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Breath of the Wild is the official subtitle for Zelda U/NX, first gameplay trailer

ramparter

Banned
(=

I apologize for going off topic, but the point of my rant is that I want this new Zelda to more challenging. That is all.

I know exactly what you mean. I got my ass kicked twice playing LBW (it was one of the reasons I stopped playing even though I really liked it) and the same was for Link to the Past. Yet every 3D Zelda I play is easier than the previous one to the point that I never feel threatened. Actually the toughest part of 3D zeldas is at the start when you have 4-5 hearts.
 

Mato

Member
Posted this theory on a Zelda subreddit, want to know what you guys think. I basically think that there will be an alternate world because we haven't seen many Shrines and there are supposed to be over 100 of them:

Alternate worlds are a Zelda staple so of course it is possible that you are right. But 100 shrines in a world as large as this isn't really that difficult to spread. Some of the shrines will presumably be more secret and harder to locate and reach. Also due to LOD limitations the player might be be unable to see them all from a too great distance.

There will probably be a an certain kind of duality in the overworld. But maybe it will be more localized. As I have mentioned in previous posts, I think it will be a variation of the Skyward Sword time shift stones. From the beginning the concept of resurrection is featured prominently in BOTW. There is the Shrine of Resurrection and the Resurrection Tower. The Kingdom of Hyrule is in decay, everything is in ruins, so there will be a way to counteract that and resurrect some of these ruins. Along with the places, NPCS will come back to life. The backstory will unfold to the player. And those slow piano tracks that are playing in areas like the Time Temple will get a tempo-bump also. So there might be a Resurrection Rune. It could be called Anagenesis (Greek for Rebirth), stylized as Anagen or maybe Anastasis (The opposite of Stasis, Greek for Ressurection).
 
D

Deleted member 465307

Unconfirmed Member
Alternate worlds are a Zelda staple so of course it is possible that you are right. But 100 shrines in a world as large as this isn't really that difficult to spread. Some of the shrines will presumably be more secret and harder to locate and reach. Also due to LOD limitations the player might be be unable to see them all from a too great distance.

There will probably be a an certain kind of duality in the overworld. But maybe it will be more localized. As I have mentioned in previous posts, I think it will be a variation of the Skyward Sword time shift stones. From the beginning the concept of resurrection is featured prominently in BOTW. There is the Shrine of Resurrection and the Resurrection Tower. The Kingdom of Hyrule is in decay, everything is in ruins, so there will be a way to counteract that and resurrect some of these ruins. Along with the places, NPCS will come back to life. The backstory will unfold to the player. And those slow piano tracks that are playing in areas like the Time Temple will get a tempo-bump also. So there might be a Resurrection Rune. It could be called Anagenesis (Greek for Rebirth), stylized as Anagen or maybe Anastasis (The opposite of Stasis, Greek for Ressurection).

I love town building quests in RPGs, as I get so much satisfaction out of seeing areas come to life and getting a visual indication of my progress. If BOTW gave me an entire overworld with the potential to show how I'm helping it...ooooo boy.
 

TheMoon

Member
The actual rumor is that each shrine was created by a different developer within the team.

That's also not a rumor, just random speculation because ONE shrine is an anagram (Aonuma).

I know exactly what you mean. I got my ass kicked twice playing LBW (it was one of the reasons I stopped playing even though I really liked it) and the same was for Link to the Past. Yet every 3D Zelda I play is easier than the previous one to the point that I never feel threatened. Actually the toughest part of 3D zeldas is at the start when you have 4-5 hearts.

Ironically, ALBW was decried as a babygame.

Wait. .. really? I totally missed that
Name example?

You really missed that?

Shrine Oman'Au = Aonuma. That's the only example. And it's not a rumor.

https://twitter.com/NintendoEurope/status/767662761337847808
https://twitter.com/NintendoDE/status/767662761329430528

Random trivia bits: the German localization changed the shrine names. Oman Au is Ma-Nun in German. And they're referring to the abilities as "modules."

edit: might as well check the others:
https://twitter.com/NintendoFrance/status/767662761186918400
https://twitter.com/NintendoES/status/767662761975382016
https://twitter.com/NintendoItalia/status/767662761971179520
https://twitter.com/NintendoRU/status/767662763334402048

English: Oman Au
German: Man-Nun
French: Ma'Ohnu
Spanish: Maonu
Italian: Mau Ona
Russian: Ма-Оону

BE/NL/PT uses the English name since they don't get dedicated localizations anyway.
 

