Given it's poor battery life in handheld mode, I would say that a few people who don't care about specs, now do.Yoshi178 said:
Is the Breath Of The Wild hype justified?
- Thread starter dscross
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While playing the game as is might be fun for some, imagine how much more fun they would have if the game was of better quality.WeepingAngels said:
I've only played maybe 10 hours of it so far and I'm definitely enjoying it, but there are a bunch of minor annoyances that make playing the game rather a chore.
The stamina bar feels pointless, I get it's to gimp people from just climbing everywhere but it makes moving across the overworld a pain in the ass.
Weapon durability is perhaps the worst thing that ever happened to video games, I shouldn't have to swap weapons everytime a bat flies near me because hitting a bat for 1 damage does the same durability damage as hitting an enormous rock monster for 20 damage.
On top of that there's no actual way to check weapon durability, you get an ambiguous message saying that your weapon/shield/bow/will-to-live is about to break and thats it, no visual meter so you know which weapons will last longer you jusy have to guess from the vague descriptions.
The cooking system is complete garbage and requires 150 button presses when it could be accomplished in about 15.
aside from those complaints the game is great
The stamina bar feels pointless, I get it's to gimp people from just climbing everywhere but it makes moving across the overworld a pain in the ass.
Weapon durability is perhaps the worst thing that ever happened to video games, I shouldn't have to swap weapons everytime a bat flies near me because hitting a bat for 1 damage does the same durability damage as hitting an enormous rock monster for 20 damage.
On top of that there's no actual way to check weapon durability, you get an ambiguous message saying that your weapon/shield/bow/will-to-live is about to break and thats it, no visual meter so you know which weapons will last longer you jusy have to guess from the vague descriptions.
The cooking system is complete garbage and requires 150 button presses when it could be accomplished in about 15.
aside from those complaints the game is great
I've played about 3/4 to 5/6 of what Breath of the Wild has to offer (and on the Wii U version), and I would say: it's not a great game, but it is definitely a good game. I'm sure not everyone will agree with me, but that's okay; different gamers have different tastes.
[HEADING=3] What do I like about Breath of the Wild? [/HEADING]
- The exploration and movement mechanics. This game does exploration INCREDIBLY well. You can climb literally anything, and paraglide from anywhere with the touch of a button. These two mechanics combined with a huge amount of verticality in the world design and the ability to tag spots you're looking at with beacons on your map make for a natural and engaging flow of climbing, looking, flying, traveling, repeat. I would, in fact, heartily recommend this game for the exploration mechanics alone, despite its other flaws.
- The dungeons! There's not many of them, and when I was done with them, I mourned, because I wanted more. (The "rest" of the puzzles are spread out in the shrines.) The dungeons are smaller than in most past Zelda games, but this lets them be more tightly designed, and it SHOWS. I've played almost every Zelda game there is, and I have to say, the dungeons in Breath of the Wild are ALL my favorite to date, from any Zelda game. They were wonderful.
- The world itself. It's a living and real place, and you have to worry about the weather, the temperature, and so on. Different areas don't just have themes slapped on, the themes MATTER. You can drown, you can burn up, you can get heatstroke, but it's all well integrated into the other mechanics and feels very natural and alive.
[HEADING=3] What do I dislike about Breath of the Wild? [/HEADING]
- The combat. Weapons break WAY too fast (you can take down 1 to 8 enemies before a weapon is kaput forever), necessitating that you constantly break the flow of combat to pause and choose a new one. Using the bow is awkward (although I don't use motion controls because of hand issues, and I suspect it's awkward BECAUSE it's optimized for motion controls, so you may not have this issue). And Link takes damage fast and hard, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but the only way to heal is to pause the game and navigate a terrible UI to choose which of the fifteen billion meals you're carrying you need to feed him before combat can resume. I also feel like the system isn't very well utilized for large melees, especially when your shield often fails to block blows at all (or at least that's how it seems). The end result is that if you get into a proper melee (which you will, sooner or later, even if you prefer to snipe enemies from afar whenever possible), the combat becomes this stacatto, clunky mess that's a huge, huge turnoff for me.
