194: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (with Michael Berger - Bits of Time)

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What could Nintendo possibly do to follow up the game that "saved gaming" for me? Well, they simply iterated on and evolved everything about Breath of the Wild to make one of the most creativity and freedom-focused games ever. It's simple, really- why don't more people think of this? Sarcasm aside, Tears of the Kingdom is an absolute wonder, and we're lucky to have it. Hope you enjoy the discussion!

Guest info: Michael Berger (he/him)

• Check out Bits of Time on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@bitsoftimemedia
• Check out the Bits of Time podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bits-of-time/id1616941089
• Check out everything else Michael is doing https://campsite.bio/matterofmichael

TIMESTAMPS

• 0:00 Title Card
• 0:21 Introductions
• 5:35 Our Histories with Zelda and Tears of the Kingdom
• 8:49 Opening Thoughts About Tears of the Kingdom
• 16:39 Story Setup
• 20:26 Storytelling and Nonlinear Design
• 25:34 Emergent Story and the Adventure
• 29:52 Link's New Toys
• 48:58 Emergent Gameplay and the Magic of Scrounging
• 57:18 Dungeons and Boss Fights
• 1:03:15 Enemy and Boss Variety
• 1:08:07 The Depths and Exploration
• 1:16:33 Art Design and Music
• 1:23:20 Final Thoughts and Recommendations
• 1:31:31 Bits of Time
• 1:36:11 Spoiler Wall and Patron Thank-Yous
• 1:38:25 Spoiler Section- Favorite Temples and Backstory
• 2:03:11 Final Boss and Ending

Music used in the episode is credited to Hajime Wakai, Manaka Kataoka, Maasa Miyoshi, Masato Ohashi and Tsukasa Usui. Tracks used: Title, Hyrule Castle - Upheaval, Shrine Battle, Seized Construct Battle, Skydive, Lookout Landing, Ganondorf's Theme, Final Dive

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Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures