Tears of the Kingdom

Plot

Tears of the Kingdom takes place years after Breath of the Wild, at the end of the Zelda timeline. Link and Zelda explore a cavern beneath Hyrule Castle, where a poisonous substance called gloom has been seeping out. They find murals depicting the founding of Hyrule and the Imprisoning War, an ancient battle against the Demon King. Deeper, they discover a mummy restrained by a disembodied arm; the mummy awakens, wounds Link's right arm, shatters the Master Sword, raises Hyrule Castle into the sky, and causes Zelda to fall into the depths.

Link is rescued by the arm, which replaces his damaged limb, and meets the spirit of Rauru, a Zonai. Link returns to the surface and learns the event, called the Upheaval, has caused chaos. He reunites with allies Sidon, Tulin, Yunobo, and Riju, and ventures into ancient Zonai temples. After defeating monsters, they find secret stones and meet spirits of ancient sages, who appoint the allies as successors.

After defeating Phantom Ganon, Link seeks Mineru, the last ancient sage, and assembles a mechanical body for her spirit.

Development and release

Development of Tears of the Kingdom began after the completion of Breath of the Wild. Ideas intended as downloadable content for Breath of the Wild exceeded the scope, inspiring a new game. It was developed by Nintendo's Entertainment Planning & Development division, Production Group Number 3, directed by Hidemaro Fujibayashi and produced by Eiji Aonuma. Shigeru Miyamoto was credited as general producer, with a minimized role due to scheduling conflicts.

The developers experienced strong déjà vu due to similarity to Breath of the Wild, aiming to create something original yet similar. Tears of the Kingdom reintroduced dungeons connected to Hyrule's surface, designed to be tackled in any order and to showcase Link's powers and gadgets. Technical director Takuhiro Dohta cited Wii Sports Resort as inspiration for new mechanics, and Aonuma cited Red Dead Redemption 2 and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The world was expanded to include the sky and underground.

Aonuma noted that Skyward Sword's hardware limitations prevented seamless descent from the sky, whereas the Nintendo Switch allowed players to traverse a connected world horizontally and vertically with greater agency.

Reception

The Switch version of Tears of the Kingdom received universal acclaim on Metacritic. Critics found it of similar quality to or an improvement upon Breath of the Wild. Reviewers praised the additions of sky islands, Depths, and caves for expanding the open world. IGN said it was better than Breath of the Wild for its story and mechanics, and praised the Depths.

GameSpot lauded it for building upon its predecessor. VG247 called its scale immense and its mechanics creative. Game Informer wrote that it evoked a compelling response by revisiting previous locations. Nintendo Life noted the three settings were well-connected.

Eurogamer felt players could spend their entire time exploring the Depths but needed to return to the surface for tools, creating a compelling gameplay loop, and praised the skies' designs. Video Games Chronicle considered the Depths more interesting than the sky sections. The new powers received praise: GamesRadar+ called them well-designed, highlighting Ultrahand. Polygon said learning the powers was a main appeal, likening Ascend to a noclip mode.

The Guardian felt the powers allowed circumventing objects in multiple ways. GameSpot described the powers as superior to those in Breath of the Wild.