The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom | Games of the Year 2023

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Zora's Domain is covered in sludge and Prince Sidon needs my help.

First, I need to restore the Zora armour (a simple 'find the fish' fetch quest), which will enable me to swim up waterfalls to some sky islands. I don't know what's up there, but I suspect the armour's base rating of 3 isn't going to be enough protection so it's off to the Great Fairy fountain for an upgrade – except she needs some Hyrule bass (basses? bassi?) to do so, which means I've got to head back to central Hyrule and go pond dipping. Inevitably, I find and complete shrines during my search.

Upon my return, I decide to upgrade my standard get-up (Cap of the Wind, Hylian Trousers, and Hylian Armour dyed traditional Link green, natch), only to discover the Great Fairy can't offer the maximum level because I still have one of her sisters to find. This leads me on a fairly lengthy gallop around Hyrule, trying to remember where the last giant flowerbud is, and then to another musical troupe quest, which takes me far to the south, to Faron, to find fireflies for a flute player. More shrines are ticked off along the way.

The band reunited, I prepare to take them to the fountain when I notice Penn, my Rito colleague from the Lucky Clover Gazette, who is investigating a potential Princess Zelda sighting. So I offer to look into it and… wait, wasn't I saving Zora's Domain?

The above meandering filled a couple of hours. It honestly felt like 30 minutes. And the best thing is none of that was forced upon me. This was not padding, or interjecting side quests designed to ensure I'm levelled up for the next main quest beat. This was the pure joy of curiosity, of discovery, of simply wondering 'What's over there?'

As a long-running Zelda fan, it's no surprise