The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo Switch)
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo Switch)
| Dimensions: | 17 x 10.5 x 1.1 cm; 40 Grams |
| Model: | 217915 |
| Dimensions: | 17 x 10.5 x 1.1 cm; 40 Grams |
| Origin: | Japan |
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo Switch)
| Dimensions: | 17 x 10.5 x 1.1 cm; 40 Grams |
| Model: | 217915 |
| Dimensions: | 17 x 10.5 x 1.1 cm; 40 Grams |
| Origin: | Japan |
5.0 out of 5 stars Great game
Gift for my son, but even as someone who isn’t particularly into Zelda games I can see how good this game is. Huge open world to explore and tons of stuff to do
5.0 out of 5 stars Loooooong game
This is my real first dive into Zelda and I must admit I’m hooked.
The scenery is outstanding, gameplay and puzzles are just brilliant. I find the controls to be awkward at times but you do get the hang of it after the many hours of playing. The game reminds me of a child’s version of a cross between red dead redemption and assassins creed. (Previously played on PlayStation before switching to the switch)
I would recommend this open play game if you like the previously stated games
Prepare to embark on an extraordinary adventure unlike anything you’ve experienced before. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is a truly remarkable masterpiece that captivates and enchants players from the moment they step foot into the breathtaking world of Hyrule. With its unparalleled scope, innovative gameplay, and stunning attention to detail, this game stands as a shining beacon of excellence in the realm of video game storytelling.
From the very first glimpse of the vast, open landscape, you are immediately transported into a world teeming with life and wonder. The sheer scale of Hyrule is awe-inspiring, and the seamless exploration it offers is unparalleled. Every mountain peak, lush forest, and hidden cavern beckons you to uncover its secrets, inviting you to lose yourself in the sheer beauty of the environment.
But it is not just the mesmerizing visuals that make Breath of the Wild a standout experience. The gameplay mechanics are a testament to the game’s ingenuity and commitment to reinventing the beloved Zelda franchise. The freedom to approach challenges and puzzles in any way you see fit is liberating, empowering players with an unprecedented level of agency and creativity. The possibilities are endless as you climb towering cliffs, glide through the sky, and harness the elements to your advantage.
Moreover, the narrative of Breath of the Wild is a triumph in itself. It weaves a tale of heroism, sacrifice, and the enduring power of hope. Every character you encounter, every ancient ruin you explore, and every lore-rich snippet you uncover adds depth and richness to the overarching story. The emotional investment in the fate of Hyrule and its inhabitants is truly profound, leaving a lasting impression long after the game is completed.
Accompanying this grand adventure is a mesmerizing musical score that perfectly captures the essence of each moment. From the tranquil melodies that accompany serene exploration to the soaring orchestrations that intensify heart-pounding battles, the soundtrack is a masterful composition that elevates the entire experience, effortlessly immersing players in the world of Hyrule.
It is worth noting that while Breath of the Wild is an undeniable triumph, it is not without minor blemishes. Some players may find certain aspects of the game’s difficulty curve to be a tad unforgiving, and occasional technical hiccups may momentarily disrupt the otherwise seamless immersion. However, these minor imperfections pale in comparison to the grandeur and magnificence that Breath of the Wild has to offer.
In summary, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is a crowning achievement in the world of video games. It effortlessly immerses players in a vast and wondrous world, offering unparalleled freedom, breathtaking visuals, and an unforgettable narrative. With its innovative gameplay, captivating soundtrack, and meticulous attention to detail, this game stands as a true masterpiece that will leave you awestruck and yearning for more. Breath of the Wild is an experience that transcends mere entertainment, solidifying its place as a legend among legends in the realm of gaming.
5.0 out of 5 stars Must play if you have a Switch!
I’m now 15 hours into the game, so far an excellent experience. It plays well both in docked and handheld modes, and is most importantly an excellent game with impressive visuals, exciting gameplay and a large open world. If you have a switch, and have not already played it, I very much recommend this.
4.0 out of 5 stars Good game
At some points I struggle to find the way forward, I personally feel like the open world aspect distracts from the missions ever so slightly. It’s a personal preference, I like to focus on completing objectives, but it’s an enjoyable game to play.
5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing game
Just finished playing this and loved every minute. From the spectacular graphics to the ingenious mechanics everything about this game is excellent. It will be a while before anything comes out that can compete with this for me.
Best Zelda game since OOT
No Zelda game has made me want to restart and do it all over again since Ocarina of Time and I am still finding new things I had missed in my first playthrough so it still feels like playing it for the first time. This game will definitely test your ability to solve puzzles.
One of the best games on the Nintendo switch
Such a great game to play hours of fun and packed with challenges and interesting story line
I was never in to Zelda before playing breath of the wild and now I’m hooked would definitely recommend
Perfectio
Haven’t even finished the game yet and I’m already in love!!! There is so much do if your not focused on completing the main quest. I’ve spent many hours on this game and I intend to spend many hours more.
Great game I can see why people like it so much, but as a long term Zelda fan it is quite a departure from the previous games, there is a lot more ‘meat’ but then there is also a lot less of the controlled tightness to the narrative and progression. Also there seems to be somewhat less of the innate charm that Zelda usually has, my little boy and my wife both really like previous Zelda games but this is initially ‘too big’ and loose for both of them and too unstructured at the start (compared to older titles in the franchise).
eview from a newbie game
his game is excellent and lovely for escapism whilst equally good fun and has kept me petty entertained since i got it.. think there’s lot more to go and give !
Despite being a gamer since the early 80’s , I had never played a Zelda game. This is a great game with hours and hours of adventuring to do. Despite being more of an Elden Ring player , I find this excellent and can see why people love these games. You can’t go wrong with it for yourself or as a gift.
I have a copy of this as digital download and purchased the physical one for my 7 year old son for Christmas. My 10 year old has a physical copy and they share it and both absolutely love it.
It’s a rare game that gets everything right and for virtually all ages – my boys forever point out things to me that I’ve missed and have found it to be a fantastic learning experience and learning curve.
