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Giant Bomb Review

255 Comments

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Review

5
  • NSW

Link's most ambitious adventure is one of Nintendo's crowning achievements.

Nintendo has never introduced a true disaster to their core Legend of Zelda series, but most of the last ten years has felt lacking in inspiration. Games like Skyward Sword and Spirit Tracks were perfectly solid on their own merits, yet they paled in comparison to the more impactful entries from the series’ past. Attempts at freshening up the franchise usually came in the form of touch- or motion-based experiments, while the format of the games still riffed on established concepts dating as far back as the Super Nintendo. One major exception was 2013’s A Link Between Worlds (which was based on that same Super Nintendo game, ironically). With that 3DS installment, Nintendo finally made some bold changes to the series’ aging format. Tweaking the item system and allowing players to choose dungeon order proved to be a shot in the arm for a franchise that had long rested on its tried-and-true trademarks.

If A Link Between Worlds was the game that dared to change things up, Breath of the Wild is the game that blows everything wide open. It deems no rule sacred, removing or changing numerous systems we’ve come to expect from the franchise. The end result is a total reinvention of Zelda that manages to evoke the exact same feelings that made it iconic to begin with.

One of the most welcome changes is almost immediately apparent. While the past two console entries (Skyward Sword and Twilight Princess) had painfully long introductory sequences, this swings hard in the other direction. Link wakes up, briefly talks to a mysterious old man, and is exploring an open world and solving puzzles within minutes. It’s essentially the difference between “talk to everyone on this sky island for six hours” and “It’s dangerous to go alone! Take this.”

You'll get plenty of use out of your core abilities.
You'll get plenty of use out of your core abilities.

Your first order of business is to visit four mini-dungeons so that you can acquire four runes. These runes grant you the ability to create remote bombs, manipulate magnetic objects, stop time, and create pillars of ice in pools of water. Once you’ve proven that you know how to wield these powers, you’re given a paraglider that allows you to leave the opening plateau and experience the rest of Hyrule.

I was initially skeptical of this approach. In the past, a big part of the Zelda experience was obtaining new items within its dungeons. I was worried that by giving me powers upfront instead of doling them out in dungeons, the game would be taking away the joy of obtaining a new tool. In earlier games, you’d get something like the hookshot and realize that you could now cross that broken bridge or get on top of that plateau. Breath of the Wild replaces that joy with a much more substantial sense of freedom and possibility. You’re not waiting for an item in a treasure chest to let you get across that bridge or onto that plateau. You already have all the tools you need, it’s just a matter of making it happen.

With just these four abilities, you’re able to solve any of the game’s 100-plus shrines. You’re also able to explore almost all of the massive Hyrule map using just your paraglider and climbing ability. By giving you all of this upfront, Breath of the Wild is essentially saying “Here you go, have fun” and setting you loose. Upgrades to your stamina and gear certainly make climbing and traversal quicker and easier, but I was able to get just about anywhere I wanted with enough patience and planning.

Prepare to nervously stare at your stamina circle a lot.
Prepare to nervously stare at your stamina circle a lot.

Plenty of open world games allow you to explore the entire map at your leisure, but Hyrule’s landscape and Link’s ability to climb makes for more rewarding exploration than I’ve ever seen in the genre. Most of the world isn’t accessible by easy-to-follow roads and waypoints. I spent many hours exploring off the beaten path, gliding across canyons, and scaling mountains. Some of these peaks seem insurmountable at first, but the summit can usually be reached if you’re smart about looking for places to rest and get a quick stamina recharge. When things go wrong, it often ends with Link ragdolling down the side of a rocky cliff. When they go right, there’s frequently a secret, a new vantage point for spotting shrines, or at least a beautiful view awaiting you.

Climb these. All of them.
Climb these. All of them.