- The menu system. I know this sounds like a small gripe, but it's a small gripe that adds up. If I could make one change to this game (other than making weapons not break so easily), it would be to smooth out the menu UI. With how many times you must constantly go to your menu screen to adjust Link's clothing, feed him meals, find the right elixir, and what have you, it gets old FAST. You can't manually sort the oodles of stuff you'll be carrying, and it really is oodles and oodles, so it NEEDS sorting. (The game has an auto-sort function that kinda has a mind of its own and gives mixed results.)
[HEADING=3] What do I find okayish or meh about Breath of the Wild? [/HEADING]
- You can only get (the equivalent of) Pieces of Heart from shrines or dungeons. Period. All other side quests give you new armor (which you will start drowning in after a time) or money or sometimes food. This has been disappointing for me, because I'm rarely engaged in the side quests. In previous Zelda games, the side quests were where you got Pieces of Heart, or you could even find them out and about in the world, under rocks and such. So while in previous games I loved exploring every nook and cranny and finding every quest, in this one, I'm really not that motivated, because I know the rewards will be kinda useless.
[HEADING=3] How does it compare to other 3D Zeldas like Ocarina or Wind Waker? [/HEADING]
- Hmm. I would say that Ocarina and Wind Waker are somewhat better games in most respects, but that this game is still good and worth some of your time. I feel like Breath of the Wild actualized the kind of open world exploration that both Ocarina and Wind Waker wanted to have but didn't quite. But, at the same time, Breath of the Wild lost the good stories and characters of those games. Ocarina and Wind Waker in particular had fantastically written and realized characters and narratives. Breath of the Wild ... does not. It has a few little gems, but for the most part, the characters and story are uninteresting and dull compared to other games in the series.
- I'd also say that Breath of the Wild is, in some ways, a fundamentally different beast than Ocarina or Wind Waker. It's more akin to the original Zelda games where you were told very little and were expected to die a lot. This was something Nintendo was trying to do deliberately, and I have mixed feelings about it. I like having to figure things out ... to a degree. But I'm most of my way through the game and I still don't know how to execute a combat flurry with anything like reliable results, and I had to use Google to figure out how to cook food. The game wanted to give you the tools to figure out things for yourself, but what it actually did was fail to give you proper tutorials for half the stuff you need to know.
[HEADING=3] In closing ... [/HEADING]
A good review I'd recommend would be the Jimquisition's review of the game; it pretty much mirrors my own feelings about the game to a T: http://www.thejimquisition.com/the-legend-of-zelda-breath-of-the-wild-review/
All of that said, those things I didn't like you well may like, and vice versa. What works for some won't for others, etc., and that's okay. I hope this helps you figure out if this game is right for you or not.
[HEADING=3] What do I like about Breath of the Wild? [/HEADING]
- The exploration and movement mechanics. This game does exploration INCREDIBLY well. You can climb literally anything, and paraglide from anywhere with the touch of a button. These two mechanics combined with a huge amount of verticality in the world design and the ability to tag spots you're looking at with beacons on your map make for a natural and engaging flow of climbing, looking, flying, traveling, repeat. I would, in fact, heartily recommend this game for the exploration mechanics alone, despite its other flaws.
- The dungeons! There's not many of them, and when I was done with them, I mourned, because I wanted more. (The "rest" of the puzzles are spread out in the shrines.) The dungeons are smaller than in most past Zelda games, but this lets them be more tightly designed, and it SHOWS. I've played almost every Zelda game there is, and I have to say, the dungeons in Breath of the Wild are ALL my favorite to date, from any Zelda game. They were wonderful.
- The world itself. It's a living and real place, and you have to worry about the weather, the temperature, and so on. Different areas don't just have themes slapped on, the themes MATTER. You can drown, you can burn up, you can get heatstroke, but it's all well integrated into the other mechanics and feels very natural and alive.
