11 Other Subtle Differences between Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and BOTW

#Zelda #TearsOfTheKingdom #Differences
Here are 11 other subtle differences between Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Breath of the Wild;, from the way Link catches the boomerang to npcs' reactions to danger.
This is Part 6 of our "subtle differences" series :)
Here's the previous episodes:
Part 1: • 10 Subtle Differences ...
Part 2: • 10 Other Subtle Differ...
Part 3: • 12 Other Subtle Differ...
Part 4: • 11 Other Subtle Differ...
Part 5: • 12 Other Subtle Differ...

[@ninjahappysquid]

Man a bummer about the stealth sound effect one, I thought that was so cool in BotW. If I remember correctly, it wasn't just lowered volume, it was a whole different sent of movement sound effects of quiet / padded / muffled movements! But the NPC bow startle is definitely an upgrade in TotK, makes way more sense!

[@JBaughb]

@MrSystemsGuy the bonus for the stealth set is night speedup. the stealth isn't a bonus, but a trait of the armor pieces.

[@moby405]

It must be unintentional, maybe they'll fix it with a patch

[@danielmyers6239]

it was likely cut to save storage space. There's a lot more stuff in tears of the kingdom then breath of the wild

[@monhi64]

⁠@@danielmyers6239always possible, we know that they put loads of effort into reducing the size down to flat out cutting stuff for only storage. But that specifically, idk man it just feels unlikely they’d ever be that strapped to cut out something so insignificant data wise. I mean hell you could probably accomplish it with a few lines of code that play the same sound but half as loud. Plus I think the games are fairly flexible file size cuz they’re downloaded right? The max is just whatever is the free storage that’s left, Nintendo knows well cave and buy more storage lol

[@poke548]

From memory, the sound system was almost entirely overhauled. That functionality probably just got lost in the transition. Still a shame tho.

[@RipVanFish09]

Why would they remove the stealth muffling? That was a nice little feature!

[@Vendavalez]

I know! It was a nice confirmation that you did indeed were making less noise.

[@MrStatement]

Probably just a small oversight by the devs which is kinda unfortunate but hopefully the muffled effects get re-added in a future patch!

[@ilbroducciore]

@@MrStatementmulled a lot over this myself. I highly doubt that’s an oversight, given the amount of care put essentially everywhere. They might have just decided that the difference in volume wasn’t distinguishable enough to people in general for them to be able to tell the difference and that to have a practical gameplay effect. It could also be that people CAN tell the difference, but not be able to determine which actions will alert enemies vs. not (depending on the stealth level). In the latter case, it’d make sense for them to remove the sound distinction so that people **always** rely on the visual gauge.

[@ilbroducciore]

When it comes to Nintendo and these polish things in games like Zelda, I usually narrow it down to either gameplay reasons or (typically) sensible cost-cutting. I believe this is the case here too.

[@RipVanFish09]

@@ilbroducciore Well... Totk definitely has polish! That's what they spent an entire year before release doing! (It's actually why it was delayed.) But yeah, sometimes those things that only happen for a momen and don't even infringe upon gameplay, just aren't worth bothering with.

[@amitbikramsanyal4056]

With the addition of horns, you can also see how enemy behavior was changed. The Lizalfos now really swing their heads and attack with their horn, and you can even see it cutting the grass in front of them.

[@euden_yt]

Every common mob has one new attack, the stalbokos also run towards you, lynels also have the head swing.

[@keithtorgersen9664]

Regular bokos do the same thing, moblins try to head butt you

[@uacrimsonbolt]

I KNEW I wasn’t imagining the Yiga charge attack being slower in TOTK!

[@riq_877]

One small thing I’ve noticed is that in totk when a Lynel falls to the ground after getting headshot their impact with the ground sounds heavy unlike in botw when they hit the ground it’s quiet if not completely silent. Totk makes Lynels feel literally more fleshed out

[@rubengarcia7962]

The sound effect for parrying a lynel attack is also more dramatic than the normal parry sound.

[@Inmortuae2233]

They also make lynels pathetically easy ;-;

[@bataloof]

@@Inmortuae2233 everything's going to be easy after practice / when you know what to do

[@Inmortuae2233]

@@bataloof Lynels do less damage, and you do more. Fighting them is pathetically easy now with or without practice.

[@typh2630]

If I remember correctly a lot of the sounds were (idk the right word to use) remade? Revised? What I’m trying to say is that the entire sound system was reworked to quite literally give more oomph and depth to everything in this world. U can hear rain hitting ur paraglider when ur gliding in a storm, stuff that *looks* heavy actually *sounds* heavy when dropped just to name a few examples. If u ever felt that the soundscape feels more fleshed out that’s bcuz it is

[@damianvila]

As a heavy Stealth Set user in both games, I noticed the change in sound. I realised that it seemed I made more noise in this game. Thanks for the confirmation! These videos are great. Cheers!

[@KingShade1]

So when swinging a weapon in TOTK, Link learned to really put his back into it!

[@quirmple]

I think in the latest update, they changed horses to spawn behind or next to the shrines when exiting to hide the pop in

[@KairuHakubi]

that sounds exploitable if a shrine is in a place where moving the horse would cause something to happen..

[@bureddo]

my favorite armor set in botw was the sheikah set because of how much quieter it made link's movements so i could really hear the sounds in the world. it really is a bummer that the sound muffling was removed in totk :(

[@tsvtsvtsv]

the changes to combos and those animation tweaks go a surprisingly long way to helping make combat feel noticeably snappier and more engaging in totk

[@bloomingtails]

A subtle difference I've noticed between the two is about the chuchu jelly enemies: In Breath of the Wild their appearance or shader refracts the light behind them which gives them a nice effect, but in Tears of the Kingdom it is no longer the case!

[@Demokaze]

The stealth change honestly feels like an oversight than a conscious decision. But the boomerang going at the back is definitely a decision and arguably a downgrade.

[@MagickArcher]

I think of it like he is so skilled at it now he can just catch it with the "sheath" on his back, no hands needed

[@MrStatement]

I don't see the boomerang things as a downgrade since it really changes nothing unless for whatever reason you want to use the boomerang for a melee attack, nothing about throwing the weapon changes here.

[@puffmain3276]

Definitely agree. Picking up a weapon with your hands empty is supposed to give you that weapon, so I don't see why this case should be any different

[@Gabo2oo]

@@MrStatement It's an aesthetic downgrade

[@tronyboy6016]

The boomerang change is only when doing a backflip, when catching it normally it stays in his hand, maybe it was an oversight and it isn’t one that really stands out

[@JacobDragyn]

7:28 I wonder if the horse spawning behavior displayed here is the same between games, except the horse doesn't become visible until after the game checks that it has successfully landed on the ground.

[@nucleos2170]

A detail I discovered just a few hours after playing the game for the first time is the spear flurry rush attack delivers more hits in TotK than in BotW

[@samsvnty]

5:40 with the bush rustling, especially in the depths, I whip around to see what the heck is next to me and it’s usually my sages. Haven’t gotten used to it yet, so hyper vigilant lol

[@harrisonhart8785]

in botw throwing a spear(e.g. fishing harpoon) at a fish(e.g. porgy) would do no durabiliy dmg, in totk the spear sadly breaks imediatly

[@west3Dgaming]

this definitely explains why I'm always missing the parry on yiga charges

[@hakurei_mikorei]

3:14 in tears of the kingdom they also get scared when you equip the Phantom Ganon armor, or any equivalent piece of armor. I think most npcs also have some dialogue when they see you without clothes equipped. Ive seen it at some stables

[@letsdancetojoydiv]

The reactions while wearing the yiga armour are great. Like in gerudo town, you get thrown into jail if you arrive while wearing it

[@ShockMicro]

