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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild |OT3| Your Free Time is Badly Damaged

Speely

Banned
Major tests of strength, Lynels, and Lizalfos camps work best for me. Guardian shields, Lynel shields, and soldier shields are all solid. Else find the Hylian shield.

Lizalfos camps is good advice. Their shields aren't top-tier, but they are pretty durable and can very much get the job done... And they are numerous.
 

foxuzamaki

Doesn't read OPs, especially not his own
Holy shit.

I just unlocked my final memory, the 5th one if you count right, and it just shows just how much link was death, destroyer of worlds in his prime.

all those silver lynel corpses, Jesus link and Zelda is super non-chalant about it, like yeah you just destroyed an army of lynels and bublokins, you got s little cut so don't be reckless and I'm like wut
 

mrklaw

MrArseFace
I get great kick out donning the barbarian armour and going on a Lynnel killing spree.

I've got 3 divine beasts to go but I'm on 96 shrines and only plan to continue the DBs once I get the 120 shrine reward.

Not sure you can. I think some shrines might be locked behind DB completion. Might be wrong but
seal rally in gerudo
for example
 

Kevtones

Member
So I started Hyrule Castle tonight…



This is legit. Not only is this dungeon complex and interesting, but interesting and an atmospheric cherry on top. It's actually so good that it's making me really question the divine beast design. This is a sprawling maze where you can climb every wall and the music and aura of everything is taps every nostalgia button while feeling epic af. The Divine Beasts just don't measure up in scope.


Look, I loved the Divine Beasts and their designs but jeeeeez. This final dungeon is tantalizing and fantastic. It's so open-ended and enriched by the robust mechanics (the climbing doesn't break the dungeon and somehow makes it more interesting).

More please Nintendo. MORE.
 

HawthorneKitty

Sgt. 2nd Class in the Creep Battalion, Waifu Wars
Look, I loved the Divine Beasts and their designs but jeeeeez. This final dungeon is tantalizing and fantastic. It's so open-ended and enriched by the robust mechanics (the climbing doesn't break the dungeon and somehow makes it more interesting).
What are you talking about? I got from the start to the end in like 3 minutes, so boring.
 

Kevtones

Member
What are you talking about? I got from the start to the end in like 3 minutes, so boring.



Sounds like you play fast and weren't looking to explore. This game delivers exponentially in that regard. Sure you can B-Line to the boss but the multi-entrance castle has all sorts of lore and interesting history to get into. Plus it's full of loot and clever design. As a Zelda fan I was satiated but as a gamer I felt like I was being teased a dungeon design that could've spread throughout the world. Maybe you should try to enter it from the beginning since you can?


Imagining 9 dungeons at the scale of Hyrule Castle beside the rest of this game, in the map… G'damn. Real talk is that Nintendo created a spectacle around the idea of a 'dungeon'. They've manifested a fan complaint from their own excellence but have evolved the series in such a masterful way with BOTW that it's okay. Hyrule Castle might sit beside the Forest Temple in OOT in the pantheon.
 

RoadHazard

Gold Member
What are you talking about? I got from the start to the end in like 3 minutes, so boring.

So you just sprinted through. Yeah, you can do that if you want. Or you can explore it for 30 minutes or more, finding interesting loot, lore, and other stuff. It's a really cool place, that feels like a real (ruined) castle in a way no Hyrule Castle really has before. But yeah, you can easily skip over most of it, as that's how this game works.
 

jariw

Member
What are you talking about? I got from the start to the end in like 3 minutes, so boring.

You can apply this mentality to the whole game, if you want. It's possible to sprint through the complete game in less than 2 hours. Or you can take your time and discover things.
 

Vuze

Member
Love the attention to detail. I accidently threw ingredients in a cooking pot that wasn't lit yet and the egg broke lol. Rupees wasted 😢
Just arrived in Kakariko Village and it's absolutely lovely. It's been long since I felt this comfortable and immersed by a game, it just nails everything I enjoy. Artstyle, design of the open world, rewarding exploration, music, combat... (I have seen some major criticism of the latter but I really like it)
First LoZ game I really enjoy.
 
So I started Hyrule Castle tonight…



This is legit. Not only is this dungeon complex and interesting, but interesting and an atmospheric cherry on top. It's actually so good that it's making me really question the divine beast design. This is a sprawling maze where you can climb every wall and the music and aura of everything is taps every nostalgia button while feeling epic af. The Divine Beasts just don't measure up in scope.


Look, I loved the Divine Beasts and their designs but jeeeeez. This final dungeon is tantalizing and fantastic. It's so open-ended and enriched by the robust mechanics (the climbing doesn't break the dungeon and somehow makes it more interesting).

More please Nintendo. MORE.

Yeah, Hyrule Castle is the perfect example of why there should be no shrines and 9-12 proper dungeons instead.

Big design error.
 

