y'know im starting to realize a big part of the reason tears of the kingdom feels so new and vast to me, outside of the fact that it just is, is because I played a lot of this game on my Wii U gamepad and I always forget that fact until it's brought up to me.

It was really comfy though, didn't make me love the game any less. What a masterpiece.

Also wasn't going to mention it but weapon degradation is something I actively enjoy because it endorses not relying on strong weapons to overcome every obstacle and keeps you from overpowering the entire game by playing out of "order".

Only thing I really wish is that the shield surfing didn't degrade shields as quickly. There are mods for that but it'd be nice if vanilla accounted for this somehow.

This game really stumps me, even after 110 hours. I never found myself having that much fun. Honestly, most of this game felt like busy work. I guess, you could argue, that I should not have spent 110 hours playing the game. This is a somewhat valid argument, but I never actually ran out of legitimate content. I played the game like you were meant to, doing the same things everyone else has done. It just does not do it for me.

The combat in this game is... bad? I don't want to be the "oh, there is durability, oh!" sort of guy but my god, the durability. I guess the idea is that weapons should break fast so that it forces the player to use every unique weapon at their disposal. Hypothetically, great idea. The problem is that this game has like, 5 unique weapon types. The only other differences are found in aesthetics honestly. The combat itself is workable, overall not the greatest. But with the durability system placed on top, ouchie.

This also is sort of a main theme to the game. The biggest combat problem is the lack of variety. The same can be said for the entire game. You do the same things over and over, getting the same objects over and over. It just is not a satisfying loop. The world is open, sure, but it is so incredibly barren. When I hear people say, "oh, there is something around every corner!" I ask myself, "did we play the same game?" Like, sure, there are the korok puzzles everywhere and a couple of them are alright. however, most of them are lifting a rock or stepping in a certain place 4 feet away. It is not fulfilling stuff. The game ends up feeling incredibly empty.

What gets this game 2 of the 4 stars I am giving it is the polish and the charm. Never, ever, in over a hundred hours, did I experience a significantly noticeable glitch. The world is incredibly empty, but it is extremely polished. It is polished with attention and aesthetics. This game deserves a reward for being so visually stunning as an early switch title. It is, to me, insane what was managed considering the hardware. The environments in this game, though still very empty, are beautiful. The music, though a fairly low entry in the Zelda OST history, is so atmospheric and just stylistically perfect. It also cannot go without being said that this game definitely still has the Zelda whimsy working for it.

So Breath of the Wild, put quite simply, is a game that often made me feel very alone and maybe a little bored. However, at least my eyes and ears were stimulated most of the time.

Also we got twink Link.

Final thought, I have a lot more to say about this game so please do not kill me with facts and logic in your mind because I am sure I have thought about whatever it is you are about to kill me with. I just really do not want to write an essay about a game that really did little to inspire me. Maybe one day....

"I am he." - Link.

Hot damn man. Nintendo's breakout title entering the Switch era kicks things into high gear. Breath of the Wild is so vast and varied, its so easy to get lost in the environment as you explore the lands of Hyrule in your quest to put Ganon down again. There's a lot to do in this game, its easy to get distracted from the main quest. Sure I could be taking on a Divine Beast right now, but that forest in the distance has to be hiding a Korok somewhere. While the lack of actual dungeons is my only hangup, the ability to make your own approach to the finale is a greatly appreciated touch, hell you can just go straight to Ganon if you just don't wanna even. I can see why this game earned the GOTY in 2017 and it helped revitalize my love for the Zelda series!