I've got a few things to say. One response, some change suggestions. - The stealth muffling is sad, but I heard they completely changed the sound system, so I wouldn't blame them if it were much harder to or they just didn't have enough time to re-add the feature. Or, perhaps, this change might need more testing, maybe it's still there but works differently. (Edit: Someone else suggested trying to put on the pants/boots, I think it'd make sense if only those lowered the volume for footsteps/jumping, so maybe that's exactly what they did.) - There's a few UI changes I noticed after watching a few of these videos. I think everyone's noticed how all the blue text in Breath of the Wild's HUD was changed to white in Tears of the Kingdom, but a few other very minute things have changed. The red on the hearts is a lot more orange, while it was just pure red in the original. The hearts also have a subtle glow effect on them now. I'd imagine the change was either to make it feel more distinct, or maybe to go better with the first ability you get. Pure red looks good with the magenta(?) of the Magnesis rune, but I'd imagine it doesn't look as nice with Ultrahand. The red change is a lot more prevalent than just hearts, however- it also affects text highlighted in red as well as enemy health bars! - The Paraglider has a completely different construction in Tears of the Kingdom. Put on the Nostalgic Fabric, you'll see it's made of some sturdier-looking white wood. Speaking of, that fabric pattern itself is also changed a bit! The yellow triangle-line at the bottom of the fabric has been turned into a line of solid color, the top one has been made into a line of rectangles. The Rito's emblem is also slightly smaller in comparison to the size of the fabric. - The shield and sword icons on the HUD have changed. I think the bow may have, as well, but I can't check at the moment. - The item collect box is a bit wider and less round in Tears of the Kingdom, with funky Zonai patterns on the side borders, and a circle pattern in the bottom-right corner. Yeah. I can nitpick like crazy. All of these changes (other than the stealth muffle removal) are very good though, I really like the new designs of everything.

[@rifatbobos]

These are really good take. If you're willing to find out about these things and perhaps much more that you can't list all here, I take that you really like them and that makes you a true fan in my eyes. Not just liking or hating both blindly

[@elijahpark5344]

You're probably right on the sound design standpoint. If they changed how link sounds as he walks through foliage and other object, I can imagine how difficult it would be to design a system that muffles sound AND change based on your surroundings.

[@jamesmichael9110]

Even after the games been out for two months I still haven’t gotten used to the orange hearts and text lol. They highlight a lot more words in orange from what I’ve noticed, especially to make the player pay attention to important details for side quests, but I want my red back!

[@dominicbonogofski]

If they didn't have enough time to re-add the silencing effect to stealth clothing, then consider my salad tossed because they took YEARS to release it and postponed it multiple times after giving us "definitive dates".

[@TheRealBatabii]

I love all the tiny improvements they made that most people wouldn't notice. They really took their time and put in the effort to make it worthwhile

[@AveryCF]

For the most part TotK seems to have a lot of upgrades, but I am a bit bummed out about some small things like them no longer muffling the stealth set sounds. That, and the fact they removed the log balance animation really bother me, as they're such small but lovely details. That said, far less was removed in comparison to what was added so I still adore the changes they made in TotK. You are a LEGEND for finding all these differences and breaking it down for everyone. I adore these videos and honestly wouldn't have noticed all these changes, despite being obsessed with details in things. Thank you so much for this series.

[@gabrielabatista6016]

I'm quite sure the log walking one was due to all the build we make with logs now. You'd be pretty much unintentionally triggering this log walk everytime you walked into a log raft and all, and it could interfere with attack animations.

[@AveryCF]

@@gabrielabatista6016 Yeah, that's what I figured too, but still a shame. It was such a cute animation, even if it may not work with the sequel's gameplay mechanics. :c

[@yamsgarden]

I find it weird that in TOTK when you load your game, you spawn behind your horse. I prefered when Link would already be sitting on it in BOTW just like how I saved my game. Oh well, it's just a small detail, but I prefered it that way XD

[@shannonn2569]

His giving his horse a break too~ I find that actually sweet of Link to do that! Hopping off the horse so it to can rest up and be ready next time you boot it up.

[@ArtemisWasHere]

Looks like that was changed back in an update!

[@Blazingflare2000]

The yiga footsoldoer charge attack actually speeds up in a logorythmic curve in both games, but in BotW, they just start out faster.

[@xinpingdonohoe3978]

Which log base is used for each game? It'll be some sort of log(t+1) if we take landing on the ground after the back flip to be t=0. It's cool to think though that they'd attain infinite speed after infinite time. They definitely don't skip leg day.

[@Blazingflare2000]

@@xinpingdonohoe3978 their speed caps at a certain point I believe. But people have made videos to see how far/fast the yiga would run in BotW using wind bombs and bullet time bouncing and they can reach *incredibly* fast speeds

[@xinpingdonohoe3978]

@@Blazingflare2000 ah, that's a pity. But yes, those videos are pretty cool to watch.

