The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Wii U / Switch

[Nicktendo]

So after 115 hours, I've finally driven the Master Sword deep into Ganon's face.

93 Shrines

174 Korok Seeds

36.11% completion rate.

 

One of the best games I've ever played. I don't think I've ever sunk that much time into a game over the course of 2 months and been so enthralled from start to finish. Slightly disappointed with the story, everything was over so quickly... (could be my fault as I couldn't for the life of me find the last memory, which I have done now, and the extra one when you report back to Impa). Also the real lack of the triforce in the narrative... What's up with that?! Gonna do Calamity Ganon again now that I have all the memories and see the 'real ending'.

 

Very much feels like Zelda, but at the same time strays so far from what made the series great. I'm torn about where I'd want a sequel to go. A more meaty story is a must, Skyward Sword gets me all emotional, this was a bit meh in that regard, but with the 100 years of sleep and memory recovery angle there's not much you can do, and what was there was done very well. Definitely felt like the NES Zelda made for 2017, and it was a fantastic ride. Can't wait for the DLC and to sink another 100 hours into this over the course of the next year.

[MindFreak]

Very much feels like Zelda, but at the same time strays so far from what made the series great. I'm torn about where I'd want a sequel to go. A more meaty story is a must, Skyward Sword gets me all emotional, this was a bit meh in that regard, but with the 100 years of sleep and memory recovery angle there's not much you can do, and what was there was done very well.

 

Actually, I think the story in this is really great - the memories at least. They show a really nice development in Link and Zelda's relationship and Zelda has finally become a true character with feelings and frustrations, far better portrayal than in any other game in the series. I thoroughly enjoy it - I still need to collect the last memory (the one in Hyrule Castle, I think) but I'm looking forward to it and will watch all the memories in order once I have them all.

[Grazza]

Very much feels like Zelda, but at the same time strays so far from what made the series great. I'm torn about where I'd want a sequel to go. A more meaty story is a must, Skyward Sword gets me all emotional, this was a bit meh in that regard, but with the 100 years of sleep and memory recovery angle there's not much you can do, and what was there was done very well. Definitely felt like the NES Zelda made for 2017, and it was a fantastic ride. Can't wait for the DLC and to sink another 100 hours into this over the course of the next year.

 

I think the story is OK, but what it doesn't have is plot. There are no twists and turns, no changes of circumstances and no real drama. Still, this isn't a huge criticism, just an observation.

[Pestneb]

what I'd have loved would have been for an after story, expanding the map or both. The DLC from what I have heard doesn't really interest me... the "true power of the master sword".. just .. yeah not really, thanks. And a harder mode.. again not really. Finding the koroks on my own is a challenge and I am using it as a way of getting me through until I can get a switch (if I do!) so the korok mask is all that really grabs me at all, but not until I have a switch... and not for £18. I'll be waiting to see what dlc 2 includes!

[dan-likes-trees]

^ Noticed today on the DLC tab in-game that it describes the second batch of DLC as an extra dungeon, extra story segments, and extra challenges or.. something. Sounds alright, could still be a good opportunity to give some linear content to contrast the main game. Here's hoping they've seen what can be done with DLC from CDPR!

 

I'm way behind you guys - no idea how much I've played, maybe about 30-something hours - haven't even attempted a divine beast! Loving the shit out of the game; I've spent all my time criss-crossing the map, so beautiful, endlessly rewarding, so easy to drop in and out of. Fantastic. Genuinely think I could still playing this at Christmastime

[Hero-of-Time]

I had a great session on this last night. I've given myself a to do list within the game. The last time I played the game I pretty much just done the story and over half the shrines, but this time i'm planning on...

 

• Getting all the armour
  
• Upgrading all armour to the max
  
• Doing all the shrines
  
• Doing all the sidequests
  

 

I started by farming one of the dragons for a bunch of rupees. In no time at all I had around 40k at my disposal. I then jumped around from town to town, just buying up all the armour I could find. After that, I set about unlocking all the Great Fairy Fountains, which allowed me to start upgrading stuff.

