Zelda Tears of the Kingdom Thread

Casual Shinji

Should've gone before we left.
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The most inconsequential of nitpicks, but Link drips an obscene amount whenever he even touches water. It's weird during conversations, and you now it must've been a good minute since you were last in water, yet Link will still be dripping like a damn showerhead.
 

CriticalGaming

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The most inconsequential of nitpicks, but Link drips an obscene amount whenever he even touches water. It's weird during conversations, and you now it must've been a good minute since you were last in water, yet Link will still be dripping like a damn showerhead.
He fills in for Spongebob on the side.
 
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hanselthecaretaker

My flask is half full
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The most inconsequential of nitpicks, but Link drips an obscene amount whenever he even touches water. It's weird during conversations, and you now it must've been a good minute since you were last in water, yet Link will still be dripping like a damn showerhead.
Guessing they just used animation instead of shaders. I remember being “wowed” for the first time 7th gen seeing Nate’s clothes get wet in Uncharted, but only as far as he was submerged.
 
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Casual Shinji

Should've gone before we left.
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So I got past my first plot related dungeon, and I'm starting to wonder if Tears of the Kingdom is making Breath of the Wild obsolete. It was the Rito quest and it felt a lot more well paced and meaningful than any quest in BotW. Maybe this is just the one good quest in this game, I don't know. I also really took to the character of Tulin. I can't put my finger on why - he's your typical eager Zelda companion - but he was nice to have around.

The whole trip up to the "dungeon" was great and it felt appropriately hazardous, like you're not surprised no one else has attempted it. And having Tulin there the whole time was nice. Unlike BotW where the plot related companion only helps you to get onto the dungeon, in TotK they're with you the entire way, including the Boss fight. Though again, maybe this is only the case for the Rito quest. Don't tell me though.

Another thing that's improved from BotW is the little story segment we get after having defeated the Boss. In BotW we'd get one of the Champions' spirits talking to Link thanking him and reminiscing on how they once knew eachother. But seeing as Link is a complete non-character in BotW (and in TotK) it means very, very little. In TotK though, at least during the Rito quest, it's Tulin who has the interaction with the sage spirit, and there's a nice passing of the torch which reminded me positively of Wind Waker.
 

PsychedelicDiamond

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It is really odd to think that the Zelda series is about physics puzzles now. It's not the worst place to take it, I guess, I'm just not sure how much mileage there is in it. I'm not very far into Tears yet but I rather liked the tutorial area, but it was also specifically built for all the new abilities you get. Now I'm in the overworld proper and... well, it's the one from the last game, innit? Obviously expanded, there are caves now and you can jump into wells and whatnot but I just kinda wonder, how much will the newfound ability to glue things onto other things really do to keep the gameplay fresh?

I haven't played too much of it yet but it's already starting to feel a bit gimmicky. There is a recurring side mission to help a guy keep a sign upright and it's one the most obvious one of many contrivances to make the new gameplay systems feel significant.

My point is, it's indisputable that Tears has enough content to warrant being a standalone game. I have no doubt that you can quite easily playtime in the triple digits out of it. But a lot of that playtime seems like it'll be spent doing the same things as in the last game in the same environments as the last game. I've made one excursion into the underground, which seems very large but quite empty and haven't really seen any sky islands that were as large as the ones the tutorial was set on. I'll give the game more time but so far I'm kinda lukewarm about it.
 

sXeth

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It is really odd to think that the Zelda series is about physics puzzles now. It's not the worst place to take it, I guess, I'm just not sure how much mileage there is in it. I'm not very far into Tears yet but I rather liked the tutorial area, but it was also specifically built for all the new abilities you get. Now I'm in the overworld proper and... well, it's the one from the last game, innit? Obviously expanded, there are caves now and you can jump into wells and whatnot but I just kinda wonder, how much will the newfound ability to glue things onto other things really do to keep the gameplay fresh?

I haven't played too much of it yet but it's already starting to feel a bit gimmicky. There is a recurring side mission to help a guy keep a sign upright and it's one the most obvious one of many contrivances to make the new gameplay systems feel significant.