My youngest has also gone back to the 3D roots and is playing through Ocarina of Time on the N64 online service.
A virtually flawless experience and as a first party title it’s unlikely to ever come below the 45 mark but that is a tiny price to pay for the quality and duration of joy that Breath of the Wild will bring you.
Incredible, genuinely, would recommended to anyone who has played the zelda series! You can play as absolute novice with no background and still have a full experience and enjoy it, they have left nods to old series within the game but a whole new structure means its new for all. Look forward to tears of the kingdom
Warrior of time
Brilliant game!! Very hard to get into at first because it’s not spoon fed to you as what to do and you can actually complete the game any which way that you want which is cool!! If you enjoy exploring this game is one of the best! Extremely immersive and genuinely feels real with a lot of skill required to complete tasks and progress.
Felt quite sad when I finished this game because for me it is one of the best games I have played.
Only down side if that the true Master sword isn’t included in this game without buying the DLC otherwise you just have to cope with using the Master sword sparingly because it runs out of power constantly.
Not gonna lie, I will admit to being skeptical of BOTW only because it had more coverage than most games & I got the impression that it was just overexposed. So I waited for a while & got it recently and I can honestly say that it was worth the wait. The story is naturally built up & I was enthralled with the world the game gave me. If you haven’t played it, go for it.
A fantastic zelda game to the ever growing franchise
If your a fan of a open world game with exploration you’ll love the legend of zelda breath of the wild it has an abundance of locations to discover and explore finding and completing all parts of the map will leave you satisfied even when that’s done there is so much more like side quests and for 900 korok seeds across the entire map is fun for those die hard gamer completion rate
If you can, play this game knowing as little about what’s coming as possible – and make each place, each encounter and each discovery a true surprise. For me, the key magic of the adventure was this Discovery.
I’ve played various kinds of games since the Spectrum 48k without being a hardcore gamer. My favourites each had some quality about them that was unlike anything else around. Breath of the Wild is like that but I gotta say, it keeps giving and it’s the best game I’ve played. The best? Come on, really?
Yes, you discover the world as you progress, and there’s so much world to explore it’s amazing, from the big things (whole new areas or culture so well refined) to the little things (those hidden or background things crammed into the spaces between). It immerses you into that world and keeps you interested. And rewards you for exploring.
But more than the world, there’s the gameplay itself. You discover your way of playing as you play, and the game lets you do this. This makes it accessible to all kinds of players. And though you can go in whatever direction you like you can approach new things in various ways. Wanna be cautious? Cool. Wanna run right in? Go for it. Wanna avoid it? Sure. But wanna come back later? Sure thing. The opening area treats you kindly and lets you discover your abilities and get used to the controls on a smooth but challenging gradient. It’s very rewarding.
I was personally very happy the game didn’t get into RPG-style weapon-crafting. It would have been too much – I think the designers balanced the game just right without it. Having said that, I’m now ready for that in the sequel 🙂
Personally I love the art-style and the colour palette is to me perfect for this, making the environments feel very much like the natural world. And ah the sounds, from water to rain to grass to birds, clubs, swords, rolling boulders, it all sounds just right and you really get to appreciate this sometimes when there’s just you and a wood and no music. Which said, is great: the music helps to define a place and adapts to the action or lack thereof as well. Genius.
Anyway, I could go on. I’ve sunk many hours into this game. It rehabilitated a sense of play and enjoyment in me I hadn’t realised had gone to sleep, and awoke old dreams. I still play it, even after 425+ hours, there’s still things for me to do, even after the expansions. And I’m so looking forward to the sequel 😀
Best game I have every played !! I’m new to gaming after many years and got a switch as I had always used Nintendo systems up to the game cube. I’m disabled and in a wheelchair and due to the pandemic I have struggled to get out so have been house bound and that is aweful as it still continues so to stop the boring time dragging on I decided to go for the switch and had always been a zelda fan I got breath of the wild and Wow !! At first I was feeling like omg I will never be able to do this but it didn’t take long for me a non gamer to get to grips with the fighting and cooking and crafting and im totally hooked !! Excellent game play and it doesn’t matter your skill I had not gamed for over 20 years and now I love it the im 42 and Im no longer bored and have a fantastic way of passing the time and due to my health and spinal issues I am at times bed bound and as this is also a portable game system I can take it to bed and to the hospital as well to stop being bored . This game is excellent and if can do this anyone can I’m sure it’s taken me longer to play than others but compared to how I was at the start of the game to now is a massive difference the game teaches you how to fight how to do things and that makes all the difference it’s so worth playing can’t wait for the sequel next yea
I purchased this game as back in the day I remember playing Zelda & recalled that it was a bit of an adventure game. It arrived speedily which was great, was well packaged & well presented, so would be ideal as a gift. So, the first mission of finding the 4 shrines & completing their tasks to obtain the orbs, – well finding the actual 4 shrines was the mission in itself! It took me almost a week to find them & complete them! At first I was tempted to give up, but I persevered & it was challenging, & I got there in the end! Once link has all 4 orbs, he has the 4 main powers of bombing, magnetism, freezing time, & he then also gets given the handglider – which helps massively with regards to getting around from heights. This first quest prepares link to go further into the game. It gives him the skills & abilities that he needs, & it also makes him have to utilise his skills during the 4 shrine finding & completing task.
The graphics are really good, and riding horseback is great, as is the cooking recipes, & what can I really say about fighting the monsters?! Only that the orange monsters are a lot easier to defeat that the green monsters. And watch out for that all seeing laser eye!
Overall, a really good game of adventure. Tons of playability, & can even purchase expansion packs too. I would deffo highly recommend, especially if you like a challenge!
I hope this review has been helpful, xx
THIS IS A SPOILER FREE REVIEW 🙂 (At the bottom is a full list of pros and cons, which is a summed up version of this review)
Breath of the wild was an extremely charming and welcoming surprise for a gaming experience within the Zelda
universe. Having fully played through the entrire game, i can say it was truly fantastic.
