25 reasons why Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild may be the coolest, craziest Zelda yet
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It's the biggest Zelda ever. By far.
Nintendo's Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is one of the hottest games at E3 2016 (and a GameSpot Best of E3 award winner). Here's why we can't wait until it comes out next year.
First: According to Nintendo, the version of Hyrule created for Breath of the Wild is 12 times the size of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (2006). And you really do get an immediate sense of the world's size once you start playing.
Image credit: Nintendo
The art style is a love letter to Gamecube's Wind Waker.
Breath of the Wild is quite an impressive game, visually. It's not photo realistic, but a Zelda game isn't supposed to be. Instead, the cel-shaded art style provides terrific contrast between the "cartoony" characters and the "real" feeling of the world around them.
Also: Wind Waker's Koroks are back!
Image credit: Nintendo
Ganon is back and badder than ever, too.
Nintendo has confirmed that the big bad of this game is none other than Ganon -- or, specifically, "Calamity Ganon." They have further confirmed that he will take multiple forms in the game.
We're pretty sure we spotted his weird ethereal monster-pig-like form swirling around Hyrule Castle in the trailer.
Image credit: Nintendo
This is a dark timeline.
Calamity Ganon took over Hyrule -- or, at least, caused a boatload of damage to it -- a century before you wake up in the mysterious Shrine of Resurrection to start the game. Nintendo's official Breath of the Wild trailer even shows the Master Sword rusting away in the Lost Woods.
The first person you meet in the game, meanwhile ...
Image credit: Nintendo
Link can actually hold a conversation now!
Nintendo says this "old man" should be familiar -- he might be a reincarnation of the original "It's dangerous to go alone" old man from the original Zelda game. He's the first to tell you about the "decline of the kingdom" of Hyrule.
And PS: How about that new-to-the-series dialogue tree? It's nice to see Link's verbal repertoire advance beyond "hyaaaah!"
Image credit: Nintendo
You can skip the entire story and head straight for the final boss.
With a few notable exceptions -- you could finish Level 8 before Level 1 in the original The Legend of Zelda if you spend a couple rupees for a candle -- many past Zelda games have been linear.
Not so with Breath of the Wild. This "open-air adventure" (Nintendo is avoiding the phrase "open world") lets you explore and complete quests on your own schedule. You can even beat the final boss first. And that feels very freeing.
Image credit: Nintendo
You can play in your underwear ...
Breath of the Wild takes an RPG-style approach to equipment. You start off the game nearly naked, and have to equip yourself with the clothes and weapons you find in chests and in the environment around you. Or you can just take stuff from defeated enemies.
Image credit: Nintendo
... but you shouldn't. You'll get cold.
You'll want to stay equipped with the latest weapons and armor. Not only can new items increase your attack or defense stat, but wearing clothes can help keep your body warm in cold areas. Otherwise, you'll lose hearts to hypothermia.
You can always raise your core temperature back up by striking flint over a bundle of wood to make a campfire.
Image credit: Nintendo
This is the first Zelda without heart icon power-ups.
Sorry, you won't be able to regain your health by hacking away at grass in this Zelda game.
Instead, you'll need to eat the apples and mushrooms you find to regain your lost health. Or you could just raid a Bokoblin camp and steal their dinner.
Image credit: Nintendo
Even getting blown up looks cool.
Be careful when you do raid those Bokoblin camps, though. They're not very bright.
Image credit: Nintendo
Link is both a hunter and a gatherer.
You can also obtain meat by hunting animals, ideally with your bow and arrow.
It's a sharp turn from A Link to the Past, where animals -- like those in the Haunted Grove -- were just adorable window dressings. In this game, Link's gotta do what he's gotta do to survive.
Link can learn some pretty amazing abilities by completing trials.
Those hard-to-reach treasure chests are no problem -- if you have the right abilities to reach them. The Cryonis Trial, for example, gives Link the ability to create pillars of ice from water, creating platforms to climb and forcing open gates.
Image credit: Nintendo
Link is pretty much Magneto.
Another of Link's learned abilities, Magnesis, allows him to effortlessly move objects made of metal. This comes in quite handy -- you can dredge up treasure at the bottom of lakes, create bridges to reach new areas, or simply pick up heavy stuff to drop on the heads of your enemies.
