When Nintendo launchedThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, it represented a sea-change in open-world game design. It matched the geographic depth ofSkyrimwithAssassins' Creed’s freedom of movement, introduced an addictive gliding mechanic, and filtered everything through the immaculate level of polish that Nintendo brings to itsZeldatitles. It inspired other juggernaut series and developers to go open world, raising an excellent generation of open world titles, which meansThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomhas a tremendous legacy to inherit. Most tellingly,The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’ssteepest competition is not its own direct predecessor, but rather the titles inspired by that predecessor.
In the wake ofGhost of Tsushima,God of War(2018),Genshin Impact, andElden Ring, it must be acknowledged thatBreath of the Wildfeels dated. Graphically, the game’s aesthetic holds up beautifully, as is common forThe Legend of Zeldafranchise. Mechanically, however,Tears of the Kingdomwill need much more than floating islands andcallbacks to priorZeldatitlesto achieve the same revelatory status of its predecessor. Two titles that have drawn repeated comparisons toBreath of the Wild,HoYoverse’sGenshin Impact,and FromSoftware’sElden Ringdo an excellent job of illustrating the challenges that lie before Nintendo.
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Genshin Impact’s Rise to Power
Upon release,Genshin Impactwas repeatedly referred to as aBreath of the Wildclone. Two years later, with a greatly expanded roster of characters, and a steady stream of updates that reliably reinvent the ways players can interact with Teyvat, that argument rings rather hollow. The title’s elemental mixing combat is always a blast with more magical depth than Link has in his largely physics-based toolkit, and it is also free from the frustrations caused byBreath of the Wild’s controversial durability system. Perhaps most importantly, the game’s narrative continues to progress in surprising, satisfying ways.
Despite having some of the best-loved supporting characters in all video games,The Legend of Zeldais a famously solitary franchise.Nintendo’s guide characters, like Navi, or Fi, have superficial personalities and interject only when the story requires it.Breath of the WIlddid away with a guide character altogether, but made major strides with the franchise’s storytelling, via periodic flashbacks with a cast of eccentric but likable supporting characters.There is a beautiful, intimate quality inBreathe of the Wild’sisolation, and there are reasonable objections to be made againstGenshin Impact’s gacha-based monetization. That said, exploring in Teyvat feels explosively lively in comparison to Link’s lone treks across Hyrule, both in terms of company and the variety of game mechanics.
BetweenGenshin Impact’s five core weapon typesand seven elements, the huge plurality of character abilities, combat is never dull. New, region-specific traversal and puzzle mechanics ensure that there is always something new to do in the game world. In addition toBreath of the Wild’sbase depth and scope, HoYoverse has layered a degree of customizability and company ontoGenshin Impact’s experience. Luring existing players away to a similar experience after two years of investment may be a hard sell for Nintendo.
Elden Ring Offers A Darker Link
At the opposite end of the thematic spectrum,Elden Ringdelivered a tour de force in terms of challenge, immersive beauty, and understated environmental storytelling on an epic scale. The grim and difficult nature of FromSoftware’s oeuvre may not appeal to everyone, but those who engage withElden Ringare indulged with a haunting, enigmatic story, multiple one-of-a-kind boss encounters, and a full-featured action RPG with a robust combat system. FromSoft’s famously punishing director,Hidetaka Miyazaki, decided to do away with a weapon durability system for the sake of fun, allowing for players to gleefully experiment with a variety of builds, or rely on a favorite weapon without penalty.
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One could argue thatElden Ringfeels like a more grown-up take onZelda, mechanically as well as narratively.Elden Ringis tonally similar toTwilight Princessbut taken several strides further, and delivered with a scope that exceeds the originalBreath of the Wild. That is the crux of Nintendo’s challenge. It is not enough to makeBreath of the Wildbigger, or to add crafting, or multiple playable characters, becauseElden RingandGenshin Impactessentially do all of those things and more. To step outside the shadow of its imitators,Tearsmust do something revolutionary, or revitalize something sacred to the series in a new way.
Nintendo’s Opportunity
It must be said that incorporating a large cast of playable characters, or adopting a Souls-like formula would both be major mistakes, and fortunately, there appears to be no danger of either based onthe latest trailers forTears of the Kingdom. Nevertheless,Zeldamust further refine its franchise identity while doing something new with an open world game. Reclaiming older mechanics fromSkyward Sword,Ocarina of Time, and others may be a good point of departure. One series staple the originalBreath of the Wildlacked were magic musical instruments that could affect the world. Given the tremendous potential of music mechanics, both in terms of input and the wide range of ways it could affect the environment, that seems like a smart place to start.
Another area whereNintendo can shine withTears of the Kingdomis clever dungeon designs. Rather than only four guardian beasts, a return to olderZeldagames that featured nearly a dozen dedicated temples or dungeons could be compelling. Even thoughBreath of the Wildhad over a hundred small dungeons with unique puzzles, most of them were visually similar to each other. Giving different region a distinct aesthetic and discrete set of challenges rather than following a unified template would go a long way toward makingTears of the Kingdommore memorable than its forerunner.
Even though the challenges facing them are considerable,Nintendohas a tremendous opportunity withTears of the Kingdom. Another breakout title with an innovative mechanic would demonstrate the skills of the company that is essentially the grandfather of modern video gaming. Perhaps even more excitingly, it can show the world what it has learned from its younger competitors in turn.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomis scheduled to release Jul 23, 2025 for the Nintendo Switch.MORE:How Breath of the Wild’s Towns Might Change in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