It is a beautifully crafted world and filled with tons of content to enjoy. It is filled with some great detail, with each area of this open world, having some meaning or use – which is quite rare for an open world game, usually having irrelevant areas which are just there to fill time, this game it feels amazing to go off and explore.
There are no restrictions, if you see something of interest – you can gon explore it. You will find yourself doing numerous side quests for fun and finding intriguing and challenging puzzles and enemies to test your wits and skills.
Graphically this is one of the most beautiful looking zelda titles for a while, it feels as though it is a unique artstyle as many games take a modern approach to games in terms of realistic graphics, so this is a welcome differentiation.
Whilst there is a story in this game, it takes more of a backseat to the world and gameplay, it is still present within the game – having a main goal backstory etc. However the story is quite nice to see and the cutscenes are fully voiced, which is a first for zelda, but was surprisingly good and a welcomed inclusion. The character of zelda felt a lot more developed than some of the previous titles in the series.
GAMEPLAY, the gameplay is fantastic. There are so many new additions to the mechanics and a variety of fun random things you can do, it truly is amazing. There are so many weapons in this game, allowing for different ways to attack enemies, really keeps you on your toes. When playing the game, because the core mechanics are so much for, you find yourself creating and finding out new things to do all the time, you find yourself messing around having fun just creating stupid scenarious to kill an enemy – it can be really hilarious. The great thing anout this game is that i kept finding new things to do even late into the game, i had figured out randomly towards the end, i can pull my shield out, jump on it and surf down a hill. And i spent embarrasingly a long time doing this, and combining it with other mechanics into the game to do some really fun and stupid things.
Bug wise i have personally not come across any throughout my whole playthrough, and i feel as though i did everything content wise that i could, and during this whole time i did not come across one bug.
This is a truly fantastic game and i would recommend this to anyone whether you are a newcomer to the series or a longtime fan, it will truly be a fantastic experience for you. 10/10 game.
Pros:
Lots of content
An amazing world to explore
No bugs (personally)
Beautiful graphics
Mechanically fantastic
A truly fantastic world
Music is blended in well to fit the scenario of what is going on within the game
Cons:
The story, whilst still good, takes a little bit of a backseat in comparison to that of other zelda games.
... The amount of stuff to do in BotW is pretty impressive, there are plenty of places to explore
Big and Varied
The amount of stuff to do in BotW is pretty impressive, there are plenty of places to explore, enemies to fight, items to find and quests to complete.
This is the one of the biggest change ups to the Zelda formula since its inception, no more dungeons, in the traditional sense anyway, no more collecting items to advance to places you couldnt reach before. Now its about collecting monster parts, food, wood, flowers, pretty much everything. You use most of these things to create meals and elixirs that give you additional hearts and other benefits like stronger attack or defence.
In place of the dungeons there are now shrines, (120 of them in total) which are more often than not in hidden or hard to find places, these are essentially mini-dungeons with 1-5 puzzles in them; you complete these to earn spirit orbs which can be traded in to give you more hearts or stamina (4 orbs = 1 heart or 1/5 of a stamina wheel). The shrines are great fun (mostly, screw the motion controlled hammers) and often offer multiple solutions using your weapons, bows or your new powers which replace the typical Zelda tools and can be used in a variety of ways. The Shrines and Powers combined wake for a great time and made the game really enjoyable, as did the new version of Hyrule, large fields, cold mountains and firey volcanoes are nothing new but now they are obstacles as well as environments, dont go to the mountains without warm clothing (or a fire sword) or you will freeze, arid deserts without heat resistance and you will dehydrate, this makes getting around a fun challenge in and of itself.
On the flip side the new weapon system or more specifically the durability system is less welcome to me personally. Weapons, shields and bows now break after a certain amount of use, this can be annoying when you loose a weapon you like but there are plenty of them all over the place so it never became more than a mild annoyance. I also found the stamina wheel to be annoying initially as i didnt think the starting amount of stamina was enough as it greatly limits your ability to run, swim and climb (which you can do on nearly any surface), but a few shrines later and it wasnt a problem. The biggest negative for me in this game is that the story is weak in comparison to earlier titles in my opinion, nothing actually *happens* in the game, its all happened before you start, you can find flash back cut scenes but they didnt really do it for me, but your mileage may vary.
Overall
+ Great world to explore
+ Shrines are fun
+ Experimenting with powers is fun and rewarding
+ Combat is fun and challenging
– Durability system can be irritating
– Stamina dampens the early game
– Story is kind of abse
I’ve been gaming since the start and very rarely does a game come along that crosses boundaries and excels like this one. It’s memorable great fun for all the family – even my non gaming wife has been drawn in to the family discussions about our “progress”. That’s a 40yo man, a 6 yo boy, a 3yo boy and a non gaming 38yo woman all hooked and enthralled by this beautiful, quirky, warm, exciting, epic quest of a game.
As with all open world games the range of things to occupy your time is massive and varied but in this game things of particular note for me:
Tthe way the difficulty is so well done. Boss fights are stiff and need a bit of forethought but are then very doable – I haven’t been frustrated once, although I’ve been daunted 100times! Flying is a joy, cooking is fun and the fighting is so varied and the breakable weapons mean you have to keep it moving. This balance is never quite right but they’ve cracked it with this game.
Small things that make the world more believable are beautifully done – sheltering in a cave as a storm rages only for a tree to be felled by lightning just outside …just a wonderful world.
Then there’s the hundreds of puzzles that are woven in to the game. Varying from a simple bit of fun to real day-long head-scratchers for the family. And this indeed is how everyone becomes involved; before you know it how to complete the latest Shrine puzzle is the topic at breakfast and everyone has fun working it out and then completing it.
I love the bow and how you have to allow for drop at range – a very satisfying weapon.
The paraglider is a masterpiece – everyone should have one
I just can’t say enough. Certainly a classic in the making and deserving of all the praise being piled on to it, this game is one of the most accessible and memorable games ever made on any platform.
