same thing over and over. Want to upgrade your inventory then grind, want to get new weapons then grind just bear in mind that you will break your useless weapons to get equally useless ones, of course you also have the Ubisoft towers, a staple in chore-like open world titles such as this and the Assassin's Creed franchise.

    There are no dungeons, exploration is not rewarding, not only are you exploring the same map but you are doing it for pointless loot too. God I miss key items and dungeons, remember how cool it was to open that chest not knowing what you'll find inside. Remember how cool it was to go into the overworld now with the key item to open new avenues for exploring. Back then the overworld was a big puzzle itself, in this title the puzzle are contained in another grinding mechanic known as shrines.

    There is no story, no epic, no lore, no side quests, no memorable characters. It's just a bunch of mechanics and gimmicks, Zelda is dead and we killed it. This game whatever you want to call, but it is not a Zelda title.

    I gave away this Zelda and don't plan to buy another BoTW like title, I'm not interested in Open World Zelda, if you like grinding and gimmicky mechanics this game is for you. If you like Zelda then it isn't.

    Zelda was the only game that got me into buying a Nintendo console, but I guess not anymore. You lost a fan Nintendo, it's sad to see what Zelda has become. I hope 2D titles survive and don't get destroyed too.    … Expand
  4. sapphiron
    May 20, 2023
    10
    Game of the Year!
    Gameplay: 10
    Art: 10
    Music: 10
    Level Design: 10
    And the new abilities are so amazing!
  5. ensatsu
    Jun 4, 2023
    4
    It’s better than Breath of the Wild. The dungeons are a little bit better than the Divine Beasts. The story feels like they put a little bit more effort into it. The shrine puzzles feel a little bit more fun this time with the Ultrahand, Recall, and Ascend mechanics. Ultimately though, I still feel that the structure of the game sucks. Playing the exact same Sage cutscene after everyIt’s better than Breath of the Wild. The dungeons are a little bit better than the Divine Beasts. The story feels like they put a little bit more effort into it. The shrine puzzles feel a little bit more fun this time with the Ultrahand, Recall, and Ascend mechanics. Ultimately though, I still feel that the structure of the game sucks. Playing the exact same Sage cutscene after every dungeon feels like a slap in the face. When you find memories scattered across the open world, they feel disjointed and didn’t really make me connect to the story that well. The new characters and Ganondorf himself felt underwhelming. The way that they completely ignore the events of Breath of the Wild as if it didn’t happen or happened a long time ago greatly annoyed me. The Depths just feel like a completely pointless addition that is only there as a way to farm Zonite ore to fuel your useless vehicles and not really find anything interesting besides Amiibo cosmetics. You will quickly get bored of exploring the Depths after 5 hours when you realize its mostly pointless with nothing to find. The final boss with Ganondorf is pretty well done, but I find it very ironic that they didn’t even force the player to use Ultrahand or any of the gimmicks to fight him and instead just felt like a standard fight where you spam flurry rush with good timing. Its almost as if the devs realized that they are just pointless gimmicks. You’re not forced to utilize any of your tools like the Hookshot or Light Arrows in previous Zeldas because they don’t exist anymore. As a Zelda fan for 30 years, this game made me depressed and lose a lot of confidence as a fan of this franchise and the gaming industry as a whole. The game sold very well and also reviewed well too. I really question what in the world are they seeing? I expect the developers to utilize the same principles in the next game because of the critical reception which makes me question if I should even stick around as a fan anymore or just quietly move on and say this series is no longer for me… Expand
  6. Kabbaway
    May 23, 2023
    4
    I appreciate the grander plot and attempts to integrate the Era of the Wilds into the wider Zelda timeline (although so far it's hard to tell if it's succeeded). I also appreciate the originality of the Depths; no prior Zelda game has been set underground and had they placed a greater focus on that, perhaps the premise being that Link is trapped underground following the opening cinematicI appreciate the grander plot and attempts to integrate the Era of the Wilds into the wider Zelda timeline (although so far it's hard to tell if it's succeeded). I also appreciate the originality of the Depths; no prior Zelda game has been set underground and had they placed a greater focus on that, perhaps the premise being that Link is trapped underground following the opening cinematic and has to work his way back up to Hyrule, it could've been incredible. The exploration aspect on its own can still be fun and lead to some humorous or gorgeous encounters.

