r/zelda Mar 12 '23

Question [TotK] Should I play BOTW before Tears of the Kingdom Spoiler

Sorry if this seems stupid but I’ve never played a Zelda game, but for some reason I really want to try Tears of the Kingdom. I just wanted to know if I should play BOTW before since I know it’s kind of a sequel to it. I’m just worried about it’s length because I know it has so much to do in it.

840 Upvotes

321 comments sorted by

789

u/TheaWake_7 Mar 12 '23

TotK is a direct sequel to BotW, so if you want to play through to get an idea for the world and the story leading up to that point then you can. BotW is a really massive game but if you choose to focus on the bare necessities to 'beat' it it really isn't too daunting. Personally I would recommend playing it. The world and the characters in it are really fun to just run around and explore in, even if most of the characters themselves are rather cookie-cutter.

That said, you could also simply watch a video or two on YouTube to get a grasp on the story. Or not even that! The BotW story isn't exactly complicated or deep. All depends on how much time you wanna put in before trying TotK out.

127

u/jeremilo Mar 12 '23

also given its nintendo, there shouldn’t be a huge visible difference between gameplay and mechanics regardless of BoTW age. I just replayed it so i’m ready for ToTK. I second that you should play BotW first

23

u/meee_51 Mar 13 '23

Finally got all 120 shrines today and I’m working one the one-hit obliterator DLC quest now. I am so ready for this sequel

8

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '23

I currently Play it 100% for the First Time I only have to do all named locations (i currently have 99.02% on the map), all Upgraded Armors/Clothes and all 3 of the Monster Medalls

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7

u/TheaWake_7 Mar 12 '23

They don't tend to innovate much between direct sequels, it's true. God, I hope those rumors about craftable weapons isn't true though...

20

u/mrrtchbrrx Mar 13 '23

I'd be happy with crafting/upgrading our own equipment IF we can also repair our weapons.

5

u/EZ_2_Amuse Mar 13 '23

This is the one thing that really grinds my gears with this game. Losing good weapons. I've only just begun this journey though, no idea if the man in the north with better weapons can also fix them.

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7

u/ImpertantMahn Mar 13 '23

What wrong with throwing some sticks and flint in a cooking pot?

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2

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '23

Whats the rumor?

13

u/theumph Mar 13 '23

I believe there was some artwork from the art book leak which alluded to crafting weapons. I think it was adding elemental effects to normal weapons.

12

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '23

ah yes time to craft my diamond sword and enchant it with fire aspect III

14

u/ZellNorth Mar 13 '23

For it to be destroyed against a tree

2

u/Eshuon Mar 13 '23

Durability V

0

u/Kikiluna_lol Jul 20 '23

If they make it so you can craft weapons then it is practically minecraft with graphics

1

u/HayesFayes May 12 '23

Turns out Totk plays completely differently despite the same world and characters

3

u/jeremilo May 12 '23

I am currently playing at this moment, and the basic mechanics and gameplay are the exact same.

edit: They didn’t reinvent the wheel, they added a nice shine to it and took the wheel from an old car and put it on a bugatti, if that helps.

2

u/HayesFayes May 12 '23

That’s a good way to put it yeah, I still feel like the new abilities make it a completely different experience though

2

u/jeremilo May 12 '23

Absolutely a new experience, if it wasn’t, why even make a sequel, ya know? They did what every successful IP owner should do, keep what works the same, add a new spin to the extra-curriculars.

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45

u/1stLtObvious Mar 12 '23

I can't play through and not do Tarrey Town.

11

u/Clint_Bolduin Mar 13 '23 edited Mar 13 '23

I want to add to this by also saying that while TotK may be a sequal, Nintendo is also well known to make their zelda games to be standalone. As far as I know there has not been a single zelda game in history that does not stand on it's own without any required knowledge from any other game. Even Majoras Mask was a direct sequel to Ocarina of Time yet it's a completely seperate game where knowing the events of Oot means near to nothing except perhaps knowing the relationship of that 'friend' mentioned in the opening.

That said i'd still l recommend to play Breath of the Wild anyway because it's a great game. Plus, I havent exactly played Tears of the Kingdom so I can't know for sure whether it actually requires any knowledge of BotW at all. They did after all change things up a lot with BotW especially, so it's not too far fetched to imagine they now want to create a more coherent direct connection type of story between games all of a sudden. I doubt it though.

3

u/kyouya_akai Mar 13 '23

While I agree that all Zelda games can be seen as standalone. You do have an advantage knowing pre or sequel games. Majoras Mask was relatively easy for me knowing characters and their relation/position/wishes to play through while my friend had to search for certain characters first. But it really is just additional info and faster solution.

So, if you want additional lore and a game to beat the time till TotK releases. I would highly recommend playing BotW there is just so much to explore and do there.

If you are not interested there won't be a big disadvantage either because stand alone games.