 

After a while it became clear that I needed to start hunting down some of the harder beasties to upgrade my stuff to the next level. This required some weaponry with a little more power to them. I remember James from RFN said that Hyrule Castle had a nice set of weapons to collect and also housed the Hylian shield, something which I didn't bother to collect on my first time through the game. So, off I went towards the castle.

 

The castle kinda felt like a dungeon. I must have spent around an hour in that area just searching various rooms, killing a bunch of enemies and nabbing all kinds of equipment. It took me ages but I finally found the shield.

 

 

The game then turned into Monster Hunter. I went about the map hunting various Hinox and even took down my first Lynel, which was a pretty disappointing and easy fight, if i'm honest. Just like MH, I kept hoping I would get certain drops from the battles. :p

 

While i'm enjoying this experience, it still annoys me that stuff like this isn't required to beat the game, hence why I never bothered with it before. I would have preferred some kind of stupidly hard boss that required the best weapons and armour, giving the player a push in that direction.

[Kav]

...While i'm enjoying this experience, it still annoys me that stuff like this isn't required to beat the game, hence why I never bothered with it before. I would have preferred some kind of stupidly hard boss that required the best weapons and armour, giving the player a push in that direction.

 

I get what you mean by having a boss that pushes the limits, but I don't think it should be something that's required... something akin to the optional super bosses in Xenoblade Chronicles would've been great!

 

I don't think it should be required, having a choice is always better! It's was not the games' decision for you to play the way you did, it was yours. Not that it was the wrong one.

Edited May 11, 2017 by Kav

[bob]

I had a great session on this last night. I've given myself a to do list within the game. The last time I played the game I pretty much just done the story and over half the shrines, but this time i'm planning on...

 

• Getting all the armour
  
• Upgrading all armour to the max
  
• Doing all the shrines
  
• Doing all the sidequests
  

.

 

Are you going to award yourself a little platinum trophy when you're done?

[Kaepora_Gaebora]

I get what you mean by having a boss that pushes the limits, but I don't think it should be something that's required... something akin to the optional super bosses in Xenoblade Chronicles would've been great!

 

I don't think it should be required, having a choice is always better! It's was not the games' decision for you to play the way you did, it was yours. Not that it was the wrong one.

 

Yeah I completely agree with this, although also reiterate there is no wrong way to play this at all...but that's the point!

 

If you want to just do the story, why not? If you want to hunt everything down, why not?

 

I'm going to sound incredibly pretentious, but the more I'm playing the after game of this (Shrines/Seeds/armour etc) the more I've thought this game is almost like, well, art.

 

It's not the best game I've ever played, though it's in my top 5 or so, but it's just a beautiful experience; I've found it so easy to just play this game and enjoy the delicate touches of music, seeing something interesting and going after it, thunderstorms...even my 10 1/2 month old stops throwing himself about to watch me play it, transfixed!

[Hero-of-Time]

I get what you mean by having a boss that pushes the limits, but I don't think it should be something that's required... something akin to the optional super bosses in Xenoblade Chronicles would've been great!

 

I don't think it should be required, having a choice is always better! It's was not the games' decision for you to play the way you did, it was yours. Not that it was the wrong one.

 

The point i'm trying to make is that, sure, there are all these little extras you can do if you choose to do so, but most of them lack any kind of weight or meaning behind them. I originally played the way I did because there was no requirement to play it any other way.

 

JRPGs seem to get this balance right. They reward the player for going that extra mile. You can do the main game but there's always a little extra for you to tackle and push the player into getting the best gear and getting stronger so you can take on these extra battles. Xenoblade done it well and, considering BOTW borrowed a lot of elements from that series, I would have liked to see something like that.

 

Are you going to award yourself a little platinum trophy when you're done?