One thing you'll be climbing an awful lot of is towers. Each area of the map features one orange tower, and scaling it will turn it blue and fill in details for the region on your map. Unlike many open world games, filling it in doesn't mean it gives you the location of shrines, towns, and other points of interest. It simply gives you the outlines of major landmasses and bodies of water. Even small details like a hot spring won't be labelled until you're basically dipping Link's toes in it. Whenever you spot something that you think you might want to return to, it's easy to mark it on the map with a variety of icons. I found this to be extremely helpful for marking shrines that I spotted in the distance, areas that required arrows when I had none, mineral-rich mountainsides, and mysterious creatures and pieces of the environment that I wanted to investigate later.

It doesn’t feel like the map is huge for the sake of being huge. While there are stretches of unpopulated land, I never felt like I was at a loss for things to do. There are plenty of shrines to locate, wildlife to photograph and hunt, minerals and food to collect, friendly characters to help, and camps of enemies to battle and loot. One of my favorite things that happened frequently was finding myself out of my league. Since I spent so many of my early hours exploring the world, I’d inevitably wander into areas that I was not properly equipped for. Rather than running from these higher-level enemies, I saw them as a challenge. With no items being gated behind dungeons, I knew that the tools to beat these enemies were already at my disposal, even if any one of their attacks could wipe me out instantaneously. Taking out a Lynel late in the game feels like an accomplishment. Slaying one when I only had five heart containers felt like a triumph.

Throw some Lizalfos Horns in with those Molduga Guts, and baby...you got a stew goin'!
Throw some Lizalfos Horns in with those Molduga Guts, and baby...you got a stew goin'!

Your challenges won’t always come in the form of high-level enemies. My adventures off the beaten path sometimes came to an end when I found myself in the freezing cold without proper gear. Link would shiver and take damage until I had to teleport to safer ground and rethink my approach. Before you find new gear that helps you combat weather, you can fight the elements by cooking. It’s an imprecise and somewhat silly system, but it’s fun to experiment and toss a bunch of ingredients into a pot and hope for the best. You begin to learn the general formula for success after you screw up and create barely edible meals on enough occasions. If I knew I was heading into a cold region of the map, I’d gain some heat resistance by mixing spicy peppers into various meat and fruit dishes. If I was about to take on a difficult enemy, I’d make a few meals that utilized defense-boosting mushrooms and heart-restoring radishes.

I’m glad that the cooking system isn’t overly cumbersome, as it’s absolutely necessary. Among the sweeping changes to series tradition is the method in which you heal yourself. In almost every past entry, you could recover from a damaging battle by simply cutting some grass or breaking some pots until you found enough hearts. That option is nowhere to be found here. You can eat raw food off of the ground if you’d like, but you need to cook meals if you hope to have any serious source of health recovery.

An assortment of cutscenes feature voice-over work (except for Link).
An assortment of cutscenes feature voice-over work (except for Link).

Not finding hearts in the wild is one of many seemingly minor changes that add up to make the game feel so much different than its predecessors. Rupees are rarely found in the field, as most are earned by selling materials and completing sidequests. Twilight Princess surprised me by requiring five heart pieces to make a container instead of four, but Breath of the Wild goes several steps further and omits them altogether (new hearts are earned by trading in orbs earned in shrines). You’ll be snatching fairies out of the air with your hand, as bottles are gone. Boomerangs will fly right back over your head if you don’t press A to catch them. Cutscenes feature voice acting. There’s a jump button.

Among the bigger changes is the optional nature and the structure of Breath of the Wild’s traditional dungeons. Like they’ve usually been, these are longer, puzzle-driven affairs that end in boss fights. That’s where the similarities end, however. The “get the map, the compass, the big key, and the dungeon item” format is completely gone. Those last three things are completely absent, and you’re given a map at the very beginning of each dungeon. How you interact with the dungeons themselves is a puzzle element unique to these areas, and I don’t want to spoil the specifics here.

These dungeons—like just about everything in the game—are completely optional. That said, they’re a lot of fun and will certainly make your final quest an easier ordeal. Perhaps more important than the traditional dungeons are the tiny shrines that are scattered across the map. These act as fast travel points, and you’ll be able to upgrade your heart or stamina capacity each time you complete four of them. Most of these are filled with traditional Zelda puzzles. You’ll utilize your runes and wits to place boxes onto switches, complete electrical circuits, manipulate balancing tools, and plenty more. On occasion, they’ll present you with tests of combat prowess or goofy motion-based mini-golf puzzles. If the process of getting to the shrine was particularly tough, sometimes it’ll simply present you with a treasure chest and send you on your way.