RagnarokX

Member
Posted this theory on a Zelda subreddit, want to know what you guys think. I basically think that there will be an alternate world because we haven't seen many Shrines and there are supposed to be over 100 of them:

There are 4 shrines on the Great Plateau, but the great plateau is the smallest region in the game. Doing 4 shrines per area is disingenuous because the other 14 areas are much bigger (each more than twice the size). According to Nintendo, The Great Plateau represents less than 2% of the map area, so if we assume that the Great Plateau is 1% of the map there could be 4x100=400 shrines and if it's 2% 4x50=200. The other 14 areas would only need 7 shrines each to reach over 100, and since each region is over twice as big as the Great Plateau and that has 4 that's easy. There's plenty of room for over 100 shrines. The only area besides the plateau that we've gotten a good look at is Hyrule Field, but it makes sense that if any area would be light on the shrines it would be that one. And even that said, shrines tend to be hidden in walls and such. So there could be plenty that just weren't visible from the great plateau.
 

Nickle

Cool Facts: Game of War has been a hit since July 2013
There are 4 shrines on the Great Plateau, but the great plateau is the smallest region in the game. Doing 4 shrines per area is disingenuous because the other 14 areas are much bigger (each more than twice the size). According to Nintendo, The Great Plateau represents less than 2% of the map area, so if we assume that the Great Plateau is 1% of the map there could be 4x100=400 shrines and if it's 2% 4x50=200. The other 14 areas would only need 7 shrines each to reach over 100, and since each region is over twice as big as the Great Plateau and that has 4 that's easy. There's plenty of room for over 100 shrines. The only area besides the plateau that we've gotten a good look at is Hyrule Field, but it makes sense that if any area would be light on the shrines it would be that one. And even that said, shrines tend to be hidden in walls and such. So there could be plenty that just weren't visible from the great plateau.
Part of my inspiration was seeing how few Shrines there were in Hyrule Field (or whatever the north Region is), as it's pretty flat and there don't appear to be many structures that could hide a Shrine.

Honestly, I was probably too confident in thinking that the Shrines wouldn't intentionally be hidden, I suppose it would be pretty boring if you could see them all from miles away. I'm probably underestimating the map size too, because even if the world has half the density of Shrines per area as the Plateau, then that would still be around 150 Shrines.

However, 4 Shrines per area still makes a lot of sense to me, and it's possible that the Great Plateau's Shrines are only close together because they have to be. I just can't shake the feeling that something is missing from the world, especially since we've seen 0 traces of human life outside the old man.
 

Ushojax

Should probably not trust the 7-11 security cameras quite so much
True. Things change and the focus of Nintendo has changed too. I will continue to play games without a doubt, but I'm always looking for a fun and CHALLENGING experience. It is just my observation and first hand experience that Nintendo's first party releases haven't posed much of a challenge since I was a child. My two cents.

If you've been playing Nintendo games for 30 years then obviously you are going to find the games less challenging than newer players. To make a game genuinely challenging for veteran players would make it almost impenetrable to a novice.

Nintendo have definitely released some games that were too easy (Wind Waker, Twilight Princess, NSMB) but generally they get a good balance between novel ideas and difficulty, keeping things fresh for seasoned players without walling out newcomers.
 
Posted this theory on a Zelda subreddit, want to know what you guys think. I basically think that there will be an alternate world because we haven't seen many Shrines and there are supposed to be over 100 of them:

I don't think there is any issue with hiding 100+ shrines throughout the world we've seen so far, especially if some of them are indeed hidden. Or if not all of them have the same ridiculous entrance.

But I agree there have been some other hints suggesting an alternate world (or world in the past), so it's very possible that we'll see something like that.

That's also not a rumor, just random speculation because ONE shrine is an anagram (Aonuma).

Shrine Oman'Au = Aonuma. That's the only example. And it's not a rumor.

I remember coming up with that theory all those months ago, and still not being able to de-jumble any of the other shrines. I guess Oman' Au is still the only one then?

My theory was that each of the monks represented one of the game developers, and that developer got to design and build their own specific shrine. It would fit with their dialogue about "creating a trial" or whatever they said. But if none of the other shrine names could be linked to a developer then that theory likely goes out the window.

Would've been cool though...
 

