Wednesday, Nintendo announced The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom sold ten million units in just three days. This cemented its place as the fastest-selling Zelda game and the second-best-selling in the franchise behind Breath of the Wild. For perspective, the next highest selling is Twilight Princess, with close to nine million sold. I expected the launch to be big, but ten million in three days was not on my bingo card.
Players obviously love Tears of the Kingdom with sales like that. I had some worry that the USD 70 price tag would hurt the sales. But it looks like I was wrong. What this means for Nintendo game prices and the series moving forward is currently up in the air. Nintendo previously stated that the price for Tears of the Kingdom was a specific case. About the series’ future, Aonuma has stated since Breath of the Wild that the open-world format would be the “new standard.” However, I don’t think this means traditional Zelda is dead. One could even argue that the series started as an open-world game.
Tears of the Kingdom also has been making a huge splash on social media. Players have already made bomber planes, skateboards, and functional mechs. I’ve loved most of my time with Tears of the Kingdom, and I plan to have a review finished in the coming days. Be sure to check back for my impressions on it! If you’re curious to see a small sample of what you can do in the game, check out the preview we covered a while back.
We currently offer a classy collectible for Zelda fans: The Legend of Zelda Game & Watch. I got one when they came out, and it’s a neat little device. It contains three games in both Japanese and English: The Legend of Zelda, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, and Link’s Awakening. With a color screen, rechargeable battery, and several Easter eggs to find, it makes an excellent way to play those classics and a nice shelf piece.