    In saying that, it inherits all the same annoyances as BotW - tedious game mechanics, constant stuttering frame rates, convoluted button inputs and delayed responses, repetitive and (mostly) fruitless side quests, a disjointed story, weak voice acting (to be clear I blame Nintendo's lazy direction for this, not the VAs themselves). But on top of all of BotW's half-baked assets, chucking in a souless Skyloft 2.0 and the under-utilised Depths makes TotK feel even more spread-too-thin than its predecessor.

    As well as making the Depths more of a focus, I believe that making Zelda's moments playable would've really elevated this game. Spirit Tracks is the only Zelda game to date to have the player control Zelda, and I think a second one is long overdue. The context of THIS Zelda's journey in particular would've made for a brilliant way of keeping BotW's map while doing something SIGNIFICANTLY fresh with it.    … Expand
  7. Kbgoedeke
    May 27, 2023
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Plays like a BOTW DLC, repetitive and derivative. More of a sandbox game than a Zelda title, I miss the old games.… Expand
  8. Notgonnaputuser
    Jun 2, 2023
    2
    Legit has same map, while the chasms are copy paste of the above without buildings

    Missions are the same, find 4 heros and beat ganan
    Building is fun, but it gets boring overtime
  9. Don_Zaloog
    May 23, 2023
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A mediocre expansion of botw.
    I will start by saying botw was also not a 10/10 game by any means.I olayed it for 150 hours and after the first 25 it felt the whole game was on a loop.
    Every negative i will list here is present in both games.Makes sense since they used the exact same assets making TOKT.So here we go :
    1.Behind everything theres a korok.900 in one 1000 in the other.Its so discouraging knowing the bad reward before you do anything.
    2.Shrines interior is the same and you got 120 of them in botw and 150 in totk.Again repetitiveness on its finest.
    3.Map besides shrines and koroks basically only has bokolin camps with sometimes no reward at all.
    4.Cooking is tedious and boring.Btw you still cant have quick items.If you need to heal during battle you have to pause enter menu chose food and chose to eat it….
    5.Towns dont offer much content and there are 1-2 worthy side quests.
    6.Weapons brake and you lose interest fast.Fuze is a pain.You need 7 moves to fuze two owned weapons:open menu , pick weapon , throw it , pick ability fuze , open weapon menu chose weapon , chose fuze…
    7.Divine beasts like the rest of the game is on repeat.They all are the same , same as the new “dungeons“ 8.Battle is poor and uninteresting.

    Critics and fans never talked about these of course and they still dont.How can such a terribly repetitive game be a 10 ? Well its a zelda thats how.

    Totk is an even worse position since its the exact same game with some add ons.It basically a meme game now where you minecraft structures and post videos of goofing around. Theres no game out there with such map but empty of meaningful things to do.The map is empty of any essence.
    I would rate this a 7 for the sake of some new players that experience it for the first time.BUT giver the many suspicious 10s it gets to counterbalance them its a 0.    … Expand
  10. antavros
    May 21, 2023
    0
    espere 6 anos por esto y me encuentro con algo que parese mas un dlc que una segunda entrega grafica mente malisimo lo mismo que el 1 artisticamente una desepcion las masmorras simples y repetitivas no deveria haber gastado mi dinero en esto que decepción
  11. christianchown
    Jul 11, 2023
    4
    BOTW is the greatest game ever made. Every village, every side quest, every unexpected twist and turn was a delight: an incredible voyage of discovery, and those discoveries were thrilling. TOTK has none of that. I'm 40 hours in and haven't experienced a single moment that was unexpected or new. All the enemies, all the insects, even all the sound effects are the same as BOTW, except theBOTW is the greatest game ever made. Every village, every side quest, every unexpected twist and turn was a delight: an incredible voyage of discovery, and those discoveries were thrilling. TOTK has none of that. I'm 40 hours in and haven't experienced a single moment that was unexpected or new. All the enemies, all the insects, even all the sound effects are the same as BOTW, except the maps are emptier and the quests are sparser.

    Oh look, it's Hestu. Oh look, it's Kilton. Oh look, Tarry Town. Again.

