Nintendo Switch: This new Zelda game is a must for the Switch

Et is perhaps already the game of the year: “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” (TotK) for the Nintendo Switch gains a lot of favor from the critics. On Opencritic.com, a site that aggregates test reviews, the game gets 97 out of a possible 100 points. This makes it the best-rated video game there at the moment.

TotK begins shortly after its predecessor “Breath of the Wild“. The eponymous Princess Zelda and the player character Link explore the catacombs under Hyrule Castle. There they discover the mummified demon king Ganondorf. The mummy comes to life, insults the hero couple and attacks Zelda and Link. Zelda falls while Link is saved by a glowing hand but faints anyway.

As is so often the case at the beginning of a Zelda game, the mute hero Link wakes up a short time later: without a sword, without equipment and with little life energy left. And from this point he must now – again – save the world.

The key to this are new abilities that his now glowing arm enables him to do. The players learn these skills in the starting area. One of their abilities allows them to make objects run backwards in time. For example, a cog wheel runs in the other direction or a stone that falls down flies up again.

Another ability allows Link to fuse his weapons with other items. A simple stick together with a stone then becomes a hammer that can smash brittle stones. An arrow and a monster’s eye become a homing arrow. And a shield and mining cart becomes something like a skateboard that Link can ride down hills.

Incidentally, this mechanism also makes up for the annoyance that weapons only have a certain durability and then break: You can make new weapons almost anywhere.

Tinkering with your own fighting machines

But probably the most versatile ability is the “Ultrahand”: With it, Link can move objects and stick them together. Three tree trunks quickly become a bridge. If you add a sail, it all becomes a raft.

There are no limits to creativity here. Mechanical elements such as rockets, propellers or controls are then added with devices from the disappeared, highly developed Zonai species.

In this way, Link can create companions or entire fighting machines, an invitation for creativity and unconventional solutions. A large number of tasks can be solved simply by building a very long bridge.

The freedom that “Breath of the Wild” (BotW) gave the players – which is rather unusual for a Nintendo game – is massively expanded in TotK. After completing the tutorial area, you can move around the world almost completely freely.

The land of Hyrule, known from BotW, is still the foundation of the game. However, so much has changed that it doesn’t look like old wine in new barrels.

The already huge world with countless things to discover has been expanded to include flying islands, among other things. There are various distractions here from the main task of saving Hyrule.

Return of the long-awaited dungeons

And Nintendo also irons out one of the biggest criticisms of the predecessor: There are real, closed dungeons like in earlier parts of the series, which has been running since 1986. Overall, you should get a playing time of 40 to 80 hours, depending on how much you allow yourself to be distracted.

You have to have a taste for this type of game to really enjoy TotK. Players must constantly set their own goals and want to pursue them. The design of the world helps a lot here: If you come to a new area, you immediately see some interesting points.

For example a tower, a village or the shrines known from BotW, in which individual puzzles or mini-games are hidden and with which Link can increase his life energy.

On the way there you usually discover even more interesting things. Especially after long breaks in the game, the question quickly arises: “What did I want to do here again?”

A clear shortcoming

And with all the praise, there is also concrete criticism. Unlike its competitors Sony and Microsoft, Nintendo doesn’t seem to care as much about accessibility when it comes to its own games.

While games like “The Last of Us Part II” or “Forza Horizon 5“ If you can largely adapt to your own needs and physical conditions, there are hardly any options at TotK.

There aren’t even settings for difficulty, color blindness, or button remapping. This is now standard in many video games, especially major titles from console manufacturers.

TotK also shows the aging technology of the Nintendo Switch. Under the hood of TotK is impressive software that simulates wind, clouds, water, fire and physics. But especially when there is a lot going on on the screen, the frame rates, which are a maximum of 30 frames per second, drop noticeably.

A video from the YouTube channel “Digital Foundry” deals intensively with the performance. However, the testers also note some improvements compared to its predecessor, such as faster loading times when fast traveling.

Conclusion

Overall, however, Nintendo has managed to create an impressive open-world game that is unrivaled in terms of its creative freedom and atmosphere. The grandiose soundtrack of the game, which is used very specifically and effectively, also helps here.

For example at the beginning, when Link descends into the catacombs under Hyrule Castle with Zelda. The sound makes players feel uneasy as red and black columns of smoke rise from the ground and otherworldly voices combine with the deep roar of the wind.

“The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” is therefore probably a must for most Switch owners. Provided there is some fondness for open-world gaming and no claims of accessibility.

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