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

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NewPueblo said:
Huh? By traditional dungeons what do you mean? Traditional dungeons in the sense that they are themed, have dungeon items, and are a part of the main world are absolutely back. It's pretty much confirmed with the artbook.

For those who haven't seen the leaks and aren't interested in seeing them, just remember that the Zelda team does pay attention to criticism. I mean, I think it's evident in the fact that BotW came out directly after Skyward Sword.
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None of this is confirmed, at all. There aren’t even exterior shots of the areas you’re describing. It’s all just based on heavy speculation. There very well could be but it’s not true to say it’s confirmed.
 
Part of me wants to jump into BotW before launch to get my adventuring legs back, but part of me wants to wait so everything feels new. I put 150 hours into BotW but I undoubtedly forgot a lot.
 
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Jencks said:
None of this is confirmed, at all. There aren’t even exterior shots of the areas you’re describing. It’s all just based on heavy speculation. There very well could be but it’s not true to say it’s confirmed.
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Feels a bit disingenuous to say that we're setting ourselves up for disappointment despite it being something that you say "very well could be" in.
 
BY2K said:


You wanted Tears of the Kingdom news in early April? How about a quiz of Breath of the Wild instead!?
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Skittzo said:
Feels a bit disingenuous to say that we're setting ourselves up for disappointment despite it being something that you say "very well could be" in.
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I appreciate you trying to undermine me, but really I mean this just highlights how confusing and unclear the language people use is. When someone says ‘traditional’ dungeons I get the impression (because I’ve seen people explicitly reference) dungeons in the style of Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword. If you think that will be in TotK, you are setting yourself up for disappointment.
 
Jencks said:
I appreciate you trying to undermine me, but really I mean this just highlights how confusing and unclear the language people use is. When someone says ‘traditional’ dungeons I get the impression (because I’ve seen people explicitly reference) dungeons in the style of Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword. If you think that will be in TotK, you are setting yourself up for disappointment.
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That's fair actually, yeah. I read it as dungeons having different aesthetics and different progressions, not necessarily having a specific item focus.

I also don't really think we're going to get the same exact style of dungeon as in previous games.
 
I don't think actual traditional dungeon would fit well within BotW world and gameplay. I think an expansion of the concept of the Divine Beast and Hyrule Castle could and should happen. I think we've just touched the surface for these concepts in the first game.
 
I’m guessing that Nintendo thinks that the release of TotK will probably bottom out sales of BotW so they are trying to squeeze every dollar they can out of that game before going into full TotK mode.
 
That BotW look interesting, but it says it's only available in Japan. Maybe NoA will do one too though.

Edit: I got 5/5 on the practice questions. Nintendo is taking this seriously, only a 30 minute window to do each quiz.
 
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There were only two bad things about Divine Beasts; their interior presentation is fairly uniform and the overall "tasks" of each dungeon are the same.

In every other capacity, they're the future of Zelda dungeon design. They have a significant buildup, they have creative and fairly free-form problem solving approaches, they put mastery of the moving pieces into the hands of the player, and they're interwoven into the world at large as their own set pieces.
 
I hope we have some dungeons that’ll have a little locked area which you need a specific item or something to open up. Those items you won’t get unless you do a big side quests.
 
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Decoyman said:
There were only two bad things about Divine Beasts; their interior presentation is fairly uniform and the overall "tasks" of each dungeon are the same.

In every other capacity, they're the future of Zelda dungeon design. They have a significant buildup, they have creative and fairly free-form problem solving approaches, they put mastery of the moving pieces into the hands of the player, and they're interwoven into the world at large as their own set pieces.
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I disagree, I think they’re wholly worse in every aspect. I wouldn’t even call them dungeons since they’re not even labyrinths, they’re just big puzzle rooms.
 
Lozjam said:
I have tried Indian Curry, Japanese Curry, South Korean Curry. Indian curry is definitely my favorite out of all of them, but still. It tastes inoffensive at its worst, and merely alright at its best.

I suppose I haven't tried British curry, but let's be honest here. It's not like the British have improved any recipes since the country was founded.
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As. A person who studied Indian food “Indian curry kind of hurts me” you can’t generalize curry in South Asia as one country, each region has their own that very wildly from others

But the biggest difference is South Indian vs North diona curry (South Indian is better) if you only tried North Indian try South Indian
 
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Raviolo said:
I disagree, I think they’re wholly worse in every aspect. I wouldn’t even call them dungeons since they’re not even labyrinths, they’re just big puzzle rooms.
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I don’t like the Divine Beasts either, but what other Zelda dungeons are better based on the criteria Decoyman listed? I can think of maybe 3 or so.
 