    This is not a new game. This is not a sequel. This is an expansion pack. Five years for this? I feel cheated.    … Expand
  12. buujah
    May 24, 2023
    0
    I have to say that I don't really like the new part. I don't find the innovations exciting, it just doesn't look aesthetic when a thick stone is hanging from the stick. I also don't like the underworld and the heavenly world. In addition, it really feels like a bold clone of the grandiose first part BOTW. now I have all the same again, just named differently. I find it kind of bold andI have to say that I don't really like the new part. I don't find the innovations exciting, it just doesn't look aesthetic when a thick stone is hanging from the stick. I also don't like the underworld and the heavenly world. In addition, it really feels like a bold clone of the grandiose first part BOTW. now I have all the same again, just named differently. I find it kind of bold and would have hoped for something else.… Expand
  13. Maraud30
    Jun 14, 2023
    1
    It's ugly, empty and boring. Your weapon breaks after 3 hit even if you have a metal sword meaning it is pointless to look for good equipment. The puzzle thing with construction is closer to Minecraft or to the Sims that Zelda imo and it is the absolute opposite of fun for me. Shrines are just puzzle that a 5 year old could figure out within 3 minutes. Graphics looks so aweful and it isIt's ugly, empty and boring. Your weapon breaks after 3 hit even if you have a metal sword meaning it is pointless to look for good equipment. The puzzle thing with construction is closer to Minecraft or to the Sims that Zelda imo and it is the absolute opposite of fun for me. Shrines are just puzzle that a 5 year old could figure out within 3 minutes. Graphics looks so aweful and it is running at 30fps, I can't get immersed in the universe. Princess Zelda, free yourself from Ganon because I ain't coming for you!… Expand
  14. Dayon
    May 13, 2023
    10
    This is the best Zelda game I played in awhile. If you love or played the legend of Zelda games then you meant like this.
  15. peyman24
    Jun 3, 2023
    4
    Repetition of the previous good game that maybe should have come next generation because there was no need to repeat the game
  16. GhostCoffee
    May 24, 2023
    2
    The game feels like a cheap cash-grab, compared to other games especially with the 6 years of development. Its compares more to a "Fan made mod" to Breath Of The Wild, than a stand alone game.
    The gimmic of crafting quickly becomes tedious and repetitive, and just sticking a stone on the end of a stick, or placing a mushroom on your shield gets old and quite frankly both look horrendous    The game feels like a cheap cash-grab, compared to other games especially with the 6 years of development. Its compares more to a "Fan made mod" to Breath Of The Wild, than a stand alone game.
    The gimmic of crafting quickly becomes tedious and repetitive, and just sticking a stone on the end of a stick, or placing a mushroom on your shield gets old and quite frankly both look horrendous and feel super lazy from a developing perspective. Where as some weapons actually take on a new look when combined, other quiite simply have said item stick out, looking like an eye sore.
    You would expect so much better from the Zelda franchise, it certanly made legendary games before, this just feels like a last cash grab before they let go of the brand and moves on.
    It could have been a great game, even though this new format is not my cup of tea, but i cant fathom how little have been done during 6 years in development, when you have free mods for games like skyrim, made up by a small team of ~5 individuals which remodels and change the basegame to a bigger degree than this changed the original BOTW, it feels like a fan made mod, and it does not justify its price tag.
    There is ofcourse some fun to be had playing, but it bores too soon, and for the price its a rip-off    … Expand
  17. Tanner82
    May 26, 2023
    0
    Out of all the Zelda games I've played over the years, this is by far the worst I've ever played. Before anyone says, "Oh, you probably hated Breath of the Wild too." Breath of the Wild is actually my favorite game of all time. Tears of the Kingdom, while it looks and feels like BotW, TotK is horrible. Now, I could only stomach this game for only around 2 hours or so, so just keep that inOut of all the Zelda games I've played over the years, this is by far the worst I've ever played. Before anyone says, "Oh, you probably hated Breath of the Wild too." Breath of the Wild is actually my favorite game of all time. Tears of the Kingdom, while it looks and feels like BotW, TotK is horrible. Now, I could only stomach this game for only around 2 hours or so, so just keep that in mind. It may improve some the deeper you go, so, if the game can interest you long enough to keep going, have at it. There is one problem that really bothered me with the game, and then there's one devastating problem I have with this overrated piece of crap game. The problem I have is it's boring. It just wasn't fun to me with the short time I played. I've finished every Zelda game but could only play 2 hours of this, not because of the boredom, but because of the devastating problem I had with the game. The building mechanic controls of the game are so bad. Horrible even. They aren't fluid and feel so unnatural to use. And you use these controls so much that I found the game unplayable. Not to mention the crap you build never seem to work right. It's a mess for me. I gave this game a zero because it's a 70 dollar game, and with all the hype it received??? Horrible Zelda game...horrible game period. Buy at your own risk. You've been warned.… Expand
  18. lucame
    Aug 20, 2023
    3
    Tears of the kingdom is the worst game of 2023!