It's Zelda But Not As You Know It (Or Maybe It Is)
This is a great game with some annoying “features”. I love the Zelda franchise. It was the reason I brought the original Wii and it is the reason I got the Switch (although it couldn’t entice me with the Wii U and that HIDEOUSLY huge and ugly controller). This takes the series and builds on it in a mostly positive way. There is very little in the way of hand holding and you are expected to go and explore and the surprisingly large open world. There is lots to see and do with many side quests that make you forget you are actually saving the world (or at least meant to be!).
There are a few decisions with the game that I find frustrating. Your weapons die and you have to keep restocking them. I get that it makes you use lots of different weapons and try different tactics but when you find a weapon you like you don’t want to use it as it will disappear eventually. The Witcher 3 had a much better ‘degradation’ mechanic allowing for the weapon to degrade over time but allowing you to repair it. The other part I find frustrating is the horse. I could be remembering wrong but in Twilight Princess you could just ‘whistle’ and your horse would appear. It’s a little handwavium but it meant the horse was of genuine use in order to get about the huge spaces. BOTW has an even larger open world, but I rarely use the horse as you have to go to a stable to pick it up if you left it somewhere. It really limits (for me) how you use the horse. The game says you can whistle but the horse will only come if it is in ear-shot is it is “not magical”. I get it, it is more realistic, but come on, this game has you beaming around the country using a mystical not electronic tablet that lets you take selfies without holding it! Can we just pretend that the horse (once you have fully broken it in) can be following you around just out of sight ready to come to your rescue?
Aside from those couple of little rants (lol) I love this game. It is tough and challenging without feeling you can’t do it. The side quests are reasonably interesting and some genuinely fun ones when you are exploring. I found one when I climbed a mountain – because it was there okay? 😉 – where I had to rescue a spirit to access the shrine. It was genuinely surprising and finding out how to save the spirit was a fun challenge (even if you have to shoot it to save it?!).
Tl;dr- This is like a classic LoZ game combined with the sheer exploration potential of an Elder Scrolls game and even more on top of that. It’s now my favourite game and you can tell even as soon as you’ve reached a story milestone that you’ll get hundreds of hours out of the game in one play-through if you do everything. I found it quite hard to write this review because 1. I wanted to talk about absolutely everything I like but that would just be spoiler city and 2. I honestly just wanted to stop typing to play the game more!
This game has to be, by far, the best game I have ever played. I bought the Switch because I wanted to play this game though was somewhat sceptical if the cost would be worth it. I haven’t had as much fun in a video game as I have with this one before. I’m aware that a lot of people who are classic LoZ fans aren’t happy with this game given they claim it’s “not a LoZ game” though for the most part I have to disagree.
The base of the puzzle dungeon aspect is still there. Just because the puzzles are split out across over 100 instances doesn’t mean that the feature is gone and for me it’s the puzzle dungeons that make the LoZ franchise. The puzzles being split into so many smaller little “trails” as they are called is, to me, a really great idea. They all teach you a way to use your equipment which is useful for later trails or for the main story quest. In addition to this, you’ve got a massively expansive world with a great variation of terrain (each example of which brings its own hazards in enemies and how the environment affects you such as snowy mountains being dangerously cold) as well as a great combat system where you can either get by just attacking when you can or you can really learn how it works which is rewarding once you get it down. There’s also the food system where you can hunt or forage for ingredients and then cook them to create various dishes which provide health as well as many different buffs depending on what you cook (for example you can cook a meat skewer with meat you hunt for which gives a good amount of health, then you can create a similar dish but with stamina-restoring properties if you add another ingredient which restores stamina when cooked to make a healing item that also restores stamina and so on). In addition to the cooking you can also brew potions witcher-style using monster drops and various herbs found in the world so you can get more effective or longer lasting buffs without the health boosts.
The open-world potential of this game really impressed me. Not only through how you can just ignore the main story quest and go off to do whatever you want while still having a load of fun, but there’s so many small details that make this game so special. You can climb every tree, every mountain and just about everything else that is obviously not supposed to be climbed on (though the list of things you can’t climb is very short). You can fell trees with an axe, cut the log into firewood, pile the wood up and then set fire to it using any source of fire you may have (flint, lit torch, lightning strike, the list goes on) and then use this fire either as a means to keep yourself warm in a cold wilderness/at night, to open-roast food to cook it quickly and to skip time by resting beside it. Every item of clothing does something different (basic clothes, armour, cold-resistance, heat-resistance and so on).
The story of the game may not be for everyone due to the style it was written (minor spoiler— it’s written in the retrospective, learn about the past as you play kind of way—end spoiler) though I really like it, you’re not forced into playing through the main story quests and all there’s so much additional lore to search out. You don’t get a “hand-holding” experience with the story, quest markers on your map aren’t necessarily pointing to the solution and you usually have to do some asking around or pathfinding in the area that you’re pointed to in order to work out what you need to do.
Overall- this game is worth buying a Switch for alone, anyone who enjoys puzzles, exploration, combat, little features which let you play the way you want to play- this is the game for you!
I originally reviewed this back in March 2017 when the game first came and instantly gave it five stars. However, after revisiting the game I started to notice some cracks that I feel many have over looked or ignored. Now this is not to say the game is bad in anyway, quite the opposite in fact but they should not be ignored if we want even better Zelda games in the future.
So here it is. After what seems like an eternity, the next installment in the Zelda series is here and it has made some big changes while it has been away. Some for the better and some not so much. However, is the game any good? The short answer is yes with a but.
The game starts with a familiar style for the Zelda series with our hero Link waking up to the sound of a mysterious voice. After a quick change of clothes (if you want to that is!) and a new tablet like device at his side, our hero Link is ready to begin another adventure in the land of Hyrule. I feel that the opening sequence is easily going to be one of the most remembered moments in the series history as Link runs up a short hill to look over the vast land that awaits him. All of which can be travelled to and explored at the players own pace. I can easily see people talking about that moment years from now for good reason, it is amazing, and sets the stage from the get go. The music that plays is simple yet touching and fits the scene perfectly.