[@KeaganZev]

This explains so much why TOTK just feels so good to play.

[@chiara3511]

A thing i noticed is that in Botw horses will eat apples or carrots that are on the floor, for example i used to cut down apple trees and my horse would just walk up and eat the apples, or in Kakariko village i would put him in the carrot field and he would just eat them all, in Totk this isn't a thing anymore apparently, the horses eat only when eating from Link's hands

[@KairuHakubi]

i definitely saw a totk video where someone brought the horse to a crop field and it ate all the carrots..

[@casesandcapitals]

I knew I felt less stealthy this time, what a bummer

[@Skulll9000]

06:09 THANK YOU for not using that weird interpolated slo-mo effect I often see others use

[@holyelephantmg8838]

Lava is water with a death layer and visual layer on top. They were also deep, and the splash is just water but lava texture. Now it’s shallow, making way for vehicles and Mineru. Also, just realized that his bow stance, while making sense for middle of combat, go and bow, isn’t perfect for consistency. More accurate stance probably won’t happen too much in a fight, so it makes sense. Maybe as a cool detail in the future when there aren’t enemies messing around with a bow would give him a better stance. Also, even for combat, that’s probably too much torque on the bow. Either up and down or side to side, make up your mind. 3:53 Why? Just why would they do that? They had a perfect little detail about him catching it and removed it. Outside of those, I’ve noticed he opens his mouth more. A dumb thing I know, but from what I can tell happens, minus cutscenes like memories because those are obvious. For example, he gets angry when he uses Earthwake. I think he does the burning wince but a little more exaggerated and surprised after being grabbed by a gloom hand(this I’m the least sure about though, I tend to avoid them). Could be wrong, but I feel like he has.

[@shamwow2000]

removing the stealth muffle makes no sense

[@GerardMenvussa]

Maybe it's so you can still hear your own sound to help you keep situational awareness. I don't know.

[@iainoam2565]

I think it's more of an oversight and not a decision to leave it out

[@HelpTheWretched]

I would have preferred the horse drop somewhere in-between the two, so it still falls a few inches, but does the fall as soon as it appears. A nice little *pop* into existence.

[@mangos-1]

Imagine if it just spawns in with a smoke effect

[@robinrai4973]

I'm guessing they might've removed the muffling because it doesn't actually reflect what enemies will pick up? Who knows, I liked it

[@ilbroducciore]

I believe that’s a strong possibility too

[@ventusse]

Maybe also to help with blind runs? I mean, let's face it, sooner or later someone will finish this game blindfolded.

[@THE_PLAGUEtte_503]

@@ventusseI don’t think Nintendo really cares about speedrunners and rightfully so, they shouldn’t alter the game for the tiny percentage of people who speedrun let alone one’s who do it blindfolded.

[@the_great_tigorian_channel]

I've said this before, but it is almost like they got rid of or downgraded some things and improved others. They ought to focus updates on bringing back the good things they got rid of instead of patching out fun glitches.

[@dhruvagarwal6316]

I hate that they removed the feature of link catching the boomerang with his hand and instead he now directly equips it. it looks more realistic and cooler when he catches it in his hand and is literally ready to fight.

[@Chubby_Bub]

That’s interesting, they made spears attack faster but the each hit is actually weaker than the displayed attack power. I guess they balance out but I kind of wish it was just straightforward even if slower.

[@Lu14355]

Don't spears have a lower attack than what's shown in game (and vice versa for 2 handed weapons)?

[@Chubby_Bub]

@@Lu14355 Yes, my mistake, I meant to say the displayed attack is higher. Spears display ~132% of actual damage and two-handed weapons display 95% of actual damage.

[@Lloydoestuff]

loving this series!

[@Garomasta]

Did you check if the stealthier sounds could be tied to legwear?

[@KnightofDarkSorrow]

It isn't. I always wore the Sheikah outfit in BotW, and despite not having played it in a couple years, I immediately noticed that footsteps weren't muffled with the same outfit in TotK.

[@AnnoyingMystery]

The lack of sound muffling explains why i actually feel so much LESS stealthy in Totk

[@rockowlgamer631]

I like it better that the Yiga has the same consistent speed instead of this more predictable slow running start up.

