5/5 ★ – PaisanSensei's review of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.

I had been putting off this review for a while - after 170+ hours immersed in this world, I really wanted to step away from it and gather my thoughts while not immediately involved with it in any way. In doing so, I feel I could really provide a nuanced view of this game. I didn’t complete the grand finale until I had truly had my fill of the game (for the time being), which helped me ultimately walk away from it with a clear understanding of it. This is not even close to being my favorite Legend of Zelda game of all time, nor is it on my list of favorite games of all time. However, it would not be an understatement to say that this is the most ambitious, technical achievements ever made in a video game. Again, the Legend of Zelda series has turned the action-adventure genre on its head, and set the high watermark for action-adventure games going forward. How could such an experience be found on a console that has very quickly started to show its age and technical limitations? That’s the thing - the fact that a game of this scope and scale is running quite well on a system with these limitations is nothing short of an absolute technical marvel. With file sizes of a modern day AAA title expected to almost always be pushing at least 75 - 100 gigabytes, the fact that this game has been compressed to 16(!) gigabytes and looks/runs as well as it does is something akin to programming wizardry. Just when you think the world can’t get any bigger….it gets WAY bigger. All of a sudden, the 6 year development period made a whole lot of sense. Nintendo’s dedication to the project (and specifically the teams/individuals who worked on it) is demonstrable in its effectiveness and cohesion as a fully-realized world. The physics engine alone is so fine-tuned, gamers have spent thousands of cumulative hours building anything they can feasibly think of and construct using the tools in the game. For a game in which building is really only a portion and not the main focus of the game, it demonstrates a remarkable attention to detail and promised freedom that was inspired by the thousands of hours players put into Breath of the Wild taking the time to learn and see what was possible in its own robust physics system. Nintendo said “we’ll do you one better” here and delivered. With all that being said, with the system being taxed to its very limits (or at least it seems), there are some fallbacks. It’s more than likely just my eyes six years older and growing more accustomed to native 1080p (or higher), 60 frames a second game play. It’s locked at 30 and I have ZERO gripe with that. Honestly, sometimes I prefer the 30 fps, feels more like I’m playing a movie rather than a game, especially in one such as grandiose as this. However, there are certainly noticeable frame rate drops when certain animations are happening on the screen, especially if you get several of them going at once. Breath of the Wild had none (or at least none that were immediately recognizable), and with this game, its must more pronounced and has resulted in a cheap shot from an enemy or two as the game tries to keep up with the input commands. Also…. Again this may just be my eyes but… this game just doesn’t seem as “pretty” as Breath of the Wild. I know its the same engine, retooled for the gameplay mechanics and systems of this game - hear me out… I think the taxing nature of the systems and scale of the game made the developers have to sacrifice some “shine” in order to make it run much more smoothly. Regrettable, but perfectly understandable. One last gripe and then I’ll go back to waxing lyrical about this game; I loved the feeling of solitude and relative separation of Breath of the Wild. I suppose it probably just happened to hit closer to home for me, and made me enjoy the interactions with the characters that I did meet that much more enjoyable and fresh when I did meet them. But I understand that narratively, this wouldn’t make any sense for ToTK. This is a game not about rediscovery, but of reunion. The world is now far more interconnected now that the impending threat of the doomsday devices (Guardians) is gone, albeit some of Ganon’s most powerful monsters roam the kingdom now. Nevertheless, the character performances are wonderful and the cinematic sequences are straight up INCREDIBLE. And without getting into specifics, although this game may not be my favorite one narratively, you can not take away from how massive and conclusive it feels. There are wonderful easter eggs and callbacks galore in this game (I won’t name drop any, but a certain game of late 90’s gets a lot of love, and I loved every second of it) and the way the story all comes together in the end is triumphant and noteworthy. For the last story in this universe of Zelda, it is one every one should absolutely experience. As I stated (and restated in one way or another), this would not be the first Legend of Zelda title I would play if one put them all on the table. Call it nostalgia or what one will, but there are more than like 4-5 Zelda games I would play before this one. I’m not a huge building buff and that slowed the game down for me. Its scope can be intimidating for many, and as one who tends to revel in immersive open worlds, even I felt overwhelmed for many of the early hours of the game (though I think that is intentional). Even still, Tears of the Kingdom is such an exemplary piece of game creation and world building. It is truly a technical wonder, and there are seemingly thousands of ways to approach and engage with it. Every single person’s experience with it is bound to have overlap, but also moments of unique permutations and experiences that are meaningful to the individual. Technical triumphs aside, this is its greatest accomplishment and one that is well worth exploring.