The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Image via Nintendo

Why talk about this game as my first video game post? Well, partially because it was my first Switch game, but also because it is still relevant. This game has been broken by speedrunners, modded with crazy additions, and replayed by most of my friends. I feel that it would be a disservice to not begin with Breath of the Wild, the launch title for the console.

I feel I should preface my opinion by adding that I am moderately familiar with Zelda games. My foray into the series began with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I even played Majora's Mask and managed to somehow beat the game without a single game guide. Some readers might know all about the three-day time limit in Majora's Mask, and I think you understand how impressive it can feel to figure out some puzzles in the game. I continued to purchase games from the Legend of Zelda series: Oracle of Ages/Seasons, Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword and the Windwaker Remaster, but I stopped managing to complete the games. I would get very into the story, but I would lose time and memory of what I was doing as it was dependent on me playing at home.

Breath of the Wild changed everything. The experience was so fresh and clean. Unlike the very linear stories of the past, you are free to take Link wherever you want after getting an understanding of the controls. I became quite enamored with building Tarrey Town, and I definitely left Zelda to wait as I scoured the map for shrines and koroks and towers. I vividly remember following an NPC to Lurelin Village after overhearing them say something about it, and I wrote my friends asking if they had been there yet. Quests took me to new heights and challenged me in new ways. Overall, I played the game equally between home and on the go, making progress on the Metro, or during my lunch break. Needless to say, I actually managed to beat the game, though I didn't find all of the koroks (at least, not yet).

Let's be a little different and begin with what I found to be cons within the game. Breath of the Wild has some areas with very annoying controls, specifically, motion controls. I did not enjoy any of the shrines that required you to move any sort of orb using the controller's gyroscope. What inevitably happened—in my experience—is it all went weird and wonky, and I was relieved to finish it so I never had to do it again. I also found shield surfing to be a bit touch and go in the beginning. I was not a fan initially. As you progress through the story, you learn about the Yiga Clan, a group of shady, banana-loving ninjas. At first, you encounter Yiga Clan members occasionally posing as NPC travelers, but there comes a point where they just show up all of the time and try to fight you. This was super annoying when I was just enjoying the scenery, or hunting for koroks in remote locales. Speaking of fights, the final boss fight is such a disappointment that I honestly wish I had done it first and fought the Beast bosses after it. The world is so gorgeous, and the story unfolds so wonderfully, I was very taken aback by how lame the ending of the game was. It felt so anti-climactic. I mean, it's my opinion, you probably have your own, but I thought it was extremely lackluster. I cannot even say what would have redeemed it. Maybe a third phase? I just felt that Chaos Ganon was not that interesting a boss.

Image via Nintendo

Where to begin with the good points of this game. Do I start with the music, and how it feels so natural during your explorations of the beautifully built world? Do I speak to the vibrant characters and how much life they give each region within the game? Do I talk about the different weapons and outfits and cooking? I think I will start with jumping, actually. At long last, Link can jump. It seems pretty basic, but after all of the non-jumping Links, having a Link that can jump is difficult to turn back from. I jumped and glided from cliffs, jumped and climbed up cliffs, jumped onto horses, jumped onto buildings. There were so many useful opportunities to jump. The Sheikah Slate also worked really well within the world. Often, having advanced technology and medieval settings is odd, but they were nicely married within the game. 

Some aspects of the game divide fans. Most notably, the lack of "temples" created a rift between more traditional Legend of Zelda fans and more fluid fans like me. I enjoyed not spending hours of time puzzling my way through temples. Happening upon shrines was exciting. Finding them with the iconic beeping and gaining a quick travel location was a win-win. For all of my love of the free, open world, a lot of players were put off by the lack of rigidity. I liked that I could go wherever I wanted, whenever I wanted. Sometimes, I knew I needed to come back to an area later, but I would power through regardless. Too cold for me to be here without the right gear? No problem, I'll cook up a potion. I liked figuring out alternative ways of challenging areas. It was exciting to find out how my friends tackled the obstacles too.

I know that Breath of the Wild was also released on Wii U (and it was supposed to actually release on that console from the beginning), but it was truly the best start to the Nintendo Switch. The console had a pretty light launch, and I think I bought nearly every game available on the eShop back in those days. I have over 135 hours of playtime in this game, and that is without any DLC, which I will speak to in a different post. If by some sad fate you have not played it yet, I definitely suggest picking it up. It probably isn't on sale, since Nintendo is very limited with deals unless it's a "Select" game, but it's worth all of the money.

Have you already played it before? What are your thoughts? Did you, unlike me, like that final boss fight? Tell me what you think below, and I will see you in the next one.