The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild Review - 9 Ups & 1 Down

1. A Guiding Hand, Forever Invisible

Here's how you know a game is on another level of being immaculately hand-crafted: No matter where you go or how much you think you're wandering off the beaten path, the developers have already accounted for it.

Breath of the Wild executes on this masterfully. Following the tutorial you're given free reign to pick a direction and head in it, knowing that the overarching goal - save for seeking out the Divine Beasts - is just to literally "Become the hero of Hyrule", however you can.

Despite this freeform nature, Nintendo have still peppered the environment with NPCs introducing you to integral parts of the lore, remarking on Link's past adventures or giving you a way to unlock a remaining power or heart/stamina canister/extension. It always feels like these encounters and sense of progression is your own, but thanks to Nintendo's skill at development and the time taken to perfect Breath of the Wild, each and every possibility has been pre-thought out, providing a guiding magician's hand to all your adventures, yet one you'll never truly see.

--

Are you picking up a Switch for Zelda? Let us know in the comments!