5/5 ★ – Pixelguy9's review of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

All the words in the English vocabulary cannot help me convey how much this game means to me, but I'll certainly try my best to explain my thoughts coherently. Breath of the Wild was my introduction to the Zelda series, and the game that singlehandedly ignited my passion for video games and content creation. It is a game that I love dearly, and will forever cherish as one of my favourite experiences of all time. The game has many components, which I will dive deeper into now, including the game’s Expansion Pass. Gameplay: Breath of the Wild features some of the best gameplay in the whole series, but it almost feels wrong to compare it to previous games in this regard. Everything you loved about Zelda gameplay is still here, but with many new additions; flurry rushes, weapon durability, armour with stats, cooking, climbing, climate conditions, and so much more. The Zelda series has always pushed the boundaries of games, and Breath of the Wild was no different. It truly is the best example of the "...See that mountain? You can go there!" Breath of the Wild's gameplay encourages exploration at every turn, whether it be on foot, horseback, behind the fins of a sand-seal, gliding down from the kingdom's highest peaks, or scaling sheer mountain ranges. Hyrule as depicted in Breath of the Wild is by far my favourite version of the kingdom in the whole series, bursting with life despite the apocalypse 100 years prior. Many Zelda games feature a broad range of locales for Link to explore, but never have they felt so alive. The game offers freedom like nothing else I've played, but it does it naturally, feeling like a real world you've stepped into, and not just a shallow sandbox. Dungeons: Unfortunately, despite my love for Breath of the Wild, the game's biggest flaws are the dungeons. While boasting unique exterior designs, the problems with the Divine Beasts are begin to surface when Link enters inside one. Sharing an identical aesthetic and similar mechanics, the Divine Beasts don't necessarily blend together, but they don't stand out either. This is made worse by the difficulty of the Divine Beasts themselves. As the player can encounter these dungeons at any time, they need to introduce puzzles to the player that can be solved at any time no matter the equipment the player has. Unfortunately, many of the Divine Beast Puzzles will take only a between a couple of seconds or a minute to solve, leading to the experience feeling like a glorified shrine. Speaking of shrines, these are the main focus of the player throughout the game; sprinkled all over the kingdom and required for upgrades to Link's health and stamina, they play a pivotal role in the game's progression. Shrines can easily be separated into three types; puzzles, tests of strength, and blessings. The puzzle shrines are all focused on miniature problems, usually a small showcase of something that can be applied in the world. However, many of the lessons learnt in the game's shrine are difficult to or outright impossible to replicate in the conditions of the world outside the shrines. The shrines also suffer from the same problems as the Divine Beasts, like the repetitive designs and sometimes lackluster solutions. The test of strength shrines are by far one of the worst parts of Breath of the Wild, a tedious fight against hard-hitting but simple enemies that drain your resources while providing little in return. Finally, the blessing shrines, while offering nice rewards, usually after a lengthy side quest, make me feel disappointed that they weren't replaced with a fun puzzle instead. Bosses: The game's bosses are another aspect of Breath of the Wild that is criticized, however, I personally don't have as many problems with them as many other people do. The Zelda series has always had fantastic boss fights, so it was disappointing for the bosses of Breath of the Wild to feels so basic. The bosses of the Divine Beasts share a similar, unnerving aesthetic, but have different ways of attacking the player. Waterblight Ganon attacks at range with a spear and hurls blocks of ice at Link, Fireblight Ganon has a big sword and can create huge fiery explosions, Windblight Ganon shoots lasers and ricochets the shots off summoned drones, and Thunderblight Ganon favours rapid sword and shield attacks and calls down conducting metal rods from the ceiling. These bosses are decent, but are very easy to defeat, with the fights usually only lasting a couple of minutes at most thanks to their extremely telegraphed attacks. These aren't the only bosses in Breath of the Wild however, Master Kohga, who is fought during the main quest in the Gerudo Highlands, is the most classic-feeling boss in Breath of the Wild, and probably one of the most enjoyable despite the fight's length. The final boss of Breath of the Wild, Calamity Ganon is a fun fight, but lacks originality, opting instead to combine the movesets of all of the Blights into one boss. Ganon's final form, Dark Beast Ganon, is a pitifully easy fight, designed to be a spectical-filled victory lap instead of a challenge, and it feels as such. Breath of the Wild's best boss however is not actually part of the base game, and will be covered in my review of Breath of the Wild's Expansion Pass. Story: Breath of the Wild's story is my favourite part of the game. The main narrative of the game is simple, free the Divine Beasts and save Zelda inside Hyrule Castle, but it is so much deeper than that. The majority of Breath of the Wild's