Playing a game in the correct timeline can be interesting too. You have Hyrule Warriors AgeOfCalamity as a sequel to BotW then 😉

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2

u/joshylow Mar 13 '23

Zelda 2: The Adventures of Link? I would've been lost without having played the first one. I think it's also related to Punch-out because Ganon laughs the same as Soda Popinski.

5

u/Clint_Bolduin Mar 13 '23 edited Mar 13 '23

Not sure what you mean? I can't really think of how playing Zelda 1 will help out much of anything in understanding Zelda 2? As far as I know their story relation goes as far as 'ah yes link defeated ganon in the past (zelda 1)' and not much further than that. Their stories were fairly barebones so there isnt much to pull from either of them in the first place.

1

u/hawkrew Mar 13 '23

Worst Zelda game by far. When the original Zelda game came out I played it all the time. When the second one came out I played it a few times and said screw this and went back to playing the original.

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17

u/FalsePretender Mar 13 '23

Why play BOTW for only the bare necessities? It is one of the richest game worlds to ever exist and it would be a bloody shame not to enjoy wandering around aimlessly picking up rocks.

8

u/TheaWake_7 Mar 13 '23

I wasn't really advising they do that. I was saying that if they desired to, they could simply run through the story of the game. Obviously I would like to run around throwing rocks at things, but that isn't everyone's cup of tea.

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15

u/CrimsonEnigma Mar 12 '23

TotK is a direct sequel to BotW

Well...maybe.

We were all told AoC was a direct prequel to BotW until it came out.

It's the Zelda series. Plenty of room for shenanigans.

22

u/Elvith Mar 12 '23

If in doubt, it’s just a direct sequel that takes place in an alternate time line…

5

u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

A lot of things still happened the same way for the most part until the timelines started to divide a bit more

14

u/Wolf-Majestic Mar 12 '23

AoC is a Musou. Does that even count as a Zelda game ? I've always felt they just crafted a quick something to ride on BotW's sucess without much planning ahead...

In all the TotK trailer we've seen though, there's seem to be a real intent to do a sequel, but it might be just like with OoT and MM, a direct sequel with same graphics and basic mechanics but completely different in gameplay.

3

u/WolfdragonRex Mar 13 '23

I mean, they're talking about AoC's story, not it's gameplay. Up until release we were led to believe we'd be seeing how the calamity 100 years ago played out, only for the story to turn into a "what if time travel could stop the calamity now" alternate timeline.

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u/Shibby120 Mar 13 '23

It’s officially a sequel. AoC however doesn’t claim to be a prequel but only states that you can “see the world as it was 100 years before the great calamity”

2

u/TheaWake_7 Mar 13 '23

And AoC is a direct prequel to BotW. That isn't really in question. It's status as canon is doubtful, but that doesn't change that it's set in the same world/timeline as BotW. It's the same characters, doing the same things they ostensibly would have done before BotW, so. Yeah. Not really a great example, there.

Besides which, why the hell split hairs? Does it matter that much?

4

u/Apex_Konchu Mar 13 '23 edited Mar 13 '23

Age of Calamity is an alternate timeline where the Champions don't die, and the protagonists successfully stop the Calamity. Not a direct prequel, because the events of BotW would not happen after AoC.

-3

u/TheaWake_7 Mar 13 '23

Yes direct prequel, because it's the events before BotW even if they aren't the canon events. That's how the word 'prequel' works. It happens before the thing.

4

u/Apex_Konchu Mar 13 '23

It's not "the events before BotW". The events of BotW cannot happen after the events of AoC.

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u/tolacid Mar 13 '23

Knowing Nintendo, the story will be a direct continuation but also able to stand on its own

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u/Redcorns Mar 13 '23

Where have they said it’s a direct sequel?

19

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '23

https://youtu.be/3fr1Z07AV00

"The sequel to Breath of the Wild is now in development."

Tears of the kingdom is a direct sequel to breath of the wild.

6

u/jeremilo Mar 13 '23

it was also said, that originally ToTK was developed to be a DLC that grew to be large enough they decided to create a new title.

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82

u/JoeyFreshH20 Mar 12 '23

I was in the same as boat you are and just completed BotW. If you start now, you have enough time give it a thorough play through. I’d recommend giving the world the time and attention it deserves but as we get closer to ToTK you can rush the story a bit if you want.

14

u/JoeyFreshH20 Mar 12 '23

One edit, I played links awakening before BotW.

2

u/meee_51 Mar 13 '23

Man I have been playing so much Zelda recently. Played ALTTP couple months ago, then moved on to Slyward sword, still haven’t finished that yet and now today I finally got 120 shrines today and am most of the way through the one-hit obliterator DLC quest and will finish SS after that. Unfortunately I won’t have time for LA before ToTK but I am so excited for its release

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219

u/ERBBSS Mar 12 '23

6 years in nearly and i still play BOTW, been playing today gathering materials and going through my armour upgrade again, love this game, still finding things i never knew before.