 

Only when if I get all 900 Korok seeds. So probably never.

[Kav]

The point i'm trying to make is that, sure, there are all these little extras you can do if you choose to do so, but most of them lack any kind of weight or meaning behind them. I originally played the way I did because there was no requirement to play it any other way...

 

Isn't the meaning of it simply adventure? Given how they've said it was effectively Zelda going back to its roots, and given how they kept saying "open-air", I felt it was a game made to get lost in... just for the sake of doing so, for the fun of it.

[Hero-of-Time]

Isn't the meaning of it simply adventure? Given how they've said it was effectively Zelda going back to its roots, and given how they kept saying "open-air", I felt it was a game made to get lost in... just for the sake of doing so, for the fun of it.

 

I can't play like that. I need objectives, which is why I have set my own when doing this run of the game. It's why I usually fail to get through more than a couple of months when playing Animal Crossing.

[Grazza]

I had a great session on this last night. I've given myself a to do list within the game. The last time I played the game I pretty much just done the story and over half the shrines, but this time i'm planning on...

 

• Getting all the armour
  
• Upgrading all armour to the max
  
• Doing all the shrines
  
• Doing all the sidequests
  

 

That certainly provides a bit more enjoyment. On a side note though, the more I hear about the DLC, the less it sounds like preparation will stand us in good stead (apart from having 30 hearts).

 

JRPGs seem to get this balance right. They reward the player for going that extra mile. You can do the main game but there's always a little extra for you to tackle and push the player into getting the best gear and getting stronger so you can take on these extra battles. Xenoblade done it well and, considering BOTW borrowed a lot of elements from that series, I would have liked to see something like that.

 

That's an excellent point. Dragon Quest, Etrian Odyssey... there's always a main game and a post-game, and it always feels enough. By comparison, Breath of the Wild's post-game does feel aimless.

[S.C.G]

Only when if I get all 900 Korok seeds. So probably never.

 

Has anyone on the forum managed to get all 900 Korok seeds?

 

I feel like we need some kind of N-Europe themed Platinum Trophy perhaps in the shape of Hestu's Gift in the event of such an occasion.

[Ronnie]

180 hours in and I'm finally ready to storm Hyrule Castle.

 

Still don't get how anyone can finish this in a weekend and get a decent experience out of it

[Pestneb]

180 hours in and I'm finally ready to storm Hyrule Castle.

 

Still don't get how anyone can finish this in a weekend and get a decent experience out of it

 

I can get it, though I think like you I am stretching out the experience.

I don't know exactly how many hours I've put in, about 100 I think, I'm still just exploring, upgrading my armour and trying to find the seeds... I actually don't want more space for my weapon inventory. Once I have 100 shrines I'll do the camel (if I feel like it) and I'm aiming for finding all 900 seeds (and 120 shrines) before hitting hyrule. not sure I'll actually make it but we'll see!

[Babooo]

70 hours spent and I've finished off the final boss. Ending was so unfulfilling for me. I was just left there, thinking 'was that it?'. I was actually a little annoyed by the abruptness.

 

90 shrines done, 80 Korok Seeds found. A great game, don't get me wrong but I would have preferred a more linear experience with more narrative. I'm tired of open world games (IMO I preferred Horizon's to BOTW anyway - kill me now!) and while this sandbox of a Zelda iteration was fun it just felt a bit....less meaty, less substance-y (ironic I know, considering how much time I spent on the game). I just didn't really feel anything for any of the characters.

 

I enjoy side quests and such - this alone can provide character, fleshing out NPCs as well as giving a feel for the town or whatever place you're in the game. I appreciated that. But aspects like finding all the memories - they contained some really good scenes which provide a sense of story/purpose/characterization. I wish such elements were integrated into the main quest more rather than another thing you can do if you wanted to (FYI I found all the memories).