[@JustJulyo]

Can't believe it took 6 years to notice these details

[@jonathansimental1495]

2:57 i guess that makes more sense

[@psyduckrules]

2:23 I literally discovered this one today. It seems like the NPCs don’t flinch unless they see you and the reticle passes over them.

[@duonorilluvia]

In both BOTW and TOTK, a cloud occasionally blocks sunlight. In BOTW, this has no in-game effect: In Gerudo dessert during daytime you still need heat resistance to not take damage. In TOTK, the temperature drops while a cloud is casting shadow, enough to survive without any heat resistance.

[@banop7794]

The Goro watching you fight the Yiga guy: 👁️👄👁️

[@Sergioshi_]

The stealth sound and boomerang catch changes sure are Ls

[@carlosgc9384]

I like to believe that the hit qnimation change means that Link has improved at combat due to those 6 years of sheer practice

[@bookedfox]

My favourite small difference is that collecting meat from a spit no longer brings up the collection box describing it. Really annoying that it did that every time in BoTW.

[@ash_tray]

These are super interesting. Thanks!

[@feiskyokokeisotsun6572]

1:08 You could say that it is a more experienced link, you can see the evolution in those new details

[@Spookie21]

God, remember being able to rapid fire elemental arrows without a damn menu between each one

[@pjensen2886]

I am so glad that even after 100 years, Link changed his underwear.

[@raviolithebest8644]

6:17 Oh my God that Silver Boko looks so bald now

[@loganaugustine67]

I think that link moves a bit faster when holding a rock in Tears of the Kingdom.

[@BlueSun57]

Also I think it’s worth mentioning that the battle music is way cooler in totk lol

[@duckgod666]

U know its gonna be a banger when we start with a bottle of olive oil

[@zeromontalvan1514]

i think the villagers being more alert in botw is more because of the calamity with no one that took care since there weren't any kind of guard outside of guardians, meanwhile in totk there are even extermination groups against monsters, also i commented the lava thing in the last video

[@florences7478]

I think I have noticed a difference but I don't have botw anymore so I'm not sure. In totk the small boomerang and the giant boomerang make the same sound when thrown, I'm pretty sure that in botw they made a different sound with the giant boomerang making a lower, "heavier" sound. Am I remembering wrong ?

[@CatSurfer]

It did have a heavier sound

[@euden_yt]

Now it does the heavy sound if it is fused.

[@susycr04]

Beautiful, perfect... I just can't, I love it 😭😍❤️

[@seriouslywhatever1031]

So they fix the horse by making it invisible until it hits the ground.. I suppose that works lol

[@NBH-km3zn]

Here's another subtle difference: In botw, a splashing noise can be heard when pressing X to dash through water. This is no longer audible in totk.

[@SonicTheCutehog]

7:48 Horse Jumpscare

[@PleaseSeekTherapy]

5:32: Link do be getting a lotta ticks

[@1Patrick]

I love these videos so much! I hope you'll keep making them.

[@DrprofessorFrancis]

Quick science ramble, most lava isn't very conductive since it's miscellaneous rock, but liquids from already conductive things melted like metal do stay conductive. Water's only a good conductor because of the stuff that's not water!

[@keithtorgersen9664]

Why does it look like old man Tokk does react to you drawing your weapon, even though you are directly behind him?

[@xbloxlive5454]

Awesome, new video!😊❤🎉

[@IamMortui]

1:27 I hate this change.

[@PanEtRosa]

huh.... on #9, I actually prefer BotW's animations. they look tighter, more controlled and powerful. the ones in TotK look like he's about to fall out of the motion

[@skilarbabcock8720]

The blunt weapon thing was already covered in one of your previous videos...

[@ChrisHoulihan]

I miss the muffling, the sound of Link’s footsteps is completely different in TOTK and I end up changing his clothes/gear just to soften the sound

[@monhi64]

Oh man the dude who’s in charge of designing the horse spawn animations must be so stressed. Bro’s been working on it 7 years and hasn’t figured it out yet. The funniest part is Nintendo not caring enough to fix it, cuz there’s no way horses have to be that hard to spawn on the ground right?

[@RipVanFish09]

I like the way botw handled the horses better. Also, another small change is that the save files use a 12 hour clock now instead of a 24 hour one, which is nice.

[@MrStatement]

Horses are literally the same...

[@RipVanFish09]

@@MrStatement The first sentence was talking about the video (the last item in it). I think the botw way of having them spawn in and plop down a bit was a bit more charming than just appearing. It is a bit confusing though, I will admit.

[@MrStatement]

@@RipVanFish09 Them just dropping down looked weird.

[@RipVanFish09]

@@MrStatement Yeah it is a bit weird, especially because they don't have any animations. I like it because its weird. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@MrStatement]

@@RipVanFish09 Idk it just always felt kinda unpolished looking in the first game imo.

[@justamicrowave5297]

They didn’t entirely remove the muffling though, if you pay closer attention there’s definitely a difference.

[@idoxially]

Why did they change the boomerang catch? It was so cool

[@justamicrowave5297]

I think it being equipped to his back is pretty cool too though. It’s kinda like it just flies back into place on it’s own.

[@Viktoria_Selene]

3:50 its?!

[@Tee643]

It seems to me like they wanted the physics to be more present or realistic in TotK

[@aischatikowsky6244]

Then why did they change the boomerang catch? I think it was more realistic when link catched it with his hands.

[@TyrantSh4dow]

Im not 100 percent sure ima have to check but in Totk link jump attack for height distance animation was changed. If you hold down the attack button from the high distance I should be diff I’ll check later tho

[@leovomend8789]

4:10 what if you equip something else before the boomerang comes back?

[@codeyisafk9487]

No no no the first one may actually make some sense because there could be some metal in the lava

[@anthonyk3952]

The change to two-handers is honestly a disappointing downgrade. Looking at it in slow-mo, it's like BotW Link is doing one fluid uppercut swing, while TotK it looks like he's prepping an overhead swing, only to change his mind halfway through the swing, and has to awkwardly contort his body to change into an uppercut.

[@xinpingdonohoe3978]

He does look a bit too unwieldy now.

[@ilbroducciore]

Animation goes hand in hand with exaggeration though - there’s one good video on Sakurai’s channel about that :)

[@azfaarrealm9426]

0:24 That's molten rock! How does that work?

[@owRekssjfjxjxuurrpqpqss]

I wondered why spears felt so much better in totk.

[@bananadaily2317]

some i wish they didn’t remove

[@ShayNBrayden]

Crazy to think botw was originally for WiiU

[@kateglew580]

Maybe it's my imagination, but I feel like lynels are slightly slower in TOTK. Is there a way to check this?

[@dchen73]

Do you have to wear stealth boots in order to get muffled footsteps?

[@darklordyianni4463]

Do more on glitches and past games. Otherwise, awesome as always, you have an eagle eye to spot some of these!

[@xDreamredits]

5:10 it's almost as if link got stronger since botw that he is able to do it faster!

[@milkinobama]

No wonder spears seem much better in this game.

[@AshkarBehek0]

botw: Lava is wet !!! totk: No.

[@psyduckrules]

4:34 What the hell is ‘whiffed’?

[@MikeCheckBiloxi]

I totk when you open a treasure chest while crouching, link punches it and hurts his hand. I don't know if its the same with botw but funny nonetheless

[@newbiezinc4338]

This is in original BOTW

[@Zombie5675]

If you walk in totk and crouch while walking Link will just crouch and walk. Im botw Link stops for a second, a bit more abruptly.

[@rogersasanka3408]

Do you know what’s funny? My brother is strong in BOTW but weak in TOTK. And it’s vice versa for me. I’m weak in BOTW but strong in TOTK

[@ginmil3436]

I haven't updated my game yet but I notice that link is slower in Tok does anyone notice this? Or maybe enemies are faster but there's something weird.

[@painuchiha2694]

Botw was crazy ahead of its time when some details aren’t even in totk lol

[@Fuchsfein]

All the little changes make me appreciate this amazing game even more. I love that attention detail. That was true for BotW already but they used the sequel development time to polish things even further. The slow down of the spear charge attack in BotW always felt like lag to me. I can see why they changed that.

[@justprime1998]

What about wind waker ?

[@blacknass1943]

4:27 less pixels as BOTW O_O this is the onley bad thing ! its to nice game for the week switch 7:54 again to week the switch for TOTK

[@dazzlemasseur]

Damb i thought i was crazy

[@soj56]

Never forget what they took from you.