RetroMG

Member
I've thought for a long time that every Zelda game should start with the line from the beginning of Wind Waker:

"This is but one of the legends of which the people speak..."
 
There simply is no "real" way to play. Grinding and stat-maxing are valid in any RPG; pushing the boundaries with minimal equipment is also valid.

And it's also valid to want to flick a switch to enable hard mode and not have to worry about arbitrary boundaries and self-hampering. The absence of difficulty modes prevents this from being viable, so if your argument is about the freedom of how to play, you are actually arguing against such freedom.
 

Enduin

No bald cap? Lies!
I just hope there's more than 4 dungeons. Otherwise they better be Majora's Mask level of good.

Agreed, but if we are getting over 100+ Shrines I can't imagine they'll all be short little things like the ones we've seen. Pretty sure they said there were larger, more complicated ones. So hopefully they'll have some meaty ones that help fill in the void of dungeons.

Also curious if the style of the Shrines will be the same for all them. 100+ is a lot to go through with the same exact aesthetic in every single one.
 
And it's also valid to want to flick a switch to enable hard mode and not have to worry about arbitrary boundaries and self-hampering. The absence of difficulty modes prevents this from being viable, so if your argument is about the freedom of how to play, you are actually arguing against such freedom.

Unless "hard mode" strips out all of the innate balancing mechanics, you're still going to inevitably run into the same problem where the difficulty scales depending on your equipment, and completionism is still going to result in a much easier game.
 

TheMoon

Member
Y'all need to play some Hitman Suit Only runs. A self-imposed difficulty mode that became so popular the devs caved and made it a recognized checkmark in the games at some point.

I just hope there's more than 4 dungeons. Otherwise they better be Majora's Mask level of good.

That's a low bar, why wouldn't you want them better?! TP or SS level of good?
 

maxcriden

Member
That's a low bar, why wouldn't you want them better?! TP or SS level of good?

I don't know. Is it really a low bar? I tend to think of those four dungeons as broadly terrific. Great Bay is one of the most satisfying and intricate water dungeons to me. Stone Tower Temple has an upside down mode which is executed incredibly well. I suppose Woodfall is a bit intro-y but as far as intro dungeons go it's at least as good as any of the 3D ones IMO. The fairies add a layer to the ganeplay, Green Star style, that the other Zelda dungeons mostly lack. I like Snowpeak a whole bunch also. Great labyrinthine structure to that one, same with Great Bay. I think Skyward maybe has even better dungeons, but some aren't as good as MM. Same with TP IMO.
 

TheMoon

Member
I don't know. Is it really a low bar? I tend to think of those four dungeons as broadly terrific. Great Bay is one of the most satisfying and intricate water dungeons to me. Stone Tower Temple has an upside down mode which is executed incredibly well. I suppose Woodfall is a bit intro-y but as far as intro dungeons go it's at least as good as any of the 3D ones IMO. The fairies add a layer to the ganeplay, Green Star style, that the other Zelda dungeons mostly lack. I like Snowpeak a whole bunch also. Great labyrinthine structure to that one, same with Great Bay. I think Skyward maybe has even better dungeons, but some aren't as good as MM. Same with TP IMO.

Not saying they're bad or anything^^
 
Unless "hard mode" strips out all of the innate balancing mechanics, you're still going to inevitably run into the same problem where the difficulty scales depending on your equipment, and completionism is still going to result in a much easier game.

I'm assuming by "innately balancing mechanics", you mean "innately unbalancing mechanics", i.e. becoming more powerful so that content you personally leave for later in the game becomes easier than content tackled earlier. This assumes a completely flat access to all content which already isn't the case from what we know.

Otherwise I thought it would be obvious that Hard Mode would be scaled under the assumption that you would optimize everything; that's the entire point. That's like saying a game like Dark Souls can't exist because you can be level 10 or 100 when you tackle a boss and therefore it's impossible to balance for it; however the fact remains that Dark Souls and games like it actually exist; occasionally you will run into an optional boss you missed and will be easier than intended, but more often you'll run into areas and bosses you have no business being to yet and will leave until later.

I think people are confusing non-linearity with full access to all areas from second one. Which is even leaving out that the same areas may become harder as the game progresses, which many games, even some Zeldas, have done.
 