 

I get that people want the choice - they can either choose to tackle the game in a weekend or take their time and explore the world. I just personally feel that it dilutes the experience more. Its hard to explain. It's like the choice of going to a restaurant. You can go to a buffet restaurant and have everything in whatever order/quantity you like. Wanna go straight for the ice cream and skip the starter? Go ahead and do that friend. Or do you want to go to another restaurant and instead pick a set menu which is made in such a way to take you on a culinary journey? I fall in the latter category (HATE buffet places with a passion - I've had many bad experiences!).

 

I don't really know where I'm going with this but those are my thoughts on BOTW. Also I have never compared a game using an analogy based on restaurant type/choice. Interesting.

[EEVILMURRAY]

@Babooo - do not be discouraged over your opinion. It was a mediocre game.

[Pestneb]

I'm not a huge zelda fan, but I do have to say, the narrative in Windwaker seemed a lot more... "epic". I wouldn't say it is a mediocre game, but it is more "breath of the wild" than "Zelda". It does feel like 2 games set in the same world... the Zelda game has the 4 divine beasts and Hyrule Castle.... perhaps activating the towers and upgrading the sheikah tablet should be included in that. The very first area felt far more directed and stronger, beyond that I think too much freedom was given to the player. If each area, each tower, had a specific story line link (not just memories... but perhaps the directed story in each area could bring the player right up to the memory to massively increase the chance of "stumbling" upon them....)

Basically the 4 areas with a beast have storyline, Hyrule castle does, the plateau does, etc etc. But I've come across several areas that are just "there" with no purpose in the game for existing. It would be good if the DLC actually gives them some reason for being plonked in there!!!

 

fortunately I enjoy the BotW and walking round fairly aimlessly, experimenting with different mechanics and solving the shrine puzzles, hunting for new shrines and koroks.... But a bit more Zelda would make the game a LOT more interesting.

[Hero-of-Time]

I had about a 16 hours session on this yesterday. Man, my eyes are feeling it this morning.

 

I started off by reaching 60 shrines completed. I wanted this done before I tackled any of the Divine Beasts. This raised my hearts levels to the point where I could go and get the Master Sword. I wanted to take them n with the sword just to see how much damage they do against them. With that done I was ready to tackle the dungeons.

 

I knocked out the Zora and Gerudo dungeons first and done them both in quick succession. The dungeons in the game are already short and easy but when you've been through the game before then are even shorter.

 

After those were done I decided to do some sidequests. I completed a fair few of them but this one was a right pain in the backside.

 

 

It's easy enough ( just need the cash ) but the way the game makes you select every single item one at a time and then watch a cutscene each time is very annoying. I had all the cash on hand and it would have been nice to be able to get everything in one go.

 

Another sidequest that was tedious was this one.

 

 

Again. an easy quest, but having to teleport from one place to another became very tiresome. Still, it was kinda a nice scene to see at the end of it.

 

Wanting a break from all the questing, I decided to start upgrading some more of my gear. Eventually I managed to max out a couple of sets.

 

 

With the soldiers set all upgraded, I had a crazy high defence. This meant it was time to put it to the test against some difficulty enemies. I went Lynel hunting.

 

At first I tackled a few of the easier basic Lynels. I had no issue with them the other day and even less issues with them now. I then moved on to various other coloured Lynels and took them all down with ease.

 

 

The combo of an upgraded stasis and then unleashing the power you get from the Gerudo Dungeon is completely broken. Hell, you don't even need to dungeon power as the stasis recharges so fast that you can freeze the Lynels, dodge a hit and then do it again. Not that I really need to dodge. At this point one of their attacks barely scratches my armour. :p

 

I had to do a bit of Hinox farming and they are even more of a pushover using this method. The above method combined with all the Lynel weapons I nabbed meant the poor things barely got off their huge backsides before they were defeated.

