Reviews for BOTW Story Recap: What To Know Before Playing Tears of the Kingdom

Cody Gravelle - 5/5 - Screen Rant

The memories this game is capable of creating just because of its ambitious systems mean that no two players will ever have the same experience - except that of joy, and the excitement that comes with unknown possibilities. Anyone worried that there would be some fatal flaw that came to ruin what seemed to be a can't-miss Switch launch can now rest easy. Tears of the Kingdom is a monumental achievement, and it's going to be talked about relentlessly for years to come.

Jade King - 5/5 - TheGamer

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is a masterpiece that not only equals what came before, it does everything in its power to sur it. Even as it presents endless possibilities for me to indulge in and push my creative potential, it all comes back to the intimate gravestones or superfluous conversations that bring its world to life.

Christian Hoffer - 5/5 - ComicBook

In addition to making you fall in love with the world of Hyrule all over again, this game feels much more like a traditional Zelda game, while retaining all of the charm and beauty of Breath of the Wild.

Jordan Middler - 5/5 - VGC

The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom reinterprets Breath of the Wild for the better. Instead of removing all the aches and pains of that game, it completes the circle by adding gameplay-based solutions to annoyances and encourages you to let your imagination run free. Easily one of the very best games on Nintendo Switch.

Gene Park - 4/5 - Washington Post

What’s more compelling is the game’s nod to the collective story of how human imagination pushes us through our toughest challenges, and sometimes sends us soaring to heights unseen.

Tom Marks - 10/10 - IGN

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is an unfathomable follow-up to one of the greatest games ever made, somehow improving upon it in nearly every way - be that with simple quality-of-life improvements, a genuinely exciting story, or wildly creative new building mechanics that make you rethink what is possible.

Alana Hagues - 10/10 - NintendoLife

It’s a glorious, triumphant sequel to one of the best video games of all time; absolute unfiltered bliss to lose yourself in for hundreds of hours. We can’t wait to see what the world will do with the game.

Steve Watts - 10/10 - GameSpot

When I think of the Legend of Zelda series, I've always thought about transcendent, mythic moments: pulling the Master Sword from the pedestal in A Link to the Past, waking the Wind Fish in Link's Awakening, the three major characters representing aspects of the Triforce in Ocarina of Time. Tears of the Kingdom has a moment that matches each of those, and I felt the scope and power of it so strongly that I shed my own tears. As much as I loved each of those pieces in Zelda's past, I'm not sure if it's ever evoked that level of emotion from me before.

Chris Carter - 10/10 - Destructoid

The real kicker that helps separate Tears from Breath of the Wild is its big swing power set. I felt like I was in control at all times, and had the ability to create my own path. For a series known for sequence-breaking that’s not just a perk; it’s a strong argument for why Tears of the Kingdom will be talked about for years on end, and may even top some favorite Zelda lists.

The depth of creativity that the game offers players, mixed with the emotional story elements seems to be a major theme in the reviewers' statements. TOTK apparently keeps true to the features that made Breath of the Wild great, while uniquely solving some of the complaints. Its open-world nature follows much of the same theme as BOTW and is in the same world, but expanded upon with the new Sky Islands and more, and though weapon breakage is still present, the new ability to fuse objects to weapons has changed the feeling. It appears that reviewers across the board feel the title has delivered all that it promised.

The overwhelmingly positive reviews for TOTK suggest that Nintendo has somehow managed to overcome the odds and take one of the best games ever made, Breath of the Wild, and improve upon it without taking away any of what made it great. Once it has been released, the greater population of gamers will determine the final outcome on whether it is truly a success, but all hints so far point to that being the case. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is currently the best game of 2023 on Metacritic, and may prove to be one of the best games of all time.

Source: TheGamer, ComicBook, Stealth40k/Twitter, VGC, Washington Post, IGN, NintendoLife, GameSpot, Destructoid, Metacritic