>>717171594I just think the setting and stories were far more interesting before Skyward Sword introduced sci-fi tech, infinite reincarnations, and Hylia to the series. You had a very fantastical series that didn't shy away from whimsy and a world of fairies. The role of the Triforce and thus the goddesses who made them were paramount, making these magical artifacts the cornerstone of change in the series rather than the off chance of three key people just happening to reincarnate. The games where the Triforce isnt all that important are especially unique and have the most creative adventures in the franchise (i.e., Link's Awakening, Majora's Mask, Four-Swords).
The modern games lean too hard into the sci-fi tech angle for me to really get invested in the setting, and the "1000+ year old ancient civilization with modern IRL tech" gimmick has been retooled since 2011; its gotten old and its not interesting anymore. I'm not asking for another OoT wannabe, but every Zelda game until SS managed to feel completely unique and distinct from each other in tone and setting while feeling like a classical fantasy, and the series just doesnt have that anymore.
Also, despite being "lol trains", Spirit Tracks has a more interesting world than the one depicted in BOTW & TOTK
>t. zoomer who played GBA LTTP as a kid and grew up with 3DS OoT & MM