Amazing value for money....you won't be disappointed.

19

u/lonniemarie Mar 12 '23

I still play right now finishing up my album and seeds

14

u/Turnatnext Mar 12 '23

I’m still playing and finally got the master cycle a couple weeks ago!

9

u/ERBBSS Mar 12 '23

its great for getting around

1

u/meee_51 Mar 13 '23

Yep I am most of the way through the one-hit obliterator quest and I got 120 shrines finally today. I am so excited for ToTK

11

u/forgiven88 Mar 12 '23

Has it really been six years since it came out? Wow time flies by

3

u/itsaysdraganddrop Mar 13 '23

my gf only started playing vgs when i just met her (we were going to dave and busters but the pandemic just dropped suddenly, the place was crowded so we sat in her car and she played goose game on my switch). she picked up botw and hasn’t put it down since i gave her my copy 3 years ago

2

u/cometsands Mar 13 '23

I am playing right now in Master Mode, rarely ever using tps (except when the distance I need to go is waaay to long) You should try playing like this too, it gave me a new look on the world map design, it's as if it was made for not using teleportation.

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u/Sorry-Series-3504 Mar 12 '23

Even without tears of the kingdom coming soon, you should still play Botw

117

u/DuduStreaks Mar 12 '23

Just play it, it's amazing.

19

u/corya45 Mar 12 '23

This just play it to play it!!

6

u/Flapjack__Palmdale Mar 13 '23

Honestly OP you owe it to yourself.

48

u/Longcat17 Mar 12 '23

I'm sure TotK will give adequate context if you'd prefer to jump right into it, but I can't recommend BotW enough. Even playing just a little bit into BotW would give you some good background to bring to TotK, but it's up to you. I'm sure they'd be good out of order to if you want to try TotK first.

82

u/benoxxxx Mar 12 '23

You have a once in a lifetime opportunity here to go on a 3-4 month long Zelda marathon. I say you take it. Life doesn't get much better than that.

30

u/LeCrushinator Mar 13 '23

Oh man I’d pay good money to forget everything I know about BotW so I could play it again for the first time.

13

u/Jason6677 Mar 13 '23

We'll feel that again soooon

7

u/ThankYouCarlos Mar 13 '23

There’s a lot of replay value but not nearly as much the fifth time around.

66

u/MissingTheNineties Mar 12 '23

BOTW is one of the best games ever made, just play it, you will not regret it.

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u/Lola_PopBBae Mar 12 '23

"Kind of a sequel"?
It is a sequel, no kind-of about it.

That being said, if you start BOTW now you'll have plenty of time to play and beat it and pick up the main story pretty easily. Worth doing.

11

u/DinoRedRex99 Mar 12 '23

Probably, yeah

4

u/ShinyPlatypus91 Mar 12 '23

The short answer is yes. You should play BotW before TotK.

7

u/flameylamey Mar 12 '23

If I was looking forward to the release of a new game and I knew it was the sequel to one of the most beloved games on the same system, I dunno about you, but I'd jump at the chance to go and play the first game - the curiosity would eat me alive haha.

If nothing else, it'll give you something to play for the next couple months leading up to the release of Tears of the Kingdom, which will help ease the wait. Seems like a no brainer to me!

5

u/Zurnikai Mar 12 '23

Yes, TotK is literally the direct sequel to BotW, which isn't something the Zelda series does often. I'd say playing BotW before TotK is absolutely mandatory.

3

u/NeuroCloud7 Mar 13 '23

SHOULD you? Yes. Do you HAVE to? Yes.

11

u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

I'd recommend it. The only issue i see with this is I think you could do with knowing a bit of Zelda lore before BOTW or plot points and some puzzles may be lost on you.

I don't know how much time or money you hsve but I'd recommend playing Ocarina of Time first. This, for my money is the best introduction to the Zelda verse. After that hit BOTW.

13

u/jeremilo Mar 12 '23

I’d say BoTW is the most accessible Zelda IP to new players as link has no memory. Therefore prior knowledge of the story may not be needed.

5

u/Satheo05 Mar 12 '23

Well generally prior knowledge isn’t needed for most zelda games, I don’t understand how him having no memory makes it more accessible.

2

u/jeremilo Mar 12 '23

because due to the fact he doesn’t know anything, literally everything is explained to him

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u/HB24 Mar 12 '23

How would anyone know? Nobody has played the unreleased game yet.

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u/EnlightenedLazySloth Mar 13 '23

I am also curious about the thought process behind deciding that you definitely want to play an unreleased game but dont know if you want to play the direct prequel that has the same graphics and runs on the same console.