My point is, it's indisputable that Tears has enough content to warrant being a standalone game. I have no doubt that you can quite easily playtime in the triple digits out of it. But a lot of that playtime seems like it'll be spent doing the same things as in the last game in the same environments as the last game. I've made one excursion into the underground, which seems very large but quite empty and haven't really seen any sky islands that were as large as the ones the tutorial was set on. I'll give the game more time but so far I'm kinda lukewarm about it.
Well there's arguably been some level of "physics" puzzles since Link to the Past, the complexity evolving isn't really the concern I'd say.

I'd say its the balance thing. This feels like a physics puzzle game (or alternatively, Scrap Mechanic) that has a Zelda-paint coat in the background. Not a Zelda game that happens to include some physics puzzle.

Its not in itself bad, it feels weird and awkward as the mainline of the franchise (Whereas Cadence of Hyrule and Hyrule Warriros were the same thing with different game models in zelda paint, but established as side projects)

A comparative example would be Assassins Creed : Black Flag, same issue. PIratey ship combat game is fun and all, but it wasn't Assassins Creed but for a few handwaves here and there. Or Star Fox Adventurers (though that was literally another game reskinned to boost sales.... lol)
 

Zeraki

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So I got past my first plot related dungeon, and I'm starting to wonder if Tears of the Kingdom is making Breath of the Wild obsolete. It was the Rito quest and it felt a lot more well paced and meaningful than any quest in BotW. Maybe this is just the one good quest in this game, I don't know. I also really took to the character of Tulin. I can't put my finger on why - he's your typical eager Zelda companion - but he was nice to have around.

The whole trip up to the "dungeon" was great and it felt appropriately hazardous, like you're not surprised no one else has attempted it. And having Tulin there the whole time was nice. Unlike BotW where the plot related companion only helps you to get onto the dungeon, in TotK they're with you the entire way, including the Boss fight. Though again, maybe this is only the case for the Rito quest. Don't tell me though.

Another thing that's improved from BotW is the little story segment we get after having defeated the Boss. In BotW we'd get one of the Champions' spirits talking to Link thanking him and reminiscing on how they once knew eachother. But seeing as Link is a complete non-character in BotW (and in TotK) it means very, very little. In TotK though, at least during the Rito quest, it's Tulin who has the interaction with the sage spirit, and there's a nice passing of the torch which reminded me positively of Wind Waker.
I did the Rito section first too and I agree. The more I play this game, the more Breath of The WIld feels like it was a proof of concept for this game. Even the weapon durability isn't as bad this time around because of the fusion mechanic.

Only thing I was disappointed in was that the dungeon still really wasn't a traditonal large labyrinthine Zelda dungeon. It was fine for what it was, but I'm guessing the Zelda dungeon as we know it isn't really a thing anymore.
 
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Casual Shinji

Should've gone before we left.
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So, a neat little detail when you're high up in the sky is that you can see the curvature of the "Earth".

I haven't played too much of it yet but it's already starting to feel a bit gimmicky. There is a recurring side mission to help a guy keep a sign upright and it's one the most obvious one of many contrivances to make the new gameplay systems feel significant.
I actually really like those. Sure, it's an obvious running bit to get you to interact with the constructo mechanic, but it totally fits for the character who's part of this carpenters crew, and with the general goofy naivete of Zelda NPCs overall. And it's something you can totally ignore without losing out on anything - If you'd have to construct something everytime you activated a map tower, then yeah, that would feel like the game shoving a gimmick in your face, but Addison is more a running gag than a primary (side) goal.
 

Eacaraxe

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Only thing I was disappointed in was that the dungeon still really wasn't a traditonal large labyrinthine Zelda dungeon. It was fine for what it was, but I'm guessing the Zelda dungeon as we know it isn't really a thing anymore.
I don't mind it, as unlocking and reaching the temples is its own progression path. It really reaches its apex with the final temple, even though you can skip most of it outright if you know where to go (or find it by accident, which was my case). It still took over an hour even with the skip, though.

Gloom hands are ridiculously annoying enemies, though.
 

Casual Shinji

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Gloom hands are ridiculously annoying enemies, though.
I've only ever encountered them in one of the mazes, and I just resorted to throwing bombs and ice chu's at them from high up. Fighting them head on seems like a death sentence. Though I think you can make gloom repellent tonics, which might help not getting insta-killed by them.
 
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