After this, the game starts in a small area that acts like a tutorial zone, which will take around one to two hours to complete depending on how to tackle it. This area works extremely well to show the player that this is no ordinary Zelda game. You must clear four shrines which act like mini dungeons to unlock player abilities but apart from the first one, the other three can be tackled in any order and in anyway. A good example is a shrine that sits on top of a cold mountain. On my first play through I carry a lit torch to keep of the cold and yet my second play through I unlocked a warm coat and climbed up the side of the mountain. This gives you an idea of how varied the game is.
As I mentioned just, the game has introduced a temperature system. This means when you enter a certain area such as a cold maintain, you will need heated clothing or cook something to keep you warm. The same for the hot places like Death Mountain where you need armour to keep you cool. This is one of the features I was worried about but has now become one of my favourite in the whole game.
After that, you can go anywhere at any time. Some of the areas however are clearly designed for later on in the game as the biggest and most difficult monsters are in those areas. You can go there if you want but you will die almost instantly until you have unlocked a good amount of hearts and upgraded your armour.
One of the most notable problems some will have is the games unbalanced difficulty when it comes to monsters. Some can be taken out with ease yet just a few yards down the road, the same type of monsters can deliver an instant death especially if your number of hearts are low. The game does thankfully save quite regularly so even when you do die (I said when not if) it’s never more than a few moments back but the spikes will put many people off the game and certainly newbies or younger players to the series may not be happy with seeing the game over screen time and time again. While it’s certainly not Zelda 2 hard, it’s still unpredictable how much health you will lose in a fight. However, once you’ve upgraded your armour to full and have the best weapons, the game can become too easy where enemies do almost no damage but you can kill in just one hit. While not game breaking in anyway it is unbalanced at times.
As for the health, that has had a complete overhaul in this game. Gone are the dropped hearts to replenish your health and in comes cooking. The game is littered with ingredients, meats and fresh fruit that have different effects depending on how they are cooked. At first, I didn’t like this idea but it does grow on you as the game progresses. It’s akin to having a health pack with you at all times. One of the biggest annoyances though is the health doesn’t regenerate which is something odd for an open world game or at least, the ones I have played such as Skyrim.
The graphics in this game are very impressive for the system with a Studio Ghibli vibe to them. They are done in a cel-shading style but unlike the Wind Waker cel-shading in the world has many details. The water effects are great, the world feels alive and you want to keep exploring even long after completing the game. Truth be told, I have spent more time wondering around the world then playing the main quest.
On the flip side the sound is probably the worst part of the game and especially for a Zelda game. The sound effects are spot on with every weapon making the correct sound (clanging of metal or the thud of wooden swords) and on their own get a ten out of ten. However, the music is the huge let down overall. One thing that nobody can deny is that the Zelda games have some of the greatest and most iconic video game music ever created. That is sadly lacking in this game. It does have a soundtrack but it is mostly ambient in its style. Unlike say the Elder Scrolls games that play beautiful music when traversing the world. It’s really missed when the only sounds are the wind blowing, birds tweeting and the odd piano key now and then. However, certain areas do have proper music such as Zora’s Domain and the Horse Stables that it is all-orchestral and sound fantastic.
The voice acting is hit and miss. Some like the Goron’s and the Rito sound pretty good but others like the Mipha of the Zora Clan is quite poor and Zelda herself can sometimes be cringy. When compared to other voice acting in video games it does need some work. However, I do think adding voice acting is the right move for the series and if you ask me, it should have been adding back in Twilight Princess. I hope this does return for future games in the series but better voice actors are used. I personally changed it to Japanese once the update came out and it sounds a thousand times better.
Now on to the gameplay. One thing that the series has brought back from Wind Waker is the ability to use enemy’s weapons and this time you can keep them. I really enjoyed this idea as each weapon has it’s strengths and weakness and does mix up gameplay for the better. However, the durability of these weapons is ridicules. They can break at the drop of a hat. For example, I found a trident in Zora’s Domain and it broke after throwing it at one enemy. Swords can break after less than five hits and so on. As I said I really like the idea but the weapons need to last a lot longer than they do. It does force you to think fast about what weapons to use but at the start of the game it is insane when you are given a stick and it breaks in three hits. I actually found myself avoiding conflict completely.
The climbing feature is also something new to the series and I do believe it is not just the best thing to happen to a Zelda game but could be one of the best things to happen to an open world game in years. Everything is truly open to you and nothing is out of bounds. You can climb almost any surface making the game world truly open. One complaint I’ve always had about Skyrim is getting stuck trying to climb a mountain where in this game, that’s not a problem!
Speaking of the game world, it amazing to see what Nintendo have made and for the first few hours it will astound you. However, later on it will start to become a little tedious, as some areas are just too big for their own good and without a horse can take a long time to cover a short distance.
Oh and another thing, for some reason everyone but the Hylians are giants. I really mean it, the Zora’s, Rito and the Gurudo are about eight foot tall! Not sure why.
So on conclusion do I recommend this game? I’m going to say yes.
However, many will disagree but I have found this game is not the same the second time around. Ocarina of Time is still my personal favourite and I play it at least once a year and enjoy it every time. However, wen I played this through for the second time it lost all of its fun. The shrines become boring, the dungeons can be done in less than 15 mins and it just didn’t hook me like so many other entries in the series.
Oh and why have they removed the file select? Seems like a step backwards there.
My first play through I rated it a strong third but at this point, I rate it as my sixth favourite in the series.
The game is not perfect in anyway and many of the critic’s scores are a little too generous for my liking as they overlook some of the games minor problems but it is a triumph none the less. It has some creases that need to be ironed out in the future but if this is the direction the series is going in, then I for one will be one happy Zelda fan once again.just don’t let us wait another six years for a new Zelda next time, Nintendo.