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Decoyman said:
There were only two bad things about Divine Beasts; their interior presentation is fairly uniform and the overall "tasks" of each dungeon are the same.

In every other capacity, they're the future of Zelda dungeon design. They have a significant buildup, they have creative and fairly free-form problem solving approaches, they put mastery of the moving pieces into the hands of the player, and they're interwoven into the world at large as their own set pieces.
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Conceptually I think the Divine Beasts are great, I just hope they apply this design philosophy to bigger and more unique locations.
 
Awesomegames23 said:
It's simple.

Fun dungeons gimmicks are good.

Raising and lowering the water level dungeon gimmicks are bad.
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When i first played OoT on N64 in 1997, i got lost in the Water Tempel so badly that i thought i locked myself out of being able to progress further, so i re-started from the beginning.

Water Tempel and i have a blood feud that my grand-grand-grand-grandchildren will still feel.
 
Realizing that every time I want to post something about TotK I end up incorporating something from the artbook so I have to delete my post again.

Release me from this prison, Nintendo, and give us a trailer/direct with all of that stuff.
 
I think the next step for zelda dungeons has to be their integration in the open world in a more natural and organic way. I think the botw hyrule castle style should be the starting point to build the dungeons of TotK, creating a more open ended and labyrinth like dungeon with 1 end goal but multiple ways of reaching while at the same time having multiple hidden optional treasures and rooms to explore (like the hylian shield in botw).
At the same time I'd love to be able to reach and explore dungeons without story quest, maybe finding an hidden cave, entering and starting the dungeon without even knowing it, I really think they should feel as part of the world.
 
Dardan Sandiego said:
Realizing that every time I want to post something about TotK I end up incorporating something from the artbook so I have to delete my post again.

Release me from this prison, Nintendo, and give us a trailer/direct with all of that stuff.
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I know right? It's crazy that they included the entire marketing schedule, including the date of the Zelda Direct, in the art book and we can't talk about any of it here.
 
OoT Water Temple is a good dungeon that is tragically forced to carry the sins of how equipment management back in the N64 days hadn't reached a state of optimized modernity. Or to put it in another way, damn why did they design the Iron Boots like that and damn why can't the map be quicker to access.

Perhaps the main value of the 3DS version is the redemption of this technical folly.
 
LukasManak22 said:
Jokes aside, we are getting TotK news next week, yes it's just the OLED announcement but there could be some few seconds on the screen.
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Gotta channel your inner Ted Lasso and believe in big TotK trailer/Direct/Treehouse next week.

Decoyman said:
OoT Water Temple is a good dungeon that is tragically forced to carry the sins of how equipment management back in the N64 days hadn't reached a state of optimized modernity. Or to put it in another way, damn why did they design the Iron Boots like that and damn why can't the map be quicker to access.

Perhaps the main value of the 3DS version is the redemption of this technical folly.
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Dictionary-worthy example of "Quality of Life" improvement.
 
manfromthedam said:
Musically and aesthetically it's on-point though =P . I have this, but with bombing the Goron.
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I really enjoy water temple in general but yep, music and aesthetics are really great. Imo it's impressive how Nintendo got it right with all Oot dungeon themes(not fan of fire temple 2.0 though).
They all have a great balance of melody and ambiance. The other Zelda games always have 1 or 2 dungeon themes that I like but Oot is really consistent with my tastes.
 
See it this way, if Universal were to handle the marketing, we would've seen too much already, looking at how much stuff they do for the Mario movie. ;D
 
Doomedtacox said:
So the fact you can get the lift keys or explore the surrounding area and bypass it via caves? Doesn't seem much different to botw stamina gating you from scaling a cliff so you'd need to explore and find another way up.

But a grand lift type hard barrier wouldn't really work in a world where you can climb anything...
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At least for me that's exactly the difference. Whatever path you choose to take the elevator will grant you a great journey(finding the medallions or taking the alternative path). While in BOTW when I diverted from the main path it felt more like I was cheating than having a great time for choosing an alternative path.

For instance, that's what I felt when I decided to jump from a tower and ended up into serpent's jaw. After finishing it I saw that there's was this more linear path to get to it and would definitely be more satisfying. One of the reasons I was never fan of climbing + gliding ability.
 
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Bonejack said:
See it this way, if Universal were to handle the marketing, we would've seen too much already, looking at how much stuff they do for the Mario movie. ;D
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I mean the marketing of the movie is all up to Nintendo from what it seems like. They decided to do 3 dedicated directs + a trailer at the game awards.
 
lexony said:
I mean the marketing of the movie is all up to Nintendo from what it seems like. They decided to do 3 dedicated directs + a trailer at the game awards.
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That was more aimed at the nth amount of tv / web spots/ads they dish out for the movie, almost all with new / additional scenes. I'd guess those are on Universal, with Nintendo "only" doing the Directs.
 
I'm the kind of bastard who always snipes The End in MGS3 while he's still being wheeled out in his wheelchair, so I love finding alternate solutions to solving problems, regardless if it's interpreted as cheating.

If anything that's my one gripe with open world game play; most of them don't really exist to promote inventive solutions and player approaches. Most of them are essentially glorified level select maps with one too many barriers. There always comes a point in open world games where you become fed up with that sense of being held back by limitations and what you can't do.

Naturally -- and this is my most nuclear take yet -- this is why games like Shadow of the Colossus and No More Heroes have secretly brilliant open worlds. They suck but also don't pretend like they're anything except a level select with some vibe flavor.
 
Ok hear me out. The hyrule we've seen so far seems disappointingly similar to BOTW because one of the main new gameplay mechanics is that the map will change dynamically overtime as a function of our actions. Rerouting a river, blowing up a mountain, creating a lake by building a dam...
Link's Four Seasons Total Lanscaping, the game.
 
Bosintang said:
Ok hear me out. The hyrule we've seen so far seems disappointingly similar to BOTW because one of the main new gameplay mechanics is that the map will change dynamically overtime as a function of our actions. Rerouting a river, blowing up a mountain, creating a lake by building a dam...
Link's Four Seasons Total Lanscaping, the game.
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I mean, we don't know how drastic the changes will be but we have pretty conclusive evidence that things will change in the overworld (one of the labyrinths is seen as grounded in one trailer shot and floating in another)
 
Raviolo said:
I disagree, I think they’re wholly worse in every aspect. I wouldn’t even call them dungeons since they’re not even labyrinths, they’re just big puzzle rooms.
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Old dungeons aren’t labyrinths either the map makes sure of that, and also some tend to be quite linear
 
Bosintang said:
Ok hear me out. The hyrule we've seen so far seems disappointingly similar to BOTW because one of the main new gameplay mechanics is that the map will change dynamically overtime as a function of our actions. Rerouting a river, blowing up a mountain, creating a lake by building a dam...
Link's Four Seasons Total Lanscaping, the game.
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That's a neat concept, I bet it'll be in the next Zelda (the one that comes out in 2028)
 
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God forgive me for drifting back to BotW discourse when I swore that I'd never succumb to that shit again.

Magic-Man said:
There's a few reasons why I'm not a huge fan of Hyrule, but I understand that it's all subjective.

1. All the biomes in the game are generic, other than one area (Rito Village). There's not a whole lot to them.
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I always have a hard time to understand when someone explains their points by using non-words like "generic", but I'll try anyway. If by generic, you mean that the regions have more traditional/conservative themes like "snow region" "lava volcano region" "steppe region" without any crazy twists to them, then yes, BotW indeed didn't reinvent the wheel with its biomes. But that doesn't have to be a negative thing IMO. If we look at all the other hot open-world games released during the era time (Horizon, RDR2, The Witcher 3, etc.) I'd say that BotW had one of the best biome variety, making Hyrule easily one of the most versatile and multifaceted landmark when it comes to open worlds. Yes, the Witcher 3 and RDR2 didn't necessarily need gamey-ass biomes due to taking a different, more realistic approach to their game worlds, but still, BotW's biome variety makes me always appreciate Hyrule more.

Also, I don't get what you mean by Rito Village being the exception. I assume you mean the Tabantha region since you are talking about biomes. If yes, then I'm a bit confused since Tabantha is generally considered to be the worst story-relevant region in BotW, both in terms of content and the biome itself (which is basically just canyons with some grass land inbetween).
Magic-Man said:
I'd actually use Mario Odyssey for inspiration here. The Sand Kingdom has a beautiful village, pyramids, and an icy cave. Meanwhile, the Gerudo Desert is a barren wasteland. It's boring. The Wooded Kingdom has a garden industrial area and a dark section underneath. The woods in BOTW are just basic woods. There's nothing to the biomes in BOTW.
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I think comparisions with SMO are not fair for various reasons.