I never got tired of finding more of these.
I never got tired of finding more of these.

On the Switch, these shrines have the added benefit of being fantastic for portable play. This game can be a massive undertaking that benefits from long marathon sessions. On the other hand, these bite-sized shrines usually don’t take much time at all. If I’m on a bus and only have 20 minutes to play, I might not want to go on a lengthy quest into the wilderness. Knocking out a few shrines and upgrading my stamina is a perfectly reasonable task, however.

Most shrines feature hidden treasure chests. Frequently, these contain equipment like melee weapons, bows, or shields. I lost track of how many times I’d get to one, only to be told that my inventory was full. When this happened, I’d step away from the chest, cycle through what I was holding, and toss several items at my feet before grabbing my new toy. It’s frustrating at times, but you thankfully can upgrade your storage capacity by collecting hidden seeds and delivering them to a specific character.

That shield is totally about to break.
That shield is totally about to break.

Another frustration comes about thanks to the weapons themselves. Almost all of them will break eventually, which can be annoying when you’re trying to decide what to bring into each battle. Do you want to use your awesome lightning sword on that group of basic Bokoblins, or do you want to dispatch them with your super-slow two-handed rusty broadsword? Some may enjoy the decision-making that this forces you to do, but I usually wished I could just go in swinging with my favorite weapon without worrying about it shattering. It can be a frustrating system at times, but it’s remedied somewhat by the steady availability of new weapons in the field.

Breath of the Wild also has issues on the technical end. Its art style and character design are among the best I’ve seen in the series, but there’s no denying that the framerate takes a big hit from time to time. This is most evident in areas like dense forests and populated towns. Things usually move along at a decent clip, but you’re bound to notice the game chugging if you take a stroll through Kakariko Village during a rainstorm. That said, I never felt like it interfered with combat or platforming scenarios at any point.

You'll need to be able to handle these guys if you want to make it to Ganon.
You'll need to be able to handle these guys if you want to make it to Ganon.

This can be either the shortest or—more likely—the longest Zelda game depending on how you play it. You can go for a novelty speed run and charge Ganon right out of the gate. You can put a couple of dozen hours into the adventure, beat two or three dungeons, and decide you’re ready to take on the endgame. Or you could do what I did, which is spend almost 100 hours exploring the map and enhancing Link’s gear, health, and stamina before you’re ready to see the credits.

You decide when it’s time to end the game. It’s a great feeling, and I loved having such a defined goal throughout (“Defeat Ganon” is the first quest given to you). I wanted to be as powerful as possible in preparation for the climactic battle. When the time came, I felt like I was in an action movie “gearing-up” montage as I purchased bundles of every type of arrow, optimized my weapon inventory, put on my highest-rated gear, and cooked plenty of hearty meals. With at least 30 well-salted meat dinners lining the pockets of my fanciest armor, I breached the perimeter of Hyrule Castle and prepared to take on Ganon.

There’s great joy to be found in the big moments like this as well as the myriad little details. I laughed when lightning struck me for the first time, instantly killing Link. I asked the goofy scientist guy in Akkala to introduce himself every time I saw him, because I couldn’t get enough of the little dance and sound effect that accompanied it. I was fascinated with what I found on Eventide Island, and spent over an hour making sure that I performed its unique task perfectly.

No Caption Provided

Every night, I sat on the couch and played until I genuinely couldn’t stay awake any longer. Every morning, I couldn’t get out of bed and turn on the Switch fast enough. Near the end, I found myself getting sad as I climbed the final towers and saw the map fill in. This Hyrule gave me such a profound sense of discovery, and I never wanted the mysteries to end. Even now, I have no idea of the purpose of numerous things that I saw. Ganon may be dead and I watched the credits roll, but I want to keep jumping back in until I’ve seen everything there is to see.

