Zelda: TOTK Is The Sixth Game Ever To Get Perfect Scores From Edge And Famitsu

These guys really like their Zelda games.

@blockfight So do I.

Skyward Sword is definitely the odd one out when it comes to Zelda games on this list. It's not a bad game but the backtracking in this one is just a bit too much to consider it a 10/10 game, at least in my opinion. Still a wonderful game, but certainly not perfect.

The other Zelda games definitely deserve it though. Not sure if Bayonetta deserves it but it's a good game, and I can't speak at all for GTAV. Last GTA I played was Vice City and that was well over 10 years ago. Probably closer to 15 years by now.

Well deserved. Probably would already say it's my favourite game ever. Just so much fun and so much to explore. I've already played for hours yet feels like I've only just scratched the surface.

Skyward Sword received so many 10/10s from critics during its release for absolutely no reason. It was maddening to see it because the game is so incredibly flawed to its core.
Zelda hype really can overcome anything. At least the other three Zeldas on this list absolutely warrant the praise.

I really love TotK - but its certainly far away from beeing a perfect game imo. But i couldnt care less about reviews from famitsu.

https://kotaku.com/do-not-trust-this-magazines-review-scores-5520937

Seeing Bayonetta, GTAV and especially Skyward Sword on that list makes it kind of not that great or believable. I don't really think ToK should have a perfect 10 either. It's a good game but not the greatest game ever as most sites promote it to be.

ToTK getting 10s like Oprah gives out cars!

@Martijn87

Or maybe they just disagree with you? I personally think it is the best game I've played, but according to people like you, I'm wrong in thinking so.

So far, I love the game, but there's no way it should get a perfect score with its framerate problems.

Impressive. Not that the critics' scores amount to much, but it's still and achievement

A Link Between Worlds and Vice City are better than all those games.

@lighteningbolt79 if it is to you, then I'm happy for you and you should enjoy it to the fullest. But according to people like you, I'm wrong in thinking it's not the greatest and I can't disagree or say anything bad about this game.

@Martijn87 People are allowed to dislike the game, but there are too many people acting as if people are wrong for thinking it is the best game ever

Skyward Sword lol

I think it was IGN who claimed that TOTK makes BOTW look like a first draft and that's about the highest praise I can think of and the best way I can describe this game. It's just incredible.

At the time, if you could get used to the controls, skyward sword was a 10. It was better in most ways over twilight, and I personally loved the motion controls. I have control of my arms and understand how to swing a sword, smd had no issues playing ever. The bosses got over used, especially after multiple playthroughs, which you could say about botw too…. But the entire world was like a dungeon, and the actual dungeons are what we all missed about botw. The switch version is a 10 for sure, but they are all different games, which is what I love about the series. So I can enjoy each for what they all are separately.
Nintendo, if I could just have all zelda games on my switch, I would have no need for any other consoles. 3ds was close, and Wii U but I can’t take it with me.

Skyward Sword, yikes.
If one thing is true, the Skyward Sword Princess Zelda and ToTk / BOTW are tied for the worst iterations of the princess herself.

@lighteningbolt79 I'm sorry if you think I'm calling out to people personally, I'm not at all. Everyone has a own personal greatest game for many reasons and nobody can say you're wrong for feeling that. I think what most people mean is that the websites, who should be objective, are just giving games perfect scores just because it is a big title.

Love the Zelda Franchise but Skyward Sword should not be nowhere near a top 10 gaming list, it barely should even make it in a Top 10 Zelda list

TOTK definitely is deserving of this but it looks like these two review sites basically just plan on all Zelda games being perfect and go with it.

@Martijn87 That just isn't true. Plenty of big games get lower scores. It got a 10/10 score because they thought it was a 10/10 game, which they are allowed to think.

@Martijn87 it is a hot take this week as the game is too fresh and the hype is huge but I agree with your comment, except for GTAV. It is not a top top game for me personally either, RDR2 is miles miles better, but we must agree the impact and praise that game still has even today. It deserves being in the top5 discussion.

@Diowine that's true, and considering it's even selling for three ongoing generations of consoles. It deserves being discussed.

I wonder if Famitsu will post an article titled: "TotK is the sixth game this year Nintendo Life has given a perfect score of 10/10 Little Marios.

"Since it's inception Nintendo Life has handed out only 637 Perfect Scores. The Tears of the Kingdom review was written well in advance of preview copies - once again showing it is nigh impossible for a Zelda game to score anything but perfect."

just taking the piss lads

Quite how Skyward Sword managed that is anyone's guess but Tears of The Kingdom is a staggering achievement in game design and execution

If I had never played BOTW, this would be a perfect 10/10 for me too. But BOTW exists for over half a decade now and, IN MY PERSONAL SUBJECTIVE OPINION, TOTK does not add that much to be considered a Perfect 10. Is it better than BOTW? Yes, but by today's standards it doesn't have the impact of the first game for me and takes out the best part of the original, exploring completely new regions for the very first time. Depths and Sky Islands get repetitive and the famous improved Dungeons are nowhere near the OoT era, they are the same as BOTW but with unique Bosses.
Still, loving every minute of the game, just not a 10 for me

@lighteningbolt79 it's definitely in the top 5 games I've ever played and I can't think of anything I've played on Switch or elsewhere over the last few years that really come close to it

@carlos82 You are getting at least 2 points for major franchises - probably more. Small games, like Hades, start off with no positive bias.

Pokemon SV started off with higher number, as does all Zeldas. There is no way a fan site would give Pokemon the score it deserved. Zelda might deserve a 10. But it starts the process at 10 and works it's way from there. The game reviewer wants it to do well. A game like Hades has to go up not down.

So far I’m enjoying TOTK. But I can’t put my finger on why exactly… but BOTW just hooked me a little bit more.

@Wheatly “Just make 10 1 louder” hope you get the ref

100 gives more nuance for sure. I liked the old system of rating each part, graphics, sound, playability etc….

@timp29 I don't live in your skin (yet) - but maybe it is because BotW was so fresh. Tears is the opposite of fresh. It is BotW with more.

loved the various gb zelda and link to the past. but since then no. i wanted like breath of the wild but the tedious weapon breaking and cooking just made me give up

Skyward Sword being a 10? More like a 5/10.

TOTK deserves it from what I played so far, I think OoT also does, the other ones are not 10/10 games IMO.

Skyward Sword, bloody hell.

I swear any time someone in the gaming media is forced to remember Skyward Sword exists, they find a way to mention how it's not that great for a Zelda game. Considering it's my favorite entry in the series, and goes back and forth with Pokemon Red and Xenoblade Chronicles for my favorite game overall, I have to respectfully disagree.

Skyward Sword and Bayonetta don't really belong on this list in my opinion, but still, this does show what an exclusive list it is.

Skyward Sword deserves all that praise for very different reasons compared to BOTW, and at the time it did feel revolutionary in its immersive control scheme, adding a stamina bar for Link sprint about, and for it's layered surface areas which peeled back like Dungeons on repeat trips.

The game isn't perfect, but after I played that title I never wanted to go back to button controls as it just wasn't as interesting. Battles became more fun like puzzles requiring you to tactfully use the 1:1 wiimote swings, and the various items link obtained were fun to use in practise. For me the controls functioned with no issues, but I can't say the same for others that had problems or didn't enjoy the motion controls.

SS also introduced upgrades to weapons and items, and an almost fully orchestrated score (at last), not to mention the origin for the Master Sword and other numerous other QOL improvements over previous entries.

For BOTW/TOTK to exist as it does, SS had to come first with its experimental features - so a lot of the latest games success are owed to this title.

Overall I still prefer BOTW and TOTK (because I always wanted an open world Zelda game), Skyward Sword was incredibly linear (although it kind of had to be because of the control scheme to reign the player in), but this did have an upswing of making battles feel much more engaging and fun.

It's probably the only sacrifice (I miss) that makes sense with the open world of BOTW/TOTK - that sort of full on sword control scheme for your weapons would have been a nightmare in an uncontrolled open world of varied breakable tools. I am happy they kept in gyro options for the runes/abilities and aiming on the Bow at least however. It's limited, but appreciated.

@Kiliomp You just named the only versions of Zelda with more personality than a cardboard cutout, at least in the 3D games.

And with good reason, Zelda Tiktok is amazing!

Hmm, what were their critiques of odyssey?! Game is indeed, pretty much perfect!

