At midnight Nintendo officially launched The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom.

Why It Matters

The highly anticipated sequel to the masterpiece Breathe of the Wild promises to suck up a lot of free time for gamers. While rivals Sony and Microsoft lean into the hardware capabilities of their consoles to drive sales and third party developer interest, Nintendo has stubbornly stuck with Switch’s aged configuration. You do not pick up a Nintendo for good graphics, but for great games.

What to Look For

• Better utilization of Switch’s capabilities given Breathe of the Wild was developed for Wii U.
• New weapon building mechanics.
• The ability to go vertical and explore more places.

The Price Hike

Tears of the Kingdom sets a new price point for Nintendo games with an MSRP of $69.99. $10 more than most AAA games. If you are willing to live with a digital copy you can buy two $50 gift cards for $44.99 each at Costco. Then buy a pack of digital game vouchers for $100 from the eShop and use one to get Tears of the Kingdom for a net price of $44.99.