This sense of wonder is something that I haven’t felt so strongly since I played A Link to the Past when I was seven years old. Ocarina of Time was able to capture some of that same magic in my teenage years. Now that I’m in my thirties, I don’t think that I expected it to be possible for a game to make me feel like that again. I’ve been reviewing video games for twelve years now, and I’m used to describing games in a certain way. “This game controls well. This mechanic is innovative. The graphics are stunning. The skill tree feels limited.” That type of language doesn’t adequately convey how Breath of the Wild made me feel. Nintendo may have changed so many long-standing traditions of the Zelda franchise, but the spirit of discovery is as strong as it’s ever been no matter your age. I didn’t think I’d feel the Zelda magic this strongly ever again, but I couldn't be happier to be proven wrong.

255 Comments

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Corvidus

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"I’m glad that the cooking system isn’t overly cumbersome, as it’s absolutely necessary."

One switch unsold.

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WeyounNumber6

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Sweet Jesus Target better honor my pre-order. Another 5 star. Gotta play ASAP

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metalsnakezero

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Edited By metalsnakezero

So many good games this first part of the year.

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Rocketskates

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Dan, I think that word you were looking for at the end is "nostalgia."

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fatalbanana

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Reads more like a 10 tbh...

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Vincenzo

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I'm sure this is the best version of Zelda there ever was, and that is fantastic, but I will never buy another console. There is no need. No selling point of the Switch pertains to me. I look forward to playing this on PC one day though, maybe, if I ever feel like I need a single player experience for some reason. Sorry. If you are reading this, then you are "he" and He Hate Me.

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watwat2017

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Edited By watwat2017

there are some pretty desperate sensationalist claims about this game,

I don't think the greatest game of all time would have this many technical issues.

also, I haven't been amazed by the footage, nothing about it seems genuinely new or unique or exciting. You talk about nostalgia and amazement and discovery. " capture some of the magic in my teenage years"

what? at what point in any of this game is there a unique or original aspect to it? it seems like you're projecting hard what you want it to be via nostalgia, and it doesn't follow through the way skyrim did.

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TylerDurden4321

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Well, I have a console that plays this... and Nintendo games basically don't drop in price ...like EVER.

*sigh* I guess I should just buy this. God, this year in gaming is expensive.

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EngineNo9

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So...did Dan not play Skyrim? Or the numerous other open world games?

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ptys

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Edited By ptys

Cool, I literally can't image the game being this good from what I've seen. Being a Wii U owner I feel I better play it though. Dan's great but a bit of a fan boy [who dines out at gas stations], so might wait for Jeff and Brad's assessment... no offense.

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dwerkmd

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@watwat2017: Come back and express this type of opinion after you've played it. I understand if people are skeptical but all of the comments accusing of fanboyism and hype mean nothing if you have so little context for these accusations. There is far too much of this going around in video games these days.

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watwat2017

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@dwerkmd:

did you read the review?

This sense of wonder is something that I haven’t felt so strongly since I played A Link to the Past when I was seven years old. Ocarina of Time was able to capture some of that same magic in my teenage years.

Its not an accusation, you are not a victim for me expressing my doubt when i have yet to see anything original or unique about this game.

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GERALTITUDE

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Fan boy likes a game = he's just a fan, they'll take anything.

Fan boy doesn't like a game = he's just a fan, they're never happy.

:)

Nice way to close that review out Dan, I feel you.

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Dastardry

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Edited By Dastardry

@ptys: Damn those Nintendo fanboys at >Dualshockers< giving it a 10. Oh wait.

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GiantLizardKing

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Excellent review, Dan

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buzzbr

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The last Nintendo console I bought was an N64. I found it lacking.

The last Zelda game I played was Ocarina of Time. I found it lacking.

I'm sure this game is amazing, but it's Zelda and it's Nintendo. Those things are not for me.

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Ravelle

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This is the year of video games. So many good games coming out and so little time to play them all!

