**The Groundbreaking Innovation of a Frog with a Tongue: Why “Big Hops” is Definitely the Next Tears of the Kingdom (Sarcasm Heavily Implied)**

If you’ve spent any time reading tech journalism lately, you’ve likely noticed a recurring trend: every indie game featuring a protagonist with more than two limbs is inevitably hailed as the “successor to Nintendo’s throne.” The latest recipient of this hyperbolic crown is *Big Hops*, a 3D platformer that—according to the breathless summary—is basically *The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom*, but with more amphibians and fewer existential crises.

Let’s dive into the logic of why “breaking” a game about a frog is exactly like pioneering the most advanced physics engine in modern gaming history.

### The “Breaking the Game” Fallacy

The central claim here is that *Big Hops* encourages you to “break” it, drawing a direct parallel to the emergent gameplay of *Tears of the Kingdom*. It’s a bold comparison. In *Zelda*, breaking the game involves using a complex chemistry system, modular vehicle construction, and spatial manipulation to bypass challenges.

In *Big Hops*, “breaking the game” usually translates to “I used a grappling hook mechanic to skip a platforming section the developer didn’t quite playtest for verticality.” There is a fundamental difference between a sandbox designed for infinite solutions and an indie platformer where the collision boxes are just suggestions. Calling clunky movement “game-breaking by design” is like calling a leaky faucet an “interactive water feature.” It’s not a feature; it’s a lifestyle choice for people who miss the glitchy charm of 1997.

### The Revolutionary Invention of… The Tongue?

The article waxes poetic about the frog’s tongue, claiming it’s the primary way you interact with the world—grabbing pots, swinging from hooks, and snagging snacks. This is truly “remixing Nintendo’s best,” if by “best” we mean the obscure 1997 N64 title *Chameleon Twist*.

Let’s be real: the “tongue-as-a-grappling-hook” mechanic is older than most of the people currently playing *Big Hops*. We’ve seen it in *Yoshi’s Island*, we’ve seen it in *Bionic Commando* (replace “moist muscle” with “metal arm”), and we’ve seen it in every “cute” animal platformer that has graced Steam in the last decade. Claiming this is a fresh take on the genre is like claiming a sourdough starter is a new invention because you put it in a jar with a googly-eyed frog sticker.

### The “Nintendo Remix” Branding

The assumption that *Big Hops* is a “remix of Nintendo’s best” is the ultimate gaming journalism trope. It’s the “Dark Souls of…” of the platforming world. By name-dropping Nintendo, the author bypasses the need to actually describe why the game is good.

Does it have the meticulous level design of *Super Mario Odyssey*? Does it have the airtight controls of *Metroid Dread*? Or does it just use a primary color palette and have a “cute animal character” who collects “shiny objects”? Just because a game features an airship and a collect-a-thon loop doesn’t make it a Nintendo remix; it makes it a standard entry in a genre that has been solidified since *Banjo-Kazooie* was a glimmer in Rare’s eye.

### Emergent Gameplay or Just… Jumping?

The article suggests that Hop’s journey back home is a compelling narrative hook. He’s a frog who was moved and now needs to get back. Riveting. It’s essentially *Homeward Bound* if Shadow was green and had a prehensile tongue.

The claim that “breaking it is the point” feels like a pre-emptive defense for when players inevitably find a way to clip through a wall or skip 40% of the airship part collection. In *Tears of the Kingdom*, Link’s Ultrahand is a tool for creativity. In a 3D platformer, “breaking” the movement usually just means the speedrunners are going to have a field day while the average player wonders why they just spent ten minutes trying to licks-grapple a pixelated tree branch.

### Final Thoughts: Look Before You Leap

*Big Hops* looks like a perfectly charming indie game, but let’s stop pretending that every physics-based platformer is a philosophical peer to Eiji Aonuma’s masterpieces. It’s a game about a frog. You jump. You lick things. You collect coins.

If you want to play a game that truly “remixes Nintendo’s best,” you might want to look for something that does more than just give you a grappling hook and a dream. Otherwise, we’re just one “adorable” lizard game away from someone claiming *Gex* was the original *Breath of the Wild*.

**SEO Keywords:** Big Hops review, indie 3D platformer, Zelda Tears of the Kingdom vs Big Hops, Nintendo-style indie games, frog games, gaming journalism criticism, emergent gameplay mechanics.