For me, there’s few feelings better in gaming than a sense of discovery. Whenever I find something that I had no idea existing, I can’t help but get a bit giddy. And to me, no game in recent memory captured that sense of discovery better than The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
I’ve heard this game described as “Distractions: The Video Game,” and I agree with that in the best way possible. Everywhere you go, there’s always something calling for your attention, something new to do. On top of that, you can play the game in pretty much any way possible, taking 100 hours or half an hour to beat it. The game definitely has its share of flaws, but that sheer sense of freedom makes it a modern masterpiece in many’s eyes, myself included. While not my favorite game ever, it’s probably the one I would most want to experience for the first time again.
Now, the game’s sequel, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, has effectively given me that chance. We’ve known about this game for more almost four years now, and it has built up some massive expectations along with the wait. Not to mention, it has the unenviable task of following up one of the most revered games of all time.
So, how is it after all this buildup?
Review – The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Before we get started, let’s go over my experience with the game so far. I have not yet beaten the game 100%, but if I waited until then, this review wouldn’t come for months. That said, I feel that around 70 hours of playtime, beating the main story and doing a good amount of side content is more than enough to form a solid opinion of the game. Now that we’ve covered that, let’s get into the review itself.
Breath of the Wild was already a massive game, but Tears of the Kingdom blows its scale out of the water. The map of Hyrule is just as big, if not bigger, than last time, but that’s only half the story. New to this game are the sky islands high above Hyrule, as well as the Depths far below it.
Breath of the Wild was already a massive game, but Tears of the Kingdom blows its scale out of the water.
Let’s start with the sky islands first, as they’re probably the easier part to explain. I honestly expected there to be more islands than there are, given how prevalent they were in the game’s marketing. That said, they are very fun to discover and explore and provide breathtaking visuals and music. Traveling to and from them from the surface is also a feeling that I’ll probably never get tired of.
Then there’s the Depths, which despite not appearing much in marketing material, are probably the biggest addition to the game. This is an entire second map below the original, and it’s just as massive. It’s also terrifying to explore down here, as it’s pitch-black when you first arrive and the enemies are far more threatening than those above ground. I personally haven’t spent too much time down here, but it’s impossible to overstate just how huge of an addition this second map is.
I personally haven’t spent too much time down here, but it’s impossible to overstate just how huge of an addition this second map is.
Another change I greatly appreciated is the return of classic Zelda dungeons. In Breath of the Wild, the closest thing to traditional dungeons were the four Divine Beasts. While these weren’t bad in my opinion, I felt they blended together too much, both with themselves and the 120 shrines in the game.
Thankfully, Tears of the Kingdom returns to each dungeon having a more distinct theme unique to the region. They’re mechanically similar, but the visual distinction alone makes them much more enjoyable. That also goes for the bosses in said dungeons, who are much more unique and fun to fight than last time.
As for Link’s abilities, they have seen a massive shakeup thanks to his new right arm. Recall and Ascend are both pretty fun to use and open up a lot of possibilities for puzzles. However, the two standout powers are Fuse and Ultrahand.
Fuse allows you to well… fuse essentially anything you want to your weapons, shields and arrows. This doesn’t just open up a lot of possibilities, it’s an essential part of the game. If you want to have strong weapons, you need to get used to using this ability. This initially annoyed me, but once I started using the ability properly, I grew to appreciate how creative it was.
Meanwhile, Ultrahand is a different beast entirely. This essentially allows you to pick up any object in the world, move it around attach it to other objects. With this ability, you can make cars, hovercrafts, companions in battle, and more. If you can think it up, you can build it. This can be extremely fun, although I’m not the most creative person so I’ve barely scratched the surface of what’s possible.
If you can think it up, you can build it.
Before we wrap up, I’ll briefly comment on the game’s story without diving too much into spoilers. Breath of the Wild had the problem of almost all of its story taking place in the past, and you only found said story through optional memories. That, as well as the villain being a mute, led to many criticizing the game for having a weak story. And while I love the game, I’m inclined to agree with those criticisms.
Tears of the Kingdom’s story, while far from perfect, is a noticeable step up in my opinion. Much of the story is still found through memories, but there’s more going on in the present now so it’s not as much of a problem this time. Ganondorf, returning for the first time since 2006, is also a much more engaging villain because, you know, he actually talks. He’s still just an evil guy at the end of the day, but it’s nice having a more involved villain.
Verdict
I could keep going on, but I don’t want to make this review as long as the game itself. Tears of the Kingdom has its share of flaws, but it’s so fun to play that they seem minor. I’ve already sunk a ton of time into this game, and I will continue to do so for a while to come.