Game play:-17/20
Graphics:- 18/20
Sound:- 15/20
Value for Money:- 20/20
Replay Value:- 16/20
(86/100). A must buy.
Well what can I say? It’s Zelda! Now this isn’t the perfect game, but I have given it 5 stars because in my opinion there is nothing else quite like it on any other platform and I have had endless hours of fun and exploration. I have spent most of my time playing Breath of the Wild in Handheld mode (which looks absolutely gorgeous by the way). There is so much to explore and things to see and do that you can spend hours running round the map completely ignoring any objectives that you have. I really like the whole open world idea and the shrines are a fresh take on mini dungeons. I have a few gripes about the game though and these are only my personal opinions so feel free to agree or disagree. First of all is the music. The music whilst effective, is just not Zelda for me….it is used sparingly as you venture across the open world, but it does not have those memorable themes that I have come to love from Zelda over the years. In my opinion there could’ve been much more effective music used in the over world and in the dungeons. The second gripe I have is the *SPOILERS*
Divine Beasts. These are essentially the four main dungeons and whilst I think they are a good idea, they are just not dungeons to me. They have 4 variations of the same boss, and without meaning to sound old hat I miss the Zelda formula of getting an item in the dungeon that you then have to use against the boss. Again the music could’ve been more memorable for me.
Those are the only real problems that I had with the game though, as I found the open world breathtaking and sometimes just stopped playing to watch a rain and thunder cloud move towards Link as the heavens opened and the rain came pouring down. And the landscape is absolutely stunning as you run across the grassy plains with the sun rising above the mountains behind you.
This game is fun! So much fun to play! It’s gorgeous in terms of it’s graphics and lush landscapes and is the best game I have played in a long time. There is so much to see and do!
Well worth the money!
It was watching someone playing Ocarina Of Time that made me buy a Nintendo 64 and I’ve owned all the major Zelda games since. Despite this, I’ve never finished one of them, or even got close. The linearity, ability gating and puzzles always result in my getting stuck somewhere along the line and giving up with an unfulfilled promise to myself to come back later. So the over-a-hundred hours I’ve put into Breath Of The Wild aren’t just more than I spent in any Zelda before it; they’re more than I spent in all the other Zeldas put together.
When I first wrote this review it was after the first seventy hours, and even that was more than most professional reviewers were able to play before giving their 10/10 ratings. At that point I hadn’t even completed a dungeon: now I’ve done them all and I feel that my perspective, if not my rating, has changed. This game is no respecter of your time: the world is enormous and wandering from place to place, climbing stuff, collecting stuff & unlocking stuff will take as long as it takes. More importantly, though, when you start you think in old-fashioned terms: “the Main Quest will be the biggest part of the game and these shrine things are just bite-sized puzzles”. As time goes on, you finish the smaller, more visible shrines and suddenly start discovering the ones that take the time & trouble. After you’ve spent as long doing a shrine as you spent on a dungeon, you realise that “beating the final boss” (which I haven’t) is no metric of completion in this game.
Before you can do what you have to do you have to learn what you can do, and the game teaches you nothing: you either discover it for yourself through experimentation or happen across the NPC who can give you some clues. There’s never been a game that needed a guide more and there’s never been a game that would be so spoiled by using one. For example, there are several major abilities that I only found out about long after I could have received them, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing because I have tens of hours still to play.
Breath of the Wild is not perfect; not nearly. Everyone seems to have their own pet peeve with this game: the stamina system; the cooking system; the frame rate; the inventory system; the weapon degradation. But most players seem to make peace with these small problems as the ticket price for the journey to the next magical horizon.
This was what the promise of the Zelda series was always about … it just took me a few years to find it.
If you’re of a certain age, then you will have no doubt experienced the rare milestones throughout years of video gaming. Well, Breath of the Wild is that next milestone. Just as the likes of Super Metroid and Super Mario 64 established their respective genres, Breath of the wild has a “wow” factor that will leave you almost speechless.
Link awakes from a 100-year slumber with little clue as to why so, or where he even is. With nothing more than a short promise from a mysterious female voice, a tree branch and some fetching underwear, you can guide Link around a huge, sprawling landscape that is just waiting to be explored. There are small prompts to guide you throughout the opening phase – but it is not until you start making friends that your quest becomes clear.
In fact, one can travel towards the ‘end’ phase of the game right from the beginning; though defeat is certain. This gives you an idea of the freedom and realism on offer.
The simplicity of the story serves a purpose, which is that it underpins your narrative. You play the game how you want to play it, and as such become a director. More importantly, I think what makes Breath of the Wild different to other open world games is that it has real integrity. Link must become at one with the environment to complete his quests, and that means being more thoughtful about your actions so that you can plan ahead.
Do you really want to try and slay a grizzly bear that can kill you with one swipe; or would you rather sneak up, jump on it and tame it? If I have no horse to aid, should I create a bond with a dog to help scare away smaller foe? Should I traverse at night through a forest looking for acorns, or wait until the morning when squirrel-like creatures collect them?
This is the so-called Nintendo Difference – a game that is built on morals we can learn from. Not a post-apocalyptic war zone with blood shed and linear objectives.
While the graphics are typically Nintendo as a stylised affair (which, let’s face, is a lot more interesting than hyper-photorealistic-pixel-peeping textures), I believe that it is the audio which shines through. I don’t believe I’ve ever played a Nintendo game with such crazily accurate attention to detail – so much so that you can pass time easily through just crouching in a meadow and listening to insects, animals and the wind gushing through the grass, changing position as you move. This game also lacks a soundtrack in the traditional sense, but instead opts for incidental and atmospheric music that accompanies your style of gameplay. If you’re a fan of Penguin Cafe Orchestra, then this is the game for you!
As a final word on performance, I have found the game runs at a steady 30fps for almost the entirety of the play session. Where there are frame dips, it is only for split seconds during graphically demanding scenes.