    >despite being a set protag the game asks for your pronouns >The legend of Zelda theme by system of a down makes an appearance >In the English dub the merchants will speak a lot and some of them are noticeably male despite some of them voicing females >Mario movie references >shrines are back and are still tiny two-room physics    Tears of the kingdom is the worst game of 2023!

    >despite being a set protag the game asks for your pronouns

    >The legend of Zelda theme by system of a down makes an appearance

    >In the English dub the merchants will speak a lot and some of them are noticeably male despite some of them voicing females

    >Mario movie references

    >shrines are back and are still tiny two-room physics puzzles that give you a spirit orb
    I honestly lost interest after ragu told me to do two more shrines.

    >korok seeds are back

    >weapon durability works the same way

    >The gerudo dancer outfit now says "meme worthy costume" in it's description

    >The construction feature of the game will autodetect if you are making a swastika

    >Fusing is really limited

    >The time travel thing can only happen in one location

    >master sword has energy durability still

    >map is 90% the same

    >The other 10% has reused assets to do something "new"

    >There's now a town full of black people

    >flurry rush is back and still has the same massive timing window

    >no playable Zelda

    >There's references to shriek and how "he" transcends the idea of gender

    They don't outright call her a tranzy but the intention is pretty visible

    >There are only 4 dungeons (+ hyrule castle, SAME hyrule castle map)

    >Its the same area you can see in the trailer with Sidon!

    >There's a souvenir that depicts an earth globe but it's called "the universal fun balloon" which is a reference to the company making the Nintendo theme park at Orlando.

    >Zelda turns into a dragon after link has been killed off screen so she has to step in and access the secret power she had all along and save the day because the hero has nothing on a princess of wisdom (this is a exact line from the dub)

    Overall an unmitigated disaster.
    Theres just games that are so much better and deserve more and sales, do yourself a favor, don't buy this game.    … Expand
  19. Lopezzz
    May 13, 2023
    10
    Una obra maestra básicamente de pies a cabeza, su historia, banda sonora, personajes lo hace único. Y ni digamos del mapa, es inmenso y divertido, Super recomendado
  20. Zaile
    May 13, 2023
    10
    Nothing to say, I improve everything from the previous title, one of the best in history
  21. ason313
    May 14, 2023
    10
    Another Zelda masterpiece from Nintendo. Takes what was great about breath of the wild but more story focused and many interesting tweaks.
  22. Littlegizmo
    May 14, 2023
    10
    so some people are review bombing this game for no reason lol this game is epic and deserves a 10... perfection... cant stop playing it
  23. rolo143
    May 23, 2023
    10
    This game is huge and even better than BotW, I don't even see the point of playing BotW anymore when you have this vastly and improved game with 3 maps. It has story, and the gameplay is just great, not just exploring, but also the mechanics and the ability to create whatever comes to your mind using the resources that they give you. It's fun to see other people creations and using imagination
  24. SauloIS
    May 20, 2023
    10
    Jogo Excelente!

    O jogo trás tudo o que você espera de uma sequência de BoTW e muito mais. Mais liberdade do que sequer você poderia pensar. Se BoTW já foi um marco para os jogos de mundo aberto, que antes se escondiam atrás de "os consoles não vão suportar" e o BoTW mostrou que problema não era de hardware, o Tears vem e expande mais ainda sua liberdade para explorar esse mundo rico e bem    Jogo Excelente!