[HEADING=3] What do I dislike about Breath of the Wild? [/HEADING]
- The combat. Weapons break WAY too fast (you can take down 1 to 8 enemies before a weapon is kaput forever), necessitating that you constantly break the flow of combat to pause and choose a new one. Using the bow is awkward (although I don't use motion controls because of hand issues, and I suspect it's awkward BECAUSE it's optimized for motion controls, so you may not have this issue). And Link takes damage fast and hard, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but the only way to heal is to pause the game and navigate a terrible UI to choose which of the fifteen billion meals you're carrying you need to feed him before combat can resume. I also feel like the system isn't very well utilized for large melees, especially when your shield often fails to block blows at all (or at least that's how it seems). The end result is that if you get into a proper melee (which you will, sooner or later, even if you prefer to snipe enemies from afar whenever possible), the combat becomes this stacatto, clunky mess that's a huge, huge turnoff for me.
- The menu system. I know this sounds like a small gripe, but it's a small gripe that adds up. If I could make one change to this game (other than making weapons not break so easily), it would be to smooth out the menu UI. With how many times you must constantly go to your menu screen to adjust Link's clothing, feed him meals, find the right elixir, and what have you, it gets old FAST. You can't manually sort the oodles of stuff you'll be carrying, and it really is oodles and oodles, so it NEEDS sorting. (The game has an auto-sort function that kinda has a mind of its own and gives mixed results.)
[HEADING=3] What do I find okayish or meh about Breath of the Wild? [/HEADING]
- You can only get (the equivalent of) Pieces of Heart from shrines or dungeons. Period. All other side quests give you new armor (which you will start drowning in after a time) or money or sometimes food. This has been disappointing for me, because I'm rarely engaged in the side quests. In previous Zelda games, the side quests were where you got Pieces of Heart, or you could even find them out and about in the world, under rocks and such. So while in previous games I loved exploring every nook and cranny and finding every quest, in this one, I'm really not that motivated, because I know the rewards will be kinda useless.
[HEADING=3] How does it compare to other 3D Zeldas like Ocarina or Wind Waker? [/HEADING]
- Hmm. I would say that Ocarina and Wind Waker are somewhat better games in most respects, but that this game is still good and worth some of your time. I feel like Breath of the Wild actualized the kind of open world exploration that both Ocarina and Wind Waker wanted to have but didn't quite. But, at the same time, Breath of the Wild lost the good stories and characters of those games. Ocarina and Wind Waker in particular had fantastically written and realized characters and narratives. Breath of the Wild ... does not. It has a few little gems, but for the most part, the characters and story are uninteresting and dull compared to other games in the series.
- I'd also say that Breath of the Wild is, in some ways, a fundamentally different beast than Ocarina or Wind Waker. It's more akin to the original Zelda games where you were told very little and were expected to die a lot. This was something Nintendo was trying to do deliberately, and I have mixed feelings about it. I like having to figure things out ... to a degree. But I'm most of my way through the game and I still don't know how to execute a combat flurry with anything like reliable results, and I had to use Google to figure out how to cook food. The game wanted to give you the tools to figure out things for yourself, but what it actually did was fail to give you proper tutorials for half the stuff you need to know.
[HEADING=3] In closing ... [/HEADING]
A good review I'd recommend would be the Jimquisition's review of the game; it pretty much mirrors my own feelings about the game to a T: http://www.thejimquisition.com/the-legend-of-zelda-breath-of-the-wild-review/
All of that said, those things I didn't like you well may like, and vice versa. What works for some won't for others, etc., and that's okay. I hope this helps you figure out if this game is right for you or not.
wow how long do you play your games out and about with you?008Zulu said:
3 hours is more than enough time for me to play on the train and during lunchtime at work. then i get home by the time all that's done and just pop the thing in the dock and it charges.
and hell even if i was going to run out of battery on the go, it's not hard to simply plug the switch into my portable charger or a pc at work via usb c.
A bad game is a bad game. a prettier picture isn't going to make a bad game more fun.008Zulu said:
When I go out, it's because I have something to do. I plan my errands with maximum efficiency. Can't really play the games while you're driving a car either, and at work the boss has a policy; No games at work. "You're not getting paid to play games." As he has told some employees.Yoshi178 said:
This leaves my gaming to be largely centered at home.
I'm with you on this!WeepingAngels said:
I never try to hype anything, not movies, games, series, hell not even candy! Hyping things means putting insane expectations on things and then it will never live up to it and hence you will be disapointed...
I liked the game a lot, a few small flaws but otherwise I thoroughly enjoyed it. Last open world game I played was Xenoblade Chronicles X, enjoyed both a lot but I don't think I can compare them, too different.
