Top Zelda-like Games Similar to Tears of the Kingdom Worth Playing Next

Hyrule’s latest adventure may have ended, but the hunger for mystery, magic, and exploration never fades. These 14 Zelda-like games capture that same spirit of discovery-offering new lands to wander, puzzles to outsmart, and myths waiting to be lived anew.

With the recent influx of Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance games to Nintendo’s online subscription service, it’s easier than it’s ever been to play most of the mainline Zelda games. We here at AELGAMES have been blazing through the series’ classic catalog in celebration of the release of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. It’s a joy to play the games back to back and watch the series evolve in microcosm between each subsequent entry.

In 2023, AELGAMES is embarking on a Zeldathon. Join us on our journey through The Legend of Zelda series, from the original 1986 game to the release of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and beyond.

But sometimes, it’s just as much fun, if not more so, to play the games that were inspired by Zelda – to see how different studios interpreted the pillars of Nintendo’s action-adventure franchise.

Because, really: What makes a Zelda game a Zelda game? Is it the characters? Is it the puzzle-based dungeons? Is it collection of cool new tools, which you’ll need to master in order to take down the next boss? For each new Zelda game that reinforced these pillars, just as many came along to refute them. (I myself am partial to Majora’s Mask, perhaps the most subversive chapter in the “let’s shake things up” line of thinking.) It’s this malleability that has led to such a diverse range of “Zelda-like” games.

So, if you, like us, are still hungering for more Zelda in the wake of Breath of the Wild‘s direct sequel, we’ve compiled a list of our favorite alternatives that embody the term “Zelda-like.” Some focus on puzzles; others embrace time manipulation; one gives us the strongest glimpse yet at a Zelda game entirely focused on combat. We kept the criteria vague because, well, the criteria were vague to begin with. And that’s why it’s so fun.

Our latest update added Portal 2, Nier: Automata, and Genshin Impact.

Eastward

Eastward blends touching storytelling with retro-inspired adventure, following Sam and John through beautifully crafted towns, mysterious ruins, and puzzle-filled areas. Its pixel art style and atmospheric soundtrack give each location a sense of warmth and melancholy, while its combat and exploration echo classic Zelda structure with a modern emotional twist.

Where to play: Mac, Nintendo Switch, Windows PC, Xbox One

The Legend of Zelda’s influence on Eastward is clear the moment you load up the game; its gameplay and style oozes Zelda right down to the heart meter denoting your hit points. From Chinese developer Pixpil, Eastward is a 2021 role-playing game that takes the player, well, eastward into a mysterious post-apocalyptic world with a gruff guy named John and a magical kid named Sam. The world’s puzzles require the player to use both John and Sam in different ways; John’s got a frying pan good for whacking enemies, while Sam’s magical powers stun enemies. They’re controllable simultaneously, using a controller’s trigger to bring one or the other to the front. Part Earthbound and part Zelda, Eastward is a must-play for anyone interested in pixel-art RPGs. -Nicole Carpenter

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Death’s Door

Death’s Door blends the charm of classic Zelda structure with a sharp, melancholic twist. You play as a crow tasked with collecting souls, exploring beautifully crafted regions filled with puzzles, hidden paths, and clever boss fights. Its minimalist storytelling and striking art design create a moody atmosphere that balances whimsy and sorrow. The smooth combat and smart world design make it feel both familiar and fresh for fans of Nintendo’s iconic formula.

Where to play: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X

If Eastward is Earthbound meets The Legend of Zelda, then Death’s Door is a mixture of Dark Souls and Zelda. Death’s Door has the top-down exploration of many Zelda games, where players collect upgrades and tools while moving through puzzles and dungeons, but pairs that with a dark world and challenging boss battles more akin to Dark Souls. It’s about a crow, named Crow, who’s a reaper of souls – their journey takes them from the bureaucracy of the afterlife into the world where souls reside. It’s a simple game that does everything near perfectly, a kinder “hard” game with a difficulty level that ramps up as the game continues. -Nicole Carpenter

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Okami HD

Okami HD blends action, puzzle-solving, and mythology with painterly visuals inspired by Japanese art. Players take on the role of the sun goddess Amaterasu, using the Celestial Brush to restore nature and fight demons. Its mix of open exploration, creative mechanics, and heartfelt storytelling easily appeals to fans of Zelda’s structure and spirit.