1. As someone else already mentioned, SMO is whimsical and goofy platformer featuring a plumber and his speaking hat traveling through different kingdoms while fighting rabbits in wedding attire. That game can totally get away with all sorts of quirky worlds without it feeling strange or out of place. BotW is a melancolic fantasy tale featuring a failed knight waking up to his kingdom in ruins and all his friends dead. I don't think quirky biomes like "lava region but it's actually hot pink sugar" or "forest world with sentinel garden machinery" would fit the game too well.
2. Even if with we ignore all that and just compare the themes of both games' regions/worlds, it feels like you are clearly biased in the way you describe each region. Like come on man, I can also purposefully describe one region in a positive manner while downplaying the other.
Just saying the Gerudo desert is "barren wasteland" is just bonkers to me.
Magic-Man said:
2. The animals and enemies stay nearly the same across every biome. The only area I can think of with unique encounters is the Gerudo Desert, with the Molduga and sand seals. The same enemies is copy pasted across every other biome, just with a different color scheme (and not even that half the time).
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Not surprisingly, I agree with the poor enemy variety in BotW. It's obviously BotW's biggest flaw (at least to me, who doesn't consider traditional dungeons a "make or break" thing when it comes to TLoZ). Elden Ring obiously did a way better job here, but tbf, combat is ER's bread and butter. Of course they had to deliver in that regard. Even then, enemy variety is something even ER gets criticized for.

As for the animal variety, you kinda lost me again. Animal types actually vary way more than you make it look like. We have moose and rhinos in the snow regions, bucks and does in the grass fields and small forests, blupees and bears in more elaborate thickets, herons in the swamps and wetlands, weird-ass ostriches in the volcano region, etc. etc.
Could there be more animals in Hyrule? Sure, I think it would've been cool if there were jaguars in the Faron region for example. But still, considering it's the first time that Nintendo tried to do stuff like that, they really did a great job with the fauna of Hyrule. The kingdom really feels like a wild world reclaimed by nature with all the animals either strolling around or just providing ambient sounds with their weird...cries.
Magic-Man said:
3. The shrines are completely separate from the game world, which is a HUGE missed opportunity for some great environmental puzzles and structures. For example, the dungeons in Elden Ring are connected to the game world. It feels more cohesive.
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I agree that some shrine content could've been redeployed to either caves or old ruins to make things feel cohesive, but it feels like you are undermining BotW's attempt at enviromental puzzles on the overworld. BotW has like 45 shrine quests, where the bulk of the challenge lay in solving puzzles/riddles by interacting with objects/elements/npcs on the overworld. Not only did they represent a good amount of the games "puzzle gameplay", but they also contained some of the most memorable gameplay moments in the game. I'll never forget when I was at the beginning of the game with no divine beast cleared, climbing Mount Lanayru out of curiosity with only 5 hearts and barely any warming food, just to reach the top somehow still alive and seeing the fucking dragon. I was just sitting there thinking "Bro this is crazy, the heck is even happening??"
Magic-Man said:
4. There's a lack of unique settings/encounters. Don't get me wrong, there's a few here and there (Thyphlo Ruins, Yiga Clan hideout, Eventide Island, the target range near Rito Village), but there's not nearly enough.
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Maybe I misunderstand what you mean by "unique encounters", but there have been a good amount. Even if we ignore story-relevant scenarios like the divine beasts and Hyrule Castle, there are still a big amount of peculiar puzzle challenges / trials via shrine quests (like the Naydra one I mentioned above), towns and other unique locales like korok forest and Tarrey Town, mini games, weird wildlife (Ganon's Horse, Lord of the mountain, etc.), curious structures like the labyrinth, the colloseum, the horse fairy, the forgotten temple etc. etc.
Of course there could be more stuff, especially in terms of unique interior structures (caves, old fortresses and abadoned temples), but people often downplay BotW's offering by just saying there ain't more to it except for shrines, korok seeds and the same 3 enemies (not necessarily saying that you do that).

In general, I feel like people underappreciate the overworld shrine quests. These have some of the best puzzles in Zelda history because they often feature actual riddles (instead of "use item on correct thingy"), which is pretty unique when it comes to the series' puzzle gameplay. Maybe I should make a thread detailling all the cool shrine quests.
Magic-Man said:
5. The towns suck. Super basic, with no interesting structures or unique locations (sense a pattern here?).
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The towns are not particulary amazing, but I still like them overall. Not only are the towns very idyllic & cozy (not only thanks to the beautiful music tracks), but they also feel very genuine thanks to the NPCs having their own daily routines and struggles (that you learn more about by completing their side-quests). Of course not every town is a home-run, Goron City is pretty doodoo all things considered. But then you have something like Gerudo Town, which feels like it's own little world with its tavern, street markets, "love" workshops (lol), secret stores etc.
 
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Please note that this thread is completely spoiler-free, and that includes tagged spoilers. If you want to discuss spoilers, we refer to the spoiler thread.
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