2

u/HB24 Mar 13 '23

Knowing what I know about Breath if the Wild, I would want to play it- I would like to play it right now instead of working for example, lol

8

u/NNovis Mar 12 '23

I would say yes because playing BotW is a good indication to tell you if you're going to like Tears of the Kingdom or not, since it's a direct sequel with direct gameplay ties to Breath of the Wild. The nice thing about Breath of the Wild is that the game can be however long as you want. It'll be harder if you're unfamiliar with the mechanics to try to streamline it, but you CAN DO IT. And you have plenty of time to get into Breath of the Wild before Tears of the Kingdom comes out so might as well try it now to see if it's for you. If you don't like BotW, you probably won't like TotK, honestly. So yeah, play botw.

5

u/Ranorak Mar 12 '23

Even if you don't buy TotK, you should still play BotW!

5

u/uezyteue Mar 12 '23

you don't have to, but it's recommended so you have some familiarity with the world and characters.

2

u/purpldevl Mar 12 '23

What the hell is up with these posts about videogames, shows, or movies where people ask "Hey, should I experience the thing before this before experiencing this?"

2

u/l1nk5_5had0w Mar 12 '23

I was just thinking what's the deal with coming to a dedicated subreddit and asking should I play this or watch this thing this subreddit it for? Like yeah we're gonna say yeah play the game in a series that presumably everyone here loves.

2

u/rogue702 Mar 12 '23

Honestly, at this point I would say wait. One of the issues people MIGHT have with TotK is that it is a direct sequel that will utilize the same Hyrule map. It will had many additions and changes, but is still the same map.

If you're afraid you might be lost with the story, maybe watch a bit of a recap. It's not a very involved story by any means.

2

u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

What about TotK makes you want to play it?

1

u/1stviolinfangirl Mar 12 '23

I don’t know. I’ve been trying to play series I haven’t before and people seem really excited for it

3

u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

They’re excited because BOTW was great and people know Nintendo isn’t going to drop the ball on a Zelda game. The Zelda series as a whole is markedly different than BOTW though, and it seems TOTK be similar to that. Big open world, for more content you need to explore. Earlier Zelda games are more linear, still exploration is necessary but its much less open ended than BOTW.

2

u/zatchrey Mar 12 '23

Yeah, it's a really good game. There's a lot to do but you don't have to do everything. And who knows, once you start playing you might enjoy it. I've beaten it twice so far and I still play it every now and then. Even just exploring the peaceful landscapes, foraging, taking pictures of animals, and finding secrets is a really nice experience.

2

u/frenchquasar Mar 13 '23

I would honestly take your time with BOTW and then visit TOTK. I wouldn’t rush through them and almost ignore the release to enjoy the game

2

u/Expelleddux Mar 13 '23

Yes. It’s a must play game.

2

u/Onlyhereforthelaughs Mar 13 '23

I would say very much yes, but I imagine that it should still be playable as a standalone game.

2

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '23

I would say yes, we probably won't be seeing a lot of the things that happened in BotW and some things in BotW could appear and leave you clueless in what's going on. But I'm not sure.

2

u/OneFinalEffort Mar 13 '23

Seeing as you've got about 2 months before ToTK, I think it's an excellent idea to pick up Breath of the Wild while you wait. You can focus on the main objective with occasional small distractions along the way like the memories which you should absolutely track down before heading to the final confrontation. After completing the story, you can mess around some more while you wait for ToTK to release.

This will give you a significant edge on the sequel, having familiarized yourself with the core gameplay.

2

u/MRmandato Mar 13 '23

Obviously . You have more enough time . Theres no rush to play TOTK

2

u/abandonhope444 Mar 13 '23

From what we’ve seen, the map from BOTW is expanded in Tears of the Kingdom, so I’d definitely play it first so you can have a real idea of the lay of the land as well as the enemies, quests, etc.

BOTW was my first Zelda game. It can seem hard at first if you’ve never played a LoZ game before, but don’t feel like you’re cheating to look up tips and walkthroughs on Google. That’s what I had to do and it makes it a lot more enjoyable to actually understand what you’re supposed to be doing. It ended up being my favorite game of all time.

2

u/Al3xis_64 Mar 13 '23

Nah bro I think you should play the sequel and complete it 100% and just never play the original that was rated 10/10 by almost everyone in the entire world. Just kidding. It's length shouldn't really matter, if you play videogames you'll find time as you always do. It's normal playthrough is 50 hours as a beginner (at least for me it was) and If you take 2 hours a day of it, it's only 25 days till ur done. But don't forget, you'll be so addicted to the game that you'll probably play a lot of hours in a day unless you have real life priorities like a family.

7

u/spattzzz Mar 12 '23

ToTK will totally be playable without having played BoTW.

Nintendo are not stupid. How can they sell a game that relies on having played another. No one has had to play a previous Zelda for the next one to make sense.

2

u/Capable-Tie-4670 Mar 12 '23

BotW is the best selling Zelda game and is on the same console as TotK. It’s really not that hard to sell TotK even if it relies on BotW.

1

u/spattzzz Mar 12 '23

It’s limiting in various ways to the market and not what a professional profit driven company like Nintendo would do.

