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Masahiro Sakurai's thoughts on Horizon vs. Zelda: BOTW - "Very Close, Very Different"

K

Koozek

Member
Another one of Sakurai's Famitsu columns where he reflects on recent games he played (e.g. here's the one about NieR: Automata). This one is about the similarities and differences between Horizon Zero Dawn and Zelda: BOTW. Click the link for the full bullet point lists.

A week before writing this column, two wonderfully outstanding works were released and I was torn between how to spend my time. Horizon Zero Dawn (from here on out ”Horizon") and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (further referred to as ”Zelda"). By all means, play them both because they really are masterpieces.

With that being said, I am surprised by the fact that although there are aspects that are very close, there are other aspects that are very different.

First, I will summarize their common points. [...] Next, I will summarize the areas I felt were contrasting. [...]​


Summary thoughts:
Overall, Horizon is more stress free and Zelda is becoming a tiresome routine. However, if you've played Zelda, you probably understand this well: the chores of Zelda are the most fun part!

If a game is easy to play, that's definitely a good thing.

Even recently, it has become a trend to take note of the amount of stress the player feels.

But again, comfort and the fun of resource management are two different things.

[...]

I repeat, play them both if possible. So many well-made works lining up like this doesn't happen often!​


Thanks to Source Gaming for translating! And thanks to my boo Nibel for tweeting it ��


*** UPDATE ***

Refreshment.01 said:
Before it keeps been given the wrong connotation:
Kazushi N. | 長山一石 (@KazushiNagayama) says:
May 12, 2017 at 3:26 AM
This translation kind of gives a bad impression about Zelda which I'd like to comment a bit. In the original Japanese he refers to Zelda as ‘mendokusai', which surely does have a negative connotation of ‘having to take into account multiple things at the same time', and then says that ‘sono mendokusasa ga saikou ni tanoshii', or ‘that complexity is so much awesome fun', or ‘the best type of fun', which is a great praise. He is using a technique where he uses words that have negative connotations to talk about something, then flips that negativity into a greater positivity, which gives the reader greater impression of the praise. I feel this hasn't translated well into this text.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...


MdHOa5E.jpg
 
kunonabi

kunonabi

Member
Tiresome routine is a pretty good way of describing Zelda whether you're spinning that as a positive or not.
 
dugdug

dugdug

Banned
Koozek said:
I repeat, play them both if possible. So many well-made works lining up like this doesn't happen often!
Click to expand...

Impossible.

Many people (some even on this very website) have told me you are only allowed to like one of these two games.
 
L

Luigiv

Member
What have you done!

Actually this is an interesting topic for me as I'm approaching the end of Zelda and just started Horizon, I can't help but compare the latter to the former as I play. That said I'll save my personal dot points until I've played more of Horizon as I'm still very early.
 
I

Iceternal

Member
I recently told my wife who is currently playing BOTW that I didn't feel like playing the game because it looks like work. I don't want to come back home from my job and start a second job while playing.
 
S

Space_nut

Member
Zelda is just filled with endless amounts of interactivity. So many things you can do that you just find by accident. And the world is vast with many details in it
 
T

The Boat

Member
I played Horizon right after BotW and it while it was hard to go from such a well designed world created around gameplay and player interaction to a more story focused blockbuster if you will, I still had a very good time with Horizon.
Dismantling dinosaurs was fun, the story was very good and the art direction is great, it's a very well crafted game that excels at what it sets out to do.

I wouldn't put it on the same league as BotW, but I don't have to, I got to play and enjoy both games for what they offer.
 
J

jacobeid

Banned
Iceternal said:
I recently told my wife who is currently playing BOTW that I didn't feel like playing the game because it looks like work. I don't want to come back home from my job and start a second job while playing.
Click to expand...

That's funny because Horizon labeling things as "errands" makes me want to put the game down. After working all day and running errands in real life, the last thing I want to do is run errands in a video game.
 
C

commish

Jason Kidd murdered my dog in cold blood!
If I could play a sequel to only one, it would be Horizon. It's an amazing game, and I imagine the sequel will be infinitely better, given the experience they now have.
 
G

Griss

Member
Two super games, but very different.

Horizon's open world isn't particularly good, but it excels as a background for the linear action game Horizon secretly wants to be. Zelda's open world is incredible, from the range of things to find and do, but the freedom it offers ruins the story in a way that just doesn't happen with Horizon.

Horizon's open world looks and feels like a real place. Zelda's open world has strong art design but its low quality texturing and frankly ass IQ makes it look more like a game level than a real place. Therefore in Horizon your reward for exploring is mostly visual, in Zelda it's mostly gameplay related.

I loved them both and have them 1->2 in my GotY rankings, but I do put Zelda way out in front. No shame in that for Horizon.
 
I

IronicSonic

Member
I dont know where this routine/work idea of Zelda is coming from? Someone care to explain please?

Looking forward to play Horizon :)
 
L

Lifeline

Member
jacobeid said:
That's funny because Horizon labeling things as "errands" makes me want to put the game down. After working all day and running errands in real life, the last thing I want to do is run errands in a video game.
Click to expand...

They label them as errands to show they're optional jobs. You can skip them lol.
 
1

13ruce

Banned
Both are masterpieces the smash god himself just confirmed it.

Now enjoy both or one:p or sell the game you don't like and make someone else happy:)
 
C

cheesekao

Member
I really want to try out BOTW but it's frustrating how a Switch costs 36% more than a PS4 where I'm at. I hope a cheaper version is released next year.
 
W

wild wild rice

Member
I find it interesting that he describes Horizon as more "stress free." I haven't played it yet, but I've played plenty of Zelda.