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Grimluck343

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there are some pretty desperate sensationalist claims about this game,

I don't think the greatest game of all time would have this many technical issues.

also, I haven't been amazed by the footage, nothing about it seems genuinely new or unique or exciting. You talk about nostalgia and amazement and discovery. " capture some of the magic in my teenage years"

what? at what point in any of this game is there a unique or original aspect to it? it seems like you're projecting hard what you want it to be via nostalgia, and it doesn't follow through the way skyrim did.

I will never understand people being salty over good review scores.

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Redhotchilimist

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@dafdiego777: @ripelivejam: I'm not even saying the reviewers were wrong to feel what they felt. Looking at review scores is a relatively useless practice, is what I'm getting at. Even reading them, in some cases, because they won't spoil the important details. I don't think Mass Effect 3 is a very good game. I like something like half of the missions, and half of the DLC, and the rest can go from boring to trainwreck. I'm not stoked about either the combat system or the quest system or the way this whole story goes.

But what reviewer would I have to search out to find the information to get to that opinion? Nobody, because they probably wouldn't go into such detail or even be able to accurately relay how it feels to play, and even if they did, they wouldn't necessarily come to the same conclusion as me. Never mind the folks who are changing their opinion as the honeymoon period wears off. I'm saying that a 5/5 from Dan for this game might not be the same as a 5/5 for you if the framerate matters more to you, for instance. Or if weapon durability is a major pet peeve, or you dislike the more open world aspect of it. But I still think it's fair that Dan thinks so, and I hope it is true for me too, because I could really go for a good Zelda after Spirit Tracks and Skyward Sword.

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indieslaw

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Any differences in the Wii U version vs the switch version?

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Dan_CiTi

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man it sucks that it's march and GotY is already wrapped up.

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AC_Shredder

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@redhotchilimist said:
@thornie said:

Skyward Sword and Twilight both were given near perfect scores, and it's funny to hear people backpedal on their opinions of those games (except Jeff). I wasn't surprised when Jeff expressed his skepticism about the game's mechanics in the last podcast. You can almost hear the 8-4 Nintendo fanboy's in the room gasp that his experience wasn't anything other than transcendent.

I feel like this happens relatively often. Remember Mass Effect 3? That game has a metacritic score of 93, with 100s from Polygon and Gameinformer among others. But you wouldn't know it from the reception and legacy it got, and when people on these forums voted on their favorite ME game on the forums a month or two ago ME3 had a measly 6% of those votes.

things and people change. maybe what's amazing at one time isn't as impressive later one, especially if the formula gets copied and refined. i don't think it's necessarily a matter of reviewers being blind fanboys. and even if it doesn't appear as ostensibly great as it was made out to be originally, that doesn't always mean its quality is diminished.

I also think there's another factor that Vinny touched on in the Quick Look, and Brad and Jeff have mentioned a few times, and that's that it can be hard to retain perspective when you've mainlined like thirty hours of a game over the span of a couple days. And that doesn't mean that reviewers are biased or something, or even that they're fuckin up, just that they're often forced to do stuff like that and it can be hard to form a clear picture when you've had that much of a game surrounding you for those lengths of time.

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deactivated-5d61ff6f14b61

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Fuck. Sold my Wii U a while back and I didn't preorder a Switch so I'm gonna have to sit this one out for a while. Oh well, at least I've got Horizon!

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somestrangeflea

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Some choice cuts from @danryckert on Twitter:

"BOTW is a phenomenal game, top-to-bottom. It's a perfect game with no flaws."

"On second thoughts, it's probably a 4-star game but I've already cashed my 5-star bonus check, so..."

"I've actually never actually played any videogames. I just read angry comments on preview articles and then write the exact opposite of that in the review."

"It's like if Majora's Mask was good."

"I met Miyamoto once. I don't remember it, but I blacked out for three days in 2002 and woke up in a cave in Narusawa with two million dollars and a hastily scribbled note reading 'YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO', so I assume I did."

"Taco Bell - Breath of the Summerslam Eat Fresh? I don't really know my opinions on Subway to be honest but it seems like the sort of thing I might say so whatever."

"These are all real."