Platy

Member
Alternate worlds are a Zelda staple so of course it is possible that you are right. But 100 shrines in a world as large as this isn't really that difficult to spread. Some of the shrines will presumably be more secret and harder to locate and reach. Also due to LOD limitations the player might be be unable to see them all from a too great distance.

...what was the last zelda without an alternate world ? Zelda 2 ?

edit : maybe Link's Awakening ?
 
Unless "hard mode" strips out all of the innate balancing mechanics, you're still going to inevitably run into the same problem where the difficulty scales depending on your equipment, and completionism is still going to result in a much easier game.

In my opinion, Setting your own difficulty isn't a bad experience but it's on you to limit yourself (Rather than being tested by a challenge set by the developers) and that comes across as compensating for poor balance more often than not.

I think Zelda's not exactly going to suffer from poor balance (I think all that needs to change is just real time item consumption). But it's a valid concern for those (with a higher skill level) seeking a challenge from the developers and not really from themselves.
 
D

Deleted member 465307

Unconfirmed Member
...what was the last zelda without an alternate world ? Zelda 2 ?

How are you defining alternate world? Two worlds you can move between? The last one must be Spirit Tracks, right? Or if you're just talking about home console, Majora's Mask? But I'd argue Wind Waker barely does it, given how small and limited its alternate world is. It's basically a dungeon, and from what I know of Majora's Mask, not too different from the moon. So perhaps I'd say Wind Waker.

The games I see as unquestionably having two complete alternate worlds are A Link to the Past (and its sequel), Ocarina of Time, and the Oracle games. Skyward Sword is a little iffy because most of the sky's space is just a hub like Mario 64's castle, but I think it convincingly does give the feeling of two worlds. Plus, it's a big part of the story. I'd say The Minish Cap is somewhat similar in terms of total impact and importance. Twilight Princess has its alternate world as a central narrative detail, but the experience of it is limited essentially to weird pockets and one dungeon. Then Wind Waker is similar to Twilight Princess's style but with even less substance. However, all of these games do treat the alternate world as important.

A game like Majora's Mask or Spirit Tracks seems to not have that theme at all.

(Note: I haven't played Spirit Tracks or beaten Majora's Mask, so if something happens at the end that reveals a whole new world, I could be wrong.)
 

R00bot

Member
Agreed, but if we are getting over 100+ Shrines I can't imagine they'll all be short little things like the ones we've seen. Pretty sure they said there were larger, more complicated ones. So hopefully they'll have some meaty ones that help fill in the void of dungeons.

Also curious if the style of the Shrines will be the same for all them. 100+ is a lot to go through with the same exact aesthetic in every single one.

I don't think we've seen any shrines outside of the plateau? So it's completely possible that every region has different shrine aesthetics.
 

Nickle

Cool Facts: Game of War has been a hit since July 2013
I don't think we've seen any shrines outside of the plateau? So it's completely possible that every region has different shrine aesthetics.
We have seem some shrines from later in the game, they have more complex puzzles but still have the same aesthetic.
 

Platy

Member
How are you defining alternate world? Two worlds you can move between? The last one must be Spirit Tracks, right? Or if you're just talking about home console, Majora's Mask? But I'd argue Wind Waker barely does it, given how small and limited its alternate world is. It's basically a dungeon, and from what I know of Majora's Mask, not too different from the moon. So perhaps I'd say Wind Waker.

The games I see as unquestionably having two complete alternate worlds are A Link to the Past (and its sequel), Ocarina of Time, and the Oracle games. Skyward Sword is a little iffy because most of the sky's space is just a hub like Mario 64's castle, but I think it convincingly does give the feeling of two worlds. Plus, it's a big part of the story. I'd say The Minish Cap is somewhat similar in terms of total impact and importance. Twilight Princess has its alternate world as a central narrative detail, but the experience of it is limited essentially to weird pockets and one dungeon. Then Wind Waker is similar to Twilight Princess's style but with even less substance. However, all of these games do treat the alternate world as important.

A game like Majora's Mask or Spirit Tracks seems to not have that theme at all.

(Note: I haven't played Spirit Tracks or beaten Majora's Mask, so if something happens at the end that reveals a whole new world, I could be wrong.)

Yeah I haven't played Spirit Tracks so I totaly forgot about it xD

But yeah I give you Majora's Mask ... which is weird because the entire game IS the other world hehehe
 

SolVanderlyn

Thanos acquires the fully powered Infinity Gauntlet in The Avengers: Infinity War, but loses when all the superheroes team up together to stop him.
you're not the first with the alt-world theory^^
What if we finally visit The Golden Land? Something 25 years coming.
 
