Release: 2017
Publisher: Nintendo
Genre: Action/Adventure, Puzzle
Gameplay Stats: ~100 hrs, 120 shrines, 147 Korok seeds
I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't neglecting to write up this review for a while, but in a way I'm glad that I did. I think my overall opinion has leveled out, so I think I should be able to give a more balanced review than I could immediately after finishing. Enough procrastinating!
Audio: This game is beautiful for the ears. The music is a little sparse, but there is a lot of ambient noise that certainly helps to make up for it. Another difference between this and other games in the Zelda series is that the music is pretty subdued instead of being catchy and bombastic. I think this fits with the theme of the game more, since it's about taking your time instead of having a strong sense of direction and purpose. The sound effects, as always in this series, are great. There are a lot of familiar sounds here for old time fans, and they are pleasant enough to be engaging to newer fans as well.
Video: This game is pretty attractive visually! This is especially surprising since it came out on Nintendo consoles, which are not known for their visual spectacles. Nintendo didn't aim for realism, but their watercolor like aesthetic is reminiscent of both Wind Waker and Skyward Sword. This style allows even a Wii U to reflect a large amount of detail that wouldn't be present otherwise. The particle effects are better than most of what has been seen in Nintendo games as well. The only negative here is that the frame rate slows down from time to time. It's most obvious when you are in a town where there are a lot of moving pieces/characters or while in battle. The game normally displays at 30 fps, and in these sections it often drops down to what felt like 15-20.
Plot: The plot here is fairly standard, like it is for every Zelda game. You are the hero of time, you wake up not remembering anything, and you need to jump through some hoops to save Princess Zelda. What I think is really cool though is that apart from the first little tutorial area, the vast majority of the game is optional. After you get the glider after about 30-60 minutes you can go straight to fighting Gannon. I think it's really interesting that Nintendo doesn't make players experience the vast majority of the content in the game. As I've mentioned before, I really like this about open world games. The idea that a gem may be just around that next hill instead of just around that next story quest.
Gameplay: I think this is why Breath of the Wild is going to be talked about for a long time. First and foremost, the game is a solid action RPG. The mechanics are really strong and it is possible to beat any enemy in the game without being hit. This skill focus is unusual for a Nintendo game, but very welcome. Probably the most contentious point of game design present is that your weapons break after a certain number of uses. Many people find this very hard to get used to, and I've heard complaints of people running out of weapons to use. I never had this problem! It was more common that I would be ditching decent weapons to pick up new ones. I may be more thorough than average, but this mechanic actually grew on me quickly. I didn't like how few weapons that you could carry, but that was a minor and fixable issue. I did like the large shift to puzzles in this game. Some of them actually required thinking!
Final Thoughts... So, this game was really interesting. My enjoyment of it didn't start high. I didn't especially enjoy my first hour or so with the game. After I got the glider and was able to visit the larger world is where the game gripped me. And it gripped me HARD. This was all I could think about for a solid couple of weeks. There is so much to do in this game, and it's so much deeper than it appears at first glance. The game really rewards and encourages exploration. As you might guess, that makes the last bits of the game a bit more like drudgery. That was my experience for sure. This game is really really good, but I can't call it perfect like so many other people seem to think it is. [9/10]
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