Zelda could be one of the most relaxing games ever made, if the player chooses to play that way. Which I sometimes did. The freedom to do nothing and the options available to the player made it feel stress free and definitely not routine.

So for those who have played both, what do you make of this comment? Is Horizon more stress free because it overall gives the player fewer options, less to think about? (Not a knock, I enjoy simple games.) For example, I'm playing Prey right now and it is anything but stress free. The amount of decision making, menu navigation, etc. make it a pretty stressful game. I don't turn Prey on after a hard day of work.

Or is Horizon more stress free because it is somehow more tranquil and pastoral than Zelda?
 
O

oneida

Cock Strain, Lifetime Warranty
totally loved BotW. beautiful game. I'm looking forward to playing Horizon later this year.
 
T

Tavernacle12

Member
Playing both makes me really appreciate each. Horizon has a better story but Zelda has better freedom. Zelda is more fun to explore but Horizon is more fun to fight. Zelda has better weapons but Horizon has better enemies. They're both REALLY good.

That being said, Zelda's climbing and gliding mechanics are incredible and I keep trying to do both in Horizon and the fact I can't makes me sad
.
 
M

Morts

Member
I thought they complimented each other perfectly and I had no problem playing through them at the same time, alternating between them every night. Horizon for combat and story, Zelda for exploration and puzzles.
 
L

Lifeline

Member
wild wild rice said:
I find it interesting that he describes Horizon as more "stress free." I haven't played it yet, but I've played plenty of Zelda.

Zelda could be one of the most relaxing games ever made, if the player chooses to play that way. Which I sometimes did. The freedom to do nothing and the options available to the player made it feel stress free and definitely not routine.

So for those who have played both, what do you make of this comment? Is Horizon more stress free because it overall gives the player fewer options, less to think about? For example, I'm playing Prey right now and it is anything but stress free. The amount of decision making, menu navigation, etc. make it a pretty stressful game. I don't turn Prey on after a hard day of work.

Or is Horizon more stress free because it is somehow more tranquil and pastoral than Zelda?
Click to expand...

The way I see it for Horizon is that the combat is just fun and not too difficult. Crafting is super fast and you usually have enough of all resources and don't have to micromanage much. There's also tons to do on the map and you don't have to look around much to find the action.
 
I

IronicSonic

Member
phanphare said:
there's a lot of planning and resource management involved
Click to expand...

Thanks. That's definitely a way to see it. I don't think I planning my way trough the game more than MGSV for example and in the resource management department Kojima's game is more like a work, I'll give you that.

For my BOTW experience was more about adventure and sense of discovery more than resource managment of plannig
 
D

DecoReturns

Member
Sakurai bringing the peace between Horzion and Zelda fans.

If only he was there during the release dates.

PS: BOTW Link for Smash
 
K

KratosEnergyDrink

Member
I think one should play Horizon before Zelda, because there will be many things you will miss in Horizon the other way round.

I think Zelda changed the perception of Open World games irretrievable.
 
R

RRockman

Banned
Lol not even two posts in and we are already dishing dirt. Horizon is ok and so is Zelda, it just so happens that Zelda caters to my tastes more. I also kinda hate the over the shoulder camera lock in Horizon, but I love the free camera in BOTW. Allows you to make fights feel very cinematic without having to go into a separate mode.
 
S

SalvaPot

Member
Zelda does become stressful the more shrines you want to complete, since they become harder to find.

The game is a masterpiece, it'll need a Game of the Generation level release to top it as the best game of the year.
 
Bumblebeetuna

Bumblebeetuna

Member
I'd have had more fun with Horizon had it actually had planning and resource management necessary to play the game. But the only resource management is constantly dropping items to make room for others, and using/dropping items so that you can take the inventory of the boxes you pick up, which I think they finally patched recently where you can remove a box from your inventory if it's full of useless crap you are already maxed out.

Planning is not needed as the combat is super easy with not much depth even on hard. The fights where I actually had to work, plan out my attack, use the terrain to my advantage, those were the good fights. But I stopped playing at around 80% completed and I think the quality encounters only happened 2 or 3 times.
 
cr0w

cr0w

Old Member
I appreciate Horizon the farther I get from Zelda. After putting a hundred or so hours into BOTW, loading up Horizon and not being able to clamber up a two-foot ledge to gain higher ground in a fight, or running into invisible walls, was infuriating and led to me putting the game down a few times.

But once I got out of the Zelda mindset and re-learned the Horizon mechanics, I started appreciating it more and more. I still haven't finished it due to time constraints, but I plan to soon.
 
W

WordsintheWater

Member
Going to Zelda after Horizon soured me a bit on Zelda. I love Horizon, but I just like Zelda. Zelda eventually drained me where Horizon was a blast all the way through, I spent relatively the same amount of time with both games. I can see how Sakurai came to the conclusion of Zelda being like a tiresome routine or whatever because after about 10 hours that's exactly what it felt like to me.

Whereas Horizon for me started off on a level plane and shot up and didn't stop, Zelda started off up high and steadily climbed down.

In a few years the only one I'll remember fondly is Horizon.
 
C

commish

Jason Kidd murdered my dog in cold blood!
I think what we can all agree on is that if would add Zelda's world with Horizon's combat and enemies, our heads would explode.
 
M

mindsale

Member
I thought Horizon was a little more tedious, more poorly written (less is more), and less fun from a gameplay and puzzle perspective.

But its resource gathering blew Zelda away. Both are good games.

Edit: I'll expound on resources in Horizon - if I could shoot a Hinox tooth out in Zelda or a tail off and then retrieve it rather than receive a semi-randomized component, that'd be awesome. I can do that in Horizon.
 
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