The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is HERE; Check this out before you begin playing

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was released globally today, May 12. But before you begin playing the game, you should know what the game is all about.

Know why there is such a big buzz around The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. (Zelda)

It has been six years since The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was released. In many ways, the 2017 game changed the perception of the Zelda franchise from a dungeon-crawler role-playing game (RPG) to a game that could compete with the best of console games, in not just storytelling but also visual appeal. And now, in 2023, Nintendo has finally released the sequel to the much-loved game, and early reactions highlight that it may have surpassed its predecessor. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was released today, May 12, and if you are looking to play the game, then you need to know the following information before you begin gaming.

Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom - Overview

The game features an open-world environment, and this time, the environment of Hyrule has been expanded which allows gamers to explore vertically as well. Players will play the game as the protagonist of the game, the blond-haired, blade-wielding Link, as he protects Hyrule from enemies that seek to destroy it.

The game has been priced at $69.99 in the USA at release, and it has been priced about $10 more than any other Nintendo Switch game. Despite the price hike, and the first Nintendo game to do so, Tears of the Kingdom is tipped to be one of the highest-selling Nintendo Switch games ever.

What gamers expected from the game (and was it delivered?)

Breath of the Wild opened up a massive and unique world where playing as Link and defeating enemies had a visual spectacle to it. The game is no longer just about the story or the dungeons, but also about the entirety of Hyrule, exploring an open world and using innovative 3D mechanics in both battles and while roaming around.

As a result, gamers have been quite divided on where they want Nintendo to focus for the sequel. From variety in enemies, more dungeons, and expansion of Hyrule to new game mechanics, the opinions have been quite split. In short, people wanted a sequel that felt fresh and was worth the wait. And it looks like Nintendo has delivered on all fronts.

The gameplay

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom gives four new abilities to Link, namely, recall (reverse time for an object), Fuse (combining weapons and material to make new custom weapons), Ultrahand (sticks objects together) and Ascend (travel through any flat surface). There is also an ability called Autobuild which can be unlocked later and consumes currency to summon any structure previously made using Ultrahand.

A bunch of new floating islands on top of Hyrule, called Sky Islands, have been added to the game. Link's journey will start in these islands where he will learn his abilities, and he can return to them in a variety of ways using those abilities.

The abilities are also the key to building new custom weapons as Link explores the newly added dungeons or fights the monsters of Hyrule.

What's the buzz all about?

What has gotten gamers the most excited about the game is that Nintendo has found a way to expand the already massive open world of Hyrule, by moving vertically. This adds more depth to the game as well as creates an entirely new environment for gamers to test out new skills.

Crafting is another new addition to the game that has given the players more control and customization of the environment. Players can not only create practical weapons to beat bosses but also make silly vehicles to traverse and create structures to progress through the game.

Zelda Tears of the Kingdom - The game data

The new Zelda game will take gamers on average 50 hours to complete the story. However, that is when you focus only on the main storyline. If you try to complete side quests as well as explore the game more to collect shrines, it will take around 60-65 hours to finish the game. 100 percent completion is expected to take more than 100 hours.

What the critics think

It is still early days but the game is receiving a rousing applause from critics all over the world. The Guardian, in their review, called Tears of the Kingdom “something that reminds me that video games are kind of magic” while IGN says it is “bigger, richer, and somehow even more ambitious” than its predecessor.

Gamespot rated the game highly and said, “This is The Legend of Zelda at its finest, borrowing the best pieces and qualities from across the franchise's history and creating something new that is emotionally resonant, captivating, and endlessly rewarding”.

Is Zelda: Breath of the Wild dwindling in popularity?

One would think that with the introduction of the sequel, people would finally forget all about the 2017 version, but Breath of the Wild continues to remain popular. Recently, GQ rated the game on top of the list of top ten games of all time.

There is also a surge of players who are just getting into the Zelda franchise and want to experience the first part before getting into the sequel. Graphics-wise Breath of the Wild still holds up in today's time, although you will have to adjust your expectations considering it is Nintendo Switch. Story-wise and game-enjoyment-wise, it is still one of the best games out there.