Gaming

I think if you disagree with all of those points so surely, then you need to play more non-nintendo games.

Obviously you can still love these games even if you've played a bunch of other stuff, but a lot of the specific points I've made are pretty dang objective in the context of the wider gaming space, not subjective. The world is objectively very empty compared to other open world titles (especially new ones but even some that were out in 2017), the combat system is objectively very simplistic, the side quest rewards are objectively not that useful in the context of the game, the progression is objectively very lackluster after the tutorial areas, etc.

You can have a difference in opinion that's totally chill, and you can prefer Nintendo games that's also totally chill. It's just whenever I speak to people about these games such as yourself, and I hear them say things like what you're saying, it's almost always been an indicator that this person is either a huge Nintendo fan or just hasn't played many other titles that would be in this same genre. BOTW and TOTK are good games but they have clear flaws.

The thing is, can you make any objective arguments towards any of them?

Because here's mine:

• Yes, the world is empty and boring, because all you'll really find by wandering around are Korok seeds and "enemy camps" with the same few types of Bokoblin. If you're lucky you'll find a dragon somewhere or oh, look, there's Eventide and Tarry Town, the two only tiny drops of interesting content in this oceanic heightmap of a game outside of the main quest.

• As for clunky movement, I guess they're just frustrated by the jump button? I do disagree about it being clunky but, then, I disagree with the whole principle of controls being "clunky" unless you're talking about something like Dwarf Fortress.

• Yes, the combat system is absolutely shallow. You get a single multi-hit string and a charged up swing for each weapon type and... that's about it. More importantly the way you engage enemies is just... they do their one big swing that leaves them wide open, you knock them around like a ragdoll. It's just not particularly fun. Yes, you can mess around with the sandbox, but for most people that really means "spam bombs" and more importantly, straight-up combat is actually easier while it should be the other way around. If you can just autopilot your way through fighting things it's just not all that fun.

• Weapon durability... really just please come up with an actual argument for it. It made sense in Wind Waker where these weapons weren't being used as "rewards" for exploration because Wind Waker actually had a traditional LoZ style item system. In a game where weapons disappear after one significant fight, don't reward people with a fancy sword after a significant fight. It's just a pointless treadmill.

• The story- The only LoZ games with anything resembling an interesting story are Majora's Mask, Skyward Sword and maybe Wind Waker. I'll always argue that Nintendo never actually had any notion of these games existing in a "timeline" beyond vague references until they realized that superfans kept coming up with their own, and more importantly, these stories are intentionally shallow as hell. Characters have zero depth, the plot is forever a retread of old ideas, there's little to no actual world building beyond what fans have done for Nintendo themselves.

• Shrines repetitive? It depends on what you're looking for, but it can't be argued that they're no classic Zelda dungeons. They're like one teeny-tiny chunk of traditional Zelda dungeon, all split up, all with no context beyond "hey we hid all these spirit orbs away because gameplay". Traditional Zelda dungeons had interesting themes and at least the illusion that you needed to conserve your resources because you were, y'know, stuck in a dungeon.

• Side quests: Like weapon durability, how could you argue that the side quests in these games aren't unrewarding? All you'll ever get from them are consumable items. That really sort of just sucks.

• Getting every tool at the start- Once again, this is just true. An unfortunate result of the "structure" of these games is that there really can't be any major progression because that would prevent the goal of ensuring that you can just wander right over to Gannon and beat the snot out of him with a stick after you wake up without too much trouble. Morrowind worked like this too, if you felt like it you could head right up Red Mountain and try killing Dagoth Ur even though your character probably doesn't even know who the hell he is yet. But it's not going to work.