5 Things Veterans Don’t Like About Tears of the Kingdom

Tears of the Kingdom is here and has received worldwide critical acclaim. It really was no surprise. Tears of the Kingdom has truly lived up to the hype, and yet still, some have their gripes on the game. While in my biased perspective, most of the criticism I have witnessed is ludicrous, there’s still a fair amount that deserves some recognition, especially when it’s coming from Breath of the Wild veterans. After all, Nintendo has a great track record of listening to their precious consumer’s feedback. This is what has made Zelda and other Nintendo franchises so great. Constantly refining and evolving their brand, while cautiously refraining from subverting the themes that fans have come to expect. Unknowingly, and this may be subject to interpretation, they may have done just that in Tears of the Kingdom.

Do note that this is not necessarily my candid opinion. I have yet to play a significant portion of the game. As you know, there are a lot of pundits here on Youtube making big claims about Tears of the Kingdom, with only a few hours under their belt. At Electronic First, we’d rather avoid jumping to illogical and unfair conclusions. So before we move on, I’d like to confirm that the subject of this guide specifically is the complaints some veterans have about Tears of the Kingdom.

1- A Familiar Hyrule

While Tears of the Kingdom has received praise for its immersive open-world experience, it is not without its detractors. The criticism surrounding the game’s landscape, particularly its similarity to “Breath of the Wild,” has divided a fraction of the community. Despite the game’s vertical expansion, which introduces explorable floating islands, some argue that it is not a significant enough development. For these players, the Hyrule in Tears of the Kingdom is essentially the same one they already explored six years prior in “Breath of the Wild.” And for some reason, even the inclusion of a Subterranean cave network does little to alleviate their disappointment.

Personally, I believe there’s nothing wrong with Tears of the Kingdom featuring the same old Hyrule we explored in Breath of the Wild. It is a sequel, after all, and it’s cohesive to the plot of Tears of the Kingdom. On the other hand, as the saying goes, “Out with the old, in with the new”. People want novel experiences on a new release. I think we can all at least understand their desire.

 2- Easy Shrines & Puzzles

Tears of the Kingdom introduces a total of 152 scattered shrines. This is an increase of 32 compared to its predecessor, Breath of the Wild. While these shrines present various obstacles for Link, puzzles are the most common challenge. However, many players have found them to be straightforward and uneventful, and this doesn’t just extend to the shrines themselves. Even finding the shrines isn’t difficult at all. What’s more, some veterans are also dissatisfied with the ease of finding the shrines and the limited rewards they offer, primarily health and stamina boosts.

But let’s step back for a moment. Remember the part where I said the developers may have subverted the fans’ expectations for Tears of the Kingdom? Well, this is an idea I can actually agree with. As it turns out, Link’s new Zonai abilities may be both a blessing and a curse. They have made most puzzles even easier to the point where you can skip entire sections. Don’t get me wrong though, you could do the same thing in Breath of the Wild through various glitches. Still, Breath of the Wild never legitimized it. It’s different in Tears of the Kingdom.

The overt decision to give players boundless options does not directly opposes the puzzle elements of Tears of the Kingdom. Rather, it’s the ease with which one can use these options that may be seen as an issue. That doesn’t diminish the fact that there are indeed instances where visualizing unique solutions and crafting fresh approaches can feel very rewarding. However, the puzzles and shrines lack the challenge and exploration of the previous game. I think we can all agree this is a pretty fair criticism. Puzzle elements will always be one of the hallmarks of the Zelda franchise.

It’s important to note that while the perceived ease of shrines and puzzles may divide the fanbase, it does not diminish the overall excellence of Tears of the Kingdom. The game’s vast open world, freedom of exploration, and other aspects continue to be an enormous positive, overall.

3- Performance issues

Tears of the Kingdom push the aging Nintendo Switch to its limits. The game’s performance can suffer during particularly busy locations, causing frame rate drops below 30 frames per second, which is another gripe for some players, in and of itself. And to make matters worse, the game runs on 720p. Performance-wise, some people perceive Tears of the Kingdom to be below the industry standard. But as I said earlier, this is the Nintendo Switch we’re talking about. Where are these lofty expectations coming from? This is the best they can do utilizing older hardware.

4- No Remote Bomb

While Link’s new abilities may be formidable and certainly open up more possibilities than his old powers, none could replace the utility of the remote bomb from Breath of the Wild. It was Link’s reliable ranged option in combat. He doesn’t exactly have one now to the extent of the remote bomb. Bows aren’t nearly as effective and running out of arrows is always a concern.

To be blunt, players just want a spammable ranged option. There are other ways you can utilize the remote bomb, of course, including the bomb impact launch. I’m sure the vast majority of players miss the remote bomb. Overall, while Link’s new Zonai abilities grant him insane versatility, they regrettably fall short of filling the void left by the absence of the trusty remote bomb. Don’t get me wrong, Link has a lot more potential firepower now, and more options to boot, but replicating the utility of the remote bomb just isn’t possible.

5- Weapon Durability

Breath of the Wild’s most annoying mechanic of all, weapon durability, has returned in Tears of the Kingdom. It’s actually less punishing this time, and yet, it’s way more annoying. The reason is because of Tears of the Kingdom’s great emphasis on weapon crafting. Losing your favorite weapon is extremely disappointing. The only potential upside to this is that it allows players to experiment with many different options instead of just using the same weapon for every fight. Still, I think we can all agree that weapon durability is an extremely annoying mechanic.

Recently though, players found a way to repair weapons by utilizing Rock Octoroks. It’s extremely unintuitive, but it’s  now possible, and gives you plenty of reason to min-max your weapon choices, especially in the late game.


These 5 things are what Breath of the Wild veterans seem to complain about in Tears of the Kingdom. What do you guys think? Let us know in the comments below. If you’re in search of other popular Nintendo Switch games, a Nintendo subscription, or a Nintendo gift cards, make sure to check out Electronic First. They’ve got you covered with a wide selection of Nintendo goodness, and don’t forget, they also have a fantastic array of trending PC games to choose from! Start your gaming adventure with Electronic First today!

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