It’s something in the wind. Something in the air that is undefinable but always there if you take the time to look around. Something that is found, but never known to be lost. This sensation, in my mind, is what forms the true core of Breath of the Wild.

Most reviewers who call this game a masterpiece mention the incredible mechanics and environment that rewards exploration. These aspects do form part of my love for the game, but something that those reviews fail to mention, and that people who come in expecting another typical fantasy open-world game and leave disappointed fail to understand, is the beauty and profundity of this game. While gameplay may be the most important aspect of a video game, a great game uses its other aspects in coordination with its gameplay to make something much greater than the sum of its parts.

Breath of the Wild intends its players to feel it just as much as play it. The greatest moments in the game can be had just looking from a point over a vast expanse, reminiscing on the world and the beauty of it. The game’s art style, while clearly having heavy anime inspirations, was based on the works of impressionist painters and Studio Ghibli, who have been renowned for their unrealistic yet emotionally accurate visual representations of nature. And (despite the occasional pop-in texture) I believe the same can be said of Breath of the Wild. The game makes one feel like they are in nature even when, based on the lack of “realistic” details, it doesn’t look as such. And the interiors of shrines at first seem cold and mechanical, but as one grows more familiar with them, one sees the beauty of nature imprinted in subtle ways on them, to the point where the walls seem to be filled with constellations as they descend into a bottomless pit that feels like the cosmos.

One of the most controversial aspects of the game has been its soundtrack. This may be because it is far more experimental than a typical fantasy video game soundtrack, with influences ranging from Debussy and Bartok to Stravinsky and hard rock. Like this soundtrack, these composers (with the exception of the hard rock ones) were originally accused of being “unmelodic” and “unmemorable,” despite having created what today are some of the most memorable soundworlds in classical music. Breath of the Wild’s music lives in the moment and is filled with the vitality of life, whether that life is found in the warm company of other travelers at a stable or in reflection at the memory of a great building now in ruins.

The story, another aspect of the game that is heavily controversial, is also often misunderstood. If viewed from an expectation of the main conflict being told throughout a series of cutscenes, the story can seem extremely bland. However, if the story is viewed as the player’s and characters’ reactions to the main conflict and world, it is quite impressive. For example, let’s look at Link. He appears to just be an avatar for the player at first. But, when we start seeing memories of his past and comparing them to his current behavior, we see something drastic. In the past, the great burden put on him made him react by never speaking or showing emotion in order to be the heroic idol everyone expected him to be. In the present, without the memory of the burden, he is able to express himself, talk to people (through dialogue options), and act silly. His amnesia, in a way, allows him to find his true self. And that is just scratching the surface of the deep character arcs and little stories that make up the world of Hyrule. In a sense, the true story of Breath of the Wild is found not through its external conflicts, but through the character’s personalities and the world they inhabit.

I'm gonna end the review here, as I could easily fill a doctoral thesis with my thoughts on this game. But if you dismissed this game before, you might want to reconsider based on what I wrote here.

"Good luck sealing the darkness!"

I come from the future with news.

This game exists.





Seriously, why is this game already on Backloggd?

Hey look I'm the first review.

It was good I guess.






I really liked the backgrounds.