Burny

Member
Yeah, Hyrule Castle is the perfect example of why there should be no shrines and 9-12 proper dungeons instead.

Big design error.

*Urgh* No. The shrines are great. Better usage of game world and realization of a rewarding exploration than in any other Zelda game to date. That many major dungeons of the "old kind" likely means most dev time is wasted on dungeons and asinine small key hunts again, with little resources left to make a great overworld.

We've had that for nearly two decades of Zelda games and I've personally grown tired of it. More smaller dungeons with more varied concepts (pure combat, vs. pure puzzles vs. mixed) and better world and world integration is what I'm wishing for.
 
The Castle infiltration has the potential to be epic. Clearing out the roads and taking your horse all the way up to Ganon (
bonus insult points if it's Ganon's horse
) is immensely satisfying.

C9k1p-zUMAARxIv.jpg
 
I think if the Divine Beast zones were holistically integrated into the world in the same way that Hyrule Castle is, regardless of size, it would feel a lot better. Similarly, you can't traverse them after defeating them, which smells like a technical/time problem, and I would expect to see that addressed in a future title. In some sense that will be the fulfillment of work began on Link to the Past where certain over-world and dungeon interactions existed.
 

RoadHazard

Gold Member
I think if the Divine Beast zones were holistically integrated into the world in the same way that Hyrule Castle is, regardless of size, it would feel a lot better. Similarly, you can't traverse them after defeating them, which smells like a technical/time problem, and I would expect to see that addressed in a future title. In some sense that will be the fulfillment of work began on Link to the Past where certain over-world and dungeon interactions existed.

Yeah, the divine beasts are just about the only parts of the game that don't really feel seamlessly integrated into the world. You enter them through a cutscene, can't leave without warping out (even though you can see the world around you), and you can't enter them again after completing them. This would all be standard fare in any previous 3D Zelda, but the way everything else is so seamless (except for the shrines) makes this stand out in a bad way. Hyrule Castle is how dungeons should work in future titles. An integrated part of the world that you can seamlessly enter and explore.
 
*Urgh* No. The shrines are great. Better usage of game world and realization of a rewarding exploration than in any other Zelda game to date. That many major dungeons of the "old kind" likely means most dev time is wasted on dungeons and asinine small key hunts again, with little resources left to make a great overworld.

We've had that for nearly two decades of Zelda games and I've personally grown tired of it. More smaller dungeons with more varied concepts (pure combat, vs. pure puzzles vs. mixed) and better world and world integration is what I'm wishing for.

Totally disagree. The shrines feel lazy. Good content but presented in a copy and paste, bland environment, just stuck in the world. I did no more than I had to to get enough health/stamina.

Put all of those puzzles and combat in a well designed, unique dungeon, and it'd be one of the best games ever made.
 

jariw

Member
Yeah, Hyrule Castle is the perfect example of why there should be no shrines and 9-12 proper dungeons instead.

Big design error.

Hyrule Castle is great because it's unique. 9 such places instead of shrines would just be a different game, not a better game. Shrines are overworld places to find + fast travel points + optional challenge with rewards. Old-fashion dungeons fill a different purpose.
 

VPhys

Member
Dare I say it but this game might be sicker than TOoT. I'm like 200 hours in and can't get enough. Is there even a way to see how much you've played?


The physics in BotW are just mind blowing. I don't recall being this impressed by physics since Half Life 2.
 

mrklaw

MrArseFace
Dare I say it but this game might be sicker than TOoT. I'm like 200 hours in and can't get enough. Is there even a way to see how much you've played?


The physics in BotW are just mind blowing. I don't recall being this impressed by physics since Half Life 2.

If on switch, select your icon on the home screen and your profile will show roughly how many hours you've played
 
What are you talking about? I got from the start to the end in like 3 minutes, so boring.

Sure, you can skip just about everything and go right to the final boss. You'll only have a few guardians in your way, especially if you skip the gatehouses. But what's the fun in that? There is so much to explore in there and some awesome lore and treasure.
 

Caelus

Member
Sure, you can skip just about everything and go right to the final boss. You'll only have a few guardians in your way, especially if you skip the gatehouses. But what's the fun in that? There is so much to explore in there and some awesome lore and treasure.

It's such a weird mentality when one already knows everything in the game is technically optional. You can beat the game in an hour, but if you're not speedrunning, why would you? I love the nonlinearity of Hyrule Castle. I think there should've been 3 or 4 more dungeons like it in the overworld, maybe remove some shrines (but not all of them, still want my fast travel points).
 

Kaban

Member
Ummm...

Ummm...

UMMM...

So last night, I saw a bright light coming from the top of a hill that I had explored earlier that day. Warped closer and saw a certain...
mountain creature

I had to take a moment because I couldn't process what was going on. What the fuck is this game.

I tamed it :p
 

Dr.Hadji

Member
Yeah, Hyrule Castle is the perfect example of why there should be no shrines and 9-12 proper dungeons instead.

Big design error.

I know we're getting fast and loose with definitions here, so let's sidestep whether or not Hyrule Castle is a dungeon. Essentially, there ARE other places like Hyrule Castle throughout the game. It's called the overworld. Hyrule castle is the design philosophy of the overworld applied to a single structure. It plays out not too differently than a treck to Zora's domain or navigating Hebra Mountains. You see a space, you climb in and around it to carve out your own path and travel any newly discovered path you find interesting,

Without puzzles, or an overarching theme the space runs on, how is Hyrule Castle any more of a dungeon than the large mazes, or something like Eventide island?
 
Other than manually counting, is there any way to find out how many shrines you have left to find? What about Korok seeds? The Zelda team made this super difficult for completionists
 

Red

Member
Other than manually counting, is there any way to find out how many shrines you have left to find? What about Korok seeds? The Zelda team made this super difficult for completionists
There are 900 korok seeds and 120 shrines. Counts appear on loading screens. Subtract your collected amounts from the totals.
 

foxuzamaki

Doesn't read OPs, especially not his own
Totally disagree. The shrines feel lazy. Good content but presented in a copy and paste, bland environment, just stuck in the world. I did no more than I had to to get enough health/stamina.

Put all of those puzzles and combat in a well designed, unique dungeon, and it'd be one of the best games ever made.
That's some bullshit
 

TheJoRu

Member
TFW that kid in Hateno asks for you to bring an Ancient Battle Axe+, but you only have an Ancient Battle Axe++...you picky little shit. :'(
 
Over 100 hours in and with 3 of the divine beasts conquered and 90+ shrines done, I decided for some reason to venture towards Hyrule castle......

Now I'm actually IN Hyrule Castle (well the grounds at least) and part of me so wants to explore it and then back out to do the final divine beast. But a part of me also wants to back out now and leave the castle for later. I think I might press on...
 

Dr.Hadji

Member
They do. The content within isn't, the way they're presented is.

Same aesthetics, same way to get into them, same way to get out of them, mostly the same rewards, etc etc.

Lol. Come on man. Those aren't points. There is a standard entry and exit for most any dungeon. That's like calling towns lazy because Link has the same door opening animation for every house.

As for "same rewards". chests yield most of the unique armor and weapons in the game. If you're talking about the spirit orb, how is receiving the integral levelling currency in the game lazy?
 

TheJoRu

Member
Go to a moderate test of strength after a blood moon. The guys in them respawn.

I know, I know. It just made me sad to hear him ask for that, thinking "oh wait, don't I have that one already" and then realizing he needed the exact one. Not even a better version of it would suffice.

It's more of a "oh come on, lol" than me being actually disappointed, though.
 
They do. The content within isn't, the way they're presented is.

Same aesthetics, same way to get into them, same way to get out of them, mostly the same rewards, etc etc.

The same can be said about dungeons, except maybe aesthetic. You walk in the front door and leave by killing the boss and picking up whatever fragment of whatever it is you're looking for. Pendant/Medallion/Mirror Shard/Instrument. It's all the same. Except this time you can actually spend them for heart containers or stamina increases.
 

quabba

Member
They do. The content within isn't, the way they're presented is.

Same aesthetics, same way to get into them, same way to get out of them, mostly the same rewards, etc etc.

Id like some variation in them, like the ones where the content of the shrine is what you do in the overworld are some of my favourites. Having an old guy in a box that disintegrates 120 times is quite boring, shrines are not the place for personality and character it seems.
 

SeanR1221

Member
Decided last week to hang the game up.

After 95 hours all that's left is 20 some shrines and endless Korok seeds.

This might be the best game I've ever played and I'm leaving on a really high note.
 
Oh boy, my story for Eventide Island:

I've got two of the three balls in place, the whole island clear of monsters except the Hinox. I could sneak the last ball off his snoring chest, but I decided that if after 100+ hours in the game I can't kill a mid-level Hinox even with the island's handicap, I'd be sad.

So I start to take him on, weakening him from up top of the hill with the four explosion barrels and the two boulders, using what the island's given me (important: this is where my final empty pedestal is). I get a bit worried as he walks up the path to where I am, but I remind myself I've killed plenty of these dudes. Just run under their legs to bait out the attack, then punish.

So I do just that. I run under him, he stomps, I get one set of swings in, he gets up, and I run back to repeat. Except I get caught on something behind my view. The Hinox gets closer, I get unstuck just in time to dodge the next attack, but because of my positioning he tries to grab me instead of doing the butt slam or the foot stomp.

But here's the reason I came to GAF with my story: As he reaches down for me, before I get to kill him, the final ball hanging from his necklace goes right into its spot in the pedestal and the cutscene plays, saying I cleared the island and returning my stuff to me.

Not super intense, but oh man, what are the chances?
 
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