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As if Breath of the Wild wasn't enough of a revolutionary open-world experience in its own right, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom took things to a whole new level with increased verticality and expanded creation mechanics. While both entries have plenty of replayability on their own, the six-year gap between them means it's probably going to be even longer for the next major installment in the franchise.
Although The Legend of Zelda has seen several remasters or smaller-scale experiences like Zelda's Echoes of Wisdom, they don't scratch the same itch as the sheer scale and sense of exploration that BOTW or TOTK's open worlds have in spades. Thankfully, there are plenty of excellent open-world games out there to help pass the time until the next major Legend of Zelda game that can fill a similar niche.
The Witcher 3 Offers A Darker Spin On BOTW's Open World
Even with its more adult themes and linear quest design, The Witcher 3 is still an excellent open-world RPG that shares more than a few similarities with The Legend of Zelda. With more combat and narrative depth that still encourages player exploration rather than being guided by the hand, the world of The Witcher 3 feels great to explore, even without Link's movement abilities.
Having been ported to the Nintendo Switch and running surprisingly well for how intensive its visuals are, The Witcher 3 has more than enough content to warrant checking out if you're a fan of the modern Zelda games, especially if you buy it alongside the critically acclaimed DLC expansions.
Few Games Have A Sense Of Exploration Like No Man's Sky
If you want to fully hone in on The Legend of Zelda's sense of exploration and player freedom, there are a slim few options out there that can outright beat No Man's Sky. Making an entire game out of journeying into the unknown without the overbearing pressure of a major storyline, you're completely free to chart a limitless number of planets across an ever-expansive galaxy.
With plenty to discover and a massive catalog of free updates to sink your teeth into, No Man's Sky alone can offer hundreds of hours with its surprisingly addictive survival gameplay loop, which can even be enjoyed alongside a friend thanks to its post-launch multiplayer updates.
Outer Wilds Thrives Off Player Discovery
Far from a traditional open-world game by most metrics outside its environment exploration, Outer Wilds is an incredibly unique gameplay experience that you have to try for yourself if you love the sense of discovery that makes The Legend of Zelda so beloved.
With its progression entirely based on your understanding and memory as opposed to any in-game upgrades, all of the Outer Wilds' solar system is open for you to explore from the start, offering an incredible sense of player freedom. Even if its sci-fi setting is far from Hyrule's fantastical world, its environmental puzzles and visuals will feel right at home for BOTW fans.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Is Incredibly Easy To Get Lost In
Being one of the most popular open-world RPGs of all time, with over a dozen re-releases, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is more than deserving of its popularity. With both grand-scale narratives, small character stories, and an overabundance of opportunities to aimlessly explore its vast open environments, Skyrim is another excellent choice to help pass the time.
Out of all the dedicated modding communities keeping games alive decades after release, Skyrim is easily at the top of the list with a practically endless amount of fan-made content that can even bring assets and quests inspired by The Legend of Zelda into the mix. With a plethora of snowy mountaintops, deep dungeons, and forests just waiting to be discovered, Skyrim's availability also lets you play on any system, anywhere you want.
Shadow Of The Colossus Feels Like A Spiritual Predecessor To BOTW
While the relatively empty open world in Shadow of the Colossus doesn't capture the exact sense of discovery, its vast expanses still feel satisfying to sprint through as you search for the next beast you'll need to take down. With a limited amount of UI elements and guidance, you're free to explore on your trusty steed with a familiar sword and bow at your disposal.
With each fight acting more like a puzzle rather than a traditional boss fight, Shadow of the Colossus also has a similarly heavy emphasis on parkour as Breath of the Wild, making for a fairly familiar, albeit still fresh gameplay experience for one of PlayStation's most iconic exclusives.
Horizon Zero Dawn Has All The DNA Of A Zelda Game
Released in the same year as BOTW itself, the foundations of Horizon Zero Dawn's open-world gameplay loop are built around exploration and traversal, rewarding planning ahead for encounters rather than just rushing in. Even with a much greater focus on narrative than BOTW or TOTOK, Horizon is well worth trying out if you're a fan of either game, as each boss fight is just as much of a puzzle as many in The Legend of Zelda.
As if Horizon Zero Dawn's gameplay offerings weren't enough, its sequel, Horizon Forbidden West took things to a whole new level with its free-form climbing and paraglider, which line up even more to the freedom of movement that makes exploring Hyrule so enjoyable.
Ghost of Tsushima Is Even More Beautiful Than BOTW's Hyrule
Offering an incredibly immersive experience that foregoes traditional navigation hints, Ghost of Tsushima is a bit further away from a traditional Legend of Zelda game with its in-depth combat, but still has an expansive and gorgeous open-world that's just begging to be explored.
Even with its stunning environments and combat aside, there's plenty of secrets and little moments to discover in its historical Japan setting that seamlessly flow into its game world in a way that's more than a little reminiscent of BOTW.
Elden Ring Is A Masterclass In The Open-World Genre
Despite being one of the biggest leaps from The Legend of Zelda in terms of tone and traditional gameplay, the game-of-the-year-winning Elden Ring is still one of the best open-world games you can find. Even with its darker visual style, Elden Ring's core gameplay loop heavily encourages you to explore at your own pace, letting you travel practically anywhere on the map without stopping you.
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With less of a cutscene-heavy narrative that allows its environments and combat encounters to tell the story, much like BOTW and TOTK, Elden Ring has plenty of appeal for fans of The Legend of Zelda series that go far beyond simple exploration.
Genshin Impact's World Dwarfs The Size Of Its Release Map
Having originally faced a wave of criticism for the number of similarities to Nintendo's BOTW, it's hard to find many games that are able to scratch the same itch left behind by its absence, like Genshin Impact. With a vast open world that has only grown exponentially since its release, with a practically endless stream of content and new areas to discover, thanks to its nature as a live-service gacha game.
Although there's unfortunately still no Switch release for Genshin Impact years after it was originally announced, if you have a system that can run it, Genshin Impact is an excellent choice for any Zelda fan who wants a new world to explore with familiar traversal mechanics and gorgeous environments.
Immortals Fenyx Rising Pays Direct Homage To BOTW's Mechanics
Out of countless open-world games out there, one of the closest you'll find to the BOTW era of The Legend of Zelda is easily Ubisoft's Immortals Fenyx Rising. Paying direct homage to BOTW with familiar traversal systems that include horseback riding, paragliding, and climbing anything you can see, it's easy to jump from Nintendo's classic into Immortal's unique open world.
Immortals Fenyx Rising also allows you to pick up certain objects for use in puzzles or traversal, similar to TOTK.
While some gameplay aspects of Immortals can get a little repetitive over time, the combat has much more depth that can help break up the pacing, with a plethora of puzzles out there for you to search for or stumble across naturally while exploring, just like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
10/10 10/10 The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed Adventure Action Open-World OpenCritic Reviews Top Critic Avg: 95/100 Critics Rec: 97% Released May 12, 2023 ESRB Rated E for Everyone 10+ for Fantasy Violence and Mild Suggestive Themes Developer(s) Nintendo Publisher(s) Nintendo Engine Havok Cross-Platform Play N/A Cross Save N/A Franchise The Legend of Zelda Steam Deck Compatibility n/a
Genre(s) Adventure, Action, Open-World Powered by Expand Collapse