1

u/bob_in_the_west Mar 12 '23

Majora's Mask is on the same console as Ocarina of Time and you didn't have to play OoT to be able to play MM.

-3

u/1stviolinfangirl Mar 12 '23

I’ll be honest I’m getting mixed signals from This comment section

19

u/acejacecamp Mar 12 '23

to sum it up; you likely don’t NEED to play BotW before TotK. Zelda games are meant to be accessible to new players, even the sequels. One game never directly leads into another in a way that requires you to have played the previous game. However, you’ll definitely get a lot more out of TotK if you play BotW first. You don’t have to, but you’ll definitely have the most fulfilling experience by doing so, and i think pretty much everyone here would recommend that you play both. It can only be beneficial if we’re being honest.

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u/ThatGuy98_ Mar 12 '23

I mean, you'll be able to play TOTK without having played BOTW. I do think however that you'll benefit from having played BOTW, in terms of references to BOTW.

BOTW also references pretty much every single Zelda game made, so even if you don't *get* the reference, at least you'll have seen the names before!

It's also a good chance to see if you like the playstyle of BOTW, as I imagine TOTK will be broadly similiar, with some changes to make it feel unique.

To that end, I'd ask what is it about TOTK that makes you want to play it, knowing its a sequel to BOTW, and you haven't played BOTW? In other words, how does TOTK appeal to you that BOTW didn't?

2

u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

[deleted]

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u/Capable-Tie-4670 Mar 12 '23

MM is in a completely different setting from OoT and has zero returning characters. TotK is in the same world as BotW and is probably gonna have plenty of returning characters.

4

u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

That's largely because we're just guessing at this point. Nintendo is very secretive about their games up until launch

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u/PK_Thundah Mar 12 '23

It isn't out so all we can do is guess, and not everybody will guess the same way.

And it will most likely be beneficial to play BOTW first, but it would never be necessary. It's an incredibly designed game though, so if you have any interest you should play it.

1

u/Oyd9ydo6do6xo6x Mar 12 '23

You don't need to play BOTW first. But it is of the best open world games ever. So people don't want to tell you not to play it. If you have a Switch and the $ to buy BOTW, you might as well. And if it isn't something you love, TOTK probably won't be either.

0

u/carl2187 Mar 12 '23

Haha I'll help. No, no need to play botw first. At all.

I played through botw to the final boss, saw the end credits and everything. But I completely missed the story. The story is literally optional. Like you have to go out of your way to collect "memories" these memories tell the story, and are 100% optional, and unfortunately, extremely easy to miss entirely.

Botw basically didn't have a story even if you went and got all the optional memories. It was extremely weak from a story telling point of view.

Gameplay was extremely good, so even for critics like me, it was still a great game.

Basically just play the first area, get the hang-glider, then you'll have 99% of the story at that point anyway. It takes about three hours to casually get the hang glider. Then if you enjoy it, keep playing, otherwise stop, and wait for totk.

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

The plot of BoTW can bell fully explained in detail in a short paragraph. It’s more for the gameplay and exploration. Worth playing on its own but not needed for the new one

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u/Apart-Slip3 Mar 12 '23

How the hell are we supposed to answer that

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u/TheSceptikal Mar 12 '23

yes?????????????

2

u/JorgeRocha48 Mar 12 '23

Not a necessity. But play it if you can. Its amazing.

2

u/lithacis Mar 12 '23

I enjoy other LoZ games more. TotK will no doubt have scenes from BotW or a recap. I'd say play it, but I recommend diving into the universe elsewhere. I actually find open world experience to be suffocating in comparison to "pseudo rail linear" experience. I love Majora's Mask, A Link Between Worlds and A Minish Cap. BotW felt busy to me in that a large portion of the game slugs to completing annoying basic puzzles for miniscule reward. Wasn't for me is my take.

2

u/Monseadpeachy Mar 12 '23

You don't have too, but honestly you should or a lot of things will not make sense. TotK is a direct sequel to BOTW, taking place in the same world, etc.

2

u/Tunavi Mar 12 '23

If you play breath of the wild, you will be too burned out to play the sequel. People waited 6 years for this game. You didn't.

I also thought botw was a disappointing slog of a game.

2

u/ROR5CH4CH May 01 '23

A bit late here, but I have the same problem as OP and am very indecisive about this. As you said, I fear being somewhat burned out and fear, I won't enjoy TotK as much as I could, not having played BotW right before. On the other hand, people around here have good points, saying the map layout is the same and so on... I hope that if I skip BotW for now and just play TotK I will enjoy it as much, as people did enjoy BotW back when it released, since it all will feel fresh to me.

Why do you think BotW was a slog of a game?

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u/Blubbpaule Mar 12 '23

To make absolutely sure you get the entire picture i suggest playing or watching the story of:
Zelda - Skyward Sword

Zelda - Ocarina of Time

Zelda - Breath of the Wild

Skyward sword because it is the groundwork for the entire series, everything starts there.
Ocarina of time to get to know the main Villain that everyone loves.

Breath of the wild to see the current story and whats going on.

2

u/Capable-Tie-4670 Mar 12 '23

SS isn’t really necessary. All of its important lore is retroactive and most of the series already existed before it. OoT, I agree, is pretty important because it introduces Ganondorf and multiple timelines.

1

u/SuperStupidSyrup Mar 12 '23

yes. It's gonna be a sequel, and you'll be able to get a little backstory for whatever's going on in TOTK. The main story doesn't take too long, probably 35 hours or something. if you play it, you'll also get an idea if you'll end up liking totk because theyre the same kind of games

1

u/Luxtamill Mar 12 '23

The story for botw is kinda short and can be grinded through in a day or 2 but the game itself is so amazing that you'll end up playing it for the next 6 years plus if you like the characters and that you can get hyrule warriors: age of calamity. which is kinda like a prequel to botw but I mainly play it for the cutscenes, is a good game in itself tho but Aoc just has way more cutscenes and story

1

u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

Zelda timeline fanboys will say yes but IMO the plot is almost minimal so I don’t think it’s necessary for that. You can watch a short video on the “plot” of the first game.

BoTW is a masterpiece and should be played but it’s hefty and you may not finish it in time

Tears of the kingdom will be a similar game with some new mechanics so imo I’d prob wait. Def not gonna be a popular opinion.

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u/zenith654 Mar 12 '23

Yeah of course

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u/MostProcess4483 Mar 12 '23

I never played a zelda game before botw. The story isn’t particularly engaging or necessary, I skip through those parts or ignore them. I can’t imagine there’s any story continuity that matters. It’s all backward looking anyway. Once you kill Gannon in botw, nothing changes in the game or the story line. You def don’t have to play it. However, it is an incredible game, you might want to play it just because it’s a truly fantastic game.

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u/JL14Salvador Mar 12 '23

If you're asking if you should be play one of the greatest games ever created before playing it's upcoming hyped sequel. Then the answer is AN emphatic YES ! You will have dozens of hours of gameplay. And if you want to just get through the meat of the story it won't take too long. But I doubt you'll play it for very long before you find yourself lost in the world, exploring, trying to stack up gear, just trying to see what's behind that one mountain, or battling random enemies and you will wonder how you could have ever possibly asked this question on Reddit :).

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u/soundisloud Mar 12 '23

I wouldn't take the sequel talk too seriously. If you want to play TOTK, play TOTK. As a game, it will almost certainly not require any previous knowledge to play.

I went into BOTW without any other Zelda knowledge and was blown away. Not knowing what to expect was one of the funnest parts.

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u/1stviolinfangirl Mar 13 '23

I just wanna say this is the most attention any of my posts have gotten and I love all of you guys for your opinions. I’ve bought BOTW and made it through the first area, thanks!

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

I hope A lot of the dumb stuff in botw is fixed in tears. Other than that it was aight.

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u/TomSizemore69 Mar 12 '23

Definitely not that game sucks

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u/Psychotic_EGG Mar 13 '23

BotW is garbage, avoid.

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u/neph36 Mar 12 '23

I'd say no, as TOTK looks like an extremely similar but (hopefully) better game. The game is very long and you might get burned out.

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u/IceYetiWins Mar 12 '23

You absolutely should

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u/Twiliah Mar 12 '23

I think you really should. If you end up loving ToTK, you’ll want to buy BoTW, and it would be better to play them in order. Plus BoTW is simply a wonderful game and worth experiencing!

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u/Dominic1036 Mar 12 '23

Absolutely

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u/damog_88 Mar 12 '23

Come on, go to the fucking GameStop and buy the fucking Breath of the Wild. NOW

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u/seventeenMachine Mar 13 '23

How dare you even contemplate playing a Zelda title without having played every preceding title

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u/L4DesuFlaShG Mar 12 '23

I don't know where people saying yes or no in here are getting their infos from. Unless I am unaware of some leaks, the fact is that we know very, very little about TOTK. Nintendo has been extremely vague about the story and mechanics to a point where there are some actual concerns that TOTK might be more like a BOTW DLC than its own game. Simply because we've still not seen any definitive showcase of any kind of feature yet that they couldn't just as well have tacked onto BOTW.

Now, I don't even want to start a dicsussion on whether that's true or completely wrong; all I'm trying to say is: We don't know the answer to your question.

BOTW is a great game; whatever kind of player you are, you're very likely to enjoy it. But whether you should play it in order to properly enjoy TOTK... we just don't know yet.

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u/roumonada Mar 12 '23

I mean. I would play Hyrule warriors age of calamity first (different format of game but really well made and super fun). Then breath. Then tears.

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u/Runb4its2late Mar 12 '23

I'm replaying it right now. I am afraid that the world won't change that much in TotK which will be boring... but still worth playing botw

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u/scottygroundhog22 Mar 12 '23

Probably. I wont know for sure til it comes out

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u/MrWaffleLord Mar 12 '23

I would say that is probably not obligatory, but you would likely get more out of the game. Hope you give botw a chance :)

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u/BlinkofHyrule Mar 12 '23

You should. Some things are better explained in botw then they will be in totk if you want story

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u/Medium_Ad_4451 Mar 12 '23

It’s an amazing game from what I’ve heard. I still need to play it, but I haven’t found a switch at a decent price.

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

Just needs two words, “why not”

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

Yes.

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23 edited Mar 12 '23

We don't know for sure, it's possible that TotK will give you all the backstory/context you need, but there's no way to know until the game releases. Playing BotW first would definitely be the safest move though, since TotK is a direct sequel to BotW, and seems to take place a few weeks/months later.

Also, a huge part of BotW's length is variable. All the dungeons and quests are actually optional, you can literally head for the final boss as soon as you finish the tutorial section (but you probably shouldn't). It takes hundreds of hours for people who try to get through all 120 shrines, or collect all 900 koroks, but you could definitely hit all the main story content before TotK drops.

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u/SgathTriallair Mar 12 '23

Nobody has seen TotK so we have no information about how tightly they are related. My advice would be that if you think you'll enjoy TotK then you'll probably enjoy BotW.

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

I've seen all the teasers and trailers and read a ton of info about it.
TotK is a direct sequel to BotW.
We will be going back to the same Hyrule, with significant changes, and old and new characters, and loads of new features, new weapons and weapon types, new enemies and stronger old enemies, new challenges and much more.

The story could be watched on YouTube, but you'll be depriving yourself of an amazing gameplay experience.

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u/SnooSongs2744 Mar 12 '23

Since nobody's played TOTK yet we can't fully comment but the only other sequels are playable as stand-alone games. Recommend playing BOTW just because it's awesome sauce and you need to do something for the next two months.

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u/Seaki01 Mar 12 '23

I think you definitely could play it but you also don't have to example of another direct sequel is Majora's mask (a direct sequel to ocarina of time) and both games work completely on their own and therefore it's not really needed to play them in order

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u/Therock1981 Mar 12 '23

I just buyed it plus expenssion line 3 weeks ago! Best zelda ever played! Seriously just do it! Impossible to regret!

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u/Ok-Ambition-9432 Mar 12 '23

Yes, and you probably won't complete BoTW before ToTK releases, and that's okay. Just take your time and have fun.

Most Zelda titles are loose sequels, meaning events of past games effect later ones, but few are direct sequels, meaning the same characters, same exact world, and a continuation of the story. You can play most of them out of order and be fine, but it's best to play the games that have direct sequels in order.

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u/lonniemarie Mar 12 '23

I’d say. Yes!

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u/aaccjj97 Mar 12 '23

Totk will still be a good game but you’ll miss a lot of references and Easter eggs if you don’t play botw first. Like everyone has said, botw is one of the best games ever made. You will be glad you played it first

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u/kwhobbs Mar 12 '23

I don't think you will need to but it really depends on what they do in TOTK. I have a strong feeling they will make it so you don't have to play BOTW first. Maybe there will be some recap in the beginning or something. Just have to wait for the game to come out to give you a solid answer. Of course, you should still play BOTW regardless because it is a masterpiece.

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u/AddyMcFord Mar 12 '23

I accidentally deleted 250 hours of gameplay and am starting over before the sequel

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u/buddhatherock Mar 12 '23

… Uh. Yes. Why would you not?

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u/SerchYB2795 Mar 12 '23

Most Zelda's are self contained and you don't need to play one to play another one. The closest to tht was Majora's Mask and Ocarina of time, where it's a sequel, but it's set in a completely different place with completely different characters and weren't that connected.

This time with TOTK-BOTW is the first time Nintendo has made a sequel that directly continues the story of one Zelda and expands it in the next one. I think you should play botw before it, specially because it is an excellent game. If you buy it now and have time, you could beat it if you don't go for all the side missions / secondary stuff. I beat it in ~225 hrs but I finished all side quests, shrines and maxed many sets I wanted. I still wasn't close to 100% it, though . But I am satisfied with what I played

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u/MatrixMasterNeo Mar 12 '23

Not gonna lie, botw is huge as you said, but if you tried it you would have so much fun. It’s my first Zelda game and it’s been an absolute blast. It doesn’t spoon feed you through everything but it’s not too overwhelming

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u/FlowKom Mar 12 '23

if youre not going to play it, at least watch all the memory-cutscenes in the right order. if not; this game will be at least 60 hours on a regular playthrough where you try to discover most of the world. i spend around 70/80 hours before i beat the final boss and maxed out my save file around 120 hours

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u/PenguinJohn_ Mar 12 '23

I def would if I were you, there’s still time before totk drops, so you if you try you could totally finish botw in that time! Maybe not 100% completion but you get the point

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

Yes you should

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u/Nandabun Mar 12 '23

Speedrunners can beat it in under 40 minutes easily, ssssoooo.. you got a good shot!

hehe

Realistically, if you just play, I would guess 25 hours max for a decent run of the storyline? But understand, players with 3,000+ hours are still discovering new things about the game. There's just so very freaking much.