Image credit: Nintendo
Speaking of X-Men ... Link can also stop time.
The Stasis ability lets you freeze objects in time. And like Quicksilver does in the new X-Men movie, Link can mess with the kinetic energy of objects when they're stopped.
Hit this boulder with a hammer, and nothing will happen. But if you freeze the boulder in time, hit it a couple times to build its energy, and then unfreeze time, the sucker will go flying across the temple.
Image credit: Nintendo
Link is a pretty decent chef, too.
You could eat the raw meat you find ... we suppose ... but you'll be far better off cooking it over a fire. A raw steak restores one heart, but a seared steak you put on a campfire will restore one-and-a-half hearts.
You can get even fancier by combining ingredients over a fire to make something more complicated. In a World of Warcraft-like twist, cooked food will often provide your character with a buff for a limited time.
Image credit: Nintendo
Link has never been sneakier.
Breath of the Wild introduces a new sound meter for Link that corresponds to how loud his actions are. The best way to defeat enemies is to slowly sneak up on them, otherwise they'll hear you coming and ready their defenses.
Sneaking is also a good technique for hunting and mounting wild horses.
Image credit: Nintendo
Link is a human lightning rod.
Breath of the Wild has dynamic weather, meaning that not only does it rain in Hyrule, but that rain will affect your gameplay.
Specifically, if Link is holding a metal sword in his hand, he'll be at danger of being struck by lightning.
Image credit: Nintendo
Link can now re-use his arrows!
Don't worry if you miss your target while hunting. Breath of the Wild lets you reclaim arrows you -- or your foes -- have fired.
Want to pack some extra punch to your arrows? Dip them into flame before you shoot. Or just aim for your enemy's head because you'll do twice as much damage.
Image credit: Nintendo
Link can really shred that gnar.
Shield surfing is another new mechanic in Breath of the Wild. You can glide, too. The mechanic can be a bit tricky to get right, though, we found.
Note that you'll damage your shield when you use it to surf downhill. And if your shield gets damaged enough, it'll break.
Time of day is another important game mechanic.
Time passes as you explore Hyrule -- the sun will rise, and the sun will set. (Beautifully.)
But the mechanic isn't just for looks. Some enemies go to sleep at night, giving you the perfect opportunity to ambush them.
Image credit: Nintendo
There's more than one way to solve a puzzle.
Traditionally, Zelda puzzles have a distinct solution -- getting across a chasm in a dungeon might require you to find the hookshot hidden there, first. But in Breath of the Wild, there are multiple ways to solve puzzle, encouraging you to think a bit differently while playing.
During our gameplay experience at E3, we were able to take out an entire Bokoblin camp by rolling a boulder into some explosives to set off a chain reaction. We could have just as easily shot the explosives with an arrow ... or use the nearby beehive to unleash an angry swarm at them.
Image credit: Nintendo
Link can climb! And jump!
Actions such as running, climbing, and swimming all eat into Link's stamina gauge. Just don't run out of stamina while you're this high up -- the drop will hurt like hell.
Oh, and did we mention that Link can jump in this game without the aid of any special items?
Image credit: Nintendo
Link, once again, sails the seas.
Like in Wind Waker (and the original Zelda too, to an extent), Link can make use of rafts like these to cross bodies of water.
No wind? No problem. Link can just swat a leaf and make his own propelling breeze.
Image credit: Nintendo
You can play alongside Wolf Link from Twilight Princess.
Need some help on your adventure? You can tap the Wolf Link amiibo to the Wii U gamepad and he'll appear in-game to help defend you against enemies and hunt down food.
And if you have a saved game on The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD (post-Cave of Shadows), Wolf Link will show up in Breath of the Wild with all his remaining hearts.
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There are three new Breath of the Wild Amiibo.
The new interactive figurines include Archer Link, Rider Link, and the Octorok-inspired Guardian.
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Sorry, though -- it won't be here until 2017.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will be available for both the Nintendo Wii U and the company's upcoming NX game system.
You'll have to be patient, though, because all we know about the release date is that it'll be sometime in 2017.
Image credit: Nintendo