I super love botw, I'm still only about half way through it, I think.
That being said I play on my wii u.
You can likely pick one up on Craigslist or some such for cheap. Usually this results in unexpected access to at least a few games for free installed on the system. Ocarina of time, mega man battle network 2, and a couple more in my case.
That being said I play on my wii u.
You can likely pick one up on Craigslist or some such for cheap. Usually this results in unexpected access to at least a few games for free installed on the system. Ocarina of time, mega man battle network 2, and a couple more in my case.
No. its just overhype. this is one of those nintendo game that rely on nostalgia. nintendo are rehashing same old franchise over and over and over again.
Hype is never justified. It's an open invitation to disappointment and to being scammed by the publisher/developer.
At this point Nintendo has pretty much ruined me for other sandbox games. I look back at stuff like the Creed series, GTA, TES and they look so tedious or empty in comparison to what Xenoblade and now Breath of the Wild have done. The only other sandboxes I've had as much fun with are Saint's Row (due to its absurd nature) and Yakuza (due to its stunning density and attention to detail).
i'm inclined to agree with almost all of this, except: i super disagree about the dungeons (aka divine beasts). i found them too short, too samey, and too easy.persephone said:
one of the things i love about other Zelda games is the sheer variety and creativity that went into designing each unique dungeon--and that the real challenge of the game (for me at least) was figuring out dungeon puzzles, rather than combat (or even boss fights). i also miss all the cool unique items, even if they didn't get a ton of use outside dungeons. i still liked them... and they beat the horrible weapon durability system by several miles.
the shrines don't make up for the lack of solid dungeons either, as they too become super samey after a while (especially since they all look the same).
the other thing i'd add is that the music, while not bad, is super forgettable. the iconic music in previous Zelda titles was a huge part of what i loved about them; orchestral or not, the other titles had such wonderful & memorable soundtracks, whereas BotW has... light atmospheric pieces that don't add much of anything to the experience and might as well not be there, besides maybe one or two tracks (off the top of my head at least).
they couldn't even be bothered to include the Lost Woods theme! serious missed opportunity there.
(but i guess they at least had the Great Fairy theme...)
I'd definitely say so.
But I'd wait until BotW goes down in price or there are more titles in the library. I've heard they're making another Xenoblade for the Switch, so it definitely seems like Nintendo Switch will have plenty of quality timesink exclusives that may justify the buy in for hours spent playing.
I think if we want quality dungeon crawling we'll be waiting for a new Metroid.
But I'd wait until BotW goes down in price or there are more titles in the library. I've heard they're making another Xenoblade for the Switch, so it definitely seems like Nintendo Switch will have plenty of quality timesink exclusives that may justify the buy in for hours spent playing.
I think if we want quality dungeon crawling we'll be waiting for a new Metroid.
It's certainly not a perfect game like some people are shouting on the internet.
I'm certain the game has elements that people complain about in other open world games, but now since it's a Zelda game it's the best darn thing there ever was.
It is however a really good game, so perhaps the hype if mostly justified. I just wish there were less people diving to defend the damn game anytime someone has something negative to say about it. And I didn't have to buy my own Switch to play it, so I'm not paying $300+ for one game and then left with the worlds most efficient dust collector (second only to the WiiU).
I'm certain the game has elements that people complain about in other open world games, but now since it's a Zelda game it's the best darn thing there ever was.
It is however a really good game, so perhaps the hype if mostly justified. I just wish there were less people diving to defend the damn game anytime someone has something negative to say about it. And I didn't have to buy my own Switch to play it, so I'm not paying $300+ for one game and then left with the worlds most efficient dust collector (second only to the WiiU).
paying $300 to only play zelda is just stupid.DeliveryGodNoah said:
you should pay $300 to play zelda BOTW and the bunch of other new games that were announced like Mario Odyssey, Splatoon 2, Xenoblade 2, No More Heroes 3 and Fire Emblem Switch as well as other stuff that will get announced at E3.
That's great if you're interested in those games though. I was told the same thing about the WiiU. I'm only really interested in maybe No More Heroes 3. I'm happy other people will get more mileage out of the system than I ever would though.Yoshi178 said: