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. KatalinaLG
    Aug 7, 2023
    10
    Sencillamente un excelente juego, en momentos te deja sin aliento, inmersivo qué casi da vértigo cuando vas descendiendo por los aires. Es un claro ejemplo de como se debe hacer una secuela. Simplemente épico.
  2. kiwigamerdedr
    Aug 6, 2023
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. i like it and its my favorite game by far i like the plot with zelda dragon and ganon dragon it has so cool features like ultra hand so much fun… Expand
  3. Enkan
    Aug 6, 2023
    10
    I've already played a lot of games in my entire life and I can say without a single doubt that Tears of the Kingdom is the best game that I ever played, there's not even a single game that get's close to what TOTK have done to me.
  4. PK_Hex
    Aug 6, 2023
    10
    Awsome game and the Ganondorf fight is a 100 times better then in botw. Story is great
  5. ReXXz
    Aug 6, 2023
    10
    One of the best games i have ever played. It not only improves on every aspect of Breath of The Wild, it perfects it! The world is extremely immersive, the gameplay is fun and exciting and the story is much better than its predecessor’s. The only things i dont like about this game are the side quests that can get repetetive after completeing a lot of them, and the stupid koroks, but thatOne of the best games i have ever played. It not only improves on every aspect of Breath of The Wild, it perfects it! The world is extremely immersive, the gameplay is fun and exciting and the story is much better than its predecessor’s. The only things i dont like about this game are the side quests that can get repetetive after completeing a lot of them, and the stupid koroks, but that is not a problem if you are not a completionist. Zelda totk is the closest game to being perfect and i can highly recommend it.… Expand
  6. ThereIsNoSpoon
    Aug 6, 2023
    7
    I gotta be honest, the first 70 or so hours of this game were amazing. It was the first game in awhile where that's all I wanted to play with every free moment I had. But after the 70 hour mark it just became very repetitive, and I started to notice just how shallow the story and quests were, and even the dungeons bored me. The first two I did were brilliant (wind and water temples),I gotta be honest, the first 70 or so hours of this game were amazing. It was the first game in awhile where that's all I wanted to play with every free moment I had. But after the 70 hour mark it just became very repetitive, and I started to notice just how shallow the story and quests were, and even the dungeons bored me. The first two I did were brilliant (wind and water temples), while the other 2 were very dull and I just wanted to get to the end.

    Despite its brilliance, BotW also left me feeling unsatisfied once I beat it. The story was just not very good, and TotK is the exact same in this regard. Not only that but the game gives the player information that the characters don't know, and so you have to continue through the story knowing what's happening but being unable to inform others, which was frustrating.

    The more you play, the more you really get the feeling that the developers got tired. Rauru's blessing shrines, for instance. There are so many of these, where you find a shrine and there's no puzzle at all--you just simply collect your treasure and leave. At first it's a nice little reprieve, but then when you encounter them again and again you start to miss the puzzles. They also repeatedly have shrines where you just kill all the zonaite constructs using items in the environment, which are all a cakewalk. I guess those were easier to design than puzzles. Then there's the plethora of caves that are all essentially the same, and the koroks who can't walk and need your assistance to reach their friend, and the guys who need help holding their signs. You do so many of these that it becomes a grind.

    That you can also constantly cheese the game also speaks to the developers not caring as much as you think. Once I learned how to make a hoverbike out of 2 fans and a steering stick that's literally all I ever used to travel. There was no longer any reason to care about horses, gliding from sky islands, or land vehicles of any kind. The shrine puzzles can also be cheesed horribly using a variety of methods. Some will say this is intentional, but I fail to see how using the same technique on every shrine could be intentional. There were simply too many variables for the developers to keep track of.

    And then there are the depths: a massive, pointless underground that seems to only exist to surprise the player into thinking there's an overwhelming amount of content. There's really not much to be found down there, and everything that exists is repetitive. It just feels like they tried to make the game huge for the sake of being huge. I would have rather had them focus on underwater exploration instead of this entire underground that is a chore to navigate and offers nothing truly exciting.

    I think the biggest letdown though, for me, is just the fact that the game is a continuation of Breath of the Wild in every sense. It doesn't feel truly new. It feels like one massive expansion pack. And no matter how much you argue against that until you're blue in the face, that is exactly what it is. They took the world of BotW and edited the heck out of it. While it's amazing what they were able to accomplish on the Switch, it's also visually underwhelming because it still looks like a 6 year old game (which looked dated even back then)--and we've been there and done that.

    Overall, I think the game is a good way to waste 100-160 hours, but it's also overrated because it lacks in a number of key areas that left me feeling very unsatisfied once the credits rolled. I don't think I should feel that way from a game that's gotten 10/10 ratings across the board. I certainly shouldn't feel that from a game I dropped 100+ hours into. Just because a game has inventive ideas and loads of content doesn't make it a masterpiece. Pacing, story, consistency and quality of content are also important.    … Expand
  7. DivisionNitro
    Aug 5, 2023
    10
    Tears of the Kingdom is hands down the best zelda game i played better than oot in my opinion i loved botw but its not good as the game after it even though its in the exact same engine. The wii u held its capabilities back. Its a good game but play bote before you play totk
  8. Yn00ss
    Aug 5, 2023
    10
    Best game EVER. Just do yourself a favor, stop whatever you’re doing and go play it.
  9. adrenilinmatt
    Aug 5, 2023
    10
    Incoming spite and review bombs, because the world is genuinely just devoid of joy now. I have no idea how one could play this game and NOT be returned to that nostalgic wonder only experienced in childhood years. That's exactly what's on offer here. And of course, a game this good, attracts angry jaded human beings. If you're still even remotely happy in life, do yourself a favor and pickIncoming spite and review bombs, because the world is genuinely just devoid of joy now. I have no idea how one could play this game and NOT be returned to that nostalgic wonder only experienced in childhood years. That's exactly what's on offer here. And of course, a game this good, attracts angry jaded human beings. If you're still even remotely happy in life, do yourself a favor and pick this up. It will only increase your happiness, as it has mine. During a particularly difficult time in my life, this has been a god send. I adore it. And it has put a smile on my face during a time in which I didn't think it possible. Ignore the ridiculous reviews. Buy the game, realise this is what gaming is all about, and HAVE FUN AGAIN. 10/10 EASY.… Expand
  10. YamiLink
    Aug 5, 2023
    10
    Good game/Gutes Spiel/Juego bien, you can burn Koroks down and take pictures of Purah.
  11. Beastseason
    Aug 5, 2023
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A game so good it made a previous entry, that won game of the year, look like a beta test. The best Legend of Zelda. Period.… Expand
  12. Edanluna
    Aug 5, 2023
    10
    This is the best game I have played in my life, I am a completionist, so I am on my 120 hours at the moment and there are so many things to explore. The mechanics, the story connected to older games is just superb! 10000/ 10
  13. Combatking42
    Aug 5, 2023
    10
    A TRUE MASTERPIECE THIS GAME IS, I THINK ITS EVEN BETTER THAN BOTW AND HONESTLY, I NEVER THOUGHT I'D SEE THE DAY WHERE IN MY OPINION THERE IS A BETTER GANONDORF THAN TWILIGHT GANON!! 100/10 AND HONESTLY, THIS IS MY GOTY SO FAR!!!!!
  14. link_ambition
    Aug 4, 2023
    10
    At first I wondered if this game would feel too much like BotW. Thankfully I was proven wrong. Not only is this game a total upgrade in every way, it also feels completely separate as a game. The exploration feels more satisfying, less empty space as well as more places to explore. I'm impressed the switch pulled off such a feat. NPCs also feel more significant.
  15. AndyCh
    Aug 4, 2023
    10
    It's an amazing game, it's got a huge open world, story, gameplay, it's so huge and there's always one more place to explore, you can get so lost in the world and it all feels so alive.
  16. Reznnate
    Aug 4, 2023
    10
    Best game ever made. It's a masterpiece. The programmers deserve a medal.
  17. Heretolookatrev
    Aug 4, 2023
    10
    This has got to be one of the best games that has come out this year. It looked beautiful and had the most gorgeous landscape I have ever seen. This game had some amazing bosses with fun and interesting ways to beat them. The final boss was an intense and heart-pumping moment with the greatest moments of gaming I have ever seen. The characters are interesting and they each have a differentThis has got to be one of the best games that has come out this year. It looked beautiful and had the most gorgeous landscape I have ever seen. This game had some amazing bosses with fun and interesting ways to beat them. The final boss was an intense and heart-pumping moment with the greatest moments of gaming I have ever seen. The characters are interesting and they each have a different personality. I do appreciate Nintendo taking the time to give each of the probably thousands of characters in the game different text boxes and interesting little bits of details about themselves as well. Link is back with a brand new set of abilities such as Ultrahand which lets you take anything and build something beautiful with it, Fuse which can let fuse your weapons, shields, and arrows with any item in the game, Ascend which can let you go up any solid surface that is above you which is super helpful with navigating the world of Hyrule, and finally Rewind which lets you turn objects back in time so let's say you dropped something by accident off a high cliff. Well, thanks to Rewind if you are fast enough you can rewind it in time, and have come right back at you. There is one other ability that wasn't shown in any trailers so I won't tell you it because that would spoil the game if I did. This game also includes some hidden references to past Zelda games and also tons of other secrets which give this game a bunch of replayability. Sure it may be $70 which is a bit more than the usual switch game I would say it is well worth it. So if you want to buy it and you have money go and get it and you will not regret it at all.… Expand
  18. NoMiiS
    Aug 4, 2023
    10
    Hands down one of the greatest Sequels to a game and having it to be BOTW. A masterpiece from gameplay to creativity. All they need to add is being able to building a Home structure that stays.
  19. yangs7688
    Aug 4, 2023
    7
    Good things first, the open world is just as great as breath of the wild. Zounath Lego system is fantastic. Can spend 100 hr+ easily on this game.

    On the other hand,the party system is garbage. You need to “talk” to a npc to use an ability. So in a chaotic fight, you need to locate NPCs runs around randomly and click to talk to it. It is irritating.
  20. andrew9
    Aug 4, 2023
    10
    good and builds off the previous one .
  21. DravenHavok
    Aug 4, 2023
    9
    While it's difficult not to want to compare Tears of the Kingdom to Breath of tht Wild, it's important to differentiate the two games. TotK does lack that sense of marvelous discovery BotW had when it came out, however even as a standalone experience TotK is an impressive and wonderful experience. Games that reward players to be creative are rare, and games that give players a colossalWhile it's difficult not to want to compare Tears of the Kingdom to Breath of tht Wild, it's important to differentiate the two games. TotK does lack that sense of marvelous discovery BotW had when it came out, however even as a standalone experience TotK is an impressive and wonderful experience. Games that reward players to be creative are rare, and games that give players a colossal world to explore in whichever way they want even more so. This game is a different kind of magical, but to me what makes it stand above BotW is how complete it feels.… Expand
  22. BigEyeball
    Aug 4, 2023
    7
    I have to be fair, this is a well made game. It's main improvement over the last one was that I bounced off of it 5 hours later than the previous one. This game has a great sense of exploration but all of the content you find is STILL bland. Dungeons are bland in design and un-puzzling, boss fights are simple, shrines are all just tutorials. There is so much game here and yet very littleI have to be fair, this is a well made game. It's main improvement over the last one was that I bounced off of it 5 hours later than the previous one. This game has a great sense of exploration but all of the content you find is STILL bland. Dungeons are bland in design and un-puzzling, boss fights are simple, shrines are all just tutorials. There is so much game here and yet very little of it is compelling. The only reason I knock points down to 7 is because I feel this game doesn't respect the player's time well, and still suffers from the same payoff issues that Breath of the Wild did. That being said I still had a good time.… Expand
  23. Heisenburg333
    Aug 4, 2023
    10
    This is one of my favorite games ever from all the new stuff to the sky and the underground I feel like Nintendo went all in for this game it has a small problem but the positive out matches the negative. If i could rate this a 100 I would its that much of a must play.
  24. Koopacrack
    Aug 4, 2023
    10
    One of the best games of the time really suits you a lot of feelings but it is and will be remembered for giving one of the best experiences and bosses in video games for me this year's goty 10/10
  25. 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
  26. YannySp101
    May 13, 2023
    10
    255 hours later, I finally saw the credits roll in this game and I still can't believe it's actually over; it felt like an experience of a lifetime.
    As someone who loved Breath of the Wild and had sky-high (pun intended) expectations for Tears of the Kingdoms, I got to say... the game surpassed my expectations.
    Now, while the combat system and the visuals remain largely the same as in    255 hours later, I finally saw the credits roll in this game and I still can't believe it's actually over; it felt like an experience of a lifetime.
    As someone who loved Breath of the Wild and had sky-high (pun intended) expectations for Tears of the Kingdoms, I got to say... the game surpassed my expectations.
    Now, while the combat system and the visuals remain largely the same as in Breath of the Wild, everything else has been improved; the story is more engaging, the puzzles are more creative, there's more enemy variety, the map has been changed in many areas and there's much more content overall.
    However, being able to explore islands in the goddamn sky and the gloomy depths, paired up with Breath of the Wild's unmatched sense of exploration and even more player freedom, a huge world filled with so much content, 100 hours of playtime feels like barely scratching the surface, is an unbelievable achievement that I didn't think was possible for videogames.
    And I thought Breath of the Wild had mind-blowing abilities and mechanics but Tears of the Kingdom puts it to shame with its new set of abilities and tweaks; they're simply game-changing.
    With that being said though, I wish the sky islands were slightly more dense and the frame rate was more consistent.

    Pros:
    + Addictive gameplay
    + Groundbreaking new ideas
    + Massive world filled with nearly endless amount of content
    + Genius mechanics
    + Gorgeous visuals & audio

    Cons:
    - Frame drops at times

    Narrative: 5/10
    Gameplay: 10/10
    Content: 10/10
    Characters: 6/10
    Music: 9/10
    Art Style: 10/10

    Final Rating: 10/10
    - Masterpiece -
    While Breath of the Wild was a breath of fresh air for the Open World genre, Tears of the Kingdom raises the bar for the Open World genre up to the skies both figuratively and literally, and it goes even further by redefining the limits of videogames in general.
    This is a "once-in-a-decade" kind of game, an achievement in the videogame industry and a very strong contender for being the best videogame experience I've ever had.

    Do I recommend it?:
    It makes Breath of the Wild obsolete, so it's a must-play.    … Expand
  27. Linkman09
    Aug 3, 2023
    10
    The best game i have ever played. Its so good you can play it over and over again and not get bored.
    10/10 recomend
  28. dzbnkx
    Aug 3, 2023
    10
    Absolutely amazing game. When Breath of the Wild was released, many of us couldn't imagine bigger and better sandbox game. I thought that BotW was THE ULTIMATE sandbox, but now I know I was wrong.

    Breath of the Wild was kind of messiah of sandboxes. No one, ever before, made bigger and better sandbox. Tears of the Kingdom however, is not a messiah, but it's an innovator - it improves    Absolutely amazing game. When Breath of the Wild was released, many of us couldn't imagine bigger and better sandbox game. I thought that BotW was THE ULTIMATE sandbox, but now I know I was wrong.

    Breath of the Wild was kind of messiah of sandboxes. No one, ever before, made bigger and better sandbox. Tears of the Kingdom however, is not a messiah, but it's an innovator - it improves the mechanics and adds more.

    They say that surface map of Hyrule is the same as it was in Breath of the Wild, but when I'm traversing it, I don't know what to expect behind the corner, even when I spent almost 200hrs in the predecessor. You start in another place of the world, and some places which was relatively safe in BotW are dangerous in TotK and vice versa. On top of that, TotK adds sky islands and underground with their own resources. Underground seems pretty dangerous at first, but if you know how to traverse it, it can be pretty soothing experience with almost no background music and with particles in the air. If you are bored with the gameplay loop on the surface, or in the underground, you can seamlessly go somewhere else.

    Breath of the Wild was a game about loneliness. Our protagonist was asleep for 100 years and no one knew who he was. But Tears of the Kingdom is a game about relationships. Relationships you made in BotW. The story take place few years after the ending of BotW and you can see kids grew up, changes in the open world, etc.

    Nintendo made the game to be friendly to new players, so you can learn about the story from BotW in different places in Hyrule from different people. I still recommend playing BotW first, because of meeting new friends who are present in TotK, and some side quests changing the open world, in a way which we see now in TotK.
    However, there are some plot holes, like, where are the Divine Beasts? Why the sun and the moon are going backwards now?

    The soundtrack is very good and in my opinion is better than it was in BotW. Themes of the towns are pretty much the same, but themes in shrines, battle themes are new and feel fresh. And let's not forget about references to older Zelda titles in boss battle themes, and in other places too.

    Tears of the Kingdom is a great puzzle sandbox with the vast, open world. Basically all abilities you have are used to solving puzzles. There is no one proper way to solve the puzzles, you can solve it however you want and that's the most important part of this game. It gives the players a lot of satisfaction when they solve the puzzles in their own way, that's why the playthrough would be different for each of us. That was the case in BotW too, but with the abilities such as Ultrahand, or Fuse, the possibilities are endless.

    Physics engine is as good as it was in BotW - it's absolutely phenomenal. In TotK it spread its wings to the maximum with the new abilities.

    Ultrahand modifies how the player looks at things in Hyrule. Now, a tree is not just another tree, but you can connect trunks and make a raft, or a roof to make a fire when it rains, or you can climb high places, and there are a lot of things like that you can use to achieve your own goals.
    Fuse is the developers' answer to durability complains in BotW. Not only fusing something durable to a weapon increases its durability, or something powerful increases its attack power, but it also gives it its properties. For example, when you attach ice fruit to a weapon, it gives freezing attack to it. Again, you can try combining different things in your own, creative way.
    On top of that, there is Ascend which gives you the ability to float through ceilings, and which indeed sometimes feels like cheating (as the developers said in an interview), and Recall which rewinds time.

    The story was, like it was in BotW, written after they had got gameplay mechanics done. Nintendo had a tough task optimizing it that you can discover it in any order, so it's again in form of memories. However, I recommend discovering it in a "proper" order, as in shown in the Forgotten Temple (from left to right, it's not a spoiler as it's one of the first main quests). The story doesn't have a lot of time relatively to playthrough time, and it's clearly visible that the main point of this game is gameplay. However, you can dive into lore deeper if you want, youtubers make hours-long videos about lore in this game.

    The game works in 30 fps, sometimes more stable, sometimes less, sometimes framerate drops to 20-25 fps. But it wasn't a problem for me, for me hardware limitations were visible when something you built vanishes after you wander too far away from that, and it's usually not that far...

    But even with that said, Tears of the Kingdom is one of the best games of all time, and it's my top 1 favorite games at the moment.
    I give it a solid 10/10.

    + gameplay
    + music
    + mechanics / abilities
    + the ultimate sandbox
    + lore

    - plot holes
    - hardware limitations
    - controlling sages    … Expand
  29. Berko1907
    Aug 3, 2023
    10
    Amazing map, the underground is one of the best things in this Zelda. The creativity you can put on the ost's. Perfect down to the last minute detail
  30. JonaSCX
    Aug 3, 2023
    9
    Un juego casi perfecto a mi parecer, lleva las mecanicas del anterior al limite, nos entrega un mundo en donde no nos movemos del viejo hyrule pero en esta ocasion contamos con tres capas o niveles de superficie que explorar, una locura, 140 horas me han servido para descubir el 60% de misterios que oculta este juego, en donde hay que admitir que la historia toma cierto peso para lo queUn juego casi perfecto a mi parecer, lleva las mecanicas del anterior al limite, nos entrega un mundo en donde no nos movemos del viejo hyrule pero en esta ocasion contamos con tres capas o niveles de superficie que explorar, una locura, 140 horas me han servido para descubir el 60% de misterios que oculta este juego, en donde hay que admitir que la historia toma cierto peso para lo que sera el futuro de la trama, pero aun asi hay algo que me sigue dando vueltas en la cabeza. Me cuesta mucho creer que los sucesos del juego anterior se ignoren tan descaradamente en todo el juego, puedo llegar a entenderlo por cuestiones de guion o de simplemente adaptar el juego al publico pero me sigue pareciendo que aun haber una notable progresion en el mundo en cuanto a asu secuela se refiere, me siento como si realmente nunca hubiera estado en ese mismo continente en la entrega anterior, ahora, esto es pura divagacion mia, realmente no se si decir si algo bueno o malo, por eso la nota tan alta.
    Realmente creo que hay poco que escribir despues de lo que millones vivimos con el primero juego, simplemente Nintendo lo volvio a hacer.    … 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.
    Read full review
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