So don’t just take my word it. The hype is, surprisingly, real – this is a treasure that will go down as the next milestone, and should be experienced by as many gamers as possible. It is absolutely breathtaking.
At the ripe old age of 36 I’m now lucky enough
to be in a position to afford the games and consoles I dreamed about as a kid! But I’ve checked on Amazon and I can’t find anywhere that sells time!!
And time is something I wish I had more of having played Zelda:breath of the wild. The game deserves your unreserved attention, and is a return to form for Nintendo (kind of reminds me of that Mickley O’Neil rising from the Matt in snatch).
Graphics
I have recently been playing Horizon Dawn on the PS PRO and for anyone else that has, they will tell you the games looks incredible. So in contrast Zelda would pale into insignificance right? WRONG! I have had just as many ‘wow’ moments as I have with Horizon. Maybe the art style of Zelda is more forgiving due to its cartoony look and feel. But everything feels alive, bugs and critters buzz and jump around you as you run through fields. Leaves blow through the air, sunlight paints a gorgeous glow over the mountains that have you hitting the screen shot button. I am yet to experience any rate rate issues either, although 90% of my play time has been in mobile mode which I believe runs at 720p so that may explain why. Unless you are offended by the art style I doubt there will be anything here that doesn’t make smile at how much thought has gone into it.
Audio
As I said above, most of my play time so far has been in handheld mode. But through headphones everything, as with the graphicsfeels alive. Wind blowing through trees, bombs going off, all links little shouts and grunts. Nothing feels out of place. What voice acting there is, is great although I wish all dialogue was voiced over as I’m not much of a reader. Music is like a walk back through time with jazzified versions of the music of old once again perfectly suiting the mood of the game.
Gameplay
Never has a Zelda game had so much to manage. The weapons system at first took some getting used to, knowing my big hitting samari sword would be broken after a few battles made me not want to use it. But when I bumped into a grumpy old cyclops I had know choice but to bring out the big hitter. At that point I realised this game mechanic might just actually work! Now it is like second nature. Thus is just one of the new additions to the game. There is so much to do, i think I’m probably 5% in after 12hrs play time….. After getting the….. SPOILER ALERT… glider, I was off running to the highest mountain to glide as far as I could in completely the opposite way to the main quest. And this game is HUGE!!! In the distance you can see the glow of a star that has just fallen from the sky, on the way there you pass a waterfall, on closer inspection you find a secret cave behind the waterfall….. And so on and so on. Little puzzles are everywhere, cooking elixirs, hunting, sliding down mountains on your shield. I feel like I’m just scratching the surface and the fame draws you in to dig deeper by rewarding you every step of the way.
I can’t praise this game highly enough. This reminds me of the classic Nintendo games of old, and I don’t think you can give it much higher praise than that. Sublime in every way!
10/10
Having never written an Amazon review for a product, I just could not hide my feelings away from this fabulous game. As you can, I’m in love with this game and being a huge Zelda fan my expectations and anticipation were exceedingly than any other video game. Having played video games for 20 years does this rank above them all? Lets find out.
Graphics
There have been mentions of frame issues from several publications, however during my playing 20 hours of playing time with the game these do not detract from the gameplay experience (Note, when playing docked frame rates do become more frequent). Aside from these hiccups, Nintendo has created there most beautiful game to date. From the beautiful vistas in the outer world to the charming and vibrant villages you come across in the game, Nintendo has done an excellent of potraying the original Legend of Zelda (1986) NES game which has inspired the design of Breath of the Wild. The varied locations, the beautiful sceneries and landscapes make this a beautiful game to behold. (9.8/10)
Gameplay
Nintendo has created their most dense, articulate and compelling gameplay mechanics in their entire video gaming history. From cooking food, to managing inventory, upgrading clothing/weapon slots…the list goes on. The game is truly massive and yet it is a harsh and brutal game that requires patience and deep thinking. The depature of 100s of shrines compared to the dungeons (which there are in this game) is a huge change that has seemingly impressed me so far. Combat is fairly challenging and it’s important to workout your enemies movements, for you to strike and possibly encounter a flurry attack. One minor complaint that may differ from other individuals are the horse controls which feel stiff and unresponsive to control at times. Though if that is the only thing to complaon about the gameplay in Breath of the Wild then that is saying something. This iteration of gameplay mechanics in a Zelda game is near flawless. (10/10)
Value
Is this worth you money? Considering this was made for the Wii U and those that still own one it would be hard to recommend to buy a Nintendo Switch just for Zelda as launch titles are pretty dire where there are no other big games to choosr from. However, to those individuals I say this; you miss the form factor of playing Breath of the Wild wherever you go, whether it be in bed, on a commute, airplane or even the toilet. That is the value proposition here. The game itself is more than 100 hours (plus DLC), which all the more makes it worth more than the moneys worth. To those that have never tried a Zelda game this is perfect to get into the series, whereas Nintendo and Zelda fans alike probably own the game already. This is a must buy if your purchase the Nintendo Switch
Verdict
Is this the greatest game of all time? Having been ranked inside the top 5 games in history on metacritic there is no reason to believe why it may not be. Personally, I believw this is an even greater achievement that Nintendo has accomplished with the Zelda franchise and formula since Ocarina of time (which is a timeless classic by the way). But seeing how much the series has developed and changed over the years building up to what the developers had envisioned a Zelda game to be all those years ago, this is a masterpiece on open-world design. Breath of the Wild is truly breathtaking and one of the most joyous and satisfied gaming experiences I have had since maybe The Last of Us. Is this the greatest game of all time? The answer to that question is a resounding ‘YES’! If not, this is the best game Nintendo has ever created and will be a timeless classic in many decades to come. (10/10)
Score: 10/10
How do I begin… Well, I think you are ready, ready to hear what happened 100 years ago.
The beginning of this game throws you in at the deep end, you have little items, and little explanation of what you need to do, minus a few visual prompts (we’ve all seen the E3 treehouse, so I won’t go much further). From there, you then have a few quests, and then, you’re able to leave the Great Plateu and your journey truly begins.
