Daily Debate: What Makes a Zelda Game Feel Like a Zelda Game?
Posted on March 06 2024 by John Lortie
Love them or hate them, Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom did a lot to shake up (or outright change, depending on your opinion) the Zelda formula. Linear progression was replaced with open-air exploration. Sprawling dungeons were (to an extent) replaced with Shrines and overworld puzzles. All-powerful weapons were replaced with ones that degrade and break. Dungeon items you acquire over the course of the game became a handy set of abilities you get at the adventure’s outset. Soundtracks filled with boisterous melodies have become natural soundscapes with sparse elements of instrumentation.
Both games have sold incredibly well (Breath of the Wild with 31.61 million units moved and Tears of the Kingdom with 20.28 million as of December 31st, 2023). Countless players have been introduced to the land of Hyrule through the world crafted between the two games. For many players, new and old, these games are Zelda.
Yet, not everyone is pleased with the direction the two latest entries have taken. Across the internet, on various forums, YouTube videos, social networking sites, and even in the comment sections here on Zelda Dungeon, people have discussed how they’ve been alienated by the series’ most recent entries. By dropping so many Zelda staples, a large contingent of the franchise’s fanbase feels that Breath of the Wild and Tears of Kingdom either aren’t like Zelda games or that they shouldn’t be considered Zelda games.
This begs the question: What makes a Zelda game feel like a Zelda game? With millions of fans around the world, there are bound to be plenty of answers. Maybe it’s as simple as a set of eight puzzle box-like dungeons, or a sweeping score accompanying you along the journey. What about something like a companion character? It could just be that without a constant someone following you as you adventure, providing insight and advice when you most need it, that Zelda charm is gone!
I thought for a long time that a sense of exploration is the element that ties Zelda games together for me. It’s present in every title through the two most recent. Series creator Shigeru Miyamoto’s experiences exploring the Japanese countryside helped provide him with the inspiration for the first Zelda, after all. And exploration is a huge component of both Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, which could easily explain why the games land in my top five series entries (numbers one and five, respectively).
The more I’ve mulled it over, though, the more I’ve realized that that sense of exploration isn’t the most appealing aspect of the franchise, to me. See, I also love Age of Calamity (it’s not a top five game, but I still keep it close to my heart). Sure, the game has some minor elements of exploration but these largely take a backseat to something else. Something that, to me, is the very core of The Legend of Zelda as a series: A sense of heroism.
What makes a Zelda game feel like a Zelda game to me is rising up against a threat almost too great to comprehend. It’s fighting for those who care about and believe in you. It’s overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds and seeing the better world you worked so hard to create begin at the end of your journey. It’s being the hero of Hyrule, and that’s something that’s present in each and every Zelda game (or, at least those taking place in Hyrule). Without it, these games just wouldn’t be the same for me.
But what about you? What’s that aspect of Zelda that makes a game feel like a Zelda game? Is it something that’s persisted for the whole of the series, or has it come and gone over time? Head down to the comments and let us know!
John’s been a Zelda fan since he was seven years old (which was a good few decades ago). He loves the last three months of the year, analog media, his family, and Tolkien. His favorite Zelda game is Breath of the Wild and his favorite game is Night in the Woods.
