Tears of the Kingdom’s inventiveness is baked into its sound design

Ever been idly clicking through the Steam store and something causes you to immediately hit the brakes and add a game to the top of your wishlist? That happened to me today while looking at upcoming city builders. There's just something about an isometric city builder with retro pixel art that immediately appeals to me, so Metropolis 1998 grabbed my attention with just a few screenshots.

I think I might just like games in which lots of particles fly around the screen. That's was a big part of the appeal of To The Core, an incremental game with the spectacle of Vampire Survivors. I think it's now the reason I want to play the oddly named (the) Gnorp Apologue. It's an incremental town builder about... gnorps.

There were many things that Tears of the Kingdom “did right” upon its release. Regarding its story, one of its best acts was bringing Zelda to the past and having her interact with Hyrule’s first king and queen. As players would find out, the first king of Hyrule, Rauru, would have a huge role in the story, including saving Link from Ganondorf’s curse and helping him understand his new abilities. Polygon translated an interview with the game’s director, Hidemaro Fujibayashi, and the game’s producer, Eiji Aonuma, where the two commented on what it was like to make Rauru and the “two sides” of his character via the time periods gamers met him in. Fujibayashi started with:

Before players meet Rauru in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, they see his arm. At the very beginning of the game, Link doesn’t really know what’s going on, but he wakes up with a mysterious appendage that’s not his — and that allows him to harness incredible powers. It’s not much later that Link meets a spirit version of Rauru, the first king of Hyrule and a character who belongs to a race of creatures called the Zonai. In lending Link his arm, Rauru gave the hero the means to go out into the wide world of Hyrule and realize the carefully laid plans of Princess Zelda.

As 2023 comes to a close, many will debate the true “Game of the Year.” We know what The Game Awards thought about the subject, but others aren’t as clear cut. For many others, The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom is the best game from this year. Whether it is or not is up to you, but the game’s depth is not to be ignored. It had a vast expanse to explore alongside two new realms above and below you to check out. Plus, the game’s story had plenty to offer, with many secrets and hints buried within.

Fuse materials in can create some of the best items in the game when paired with different weapons. Stronger resources allow Link to mold tools with very high damage bonuses for different combat situations. Bosses and other tough enemies are best fought with the Fuse materials that have the most potential throughout your adventures in Hyrule.

It is likely that will be the last game to feature its particular version of Link. is a direct sequel to, and because of this, it features and further develops the same incarnation of the famous hero. However, looking towards the future of the franchise, it may soon be time for ’s Link to retire.

In The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, players didn’t just play through another story set in Hyrule. The sequel to Breath of the Wild took the previous game’s sandbox elements several steps further, allowing players to use a new set of powers to construct machines, weapons, and tools using items in the world. By introducing this, Tears of the Kingdom encouraged players to be truly creative and push the limits of building in the game.

The Legend of Zelda and its protagonist, Link, reached new heights this year — literally. The hero soared through the skies and plunged into the deepest depths of Hyrule in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. The game’s developers took their risks, too: This time around, players wouldn’t just explore but also construct devices with Link’s new set of powers.

The Yuzu Nintendo Switch emulator was recently improved with some new features that improve the experience in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and several other titles.

Zora's Domain is covered in sludge and Prince Sidon needs my help.

Trainwrecks aren't exactly rare in the gaming industry, but it's rare that they're this spectacular. After a suspiciously-polished trailer, The Day Before quickly became one of Steam's most wishlisted games.