story takes place 100 years ago, before the Great Calamity that devastated Hyrule. This is a time that Link has forgotten following his fateful battle against Ganon's forces, and now 100 years later, he springs from the Shrine of Resurrection to recover his memories. By visiting select locations across Hyrule, Link will regain his memories of the kingdom before the Calamity and those that he knew. The characters of Breath of the Wild, although comprising of fairly one-note tropes, are still compelling despite their simplicity. Mipha is the softspoken childhood friend of the protagonist who gains feeling for them, Daruk is the imposing and strong, yet gentle giant, Revali is the arrogant rival of the main character, and Urbosa is the badass motherly figure to the princess of Hyrule. Zelda herself is my favourite character in the game, and my favourite incarnation of the princess, not just because of her design, but because of the relatability of the character. Throughout all the memories, Zelda is trying to activate her dormant sealing powers needed to seal away Ganon, who's resurrection is imminent, however, she cannot do it. Her struggles lead her to lashing out at Link, her appointed knight, but after he saves her from the blades of the Yiga Clan, she begins to see him as a friend. Zelda's powers finally awaken after Ganon returns, corrupting the Divine Beasts and setting the Blights on the Champions, who all perish. She steps in front of Link, saving him from a blast from a corrupted Guardian, however, grievously wounded, Link is sent to the Shrine of Resurrection to heal for 100 years while Zelda holds Ganon back inside Hyrule Castle. The destruction of the Great Calamity is a fact the player is always aware of, from the ruins of the Great Plateau, Fort Hateno, Akkala Citadel, all the way to Hyrule Castle, and it makes the player want to save the day so that the kingdom can heal. Although the story of Breath of the Wild isn't the most active or involved narrative in the series, that works in the game's favour, allowing for the story to be pieced together through not just the memories, but the scars that cover the land of Hyrule. Soundtrack: Breath of the Wild's music, like the story, takes a back seat to let the world speak for itself, with subtle piano tracks scoring much of Link's journey across Hyrule, a choice that fits the game perfectly. However, the game is far from lacking in the musical department, as many tracks excel in the moments that they are intended for; firing bomb arrows at the feet of Divine Beast Vah Naboris, sitting beside Kass and his accordion at Rito Village, riding around Dark Beast Ganon, and so many more tracks from this game are among some of my favourite Zelda songs of all time. The main theme too is fantastic, perfectly encapsulating the Link's journey across Hyrule, including everything from the quiet moments to the triumphant. Trial of the Sword: The first half of Breath of the Wild's Expansion Pass, the Trial of the Sword, introduces not just many sets of armour, but as the name implies, a trial. The Trial of the Sword offers the player with the ability to permanently increase the measly 30 damage of the Master Sword to 60, as well as allowing for sword beams to be fired without costing durability, both extremely welcome additions. However, the upgrade is not given for free, but is locked behind three groups of rooms increasing in difficulty, and by completing one of the series' of rooms, the Master Sword will increase its damage by 10. The Trial of the Sword is a really fun challenge that offers a genuinely great reward for beating it. The Champion's Ballad: Breath of the Wild's second DLC, The Champion's Ballad, is definitely the more expansive of the two halves of the Expansion Pass, offering 16 new shrines for the player to solve, and allowing the player to refight the Blights with the equipment of the Champions from 100 years ago. By doing so, the player will gain upgrades to their Champion abilities, reducing their cooldowns drastically, another fantastic upgrade. Before this however, Link must undertake the One-Hit Obliterator Trial, whereupon he receives a weapon that can kill any enemy in one hit, however he too can be slain with a single blow. Following the completion of all these trials, and the rematches with the Blights, Link gains entry into a fifth Divine Beast, incorporating puzzles from all four previous beasts. The boss of this Divine Beast is Monk Maz Koshia, Breath of the Wild's best boss by far. Monk Maz Koshia has everything, an amazing score, hard-hitting attacks, a cool arena, and so much more. The reward for defeating this boss? A frickin' motorbike. Need I say more? The Champion's Ballad also introduces five new memories, each providing more information about the four Champions, and adding more to their characters. The DLC closes with Link hanging a photo taken of him and Zelda and the four Champions from 100 years ago, while a melancholic, yet hopeful music-box rendition of the DLC's main theme plays in the background. Conclusion: Breath of the Wild was my favourite game of all time for years, and although it has moved down the list slightly, I still love the game for all that it does as a game in my favourite franchise of all time, and all that the game has done for me in my many years of playing it. I will never forget those first steps out of the Shrine of Resurrection and what they mean to me. I can say without a doubt that Breath of the Wild was the single game that defined the late 2010's, and the modern gaming scene as a whole.