Where to play: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows PC, Xbox One

Okami has become known for its ostensible similarity to Twilight Princess, the Zelda title that features Link in lupine form. But the similarities extend beyond this superficial character comparison – to the extent that fans consider it one of the best unofficial Zelda games. It’s speckled with puzzles, and clearing regions adds to the protagonist’s toolkit: a series of Celestial Brush powers that let you modify the environment around you. The game seems to have Zelda in its DNA, even in its smallest moments, which I’ve unpacked in another piece:

Like in Zelda games, dungeons had elemental themes: I used levers to lower the waterline in a cursed pirate ship, and fire powers in a lava-themed dungeon. Though Okami‘s puzzles are less open-ended than those of Breath of the Wild – it’s pretty obvious which brushstrokes you use to solve things – I was still wowed by the powers I amassed, and how they let me modify the world.

-Nicole Clark

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Nobody Saves the World

Drinkbox Studios’ Nobody Saves the World turns the classic top-down fantasy RPG on its head with a shapeshifting mechanic that lets you transform between dozens of forms-from slug to necromancer-to solve puzzles and conquer dungeons. Its witty dialogue, fast-paced combat, and inventive form-combo system bring a fresh twist to the Zelda formula, rewarding creativity and experimentation at every turn.

Where to play: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X

Drinkbox Studios’ top-down dungeon crawler is Zelda for a new generation, from its zany overworld encounters to the procedurally generated grottoes underneath. Its mix-and-match progression allows players to veer off in the direction of their preferred play style while still holding out the option of seeing and unlocking everything. Most importantly, Nobody is set in a once-cheerful fairyland worth saving, whose kooky mission-giving NPCs always summon at least a dry chuckle. -Owen Good

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Tunic

Tunic blends the charm of classic top-down adventures with a mysterious, wordless narrative that encourages curiosity and exploration. You play as a small fox armed with a sword and shield, uncovering secrets in beautifully designed dungeons and ancient ruins. The game’s unique mechanic-deciphering an in-game manual written in an unknown language-creates a rewarding sense of discovery and problem-solving, similar to unwrapping a long-lost legend piece by piece.

Where to play: Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X

Tunic stars a tiny fox that wields a sword and a shield, clearly a nod to The Legend of Zelda’s hero Link – the fox even wears a green tunic. Full of puzzles and secrets, Tunic is a game that uses nostalgia for games and franchises like The Legend of Zelda, mostly through its essential manual, which is built right into the game. When Tunic begins, the manual is incomplete, which means there’s tons of information missing. The player has to navigate Tunic‘s world using this incomplete information to find more pages, unlocking new ways to solve puzzles. It’s the secrets and mysteries of the world, which sometimes mean asking friends for help, that make Tunic special – the fighting itself isn’t the draw. It feels like playing a Zelda game as a kid, one where I could talk secrets and strategies with my friends. -Nicole Carpenter

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Unsighted

Unsighted blends pixel art action with emotional storytelling, placing you in a post-apocalyptic city where androids lose their sentience as time runs out. Its combat is fast and demanding, encouraging mastery of dodges, parries, and weapon upgrades. A dynamic timer keeps every decision meaningful, as characters can perish if you hesitate too long. Fans of Zelda-style exploration and moral tension will find its mix of freedom and urgency deeply engaging.

Where to play: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows PC, Xbox One

Unsighted takes a lot of classic Zelda elements and makes them new thanks to a unique (and honestly stressful) twist. You play as an automata that requires a gem substance to live. Unfortunately this substance is increasingly scarce – as such, everyone’s lives (including yours) are on the clock. When the clock runs out, you become unsighted, and liable to attack friends and lovers. The game wears its classic Zelda influences on its sleeve, with a full three layers of map bounded off by regions that require flexible and creative problem solving to beat. The protagonist’s kit grows after completing each region, with novel traversal tools and weapons that range from a giant top that allows you to travel over high wires to shuriken that set things on fire or turn water into ice. -Nicole Clark

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Fez

Fez swaps swords and dungeons for perspective-bending puzzles, asking you to rotate a charming pixelated universe to reveal hidden paths, secrets, and collectibles. Its quiet exploration, cryptic language, and layered riddles scratch the same curiosity itch as Zelda’s more mysterious shrines, rewarding patient observation and note-taking as much as platforming skill.

Where to play: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows PC

If you’ve played Fez, or at least remember when it was announced, you know the feeling you had when the 2D landscape rotated and revealed the other side of the cliff or cave or platform for you to climb. First published in 2012 (most recently in 2021 for Nintendo Switch), Fez is worthy of the Zelda-like mantle in how the player discovers and changes the playing space and works to unlock the secrets inside. -OG

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Portal 2

Portal 2 trades swords and shields for wit and physics, blending puzzle-solving with story-driven humor. Its interconnected chambers and clever gadget-based mechanics capture the curiosity and creativity fans love in Zelda-style adventures. The pacing, characters, and sense of discovery reward exploration and experimentation, much like wandering through a mysterious dungeon filled with tricks waiting to be solved.

Where to play: Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 3, Windows PC, Xbox 360

When I think of Zelda, I think of great environmental puzzles, and the Portal games still stand out as some of the best puzzle games ever released. In Portal 2, you play as Chell, a playtester trapped in the crumbling ruins of a defunct research corporation called Aperture Science. As the story develops, you’ll try to escape the corporate labyrinth as the diabolical supercomputer GLaDOS puts your wits to the test.

The game is almost like one giant (and fantastic) Zelda dungeon. You will solve puzzles room by room by strategically placing portals that allow Chell to explore and manipulate the environment to get from point A to B. Sure, Portal 2 doesn’t have as much to offer as far as open exploration goes, but even this linear game has its fair share of secrets tucked within crumbling lab environments. It’s a must-play for any Zelda fan. – Ana Diaz

Nier: Automata

Nier: Automata blends philosophical storytelling with fast-paced combat and haunting atmosphere, much like Zelda’s mix of exploration and emotional depth. Players guide androids through ruined cities and deserts, uncovering secrets about humanity’s disappearance while mastering fluid melee and ranged combat. Its open zones encourage curiosity, while the shifting perspectives and music create an experience that balances action, sadness, and discovery in a way few games manage.

Where to play: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows PC, Xbox One

Okay, so what if Link listened to Lana Del Rey and was a sad girl? That’s how I would describe Nier: Automata to any Zelda fans interested in the game.

Nier: Automata is set in a dystopian future where humankind is under the attack of alien robots. To fight these bad robots, humans created their own androids, called YoRHa units, so that the sexy, human-like YoRHa machines could fight the rusty alien machines. The premise might sound silly, but it’s a stunning game on multiple levels and certainly a fantastic next play for any Zelda fan.

You start the story playing as the thigh-high boot-wearing android 2B, but you’ll eventually play as others and see the story unfold from the perspective of multiple characters. As we see the world in ruin from its various observers, the game takes on a contemplative nature that grapples with fundamental questions like what it means to love or to be human. For anyone who appreciates the darker aspects of the Zelda series, Nier: Automata is a great game to play next. – Ana Diaz

Genshin Impact

Genshin Impact offers a vast open world filled with elemental magic, puzzle-solving, and exploration that recalls the spirit of Zelda. Players can switch between characters with unique abilities, glide across valleys, and uncover hidden treasures scattered across Teyvat. Its combat system, which rewards clever elemental combinations, adds a strategic layer that keeps each battle engaging. With frequent updates and new regions to explore, it provides a rich adventure for anyone who loved the creative freedom of Tears of the Kingdom.

Where to play: Android, iOS, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC

Genshin Impact has always been compared to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, but the free-to-play game from Hoyoverse has more to offer than just being a Breath of a Wild-like. From the pillared cliffs of the Guaguang Stone Forest in Liyue to the glittering crystalline coral reefs of Fontaine, Genshin Impact contains some of the most unique environmental design and best exploration I’ve ever seen in an open-world adventure game. That, and the gorgeous orchestrated soundtrack from Yu-Peng Chen make the game a great option for anyone looking for a new adventure after Zelda.

Still, this recommendation does come with a few caveats. It’s a gacha game, so you need to do daily and weekly quests (and just generally sink time into the game) to accumulate in-game currency to gamble and get a chance to play as certain characters. In addition to this, the game contains several winding and superfluous quests that drag on for way too long. It’s a pretty different experience from anyone coming straight from a Zelda game, so just make sure you lean into the fun exploration aspects of the game if you want to try. – Ana Diaz

Outer Wilds

Outer Wilds transforms exploration into a cosmic mystery, setting players loose in a solar system caught in a time loop. Each planet hides unique environments and secrets that reward curiosity and careful observation. Instead of combat, the focus lies on discovery and piecing together the story of an ancient civilization. Its open structure and sense of wonder will resonate deeply with Zelda fans who value curiosity-driven storytelling.

Where to play: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X

2021 may have been the year of time-loop video games, but none of them approached the brilliance of 2019’s Outer Wilds. Set in a miniature galaxy in a lonely neck of some forgotten universe, developer Mobius Digital’s puzzle- and exploration-based adventure game is as much about solving mysteries about specific characters as it is about understanding the intricacies of entire planets. The catch? The entire world ends every 22 minutes, sending you back to your home on Timber Hearth, armed only with the knowledge you gained during the previous loop. Outer Wilds is a true spiritual successor to Majora’s Mask, in which time is an intricate gameplay system, but also the specter looming over every character caught in its web. -Mike Mahardy

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Chicory: A Colorful Tale

Chicory: A Colorful Tale transforms the familiar action-adventure structure into a heartfelt story about creativity and self-doubt. Armed with a magical paintbrush, players restore color to a once-brilliant world while solving puzzles and helping charming animal residents. Its hand-drawn art style and gentle tone make exploration relaxing yet meaningful, echoing Zelda’s spirit through artistic expression rather than combat.

Where to play: Mac, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC

In Chicory: A Colorful Tale you fill the world with color, one brush stroke at a time. You become a “wielder” by accident – the last wielder, Chicory, crumbled under pressure, locking herself in her room. It’s up to you to make the world beautiful once more. The game makes sharp commentary on artistic pressure, worthiness, and community support. It’s also an incredible Zelda-style top-down puzzle game, with the paintbrush enabling you to do outlandish things – like travel through vines and rivers or climb up walls. It was one of our game of the year contenders in 2021, and even now the game is a standout. -Nicole Clark

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Hyper Light Drifter

Hyper Light Drifter channels Zelda’s exploration through its pixel-art ruins and cryptic lore, demanding precise combat against shadowy foes. Players dash across a desolate world, uncovering secrets with a sword and gun while solving environmental puzzles that echo classic dungeon designs. Its haunting soundtrack and nonlinear map reward bold risks, much like Hyrule’s open fields.

Where to play: iOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows PC, Xbox One

Another top-down adventure masterpiece, Hyper Light Drifter is an open-ended adventure that, like The Legend of Zelda, subtly directs the player to level up and become more powerful before taking on the next boss or the big bad. Heart Machine’s world, explicitly inspired by The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, is worth the exploration, and the discovery that awaits will enthrall you. -OG

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Elden Ring

FromSoftware’s Elden Ring expands the sense of exploration and mystery that Zelda fans love, offering a vast interconnected map filled with secrets, dungeons, and challenging foes. Its freedom to tackle objectives in any order, combined with deep lore and rewarding combat, makes it a rich adventure for players who enjoy discovering new corners of a captivating fantasy setting.

Where to play: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X

What’s left to say about Elden Ring? Quite a lot, I think. It’s as wide as it is deep, as funny as it is melancholic, and as punishing as it is empowering. And with new DLC out, I suspect many of us are making a return to The Lands Between, whenever that may be.

And while it’s easy enough to compare it to Breath of the Wild – or at least, developer FromSoftware’s take on Breath of the Wild – Elden Ring owes just as much to the Zelda game that started it all in 1986. Elden Ring‘s creators refuse to hold your hand as you explore a foreboding, mysterious, often gorgeous wilderness, its dungeons, and a snaking underworld that lies beneath it. Boss fights are as intense as they are terrifying, and finding a boss’s weakness could mean venturing the other side of the map to find its Achilles’ heel. Like Breath of the Wild, Elden Ring may look new, but its ideas date back to a game about a young boy spelunking in the Japanese countryside. It just took us decades to catch up to that daydream. -Mike Mahardy

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Where to buy Hyper Light Drifter on Switch

Hyper Light Drifter Special Edition is available digitally on the Nintendo eShop for Switch and through various key resellers.

Digital Purchase Options

The eShop offers direct download, often with occasional sales dropping the price from its standard around $20 USD.​
Key sites like GG.deals list it for as low as $19.99 at GameStop (digital code), Eneba, and Instant Gaming (though check region compatibility for Europe/NL).

Physical Copies

Physical Special Editions (with extras like soundtrack CDs and posters) are rarer now-check sites like Limited Run Games, Best Buy, or eBay for remaining stock, as many retailers like Bol.com and MarioSwitch.nl list them as out of stock or second-hand only.
In the Netherlands, try Budget Gaming or local stores via Bol.com, but expect higher prices (€40-70) for sealed copies due to limited supply.

Quick Tips

• For NL/EU: Use Nintendo eShop (nintendo.nl) or EU-key sellers like Eneba to avoid region issues.

• Compare deals on GG.deals for the lowest current price across stores.​

Hyper Light Drifter Special Edition current price on Nintendo eShop

Hyper Light Drifter Special Edition’s standard price on the Nintendo eShop is $19.99 USD (€19.99 in the EU/NL region), with occasional sales dropping it as low as $9.99-$13.99 based on recent promotions.

Regional Pricing Notes

In the Netherlands (via nintendo.nl eShop), expect €19,99 as the base price, though Nintendo frequently runs discounts-check Deku Deals or the eShop directly for current offers, as no active sale is noted in the latest trackers.
US eShop listings consistently show $19.99 outside sales.

Price Comparison Table

Prices can vary by currency fluctuations and promotions; log into your eShop account in Lelystad for the exact NL listing.