 

While running around Hyrule, I came across a Star Fragment that had fell from the sky. I started running towards the thing as fast as I could because it was nearly 5am, which is when they disappear. I was almost there but got cut off by a moving Guardian. I ignored it and kept of pegging it towards my prize. I was so close but the Guardian went and blasted me and I didn't make it in time.

 

Now, remember that scene in Star Wars where Anakin finally gets reunited with his mother, only to have her die in his arms and then he goes on a killing spree? This was me. I was so annoyed with what happened I went and murdered all the Guardians in the area. It was pretty close to Hyrule Castle so there were plenty of them kicking around. At one point I had 3 of them on me but I didn't care. My stasis and Master Sword combo, along with some Guardian weapons I had picked up earlier, butchered the lot of them.

 

 

I kept freezing them and then smashing their legs off one by one stopping them from ever getting a hit on me. I got a hell of a lot of gear from this massacre.

 

James Jones from RFN done something similar and even Greg made the same Star Wars comparison when James told his story. Basically he was sick of being bullied by the Guardians throughout he whole game and, once powered up, he went back and destroyed every last one of them.

 

I've had my morning run and breakfast so it's time to step back into Hyrule. Methinks I will finish off the last dungeon, upgrade another set of armour and do some more sidequests. I could easily have the game finished again today but we will see how things go.

[Ronnie]

I finished this last night, one of the most extraordinary and special games I've ever played. Full thoughts another time but for now I'd highly recommend Game Makers Toolkit's first video on it, Mark explains why BOTW isn't just another openworld game and how it stands out amongst other similar titles.

 

[Hero-of-Time]

I went and finished the final dungeon this morning. I figured I would go ahead and finish the main game while I was at it. I went and collected all the memories and then I went and finished Ganon off.

 

After that I went back to armour upgrading and Lynel hunting. I noticed that a lot of the normal enemies have now been upgraded to the silver versions. This is also true for the Lynels. I came across this fella not long after finish the main game.

 

 

I got a nice haul off him.

 

 

I need to replenish my rupees. I had 40k the other day but now i'm down to a measly 1k. I need a bit more cash to buy a few new bits of armour. The Ancient gear costs a fair bit.

[S.C.G]

I need to replenish my rupees. I had 40k the other day but now i'm down to a measly 1k. I need a bit more cash to buy a few new bits of armour. The Ancient gear costs a fair bit.

 

I'm glad to hear that you're getting a decent amount of enjoyment out of the game from your second run.

 

Regarding earning Rupees... how many amiibo do you have to date? I have a feeling that it's around 80+ (I also have that many) isn't it?

 

I don't know if it's just me but almost every day since the game came out, I've been scanning my amiibo figures in, nabbing all the items, cooking en-masse and then selling stuff like grilled meat (5X meat pieces) which each sell for 125 Rupees each or something like that as I ended up maxing out with 999 meat pieces ages ago.

 

So I just do that, then set up by the fire at a stable, cook the meat while skipping the cooking scene and within minutes I've sold 100 - 200 pieces of meat for a few thousand rupees, I think the most I've had is around 64,000 rupees or something crazy like that but on average I usually have about 50,000 rupees after daily expenditure on diamonds etc from the ore shop in Tarrey Town which I only completed the quest to recently.

 

I've still got plenty to do in this game, aside from scanning amiibo in I haven't been playing it that much recently due to playing loads of Neo Geo games and stuff for review but I have been getting more into it recently and I've easily clocked in over 120 hours at the expense of plenty of other games I've got waiting to be played, something about it just keeps me coming back, not even Mario Kart can keep me away from it. : peace:

[Hero-of-Time]

For cash I've just been using the dragon trick. You can get a crazy amount of money in a stupidly short period of time.

[ArtMediocre]

What is this "Dragon trick"? Please do explain!

 

In other news, I'm doing a second walkthrough with amiibo armor. Pretty fun .

 

Sheik is here to save the day!

 

Classic Twilight Princess armor. I like this one the most, or maybe the Skyward Sword one.