Summary
2023 was a banner year for Nintendo, with the famed company releasing hits likeSuper Mario Bros. Wonder,Pikmin 4, and, of course,The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.TOTKis one of the best-selling games of the year and nearlyuniversally praised byZeldafans, with its high quality, innovative design, and peerless degree of charm and vision being applauded across the globe.
Tears of the Kingdom has a 96 on Metacritric, tied for the highest-reviewed game of the year alongside Baldur’s Gate 3.
Tears of the Kingdomwas nominated for several prestigious TGA categories, including Best Action/Adventure Game, Best Score and Music, and Best Game Direction. Of course, it was also nominated for the top award of the ceremony, Game of the Year, for which it battled some of the other landmark releases of 2023, includingAlan Wake 2and fellow Nintendo hitSuper Mario Bros. Wonder. However, amid a sea of innovative and massively popular games, and alongside several high-profile reveals from topindustry figures like Hideo Kojima,Tears of the Kingdomonly ended up with a single win.
All Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Nominations at TGA 2023
Tears of the Kingdom Only Took Home the Best Action/Adventure Award
Despite the impressive five nominations,The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomonly snagged a trophy for Best Action/Adventure Game. This might come as a surprise to some, as the most recentZeldagame has enjoyed near-universal praise, with many considering it a massive improvement over its predecessor, which won Best Action/Adventure Game along with Game of the Year at TGA 2017.
Why Tears of the Kingdom Only Nabbed One Game Award
Zelda’s singular win says more about 2023’s spate of impressive games than it does about the quality or reception ofTears of the Kingdom.TOTKwas up againstgames likeBaldur’s Gate 3,Alan Wake 2, and fellow Nintendo hitSuper Mario Wonder, all of which push their respective genres forward in meaningful and robust ways. If this year’sZeldahad launched during any other year, there’s a solid chance it would have taken home several additional awards, including Game of the Year.
Having said that, something that could have heldTears of the Kingdomback at the awards is its similarity to its predecessor. AlthoughTOTKintroduced several revolutionary mechanics, its overworld, art design, general structure, and approach tostorytelling still have a good amount in common withBreath of the Wild. Moreover, the sense of discovery, which was so powerful inBOTW, might have been somewhat undermined inTOTK, at least for returning players, as this rendition of Hyrule (sans Hyrule Sky and The Depths) has already been explored.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdommay have been edged out for Game of the Year, Best Art Direction, Best Game Direction, and Best Score and Music, but its achievement in the Best Action/Adventure category proves how impressive, unique, and boundary-pushing the game truly is. The Game Awards is meant to celebrate titles that push the gaming medium forward and, at the end of the day,Tears of the Kingdommanaged to do just that, with masterful features like its groundbreakingFuse and Ultrahand abilitiesthat essentially spawned a new genre of online content fromZeldaplayers.TOTKsimply had remarkably stiff competition, which doesn’t detract from the overall quality of the experience. The franchise may be set to take a different approach for future installments, butThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomis a worthy send-off for this style ofZeldagame, and one that will be remembered for years to come.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
WHERE TO PLAY
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is the sequel to the beloved open-world adventure, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. This installment once again sees Link and Zelda battling to protect Hyrule from falling to Ganondorf. This new adventure takes place in the same land of Hyrule as Breath of the Wild but sees something called the Upheaval, which allows link to travel to Sky Islands, as well as deep into the Depths beneath Hyrule. Players can use special abilities to fuse together weapons, and build items to help them progress through the release.
