I can only afford the time to play one of them, which one should I play?

Many YouTubers seem to prefer BotW. But most reviews say TotK improves nearly everything.

I prefer easier combat and less complexity. Is there one that would be more enjoyable for me?

  • ℕ𝕖𝕞𝕠@slrpnk.net
    97·
    8 days ago

    Breath is barely a Zelda game. It’s fun, it’s great, but the magic formula is missing.

    Tears goes a long way towards fixing that, and is just a better game overall. But it is a very direct sequel to Breath, and I worry that it might not make as much sense plotwise as a standalone.

    • sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works
      2·
      7 days ago

      Neither make sense plot-wise. The opening to TOTK doesn’t even follow BOTW’s ending IMO. I haven’t finished it, so I don’t know if they tie things together later, but the reuse of the world doesn’t feel plot-relevant at all.

      Musings

      It could make sense as a prequel though, but as a sequel, it feels like a stretch. We’ll see how the game progresses.

      I do recommend playing TOTK after BOTW, but not for plot, but because it’s the same world and TOTK is simply more populated with things to do (more enemy types, more towns, etc). Both are fun games.

      If you’re looking for a Zelda game though, this just doesn’t feel like one. Yeah, you play as Link and do Link things, but the classic formula (find dungeon, get new equipment, solve puzzles, beat boss, repeat) isn’t there.

      • WarmSoda@lemmy.world
        1·
        4 days ago

        I’m a few days late, sorry, but the games only tie together thru the side characters like the shy girl that likes Link and the young but actually old science girl. And Sydin knows you.

        TotK doesn’t reference anything at all about the BotW story other than those types of things. It’s basically a brand new game.

        • sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works
          2·
          3 days ago

          There are a lot of little things here and there, such as everyone seeming to know you, even in far away places, and names of random people being the same.

          So it’s definitely the same world, but at the start it’s just unclear how it fits in.

          Some issues I have with it
          • Ganon’s sealed away mummy had to exist in BOTW if TOTK is a sequel, so why didn’t Calamity Ganon unleash it?
          • Zelda does back in time, and reading some plot spoilers, she needs to be in two places at the same time in BOTW if it’s a sequel
          • everyone remembers Link in TOTK, but not in BOTW, so it must be after

          I’m sure there are more issues as well.

          The Zelda franchise isn’t big on plot, so I’ll treat TOTK as a separate timeline/universe from BOTW for it to make any sense.