"I just Googled 'japan caves' for the Narusawa one, by the way, I know jack shit about Japanese geography."

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xxDrAiNxx

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Wow, just wow !

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AC_Shredder

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Edited By AC_Shredder

Also this is a killer review, Dan, ends really strong.

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deactivated-60481185a779c

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Does this game have a story? No mention of one in the review.

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JesusHammer

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@watwat2017: One of my favourite game of all time is Shadow of the Colossus and that game ran like total dogshit on the PS2. Technical stuff isn't always something that completely ruins a game.

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DrPotato

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@nthnmllr: Citation needed. For reals though, hit me up I'm about to buy the Wii U version.

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deactivated-5dac8b1b10957

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I could never give a game with FPS problems, by a first party developer on their NEW PLATFORM five stars. That seems like a colossal failure of planning, optimization, and bodes very poorly for the hardware. I'm sure the game is incredible... but if it's going to run at 15 fps or worse randomly, I will never be able to get past that. Wish Nintendo would just make a normal fucking console instead of ~innovating~ by making shitty hardware.

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TheWildCard

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Some choice cuts from @danryckert on Twitter:

"It's like if Majora's Mask was good."

"I met Miyamoto once. I don't remember it, but I blacked out for three days in 2002 and woke up in a cave in Narusawa with two million dollars and a hastily scribbled note reading 'YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO', so I assume I did."

That's awesome!

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Chicken008

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@drgreatjob: I think you should stick to PC games. Every console game has frame rate dips now and again. It just depends if these dips actively prevent you playing the game.
I doubt most people think the occasional 5-10 frame rate drop is the worst thing ever.

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synthesis_landale

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@grimluck343: Because they don't want to buy it and need to convince themselves via nitpicking small issues and claiming 'bias' that they really don't want it. It's fanboyism quite obviously. You saw the same thing whenever the WiiU got a great title like Bayonetta 2.

My wife and I buy all consoles (and a PC) so I'm happy any time a game is awesome because I can play it.

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berfunkle

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With all these great games that have come out already and the ones that are due out, it's going to be one rough ride for the Bomb crew to select a GOTY. I'm telling ya, there's going to be blood-on-the-walls discussions over which game should be named #1.

I, for one, can't wait!

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kidman

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I've never been fan od Zelda games (I love Okami and really liked Darksiders) despite giving them a try almost every time. This one doesn't appear to be for me either. I'm playing Wii U version and framerate dips are pretty common (even hitting 15fps if my guesses are correct), especially when there are translucent materials etc. It's not easy for me to overlook the graphics, which are just lacking for me. I wish I could enjoy a game as much as other people seem to be, but it's not the case. Shame.

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Grimluck343

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@synthesis_landale Yeah I'm happy that I'm at the point in life where I can just buy all of the consoles and not have to worry about it. I just find it odd that people are mad that reviewers enjoy a game. If you are really hyped and excited and invested in a game that a reviewer scores badly I can at least understand the rationale behind the angst (even if it's still dumb and misplaced), but arguing that a critic gave a glowing review due to "nostalgia" or "fanboyism" just seems like lashing out for the sake of drama.

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darksagus

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This sounds really good but I'm not gonna buy a switch until there are a few more good games to get. Maybe by then there will be a price drop or a second revision. I'm still playing though A Link Between Worlds right now, there's no rush.

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TwitterBeef

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@spacebacon: Don't let those pesky facts get in the way of some good old Nintendo bashing

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MadBootsy

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@madbootsy:

look beyond numbers my dude, read the sentiment. this is different. this is something special

After reading other level headed reviews (lots of 10's, btw), I can see what you're saying. Glad to hear that this isn't another Skyward Sword situation!

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Miso_JEFF

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@dooley: Probably yea, he has the most experience with Zelda games. He would know what makes a good Zelda game also how this title stacks up against past titles. I understand that it could be viewed through "rose tinted glasses" but I don't know how often a reviewer goes into a review without a little bias, positive or negative.

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Miso_JEFF

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Edited By Miso_JEFF

@xabbott: that's the effect of "nostalgia"... queue the grown men high pitched screams of excitement!