It's cool to see it be so loved, I'm enjoying it immensely!

Zelda BOTW and TOTK are some of the few rare games where I'd give them a score beyond 10/10. Not only do they check every box of being an excellent game with awesome things to do and fantastic mechanics, but they go above and beyond expectations with hidden secrets and treasures that are discovered days-years after release. These games are magical, well worth the extended wait.

Pokemon Black and White 1 I believe was one of the games Famitsu gave a perfect score to, and that was even upon release highly debated.
(then again, it seems like every new mainline Pokemon game gets crapped on upon release. But it's still hard to justify putting that game in the perfect club.)

I haven't decided to sit down and really play even Breath of the Wild yet.
But still, my first impression is that it's a game I'll feel differently without the Zelda branding on it. I've been told there's no real full-length dungeons in it. That and inventory management sound like things I don't want in a Zelda game.

Like how I don't like Metroid Fusion that much because of the Metroid branding. It'd be fine it was "a knockoff" but it does things I don't want in a proper mainline game.

clearly way more then 6 games deserved a 10 score...

As nice as Famitsu is giving this a 40/40….when you look at the other games that got 40/40 you start to wonder if the scores are random

@Anachronism Haha, my thoughts exactly, although I also liked Tetra in the Wind Waker. If the real me ever ends up in a Zelda game, I want it to be with one of those three Zelda's .

Any publication that gives Bayonetta a perfect score has my deep respect. I agree with them all (except with GTA V, that franchise is way overrated).

Well deserved, i am a big zelda fan from the beginning. And this game is truly on my nr1 list of all zelda games. This story grabs the essence of what i loved about every zelda game. Before it was ocarina of time on nr1, now its years of the kingdom.

Bayonetta’s combat is just wonderful so I can see how it got a ten especially when DMC was looking a little weird.

@Cashews I get your point, but I think hades is a bad example because the dev already made hits like bastion and transitor. I think a better example would be the hype hollow knight got or shovel knight before that. Those devs didn’t have any games out prior to those that could color a reviewer’s opinion before they even started the game.

However, at the same time franchises earn their reputation, they aren’t just given. And this holds true for all big AAA titles from known franchises. There is a reason that cod, Pokémon, fifa, madden, assassins creed, etc. are never in serious consideration for being game of the year. These franchises reputations proceed themselves and they get reviewed accordingly. Even the worst zelda game is objectively a good game and these best zelda games are agreed to be all time greats.

Overall, I think it is fair to acknowledge the reputation a franchise/brand can bring but it is not the be all end all. If it was then a beloved franchise like halo wouldn’t be on a steady decline since halo 3.

Zelda tears of the kingdom benefits from the name recognition the zelda brand brings, but it also continues the high standard the franchises prior games have set. The high praise tears of the kingdom is receiving is due to meeting the lofty expectations of what it means to be a game in the zelda franchise and a true AAA Nintendo release.

@PuppyToucher Supergiant has always had a good reputation but I don't think they were at the level of allocating points - until post-Hades. Which is deserved. I was trying to think of a game everyone knew and was well known for quality. But not AAA.

My system is also flawed

@timp29 it's the opposite for me, I couldn't get into Breath of the Wild, but Tears of the Kingdom has suprised me and I'm really enjoying the game.

The real question has to be which Last Ninja game is best, ha! I'd find it a challenge to chose between the first two on the C64!

@Martijn87 there’s no such thing as objectivity in a game review. the best reviews will consider the objective facts of a game but will focus on the personal experience had by a reviewer. that’s what games are about and that’s what reviews should reflect

@PuppyToucher I'm also a toucher but I prefer pus, er I mean cats.

Bayonetta I can almost forgive, since it's pretty much perfect at being what it is. But GTA V and Skyward Sword are both bloated and unenjoyable in numerous places. Different strokes for different folks I guess.

Damn, those edge 10s are prestigious. Well done

where is elden ring god of war? they do not count?

@johnedwin - when they say only 6 games getting 10 out of 10, they mean between both Famistsu and Edge magazines giving 10’s for the same game.

Both publications have independently given more 10’s to other titles independent of each other for differently reviewed games.

EG, God of War could have got 10 with Edge, but 9 with Famitsu. The focus here is on both publications awarding their highest honours for the same game.

