There’s nothing in the gaming industry quite like the launch of a new The Legend of Zelda title. Not only is it one of the most important franchises in the history of the gaming industry in terms of game design and showing us what it is that games can do as a medium, but it also remains, to date, one of the most consistent franchises. It has delivered masterpieces such as A Link to the Past and Link’s Awakening in its early years, moving on to generation defining games such as Majora’s Mask, and then keeping up that incredible standard of quality with modern wonders like Twilight Princess and A Link Between Worlds.
It’s no wonder, then, that the upcoming release of the latest Zelda saga, Breath of the Wild, has fans throughout the world giddily excited. But somehow, this time, it feels even more special. For the first time in many years, a console Zelda game looks to be trying something completely different, something incredibly brave, something that might push the boundaries of game design like no other game has done.
Breath of the Wild looks like a breath of fresh air, but what exactly is it that makes it look like it could be the kind of generation defining title the series hasn’t delivered in a long time? In this feature, we take a look at fifteen things that make us more excited for this game than anything else, fifteen things that we feel will help this game become the kind of transcendent experience we all know it has the potential to be. So without further ado, let’s begin!
Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.
Inspired by the Original Zelda… and Skyrim!
Game producer EijiAonuma has not been shy in naming third party titles as the games that influenced the development of Breath of the Wild, and he has named titles such as Far Cry and Skyrim as his immediate references. That is, to be honest, instantly apparent from the open world and exploration based nature of Breath of the Wild. However, Aonuma has also stated this his main inspiration was the very first title in the series, The Legend of Zelda for the NES, and that in itself is enough to get any Zelda fan excited. It does indeed look like the game will be taking inspiration from the completely open-ended, non-linear structure of the original game, and we’re curious to see how it does that in its own unique way.
