Horizon Zero Dawn Vs. Zelda: Breath Of The Wild - Which Game Is Better?

2. Character Progression (Mechanics)

Weirdly, despite Aloy's personal progression providing a supremely cool character arc, you'll mostly be playing Horizon after 30 hours the same way as after 30 minutes.

Yes, you unlock the ability to stealth kill, slow time to aim and deliver critical hits - all fundamental additions - but all of these are incredibly easy to acquire, with the game resorting to 'damage boosts' and 'now enemies can't hear you run'-type additions almost immediately. You'll get better weapons and accrue a wider variety of elemental damage bonuses, sure, but in terms of how it feels to control Aloy from beginning to end, you'd better hope you like that sensation almost immediately, because it ain't gonna change.

In Breath of the Wild's case, there's no 'stat screen' to speak of, and although you do get given access to a core set of powers within the first couple of hours, there's no way you'll feel remotely confident using them until many hours in. Part of this comes from how Zelda forces you to adapt and think outside how games have otherwise trained you to interact with an open world, both through the puzzle Shrines and the mechanics-heavy boss battles.

After surviving some intense duels or clearing a bandit camp by wielding a metal crate in mid-air, swiping Bokoblins off their platforms like Magneto on a forest getaway, that's when you know you've come a long way. Horizon has a bigger list of things to click on, sure, but its lack of refinement on the part of the player gives this one to Zelda.

Winner: The Legend Of Zelda: Breath of the Wild