(=

Good examples(s)

Oh, I did love Punch-Out, but not memorable and I had totally forgot about it. I never got into any of the modern DK games since the days of the arcade original purely because of aesthetic reasons. I know that's whatever, but it's not my cup of tea.
Was Sin and Punishment a Nintendo first party game? If so, that is what I am talking about. More of that please. Just speaking for myself here, but it is Great!

I apologize for going off topic, but the point of my rant is that I want this new Zelda to more challenging. That is all.
Punch-Out!! on the Wii wasn't memorable to you? It was overflowing with personality and was fun as hell. An underrated gem.
 

TheMoon

Member
When's the next likely opportunity for it to be revealed?

Yesterday.

Any day is as good or as likely as any other at this point.

Next milestone is the investor briefing at the end of the month. Everyone will lose their mind that week "IF THEY DON'T DO IT NOW IT'S OVER!" etc etc.

edit: fucking hell, you made me do it.

ZELDA THREAD, NOT NX THREAD!
 

sinxtanx

Member
what's the feeling called that I get when I want to play a game but nothing lives up to even the basic promise of BotW so I just end up playing nothing

can TLG and FF15 just release already
 
what's the feeling called that I get when I want to play a game but nothing lives up to even the basic promise of BotW so I just end up playing nothing

can TLG and FF15 just release already

Idk, but I've had that same feeling for a while. I've wanted to play through Dark Souls 3 or Bloodborne again, but I just end up thinking that I really just want to play this, so I don't do it.
 

Nickle

Cool Facts: Game of War has been a hit since July 2013
I keep trying to look up Breath of the Wild stuff but there's never anything new.
 
I was re-watching some Treehouse streams because of hype, and this segment raised a great point, which is that the location of getting off the plateau will alter and shape the experience. For those who are busy and cannot watch the video, Bill said people can choose wherever they want to get off the Great Plateau to start their own adventure. This is mind-blowing as I was originally under the preconception that the Great Plateau is the "tutorial" area, after getting the para-gilder, there is only one exit leading to the outside world. I never thought about having exits everywhere that the players are free to hop off the Plateau wherever they want.

This prompts me to think about how should I decide to hop off. Scenery? Presence of shrines or towers in foreseeable distance? Search for Goron/Zora? Or simply head to the Hyrule Castle? There are so many possibilities awaiting the players.

Some people may argue that this can be applied to all open world games, but I disagree. Hyrule is a world we are somewhat familiar, and we know races like Goron and Zora, and locations like Death Mountain could survive and continue to exist even the world is in this post-apocalyptic state. It is not Liberty City or other open worlds that although they continue to exist throughout the series, their world and the landscape changes drastically. Whereas Botw allows us to have a unclear, yet familiar, image of Hyrule, which will affect how we are going to take on the exploration of the world. While other games have missions to push the players to go from places to places, or in other cases, there are games that lack significant direction guidance at the beginning, so players can only walk to different places to search for missions, but in Botw, we set our own targets and form our own missions. By looking at the volcano, we know that there is a high possibility to find Gorons. Similarly, by looking at a lake, we know that Zoras may live there. This is significantly different from other open world games, and I feel really, really excited about it.

Although I am not sure about which direction I should go explore first, I am confident that all players are going to experience drastically from each other. We form our own adventures. We may be playing the same game, but we are going to tell different stories. IMO, this is most exiting thing of this game.
 

TheMoon

Member
Although I am not sure about which direction I should go explore first, I am confident that all players are going to experience drastically from each other. We form our own adventures. We may be playing the same game, but we are going to tell different stories. IMO, this is most exiting thing of this game.

That part really is true of pretty much all open world games, though. Esp. the more they are systems-driven. ("grenade rolls down a hill")
 

Scrawnton

Member
I am anticipating this game and dreading this game because of the way I play Zelda games. I really want to rush through it to see the story because I love Zelda lore; however, this game begs for exploration and to not be rushed. I'm very conflicted.
 
I am anticipating this game and dreading this game because of the way I play Zelda games. I really want to rush through it to see the story because I love Zelda lore; however, this game begs for exploration and to not be rushed. I'm very conflicted.
Think of it this way you'll find more lore if you explore
 
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