Nah, you can see it on subreddits as people discuss the game. Complaining about a few enemies, copypaste world, etc... Its not a 10/10, but it will still be reviewed like this.
Imagine you got rid of the Zelda skins and Zelda name, released it on Xbox. What would it get then?
Don't get me wrong, I religiously play all the zelda's and find ways to enjoy them. I am under Nintendo's spell, but I also know these are the corporate mascots I grew up with. Nintendo markets to children, we basically need therapy if we want to be free from their grip.
That’s fair. I would take a minor issue with your framing (someone who didn’t play BotW wouldn’t find the map a cop out and I’m glad they put the effort in for the 2 other layers of the map) but you could make those same arguments against COD or Destiny.
I do think it’s worth noting how many of the ideas from BotW have been copied in the past 6 years in other games.
I guess my point is, I can understand the 10/10s but I also find it entirely reasonable to view it closer to a 7 or 8.
We’re also not thinking about things in a vacuum in this discussion. Is the Xbox game released as if BotW never happened? Nintendo certainly uses its brand to buy marketing influence but importantly, I don’t think the company is pissed when games fail.
Skyward Sword was a good example of that actually. It’s failure literally led to BotW. Nintendo got off their laurels and reinvented their “tried and true” formula and now it’s paying off.
I am closer your position for games like 2D Mario. Zero innovation and I’ll be eagerly watching the reviews for the new game later this year.
> Imagine you got rid of the Zelda skins and Zelda name, released it on Xbox. What would it get then?
You're right, but to be fair sort of 'reskin and re-rate' test would decimate the reviews of most sequels, remakes, adaptations, etc. Not just in video games, but movies, books, etc. Would Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy have been half as culturally relevant if it weren't standing on the shoulders of a very popular series of books?
> Complaining about a few enemies, copypaste world, etc.
It's important to review a game as it exists, and not a game that you imagined in your head that would be better.
> Imagine you got rid of the Zelda skins and Zelda name, released it on Xbox. What would it get then?
Well, in the case of Genshin Impact: lots and lots of money.
Seriously, though. If Breath of the Wild or Tears of the Kingdom had been released by a company other than Nintendo, people would be singing its praises to the high heavens. You'd see a lot of "Why can't Nintendo come up with this" type articles about it.
Imagine you got rid of the Zelda skins and Zelda name, released it on Xbox. What would it get then?
Don't get me wrong, I religiously play all the zelda's and find ways to enjoy them. I am under Nintendo's spell, but I also know these are the corporate mascots I grew up with. Nintendo markets to children, we basically need therapy if we want to be free from their grip.