    O jogo trás tudo o que você espera de uma sequência de BoTW e muito mais. Mais liberdade do que sequer você poderia pensar. Se BoTW já foi um marco para os jogos de mundo aberto, que antes se escondiam atrás de "os consoles não vão suportar" e o BoTW mostrou que problema não era de hardware, o Tears vem e expande mais ainda sua liberdade para explorar esse mundo rico e bem elaborado dessa nova ambientação de Zelda. Quem joga em um mesmo console que tem os saves do zelda BoTW ainda pode desfrutar de alguns elementos importados dos saves.

    Um jogo com arte maravilhosa. Cores, fotografia, composição de cena perfeitos. Mais uma obra de arte por parte dos Devs.

    Músicas maravilhosas, design de personagens muito bem desenvolvidos.    … Expand
  25. Dariiiiiiii
    Aug 30, 2023
    0
    Very disappointed. It's the same BOTW but WORSE. Still no real dungeons, tons of useless loot and weapons, repetitive gameplay. New mechanics aren't good, game became some weird monstrosity with all this building and fusion. It's simply unfun and feels really tedious. Don't forget about massive framedrops here and there and lack of story. This game's critics rating is another confirmationVery disappointed. It's the same BOTW but WORSE. Still no real dungeons, tons of useless loot and weapons, repetitive gameplay. New mechanics aren't good, game became some weird monstrosity with all this building and fusion. It's simply unfun and feels really tedious. Don't forget about massive framedrops here and there and lack of story. This game's critics rating is another confirmation of incompetence of game journalists. Play it only if you are a huge fan of BOTW and want to play the same game again, but a little bit different.… Expand
  26. Vestherian
    May 20, 2023
    10
    The game is definitely a sequel to BotW, and even with the same map (which makes sense) it's been changed enough to work as a new game.
    The abilities are completely different and the absolute freedom you have is ridiculously fun. The story is great, better told than BotW imo.
    The new weapon fusions add yet another layer to the combat as well as a method to make weapons last much longer.    The game is definitely a sequel to BotW, and even with the same map (which makes sense) it's been changed enough to work as a new game.
    The abilities are completely different and the absolute freedom you have is ridiculously fun. The story is great, better told than BotW imo.
    The new weapon fusions add yet another layer to the combat as well as a method to make weapons last much longer.
    The only issue is the item selection menu for attaching/throwing. With the sheer quantity of items it can be exhausting to scroll though. Hopefully that's patched.    … Expand
  27. OlekWie
    Jul 2, 2023
    7
    I know, for some of you it's a ten out of ten but for me it's only seven. So let me explain, why i think Zelda tears of the kingdom isn't a masterpiece.
    First: I like this kind of games where doing side activities, but why the hell there are so many shrines!? I would more like a 70 shrines, and dont miss a piece of stamina because there is less shrines than i need!
    Second: Yeah, it is a    I know, for some of you it's a ten out of ten but for me it's only seven. So let me explain, why i think Zelda tears of the kingdom isn't a masterpiece.
    First: I like this kind of games where doing side activities, but why the hell there are so many shrines!? I would more like a 70 shrines, and dont miss a piece of stamina because there is less shrines than i need!
    Second: Yeah, it is a good game but it has too many things that are just frustrating like the fighting system.
    Third: All the abilities like Ultrahand or recall aren't as good as other things. BOTW did it better with fighting abilities.
    Fourth: I hate zonai devices. Thats it.
    Fifth: Bosses are too hard in the beginning. I did whole dungeon in depths under death mountain and only thing that was stopping me from kicking his ass, was my sword dealing only ten damage. After getting the 35 sword it was easy as defeating normal enemy.
    Overall, looking what i wrote it sounds like i hate this game. No, i like it, but for 70$ starting getting bored doing sidequests and trying few mainquests, it's your decision is it worth it. If you played BOTW you could give it 10/10 but for me it's solid seven. But if you are a Assasins Creed fan you could say it's 6/10. So it's your choice.    … Expand
  28. barril76
    Sep 5, 2023
    0
    Well basically repeats the same scenario from the previous game. Of course the grafics looks annoying for the Nintendo switch device. The story is good, very very long game too had minimum 200 hours of your time.
  29. TsukuuYo
    May 13, 2023
    10
    Definitely a great game, everything we needed from Zelda game, includes new mechanics, new crafting system, overall a great game from Nintendo.
  30. Gake_The_Cake
    Jun 18, 2023
    8
    My initial review of this game was based on the starting content of Tears of the Kingdom which is a definite improvement on the previous title. However, since then I've become aware of the game's many faults of which a couple are pretty severe. This isn't to say TotK is a bad game, it's absolutely one of the best games to come out, but it's far from perfect. That said, my score is 8My initial review of this game was based on the starting content of Tears of the Kingdom which is a definite improvement on the previous title. However, since then I've become aware of the game's many faults of which a couple are pretty severe. This isn't to say TotK is a bad game, it's absolutely one of the best games to come out, but it's far from perfect. That said, my score is 8 because the gameplay mechanics are phenomenal; this is best gameplay I've experienced, but I need to talk about the game's faults because they're really bad.

