Study Reveals Gamings greatest sequels, with the latest entry in The Legend of Zelda series selling faster than any other game in the franchise, there is little doubt that the success of Link’s latest outing could match up to the series’ previous instalment, Breath of the Wild.
But how does Tears of the Kingdom stack up against other renowned sequels in the industry? To uncover whether Nintendo’s latest blockbuster could sit among the best of all time, Uswitch online gaming statistics used metacritic and sales data to compose a list of gaming’s greatest sequels.
If you use any of the data within this release, we kindly ask that you provide a link to the full study at Uswitch online gaming statistics as credit.
Table 1: Gamings greatest sequels
| Rank | Game | IMDb Score (/10) | Metacritic User Score (/10) | Metacritic Score (/100) |
| 1 | The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time | 9.6 | 9.1 | 99 |
| 2 | Half-Life 2 | 9.4 | 9.2 | 96 |
| 3 | The Witcher 3 | 9.7 | 9.1 | 93 |
| 4 | Red Dead Redemption II | 9.7 | 8.7 | 97 |
| 5 | Resident Evil 4 | 9.2 | 9.3 | 96 |
| 6 | Mass Effect 2 | 9.5 | 8.9 | 96 |
| 7 | Portal 2 | 9.4 | 9.1 | 95 |
| 8 | Batman: Arkham City | 9.4 | 8.8 | 96 |
| 9 | God of War (2018) | 9.3 | 9.1 | 94 |
| 10 | Super Mario Galaxy 2 | 9.0 | 9.1 | 97 |
| 11 | The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom | 9.5 | 8.7 | 95 |
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, the fifth entry in the Zelda series, takes the number one spot, with not only the highest metacritic score in the study, but of any game overall (99). Named the third greatest game of all time by Time Magazine in 2016, Ocarina of Time takes the crown as the best sequel and best entry in the Zelda series, despite being released almost 15 years ago, in November of 1998.
Half-Life 2 is the second best sequel in gaming. The first-person shooter has consistently received high scores from critics and fans, with the highest metacritic user score analysed (9.2) after Resident Evil 4 (9.3). The Witcher 3 ranks third, tying for the highest IMDb score analysed with Red Dead Redemption II (9.7).
Notably, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is absent from the top 10. The new open world adventure is in 11th place, with a metacritic score of 95, and a metacritic user score of 8.7. Outside of the critical response, Tears of the Kingdom has sold well over ten million copies, more sales than many other prestigious sequels like The Last of Us Part II, Halo 2, and Super Mario Galaxy 2.
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