The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom finally hit gamer’s consoles. Rapidly gaining popularity due to its impressive design and amazing open world, it's likely going to be the standard for all open world games moving forward (just look at how much Elden Ring borrowed from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild) While most gamers are enjoying the new Zelda adventure there are some who are skeptical, focusing on the Nintendo hardware and its lack of power. However, these gamers are missing the point.
While it is true, that yes, the Nintendo Switch is the least powerful console on the market compared to the PS5, Xbox series X and high-end PCs, but that doesn't mean a game can't be enjoyable or for that matter be one of the best games I've ever played in two decades. While some PC elitists mock and joke about how terrible Tears of the Kingdom runs on Nintendo switch and how they point to an emulated ROM on PC and claim “this is how the game should look”. Nintendo 's philosophy has always been one simple question “is it fun?”. This question has led Nintendo to make some of the most iconic and important games in the history of video game development. While some of these games certainly are on the cutting edge of technology, pushing the limits of what hardware can do and the game's visual aesthetic, it all comes second to Nintendo’s core philosophy. While I continue to play through Tears of the Kingdom and while the review will go on our site when it's ready, I want to say if you're skipping on Tears of the Kingdom because the game’s not in 4k at 60 frames per second or not on PC, I'm here to tell you’re doing a disservice to yourself. It would most certainly be prettier, sure, but the core fundamentals of what the game does would not change and that's what makes it so important.
A game can be 4K 120 frames per second or even 144 frames per second on a 65-inch OLED monitor or whatever top of the line tech you have on your PC set up, but at its core having a game be visually amazing is only one piece of the puzzle. There are some games that require high frame rates to be playable and enjoyable, first-person shooters, fighting games and VR games come to mind, but at the end of the day the core design of the gameplay is what keeps people coming back for more. If you're one of those gamers who's refusing to play Tears of the Kingdom because it's on a Nintendo switch and not a $10,000 PC setup, you're missing out on one of the best designed games of the decade. Judging this game solely on the 1080p 30fps frame rate is irrelevant when a game like this is so incredibly well formed. Games are meant to be fun and Nintendo 's core philosophy remains consistent through the decades and will continue to do so despite the small amount of people shrugging them off based on their hardware specs alone and nothing else. I cannot wait to see what Nintendo does moving forward with the Zelda franchise, because they have set the bar so incredibly high, and every time, they’ve managed to exceed expectations (Well Skyward Sword was a miss, I'll give you that one). If you haven't picked up the Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom yet I implore you to give it a chance, you'll be pleasantly surprised. For more Tears of the Kingdom news and everything else gaming related, you're already in the right place, you're on shacknews.com.
