"The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears" is an open-world action-adventure game developed by Nintendo that is soon to be released. This game is a sequel to "Breath of the Wild," which was released in 2017, and is scheduled to be released on May 12, 2023, on the Nintendo Switch. Due to well-known reasons, I was able to play Kingdom of Tears in advance. After experiencing it for a few hours, I plan to share a brief review for friends who have not yet purchased it. Let's not discuss the leaked aspects for now, as this article will be deleted if it violates the DMCA.
Is it worth buying?#
The answer is definitely yes. As a sequel to "Breath of the Wild," this game basically inherits the systems of its predecessor, allowing old players to quickly get started. At the same time, it goes beyond its predecessor by adding two new modules: the sky and the underground. While the size of the map is similar to that of the Hyrule continent, the gameplay in the sky and underground is significantly different. The buildings in the sky are floating ruins islands, while the underground requires the use of light flower seeds to illuminate before they can be explored.
Two other innovations are the changes to skills and the appearance of the Lona Device. Regarding skills, remote bombs, magnetic grabs, time stops, and ice making have been replaced with the Ultimate Hand (grabbing and combining items), Remnant Construction (bonding items and weapons), Ascension Technique (moving through ceilings), and Reversal of Heaven and Earth (reversing time). The Lona Device is a module powered by a battery on Link's waist, and so far, there are devices such as fire sprayers, wind blowers, gliders, and hot air balloons. These devices can also be stored in Link's backpack through a manufacturing machine.
The battery, as a new item in this game, in my opinion, weakens the importance of the stamina gauge, allowing players to rely more on utilizing the environment and showcasing their own creativity rather than relying solely on Link's skills. Similarly, the combination of items with the Ultimate Hand and the bonding weapons with Remnant Construction greatly enhance the game's playability, which is definitely eye-catching when encountered for the first time.
Areas for improvement...#
There are pros and cons. The biggest drawback of Kingdom of Tears is that its mechanics are too similar to its predecessor. In this game, you can see things that old players are already familiar with, such as a princess who disappears again after being unsealed, temple decryption, collecting blessings to upgrade attributes, and exploring the map with the help of lookout towers. Speaking of the lookout tower's mapping mechanism, it involves launching Link into the sky after activation to scan the map data of the sky and the continent. Since the islands in the sky are the focus of this game, it would be possible to set up several lookout towers on floating islands, in conjunction with the Lona Device. Apart from the new areas of transformation, there is not much change in the Hyrule continent, and even the floating maze in the upper right corner of the map is still there (laughs).
There are also some long-standing issues, such as the Switch's insufficient capabilities leading to lower game graphics quality feeling... not as good as Genshin Impact. I hope that as the game's plot unfolds, Kingdom of Tears can bring me more surprises. Currently, these elements seem to have a bit too much repetition compared to the previous game.
Of course, "The Legend of Zelda: Kingdom of Tears" still maintains its unique charm, enough to allow players to immerse themselves in it and spend a pleasant afternoon unintentionally. Perhaps the continuity of the game's mechanics is where its magic lies.