Breath of the Wild is at most an 8/10 for me. Tears of the Kingdom is an easy 10/10 for me.

Love how more than half are Zelda titles. Such a phenomenal series.

@Yosher

vice city came out 20 years ago, bud 😂

of course theres always the possibility that you played it slightly later ✌️

@-wc- Yeah I definitely didn't play it at launch, so it was later for me.

Bayonetta is soooo well deserved! Wondering why not the 2nd and 3rd though. Am-a-zing games!!! Just like the Zeldas btw, just different strong points.

Seeing (Skyward Sword) in the list automatically loses it any credibility

I don't think a 10/10 for Skyward Sword is unreasonable, but I also don't think a perfect score means the game is better than your honeymoon.

@EarthboundBenjy I honestly feel the same about Tears. it's a great game but it has so many little nagging issues that it easily drops down to an 8 in my imaginary review catalogue.

@Linux7055 What causes that much of a difference? I'm very curious. I haven't played much yet and I do feel a little disappointed with how similar the surface is.

This just shows how much of a bias for adventure games these reviewers have. I'll bet these games are great but there's more genres than just that.

I couldn't think of a less deserving game to have that score. What a massive letdown this game is

@Sciqueen I love Bayonetta 3 but I wouldnt have scored it perfect. Bayo 2 was the better game overall. More fluid combat, more concise story. A 9 seems on target.

Honestly...I think Cereza Origins is the better of the two recent Bayonettas. Fresh, incredible art, off the chain music score, super tight story with unforgettable characters. That is a strange thing to type out but it is true.

But I wasn't mad at the 10 though. I am a huge fanboy for her, and Platinum in general, after all.

It’s cool to see such a variety of opinions in here! I have no opinion on GTA V as I’ve only ever had Nintendo systems. Haven’t played bayonetta yet. I agree 100% with OOT and BOTW and so far with TOTK. My opinion of SS is that it had great characters, great dungeons. I think too much effort was put into making it a motion control game. The game suffered because of it. But on the other hand we wouldn’t have the stamina wheel/glider without it.

Just want to chime in with the rest that since Skyward Sword is on this list it doesn't mean anything. Easily my least liked Zelda game out of them all (except the Philips ones I guess...)

@Ristar24 number 2 hands down - although I probably played number 1 more. I never played number 3 until Wii virtual console but it had a glitch that wouldn’t load past level 1

SPOILER

Even the first opening hours of TOTK where you are on the sky island is better than most full games.

There is no way in hell Skyward Sword is a perfect game.

Hilarious and outrageous in equal measure that Skyward Sword is in this list.

@timp29 I remember the LN3 VC glitch too, and discussing it on here, they took the game down in the end I think after some complaints. I bought Robocop full price for the C64 at release and only found out years later the game had a completely glitched stage where you couldn't progress!

Probably with you on LN2 as the best, those pixel perfect jumps on the first stage of the first game were frustrating.

Tears of the Kingdom has a better balance between direction and exploration for me, even though at first glance I thought it looked like the same game.

A 10 from Edge means something. One of the few reviewers that actually uses the full scale instead of just scoring everything between 7 and 10. Famitsu, not so much. Quite well known they’ve taken payment for perfect scores multiple times.

I’m loving every minute of TotK, slowly exploring and finding as many secrets as possible before continuing the main quest too far.

The game uses the familiar but different land of Hyrule to great nostalgic effect if you spent a lot of time in BotW.

@EarthboundBenjy this!! My first thought was "so by this logic Skyward Sword (and Bayonetta???) is better than Elden Ring? Mmmmmkay." Personally I hated gtaV but I at least get why that's on the list.

The fact you built and create is the biggest part of this game no limits to imaginations.

Thank God I ignore opinions such as those. My library would be full of trash if I bought into them

@iDidSomething you know who I go to for quality videogame coverage?
...kotaku.

No Persona 5? Even RDR 2 is better than GTA 5.

@LikelySatan I was about to say the same thing. Nintendo blacklisted Kotaku years ago and with good reason.

@LikelySatan no i place i would go for reviews either, but each to their own i guess.

This comes as no surprise, both because the game is absolutely amazing, and because there seems to be a bit of a Nintendo bias in Japan.