    1) The worst offense this game makes is that which all media and culture should strive to avoid: numbness of emotions.

    In a story about the impending end of the world because the Demon King had be reborn, his minions mustering their might, and all the peoples of the world fighting for their lives the story chooses revolve around archeology into an ancient people who were so hedonistic that they didn't even create art. The Zonai are not master warriors, nor mystical wizards, they were lazy people who had their every need looked after by robots... In a game when the main villain is not famine, overwork, or disease, but a war. The Zonai were undone because they were lazy and didn't heed the warnings of people far more knowledgeable of the current threat that they needed to prepare for war. It turns out the people of the current time were far more suited to combating the threat than the Zonai were because all the current time people are warriors.

    I stepped into this game thinking the Zonai were mystical god-warriors, but what I found was that the Zonai were boring. Nobody in the current time of the story could use anything to fix their current ailments from the Zonai; because their problems aren't automation related. They don't need to relax; they need to stand and fight, but they're already capable. So why do the game's people take such interest in this lazy forgettable culture? Everything is a dull lime green or white with the Zonai and everything is either a robot or a gadet; they had no culture. Their history was frolicking in the gardens... How are a people staring down the very reincarnation of death supposed to be so enthralled about that they forgo fighting for their lives?

    2) You get followers in this game that have unique abilities, but for some ungodly reason activating it is the same button you use to interact with objects in the world. Yes, I rank this as almost as high as total tone deafness, because in this game items you get from slaying enemies is EVERYTHING. You cannot fight in this game unless you pick up enemy drops. How does this matter, well not to spoil anything, but a few of the followers you get have extremely useful abilities... That so happen to destroy or remove the very items that are the only way to progress in the game. Additionally, these followers decide that they just NEED to walk straight into you every single second of the day. You cannot interact with the world if these followers are following you. You literally have to desummon your followers, which is locked behind a massive menu, in order to be able to pick things up without destroying them. You wouldn't think this would be the most fun destroying thing ever, but in this game, when enemy items are literally your only method of survival, it gets really old really quick.

    Alright, so I've talked about the game's downsides, let me talk about what this game does well:
    -If you see something interesting, go to it. You'll get a reward. Not a unique reward, but a guaranteed reward of some sort.
    -This game is so good at basic exploration, I say basic because oh my god does it fall flat on environmental story telling- the last game was excellent at it by the way, that you can mark an objective and not reach it for several real-world days. Saying this game is full of things to discover doesn't do it justice. There is only discovery in this game, but it's going to be of the same bland things: re-spawning resource nodes, golden poop, and golden orbs. That's it.
    -Combat. Surprisingly, this game's combat is actually really good if you try to exploit it. The whole game's premise is that you should try to cheat... And cheating the combat is REALLY fun. Actual cheats are being patched out, so technically, if you find a nifty work around that makes the game more fun, and the combat more exciting, it's technically intended, but it feels like cheating and it's a great feeling.
    -Puzzles. Again, the whole game is built around cheating around the game's challenges, so feel free to try to cheat through the game. That's what it's made for, and holy cow does it deliver. These puzzles are the best puzzles in gaming... And that's WITH "cheating," because nothing's truly cheating unless it's patched out. They've understood their own systems VERY well, and have balanced things so that you have to learn a new "cheat" to get through the game when it's time to learn.    … 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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