This is the first Zelda of its kind, it’s now non-linear, you’re not forced to venture down one path, and you’re more not held back by needing a certain item to progress. However, Zelda does lovingly tell you in its own unique way, that maybe, just maybe, the path you went down, wasn’t quite for you yet… and by that, I mean, you’ll see A LOT of Game Over screens. This doesn’t make you feel annoyed though, if anything, you want to accept the challenge and try to kill the enemy, or raid the bandit hide out.
Breath of the Wild, is a breath of fresh air (I know, I did it), it’s a master piece, and probably one of the best open world RPGs I have EVER played, and probably the best Zelda game to date. In this, you can do whatever you like, raid a camp, do a side quest, climb the tallest mountain, be killed by Ganon right at the beginning, because you thought you were gonna be a big man, and kill him after your 100 year slumber. The possibilities are almost endless, and it has SO much to offer, that yesterday, I stayed in a town for about 5 hours, just trying to complete some side quests. I have barely dented the map of BotZ, and I’m still wanting more.
If you love RPGs, get it, get it some more, and then again and again. You won’t regret this game, it’s visually stunning, engaging, and has you laughing and intrigued through.
Update: I’ve been playing this game for 130 hours and still only done 1/4 of the main quest line! (I’ve done mostly side quests, but this shows just how much there is to do!!)
This is kind of like a Nintendo take on Skyrim, in the sense of an open world and very diverse and versatile combat system.
It reminds me of Skyward Sword, Windwaker and Twilight Princess; all rolled into one, but in such a marvelously succinct way. You can definitely feel that Skyward Sword was the greatest influence here, particularly in the visuals and many gaming dynamics (like the sail cloth, crafting and weapons/shields that break). But many of the best bits of those 3 games are merged in.
You are gradually weened into a very diverse set of controls and play styles, but after you leave the starting area there’s a massive element of “just go figure it out for yourself,” in this game, which will be a refreshing experience for Zelda fans.
Stealth, temperature, weather, climbing, cooking and potion making are just a few of the amazing additions to this game. You’d be forgiven for expecting these things to feel a bit crowbarred in or cumbersome, since Nintendo haven’t ventured into too much depth with these dynamics in their past Zelda games. But, this is far from the case.
Enemy AI is great. Enemies will try to use the environment against you, picking up weapons and throwing objects at you.
Just a few small examples of attention to detail:
* Temperature: If you’re standing in the shade, your temperature drops and if you stand near a campfire, you get warmer
* Stealth: Walking around in water makes more noise than on the ground
* Climbing: Wet surfaces are slippery and harder to climb
* Enemies: If you quickly disarm an enemy while they are throwing something at you, they won’t notice and will continue trying to throw it, then will look confused when nothing happens
This game makes you wonder why you have to pay 50 for some other games, that feel like they’ve not had 5% as much care and attention as what has clearly gone into this game. The bar has again been raised by Nintendo!
After playing for around 5 hours, here are my initial impressions of the game. Hopefully it’s helpful to people on the fence about purchasing.
–Gameplay–
Zelda: BotW offers virtually no tutorial and almost no hand-holding, instead teaching players about the world and game mechanics through discovering them for themselves. This makes playing the game incredibly satisfying, and a refreshing experience considering the lengthly tutorials which a lot of modern games force players into. Although you’ll inevitably make mistakes during this self-learning process (you can come across enemies and situations which can 1-hit kill you if you’re not careful!) there is no penalty for dying besides being placed back at your last save point. This further encourages experimentation and adventure, and I’ve had a genuinely good time running around the world discovering as much as I can within it.
Inventory mechanics are pretty solid – weapons have a short lifespan but are plentiful around the world, so you’ll find yourself rotating frequently between weapon types without the frustrating experience of being left unarmed. These are very easy to swap in/out, and can be done without opening the full inventory menu. Cooking food – essential to stop you from losing hearts and dying – is a refined and satisfying experience. Almost anything can be combined and cooked in a process which takes a few seconds and ends with a pleasing jingle. Since cooked food seems pretty effective, you shouldn’t find yourself in the typical Skyrim scenario of crafting 100s of potions before going out adventuring.
–Story–
I can’t comment too much on the story due to my current playtime, but there seems to be a good mix of emergent story (i.e. things you discover or learn whilst exploring the world) and traditional quest-based storytelling. Although the standard Zelda/Ganon/Hyrule scenario is there, this is given a slight twist, as is Link’s role and past. I imagine the exact details of Link’s past will be something players learn about as the story develops. Storytelling has always been good in Zelda games, and so far BotW certainly seems not to be an exception
–Graphics–
Considering this game can be played on a portable console, the graphics are pretty outstanding. The world is rich and colourful with a clear art direction; I’d put it somewhere between Wind Waker and Skyward Sword in terms of visual style. Although it might lack the raw graphical fidelity of many recent PC games (my primary platform), everything is clear and the world is a joy to explore visually. My only criticism would be in terms of FPS; generally BotW chugs along relatively well, but there are occasional noticable dips in FPS. This seems to happen mostly in large areas of long grass or when multiple enemies die simultaneously. It’s a shame that this happens and it’s a mild annoyance, but considering the how good this game looks it’s understandable.
–Sound–
Although lacking (so far) the epic, majestic soundtracks of previous Zelda titles, BotW creates an excellent soundscape with minimalist music and environmental sound. This really enhances the exploratory nature of the game, and makes those big fights even more dramatic when a bit of music occasionally does kick in. It was a risky move, but it suits the tone of the game very nicely and furthers the sense of this game breaking away from other games in the series
–Conclusion–
Overall I’m incredibly happy with this game. As someone who’s played quite a few Zelda titles, and games generally, BotW felt like a fresh experience and is a great joy to play. It has loose ties to previous games, but isn’t weighed down by the need to stick to their formula or mechanics. Although my experience so far has been brief, I can certainly see why BotW has had unanimous critical praise. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to play some more!