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billyok

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@dooley said:

Was having one of the biggest Nintendo fanboys the best choice for the reviewer?

Was having one of the biggest Nintendo fanboys most knowledgable Zelda players in the office the best choice for the reviewer?

Yes, it was. I can't imagine why it wouldn't be.

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SuperSonic1305

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Lots of towers to climb, limited inventory, weapons break frequently, resource gathering, and technical issues? The fact that it still gets a top score means it must be amazing.

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MocBucket62

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Edited By MocBucket62

@berfunkle said:

With all these great games that have come out already and the ones that are due out, it's going to be one rough ride for the Bomb crew to select a GOTY. I'm telling ya, there's going to be blood-on-the-walls discussions over which game should be named #1.

I, for one, can't wait!

Me too! In the last 3 years though there's always been one game that the community thinks for sure GB will name GOTY, but the crew tends to surprise the community by giving it to another title. An example was DOOM being the community favorite in 2016 but Hitman won. While I think Breath of the Wild will definitely be in contention for GOTY, there have been so many good games out already in 2017 and plenty of other highly anticipated titles this year that its gonna be really interesting how GOTY deliberations are gonna play out.

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afkbradshaw

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Edited By afkbradshaw

Zelda excels in the little things, those moments that stay long in the memory and feel unique and special to your playthrough even when the game is linear, I agree with points made above that skyward sword had issues but it also had some of the best moments and dungeons in the franchise, one of my most cherished moments in gaming was when I first got to ride on epona in ocarina of time and for hours I ignored the story and just rode and basked in the sheer thrill of it. The zelda games may not work for everyone but it is clear that it does touch a number of people deeply, it has a rather special sprinkle of giant fairy dust and playing them, for me, does feel a different experience. Im looking forward to disappearing into botw and creating hopefully numerous new special memories, for those that it doesn't, I hope you get as much joy in the games you like

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Rossco81

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As someone that has never played a Nintendo game, this looks kind of fun. The frame-rate was unfortunately very off-putting for me, personally. I hope people who pre-ordered the Switch enjoy it!

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larmer

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GoTY already.

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videogameninja

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Game of the year. Calling it right now.

I know that is a bold claim to make but based on the ridiculously high review scores already piling in and the fact that the Zelda series is both a videogame “darling” to not just the gaming media but to many who have been playing games for the better part of 30 years also adds an air of validity to this claim.

It also helps that each installment is amazingly well crafted and excels at the concepts it pioneered in the first place.

I haven’t played every Zelda game but it’s funny that even the ones I haven’t I just know will deliver a great gaming experience. There are few game franchises you don’t even need to pop into your console (or download digitally now-a-days, lol.) yet you know will deliver an amazing experience.

I have no doubt that BOTW will be no different in that sense.

However… (Didn’t think this positivity could stay the course did you?) even with that being said I have more than a “good hunch” that many people out there who are interested in this game will find it hard to shell out the money to purchase a new console just to get their hands on this game.

Many of the comments and feedback from gamers all over seems to be that despite their initial excitement in BOTW it still doesn’t justify buying a Switch thanks mostly in part to what many deem as a “weak” launch lineup in tandem with a whole host of other issues (hardware, price for what is offered, competitors, 3rd party issues.).

I can understand this concern as it does make sense. Buying a console mainly for one game usually is not a good investment especially if an individual can’t afford the luxury of spending money so frivolous.

No doubt individuals who are in this category but absolutely “MUST” play this game will seek out alternative avenues (playing the Wii-U version.).

Regardless of any of that I think there is one thing I think we can all agree on whether we feel this game is deserving of it or not.

You are looking at the gaming medias/industries 2017 Game of the Year.

-CALLING IT RIGHT NOW NINJA APPROVED-

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Captain_Insano

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Is Dan gonna make me buy a Switch?

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Brainling

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Edited By Brainling

Reading the review comments for games like this is always a treat. The number of people who get genuinely salty that a game is given a 5-star is comical. The best is when they write paragraphs long diatribes. Comedy gold.