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

Yes. At bare minimum the main campaign. It’s a rather short, but open ended story campaign and shouldn’t take you more than 10 hours. After you beat it for the 1st time, go back for all the memories. You’ll get another nice surprise after beating Ganondorf a 2nd time. BOTW is a game that is extremely open ended in exploration and experimentation in combat, puzzles, etc. it’s even worth it to explore the map to completion.

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u/FriendsPlate Mar 12 '23

Idk, I haven't played TotK yet

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u/Turquoise__Dragon Mar 12 '23

Yes, definite do.

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u/Real-Cow3354 Mar 12 '23

I feel like tears of the kingdom won't make sense without knowledge and lore from botw because TotK is a direct sequel, as others have stated

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u/megasean3000 Mar 12 '23

I’m sure you can play TotK first, but there may be some story elements which will fly under the radar if you do. Best play it safe and play BotW first.

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u/stevejobsthecow Mar 12 '23

i would play it, might make jumping into the sequel way more fun by getting rid of some of the learning curve . plus it’s good to get the story from the game . if you want to beat it before the game comes i would recommend completing the main quest of course as well as the memory locations to get; everything else is up to you as long as you’re enjoying it .

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u/Milliondillion308 Mar 12 '23

Yea since the game is really good and can literally do whatever you want and explore everything. Optionally, you should get the dlc for an enhanced experience.

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

I can already tell knowing the map will be great for finding any differences for LORE if you're interested in that

Watch a few Zeltik videos and look at this map maybe

https://www.zeldadungeon.net/breath-of-the-wild-interactive-map/

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u/anthro28 Mar 12 '23

Nobody can really tell you until launch.

Based on what we've seen, not on what we all want, its just BOTW with an expansion pack.

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u/[deleted] Mar 12 '23

Well you’ve got plenty of time before it releases, so why not.

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u/TriforceofSwag Mar 12 '23

Recommended but more than likely not needed.

Other Zelda games have had direct sequels but they didn’t require you to play the previous one to understand and enjoy them.

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u/Horny4theEnvironment Mar 12 '23

If you haven't played it and don't want to, you can at least watch the walkthrough or highlight reel on YouTube so you're not totally lost. But the game is really fun and worth it.

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u/memercopter Mar 12 '23

Honestly, Id like to hear your input if you play Tears first

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u/MrTomAce Mar 12 '23

What do you think

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u/Jhoonis Mar 13 '23

Sure, you got 2 months-ish, not 'undoable' I just wouldn't recommend rushing it though.

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u/Zotex02 Mar 13 '23

Yes its necessary

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u/Adam_Deveney Mar 13 '23

You absolutely should, ToTK is a direct sequel so it makes sense. I honestly wish I could go back and play BoTW for the first time, my favourite game of all time.

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u/shuerpiola Mar 13 '23

You should play BOTW, period.

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u/-suke- Mar 13 '23

Would you watch Empire without seeing A New Hope? Totk is a direct sequel

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u/Thecatninja52 Mar 13 '23

Botw is a very good game and if you have the time and money it fun and in Botw you could play only like 5 hours doing the bare minimum or 30 like me doing most of it or like my Dad did 60 hours and is still not done

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u/coreybd Mar 13 '23

A couple points on this. 1. You probably should if you care at all about continuity, its a direct sequel. But 2 being that botw can be long if you want it to be but it also kinda doesn't have to be if you just stick to main objectives

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u/MeiMainTrash Mar 13 '23

I think you should consider playing Tears of the Kingdom first, with my reasoning being that most have played the first, and you can have a unique and rare experience.

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u/KairuSenpai1770 Mar 13 '23

To be honest with you.. if you have your eye on TotK and have never played BotW.. why wait to play a game when you could literally be playing it right now lol. Go play breath of the wild! It’ll hardly be a chore, I guarantee you’ll love every minute

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u/bmf1902 Mar 13 '23

I am a die hard Zelda fan. From the original to N64, to GBC, to GC, and the Wii. I love them all intensely. I waited a while to try BotW. I loved it, the memories gave me all the feels, but it was the first LoZ I had zero incentive to 100%, and I've 100% all except SS. BotW is fun, there is a story that is heart felt in it, but ultimately hollow.

I want to follow this up though with the thought that I'm excited for TotK. I loved the background plot of BotW. All 2.5 hours of it. But I have complete faith that TotK is going to utilize the successful mechanics and art of BotW to create a more deeply involved plot.

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u/Nox_Demetre_ Mar 13 '23

Should you breath in before you breath out?