The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is the sequel to one of the most awarded Nintendo Switch games, Breath of the Wild.
This left players with incredibly high expectations for TOTK, with many hoping it would live up to the experience left by its predecessor.
Now that the review embargo has dropped, players can finally see what the critics are saying about TOTK, but how does it compare to the BOTW?
Breath of the Wild & Tears of the Kingdom Review Score Comparison
Here is what the critics thought about TOTK compared to how they felt about BOTW:
| Review Outlet | BOTW Score | TOTK Score |
|---|---|---|
| CGMagonline | 9.5/10 | 10/10 |
| COGconnected | 100 | 100 |
| Destructoid | 10/10 | 10/10 |
| Eurogamer | Essential | 4/5 |
| Forbes | 10/10 | 9/10 |
| GameInformer | 10/10 | 9.75/10 |
| GameSpot | 10/10 | 10/10 |
| GamesRadar+ | 5/5 | 4.5/5 |
| Guardian | 5/5 | 5/5 |
| IGN | 10/10 | 10/10 |
| Nintendo Life | 10/10 | 10/10 |
| Polygon | 10/10 | Recommended |
| Metascore | 97 | 96 |
| OpenCritic Average | 96 | 97 |
At a glance, it’s clear that both review scores for TOTK and BOTW are exceptional. But where Breath of the Wild saw almost perfect scores across the board, Tears of the Kingdom is seeing slightly lower results.
But this doesn’t consider that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is still fresh on the market, and the review embargo just recently lifted.
On Metacritic, BOTW received a Metascore of 97 with 106 Critic Reviews. On the other hand, TOTK currently holds a Metascore of 96 with 86 Critic Reviews.
This means that it is possible for TOTK to eventually overtake, tie, or maybe even fall lower when compared to BOTW.
It is also worth considering that Breath of the Wild was seen as revolutionary due to the systems it introduced with the Nintendo Switch.
Many people were in awe due to its gameplay and how unrestricted it felt to explore the world. But when you compare the scores, it seems that it could go either way when players pick a favorite.
If you have yet to purchase the game, don’t forget that there is a way to get a huge discount on it and avoid paying the full $70.
