It’s the vibe. TotK just… Feels more industrial, and less clean and hopeful. BotW was just so pretty and you HAD to walk to places or glide the first time. The machines in TotK made it so easy to skip the nature that it felt less rewarding to play. Like, if you could just snap your fingers and have the perfect house immediately with no work, no effort, the house wouldn’t feel as rewarding as one you built with your own skill.
Zelda Breath of the wild for me. Don’t get me wrong I enjoyed Tears of the Kingdom but breath of the wild scratched a perfect itch for me. Especially master mode. Well over 1000 hours played.
I’m surprised no one has mentioned The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild The new game, legend of Zelda tears of the Kingdom, is good but it doesn’t give me the same happy fuzzies that breath of the wild does. Stardew valley is another happy simple game. If you’re looking for the challenge tingles, dark souls is always fun. XD