re: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

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If you play the original Legend of Zelda today, you might be surprised how little guidance it provides. The 1986 classic has no drawn-out tutorials, no mini-map that shows you exactly where to go. You’re plopped in a strange, mysterious world and largely left to your own devices. You can wander off and get lost, and there’s a good chance you’ll end up getting killed by powerful monsters if you do. The structure makes the game feel like a true adventure, as if you’re charting your own course. Three decades after the original, I get the same playing while playing The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild on Nintendo Switch — only on a much bigger scale.

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That’s not the case with Breath of the Wild. Its more open nature not only creates a sense that you’re really on a grand adventure, but also makes the world feel more dangerous and unpredictable. You aren’t told how the world works; you discover it. There’s a sense of dynamism that I haven’t experienced in a Zelda game before. While wandering the forest I’ve found myself rescuing travelers from monster attacks, and accidentally stumbling upon a crew of moblins hunting boar. I’ve accidentally sent a massive boulder rolling down a mountain, bashing against trees and critters on its way down. Though small, these moments provide a nice balance to a series that has for some time felt intensely scripted. The world feels alive, like it would continue with or without me.

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Breath of the Wild is a huge game, and ultimately five hours will be just a small chunk of my much bigger experience. But the intro makes a great first impression. It still feels like a Zelda game — swords, goblins, treasure chests, and quests — but it modernizes the adventure, and cuts out most of the tedious hand-holding that dragged down more recent Zelda adventures. And by moving forward with the series, Zelda gets back to the essence of its past.

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