Pre-Release The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Pre-Release Discussion Thread

[LukasManak22]

It's March 27th and Nintendo tweets:

Tune in 3/28 at 2 p.m PT for a world-first gameplay of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom featuring the game producer Mr. Aonuma and game director Mr. Fujibayashi. Join us in Hyrule for roughly 20 minutes of first ever gameplay footage.

 

[GamerInHeart]

Hypothetically speaking, if the TotK sales number breaks the record at launch, will you guys still think it's bad marketing? Isn't the sales number the key indicator of whether the marketing strategy is good or bad?

Personally, I'm not certain if the marketing strategy of TotK is bad or not right now, only time will tell. I'm already super excited for this game and just here waiting for the final trailer to hype me up even more

 

[Arbitrary Function]

I have to say I'm a bit perplexed about all the negative reactions. While I do agree that the recent trailer was perhaps lacking in its general storytelling and cohesion, when you pick apart what it actually shows in terms of new things it's really very exciting to me, with crafting, vehicles and caves.

It also led me to replaying BotW again and as I'm roaming the original map it feels like an increasingly great idea for a sequel to build and iterate upon the existing world instead of building a new one. Even though I love BotW Hyrule, there's so much potential to do more with it.

 

[Pavolink]

Hypothetically speaking, if the TotK sales number breaks the record at launch, will you guys still think it's bad marketing? Isn't the sales number the key indicator of whether the marketing strategy is good or bad?

Personally, I'm not certain if the marketing strategy of TotK is bad or not right now, only time will tell. I'm already super excited for this game and just here waiting for the final trailer to hype me up even more

Yes, and will maintain that position forever as I can compare to the previous 3D Zelda games.

This is not a position exclusive to this forum. People outside here have expressed similar sentiments. How much people? I can’t quantify, but it is not only one or two persons.

TotK will have record sales at launch for the franchise, but we know that part of that is because this is the new Zelda game, the sequel to BotW, and not because all of us were excited for the teasers and trailers they released before.

 

[GamerInHeart]

Yes, and will maintain that position forever as I can compare to the previous 3D Zelda games.

This is not a position exclusive to this forum. People outside here have expressed similar sentiments. How much people? I can’t quantify, but it is not only one or two persons.

TotK will have record sales at launch for the franchise, but we know that part of that is because this is the new Zelda game, the sequel to BotW, and not because all of us were excited for the teasers and trailers they released before.

I respect your opinion but I disagree. Your conclusion is mostly based on your own feelings and limited observations. Anticipating people buying the game "because this is the new Zelda game, the sequel to BotW" is also a part of the marketing strategy, and if the sales number of TotK flops at launch, then I would admit this is a bad marketing strategy, but if the sales number is great or even breaks the record, then it only means Nintendo chose the right marketing strategy.

 

[Pavolink]

I respect your opinion but I disagree. Your conclusion is mostly based on your own feelings and limited observations. Anticipating people buying the game "because this is the new Zelda game, the sequel to BotW" is also a part of the marketing strategy, and if the sales number of TotK flops at launch, then I would admit this is a bad marketing strategy, but if the sales number is great or even breaks the record, then it only means Nintendo chose the right marketing strategy.

A game being a sequel is not part of the marketing (?)

And once again no, breaking record sales at launch does not equate to good marketing. Not everyone is excited for the same thing, and certainly not everyone is excited for TotK because of the few teasers and no gameplay.

 

[Lozjam]

A game being a sequel is not part of the marketing (?)

And once again no, breaking record sales at launch does not equate to good marketing. Not everyone is excited for the same thing, and certainly not everyone is excited for TotK because of the few teasers and no gameplay.

The whole concept of marketing is to maximize sales. If they did end up having record sales, then it is a successful marketing campaign.

You should realize that the game will eventually be out, and there will be so much gameplay flooded into it. If a person doesn't necessarily feel comfortable buying a game at launch, then they really don't have to. They can wait for reviews, previews, or see gameplay themselves when the game releases.

 

[Tatsu]

Less than 60 days remain what are the predictions of when we see the game next?

 

[Skies]

I kind of see both sides of this discussion, but one side almost seems more infatuated with the marketing than the actual product experience.

A game being a sequel is not part of the marketing (?)

And once again no, breaking record sales at launch does not equate to good marketing. Not everyone is excited for the same thing, and certainly not everyone is excited for TotK because of the few teasers and no gameplay.

This is like saying winning the super bowl does not equate to being a good team.

At that point, does it really matter? Your goal has been achieved.

 

[Pavolink]

The whole concept of marketing is to maximize sales. If they did end up having record sales, then it is a successful marketing campaign.

You should realize that the game will eventually be out, and there will be so much gameplay flooded into it. If a person doesn't necessarily feel comfortable buying a game at launch, then they really don't have to. They can wait for reviews, previews, or see gameplay themselves when the game releases.

I kind of see both sides of this discussion, but one side almost seems more infatuated with the marketing than the actual product experience.



This is like saying winning the super bowl does not equate to being a good team.

At that point, does it really matter? Your goal has been achieved.

Are there other factors outside of marketing that can guarantee good sales to a product?

 

[kvetcha]

Are there other factors outside of marketing that can guarantee good sales to a product?

Sure, and if the product sells to expectations without significant marketing, it means that significant marketing was unnecessary. The product sells itself.

 

[Pavolink]

Sure, and if the product sells to expectations without significant marketing, it means that significant marketing was unnecessary. The product sells itself.

Good. This is something that I understand and in my (wrong) opinion applies here. I believe this game is going to sell above expectations without significant marketing. The product sells itself.

 

[GamerInHeart]

A game being a sequel is not part of the marketing (?)

And once again no, breaking record sales at launch does not equate to good marketing. Not everyone is excited for the same thing, and certainly not everyone is excited for TotK because of the few teasers and no gameplay.

Marketing strategy is formed by numerous choices made by the company and marketing team, if the company has this ANTICIPATION of "people will buy the game because this is the sequel to the BotW" and the company chose not to show too much of the game, then it's absolutely a part of their marketing strategy. But if "not everyone is excited for TotK because of the few teasers and no gameplay", then it means this ANTICIPATION is somewhat wrong, the marketing strategy of this company will fail, and the sales number will flop.

Good marketing strategy doesn't always mean getting people as excited as possible, its purpose is to get people excited enough to buy the game, the sales number will show if the marketing strategy is right or not.

 

[Pavolink]

Marketing strategy is formed by numerous choices made by the company and marketing team, if the company has this ANTICIPATION of "people will buy the game because this is the sequel to the BotW" and the company chose not to show too much of the game, then it's absolutely a part of their marketing strategy. But if "not everyone is excited for TotK because of the few teasers and no gameplay", then it means this ANTICIPATION is somewhat wrong, the marketing strategy of this company will fail, and the sales number will flop.

Good marketing strategy doesn't always mean getting people as excited as possible, its purpose is to get people excited enough to buy the game, the sales number will show if the marketing strategy is right or not.

Ok, sorry, I understand now your point. If I understood correctly, the strategy is based on TotK being the sequel to BotW and some people anticipating the game because of that. They believe that they don’t need to show something meaningful because we are excited for being the sequel to BotW, something that I can releate tbh.

I’m excited for this game more because of that and the leaks, rather than the trailers.

 

[AngryAlchemist]

Famiboards trusting Zelda team doing a great job while knowing nothing about the game be like:

This is ... actually scarily relevant to the topic at hand, lol. "How can you not trust George Lucas? He has earned our trust as the greatest filmmaker of our time! He's earned our trust!"

A bit of a conversation shift but since this is a pretty active Zelda thread, man the padding in SS is standing out much more on a replay

I think just because it’s been so long that the game is just a series of broad strokes in my head (i.e. a list of dungeons with some vague stuff in between) I really forgot all the little stuff you have to do in between

Like after Lanayru Mining Facility you have to fight the imprisoned and get the harp, do the two windmills in Skyloft, oh but before doing the second one, you have to build the robot, go down to Eldin and have it bring back up the windmill, then go to the isle of songs and get the guidance, then go Faron and do the silent realm, then go up the tree and figure out you have to go to the lake, but oh you have to find a matching symbol for the lake gate so you know to draw a circle on a door with your sword, then cool new area - Lake Floria! oh but the dragon needs water so you have to randomly backtrack to Skyview Temple with nothing new and interesting in it, THEN you can back to the lake and get to the ancient cistern.

Some of that is cool. Climbing the tree is was some nice level design, Isle of Songs is atmospheric and had a cool puzzle, hell I don’t even mind the silent realms - I think they’re neat challenges despite being a clear example of padding.

But man, the building the robot to get the windmill part, finding the symbol to draw a circle with your sword, and getting water for the dragon could be taken out of the game entirely and nothing engaging would be lost, and nothing would feel missing lol.

I'm playing through Twilight Princess for the first time and largely feel the same way, though with a lot more positivity. It easily could be a top 3 Zelda with less repetition and filler. It has some of the most inspired music, dungeons, characters, and overworld content in the entire series lol.

 

[Kevin360]

Just got my first TOTK ad on social media.

It’s happening. The marketing is real.

 

[maidhhc]

I can see this being Fujibayash’s last directed Zelda game. He’ll probably take over as producer and Aonuma can move on

Could you elaborate on the difference between the two roles in videogame development? Don’t know much about this stuff

 

[Lozjam]

Are there other factors outside of marketing that can guarantee good sales to a product?

Yes, however, that is part of the marketing. The better your product is, the less that you need to market it. If you end up spending millions of dollars on advertisements and promotional material, when the game theoretically would sell the same amount regardless, then that is actually a failure in marketing. The hardest part of marketing, is finding that sweet spot.

One of my favorite examples of this, is Costco here in the US. Costco is one of the best retailers in the entirety of the US, and they are one of the most reliable sectors of growth in the retailer market nowadays. This is because they don't spend any money on marketing. They spend all of their money on increasing the quality of their products, better wages and benefits for the staff, keeping prices low, and then profiting insanely from it. That is an extremely effective marketing strategy, because it makes all of its customers and staff so happy, that they do not need to spend a cent on it.

And I get it. I am also only excited for TotK because it's the successor to BotW, and the leaks. The trailers, besides the first one, have really done absolutely nothing for me. But I would be lying if I said that it's a marketing failure, as I bet that 99%'of the people who frequent this thread and are complaining about the lack of info already have the game pre ordered.

 

[Phendrift]

This is ... actually scarily relevant to the topic at hand, lol. "How can you not trust George Lucas? He has earned our trust as the greatest filmmaker of our time! He's earned our trust!"

I'm playing through Twilight Princess for the first time and largely feel the same way, though with a lot more positivity. It easily could be a top 3 Zelda with less repetition and filler. It has some of the most inspired music, dungeons, characters, and overworld content in the entire series lol.

Oh don’t get me wrong that’s still how I feel about SS for sure! I love the game for all those listed reasons you love TP, but I guess the filler is just sticking out more on a replay. Still largely enjoying my time despite the complaining tone of my post

 

[Soralink91]

I think people are just used to the previous news cycle for 3d Zelda games. The expectation was that we would have a lot more to discuss and chew on this close to release. I personally enjoy the lead up to these games and TotK just does not have much new officially announced to talk about right now. People are excited for this game and pre sales are seemingly excellent. Just have to be a bit more patient the game is nearly here and if the game is as great as I believe it will be, discussion will be rich.

 

[Pavolink]

Yes, however, that is part of the marketing. The better your product is, the less that you need to market it. If you end up spending millions of dollars on advertisements and promotional material, when the game theoretically would sell the same amount regardless, then that is actually a failure in marketing. The hardest part of marketing, is finding that sweet spot.

One of my favorite examples of this, is Costco here in the US. Costco is one of the best retailers in the entirety of the US, and they are one of the most reliable sectors of growth in the retailer market nowadays. This is because they don't spend any money on marketing. They spend all of their money on increasing the quality of their products, better wages and benefits for the staff, keeping prices low, and then profiting insanely from it. That is an extremely effective marketing strategy, because it makes all of its customers and staff so happy, that they do not need to spend a cent on it.

And I get it. I am also only excited for TotK because it's the successor to BotW, and the leaks. The trailers, besides the first one, have really done absolutely nothing for me. But I would be lying if I said that it's a marketing failure, as I bet that 99%'of the people who frequent this thread and are complaining about the lack of info already have the game pre ordered.

I think I understood incorrectly marketing, but now that you and some others have explained to me better, I changed my mind and agreed with what you said.

And yes, being excited for the game because leaks and being a sequel is not what I expected from a new 3D Zelda game. Hopefully this is something exclusive to TotK and the next Zelda show something more.

 

[Awesomegames23]

Hot take, the first 3 trailers should’ve been 2 trailers.

Nintendo should have saved the E3 2019 footage and combined the footage with the opening and closing scenes of the 2021 E3 trailer, this effectively would’ve been a larger trailer focusing on Ganondorf and Hyrule Castle rising. No sky islands or sign of them would appear in this trailer.

All of the sky island clips from the E3 2021 trailer should have been combined with the September 2022 trailer, effectively this would’ve been a larger trailer introducing us to the sky islands and Link’s abilities.

 

[Pavolink]

Hot take, the first 3 trailers should’ve been 2 trailers.

Nintendo should have saved the E3 2019 footage and combined the footage with the opening and closing scenes of the 2021 E3 trailer, this effectively would’ve been a larger trailer focusing on Ganondorf and Hyrule Castle rising. No sky islands or sign of them would appear in this trailer.

All of the sky island clips from the E3 2021 trailer should have been combined with the September 2022 trailer, effectively this would’ve been a larger trailer introducing us to the sky islands and Link’s abilities.

My hot take is that I wish the last trailer was an ordered transitions of sky>Hyrule>underground areas revealed, instead of the mix that the did.

 

[stodesign12]

Anticipating people buying the game "because this is the new Zelda game, the sequel to BotW" is also a part of the marketing strategy

If they did end up having record sales, then it is a successful marketing campaign.

, if the company has this ANTICIPATION of "people will buy the game because this is the sequel to the BotW" and the company chose not to show too much of the game, then it's absolutely a part of their marketing strategy

I understand that "being the sequel to BotW" is marketing itself and it's definitely part of the marketing strategy, but that's twisting a bit the argument of people who actually want a big "marketing campaign" for TotK, which is a different thing.

It seems that for a lot of people being the sequel to BotW is not enough, so TotK needs to show why is it a good game by itself, and wanting that it's a perfectly valid point.

 

[chocolate_supra]

I so wonder what's at the Nintendo booth. T-shirts, maybe?

Watch it be Mario's damn shoes

 

[Horror Kid]

Letting the day one buyers of the fanbase have tons of surprises that they then discuss on forums and on social media for weeks and months could also be a valid marketing strategy - next to (hopefully) great reviews.
And it is cheap.

That's why the judgement of the success of their marketing campaign is not possible yet, even if some don't like it now and will remember it badly forever.
We have to wait and see.

 

[Deleted member 2181]

Nintendo slapping a $70 sticker on the game with a marketing campaign that amounts to "trust me bro"
Absolute flex

 

[Skittzo]

Hot take, the first 3 trailers should’ve been 2 trailers.

Nintendo should have saved the E3 2019 footage and combined the footage with the opening and closing scenes of the 2021 E3 trailer, this effectively would’ve been a larger trailer focusing on Ganondorf and Hyrule Castle rising. No sky islands or sign of them would appear in this trailer.

All of the sky island clips from the E3 2021 trailer should have been combined with the September 2022 trailer, effectively this would’ve been a larger trailer introducing us to the sky islands and Link’s abilities.

This probably would've been the case if not for COVID

 

[Soralink91]

Honestly with the change to a $70 price tag I would have thought they would have put that alongside the absolute best trailer they could make.

 

[kvetcha]

Nintendo slapping a $70 sticker on the game with a marketing campaign that amounts to "trust me bro"
Absolute flex

I do find this hilariously (over?)confident.

 

[AngryAlchemist]

Oh don’t get me wrong that’s still how I feel about SS for sure! I love the game for all those listed reasons you love TP, but I guess the filler is just sticking out more on a replay. Still largely enjoying my time despite the complaining tone of my post

I wasn't complaining about your post. It's just funny that I feel similarly about TP despite enjoying that one even more. For me Skyward Sword has too many nagging problems, the controls working inconsistently on the Switch version, the padding, the fact that the world's are essentially dungeons themselves which sounds like a great idea but makes the pacing a slog as everything is a complex puzzle, the fact that Ghirihim is wasted potential, some of the dungeons are crazy linear and easy (I feel the quality of the dungeons is definitely a bit overrated in SS, even if there are some standouts).

Weirdly enough even as a glass half empty kind of guy, I did really enjoy SS HD. Most of my memories of it are very fond despite the laundry list of problems when I sit down to think about it.

 

[LukasManak22]

Hot take, the first 3 trailers should’ve been 2 trailers.

Nintendo should have saved the E3 2019 footage and combined the footage with the opening and closing scenes of the 2021 E3 trailer, this effectively would’ve been a larger trailer focusing on Ganondorf and Hyrule Castle rising. No sky islands or sign of them would appear in this trailer.

All of the sky island clips from the E3 2021 trailer should have been combined with the September 2022 trailer, effectively this would’ve been a larger trailer introducing us to the sky islands and Link’s abilities.

I am not sure how they would marketed it at E3 2021. After 2 years we would got just Hyrule again and that's it. After 2 years of silence it was definitely good that they showed sky islands.

 

[Vash]

BOTW is my end favorite game ever and I just don't care about TOTK. I truly don't get why I should play it and commit

Idk I feel like if BOTW is your favorite game you kind of owe it to yourself to play the direct sequel. Worst case scenario is it's more of the same as botw which would still make it a good game

 

[GamerInHeart]

I understand that "being the sequel to BotW" is marketing itself and it's definitely part of the marketing strategy, but that's twisting a bit the argument of people who actually want a big "marketing campaign" for TotK, which is a different thing.

It seems that for a lot of people being the sequel to BotW is not enough, so TotK needs to show why is it a good game by itself, and wanting that it's a perfectly valid point.

I think wanting more is perfectly fine, I myself want more information too, but that's not what we were discussing there. And I already said that I'm not certain if the marketing strategy for TotK is good or not, I'm just saying that the sales number is the key indicator of whether the marketing strategy works or not, that's all.

 

[Lozjam]

Could you elaborate on the difference between the two roles in videogame development? Don’t know much about this stuff

So a Director handles the direction of a game. They are in charge of stuff like, "Let's have a water area like x y and z, with the following mechanics". They are in charge of ultimately the final product, and the way things are presented and made. They do like all of the big picture stuff.

A producer is a bit more in the weeds. A producer is in charge of budgeting, man power, broader strokes marketing.

So imagine something like this:
Say the director wants to make an area in Breath of the Wild, called the Great plateau. They want to make it the single best tutorial in all of gaming

The producers job is to:
1. Find out if it is even possible with their current manpower and technology
2. Find out how much it will cost so they can stay on budget.
3. Assign roles and scheduling to make that a reality, and try to create an accurate timescale when the plateau is done.

Now, someone like Aonuma, who isn't just a producer of the games, but the entire series does this on a larger scale. He is the person assigning the directorial roles for each game, making sure its in lockstep with his current plan for the series. Making sure the games as a whole are on schedule, and assigning budgets to each project.

I understand that "being the sequel to BotW" is marketing itself and it's definitely part of the marketing strategy, but that's twisting a bit the argument of people who actually want a big "marketing campaign" for TotK, which is a different thing.

It seems that for a lot of people being the sequel to BotW is not enough, so TotK needs to show why is it a good game by itself, and wanting that it's a perfectly valid point.

The thing is though, is that the people who are on the fence, and need to see more, will simply tune into a stream or a review, and then buying the game. This is how confident Nintendo is with their product this time around. Where they mostly believe the product can stand within itself. And that confidence is extremely founded considering that we are seeing extremely high preorder numbers.

 

[LukasManak22]

Me reading all this marketing talk

 

[Awesomegames23]

I am not sure how they would marketed it at E3 2021. After 2 years we would got just Hyrule again and that's it. After 2 years of silence it was definitely good that they showed sky islands.

It would’ve landed well overall, but you got a point, maybe they could’ve shown the broken Master Sword somehow at the end of the 1st trailer, that, Ganondorf, and Hyrule Castle Rising would’ve been pretty solid trailer even without sky islands.

 

[Jahranimo]

It's March 27th and Nintendo tweets:

Tune in 3/28 at 2 p.m PT for a world-first gameplay of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom featuring the game producer Mr. Aonuma and game director Mr. Fujibayashi. Join us in Hyrule for roughly 20 minutes of first ever gameplay footage.

This has been my expectation for months.

 

[Deleted member 645]

My wife isn’t excited for the game. She says it looks too much like the last game. I try to explain that it’s set in the same world/setting. I’m sure she will come around. She wasn’t the biggest fan of BOTW, even though we beat the game like 4 different time.

 

[LukasManak22]

When you are higher in the sky, the music also rises higher, just like in the September 2022 trailer.

Imagine you are going up in this ladder island or whatever that is and music just and the music is rising with higher notes.

 

[Dark Cloud]

Marketing smarketing

 

[Bonejack]

You know what? I have an idea we can all agree on.

Forget marketing. Just move the release date of the game to friday next week.

You don't need marketing if people can play it!

 

[LukasManak22]

You know what? I have an idead we can all agree on.

Forget marketing. Just move the release date of the game to friday next week.

You don't need marketing if people can play it!

Xenoblade 3 style

 

[carlosfilho]

Indie World next week, coinciding with GDC and PAX East, as usual. Then maybe a TOTK Direct the week after

 

[Awesomegames23]

Indie World next week, coinciding with GDC and PAX East, as usual. Then maybe a TOTK Direct the week after

I agree, although I think we will get the OLED announcement in 2 weeks, TOTK Direct isn't off the table, we'll know soon enough luckily!

 

[Phendrift]

I just want more key arts, BotW had a quite a few and they’re all beautiful

Maybe if the next trailer reveals the underground, we’ll get one of that

 

[LukasManak22]

I just want more key arts, BotW had a quite a few and they’re all beautiful

Maybe if the next trailer reveals the underground, we’ll get one of that

Fun fact: Takumi Wada who made BOTW key arts, characters arts, title screen illustration, basically everything art related retired from Nintendo in early 2019. All Zelda key arts from now on are made by Yusuke Nakano (he made all arts up until TP when he was replaced by Wada and now Nakano is back again).

 

[Awesomegames23]

Fun fact: Takumi Wada who made BOTW key arts, characters arts, title screen illustration, basically everything art related retired from Nintendo in early 2019. All Zelda key arts from now on are made by Yusuke Nakano (he made all arts up until TP when he was replaced by Wada and now Nakano is back again).

Well, he definitely left on a (very) high note.

 

[ZeldaPY]

It's March 27th and Nintendo tweets:

Tune in 3/28 at 2 p.m PT for a world-first gameplay of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom featuring the game producer Mr. Aonuma and game director Mr. Fujibayashi. Join us in Hyrule for roughly 20 minutes of first ever gameplay footage.

You know what? I have an idea we can all agree on.

Forget marketing. Just move the release date of the game to friday next week.

You don't need marketing if people can play it!

Why not both, our pre-orders will shadow drop live on the 28th and Fujibayashi and Aonuma will be our personal guides for the first 20 minutes of the game.

 

[Golden]

Thing is, what Nintendo showed would be considered enough if it was the first game of that universe. Thing is, the marketing for Totk doesn’t have to convince people of the new engine, atmosphere and link like Botw had to do with it’s marketing. With a sequel, they have to convince the player that this game is significantly different from the previous one to buy it or that the story is intriguing enough to continue said story and buy the game.

From now on, they have failed in both ways imo. The story, we literally have no idea appart of the fact Ganondorf was underground all this time. Which is the only bit of story we had for almost 4 years now.

As for the game being significantly different, they keep showing us shots of the same landscape and same enemies with some glimpses of new which most of the new needs to be interpreted. Like that cavern shot ? It should have been made clear and straight to the point so it seemed new. It leaves the viewer confused instead of hyped after the trailer.

Anyway, i know this game will be amazing (thank god i saw the leak) but still, this marketing is awful and unexciting. Even with the screenshots shown, atleast botw showed some new stuff every once in a while.