The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Reviews

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is ranked in the 100th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
Tom Marks
Top Critic
10 / 10.0
May 11, 2023

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is an unfathomable follow-up, expanding a world that already felt full beyond expectation and raising the bar ever higher into the clouds.

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Metro GameCentral
GameCentral
Top Critic
10 / 10
May 11, 2023

An excellent sequel and one of the best Zelda games ever made. A follow-up that builds upon and refines the achievements of the original, while adding many new and equally innovative ideas of its own.

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GameSpot
Top Critic
10 / 10
May 11, 2023

Tears of the Kingdom is a triumph of open-ended game design that pays homage to the best parts of the Zelda franchise's own storied history--and sometimes exceeds them.

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10 / 10.0
May 11, 2023

I loved nearly every minute of Tears of the Kingdom. From zooming up into the sky to spelunking in the depths, there’s way more to explore here, and I feel like I haven’t even scratched the surface outside of the main story and some key sidequests. But 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.

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10 / 10.0
May 11, 2023

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is crowned as the best installment of the saga, embracing both the old and the new. One of the best open world video games and the purest form of a legendary adventure.

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Shacknews
Top Critic
10 / 10
Dec 27, 2023

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has lived up to the high expectations created by the success of Breath of the Wild with its exquisitely intertwined gameplay systems, outstanding music, and a legendary story culminating in a magnificent denouement. It's not every day that such a special video game like this comes around. Truly the stuff of legend.

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May 11, 2023

Although it takes place on the same map as Breath of the Wild (with a few key changes owing to the time-skip and Upheaval, of course), Tears of the Kingdom feels different enough from its predecessor thanks to the new powers and mechanics to stand all on its own. It’s a massive open world that feels dense and exciting without getting clogged up with icon fatigue, since so much of the play is based around physics interactions with the core mechanics, rather than rigid systems

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IGN Spain
Top Critic
10 / 10.0
May 11, 2023

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom uses the formula proposed by its predecessor to build a proposal that improves each of its sections. The result is a game that not only looks one of the most influential titles of the last 10 years in the face, but, as if it were looking for the sky that populates its illustrations, it has managed to rise above it.

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10 / 10.0
May 11, 2023

Tears of Kingdom could end being one of the best games ever made, with unparalleled exploration that offers freedom and creativity on a scale never before seen.

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10 / 10
May 26, 2023

Tears of the Kingdom is a tour de force. A consummate masterstroke of game design and worldbuilding, unrepentant in its pursuit of player freedom, well-deserving of a place among the greatest games of all time.

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10 / 10.0
May 11, 2023

Tears of the Kingdom is as imaginative, delightful and empowering as Breath of the Wild and a paradigm for emergent sandbox play.

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Telegraph
Top Critic
May 11, 2023

The long awaited follow-up to the seminal Breath of the Wild is an expected, inventive triumph for Nintendo's famous series

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May 11, 2023

Occasionally a game comes along that makes you look at life in a whole new way. This glorious, hilarious, utterly absorbing Zelda instalment is one of them

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100 / 100
May 11, 2023

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is one of the most unique and creative games I have ever played. There is a lot to do and the world design is a perfect symbiosis between using Link’s abilities and your own smarts to reach your goals. One of the best games ever on Nintendo Switch and a must-buy.

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Ken McKown
Top Critic
10 / 10.0
Jun 23, 2023

I could go on and on about this game. It has consumed my gaming time for the last two months and I have not wanted to play much else. I delayed doing the final mission for the longest time as I didn’t want it to end. There is still a ton for me to discover and unlock and I think I am going to keep going back for a long while. Rarely does a game that spans hundreds of hours keep me invested for even close to that long. Nintendo continues to keep this series fresh and while I do love what these new entries are doing, I would be remiss if I didn’t say I do kind of miss the classic design. Still Tears of the Kingdom is by far one of the best games of this generation and if you somehow haven’t played it yet, there is no excuse.

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Jun 14, 2023

Pushing the limits of interaction allows Hyrule to move beyond just being an incredibly beautiful puzzle box setting into something entirely grander. A truly living, breathing world.

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GameMAG
Top Critic
10 / 10
Nov 24, 2023

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is a title great enough to unite the whole industry. A game to celebrate the past and find the best in the most innovative future Nintendo can offer.

Review in Russian | Read full review

10 / 10
May 11, 2023

It's impossible to talk about everything that makes The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom so incredible, and making many of those discoveries yourselves is part of the magic. It's also impossible to overstate just how much there is to do in Hyrule this time around. Much like its predecessor, this is your playground for the next however many years to come, with a little sprinkling of that older Zelda fairy dust mixed into Breath of the Wild's formula. 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.

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May 11, 2023

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom doesn’t stray too far away from the hugely successful template of Breath of the Wild. But by reinforcing its predecessor’s strength for experimentation with the new building mechanics, while also telling an engaging story and opening up new locations to explore, this is a perfect sequel to the greatest game to ever grace the Nintendo Switch.

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100 / 100
May 11, 2023

Ultimately, the lore isn’t the main attraction, and isn’t the reason the Zelda series has endured for almost half a century. 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.

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