44 days until the release of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom!
March 29, 2023 6:49 AM Subscribe
Zelda Producer Plays Tears Of The Kingdom For 10 Mins, And The New Stuff Looks Wild [YouTube][Spoilers ] Zelda fans have been starving for anything they can get, any crumb they can catch, and it seems like Nintendo is finally taking pity, rewarding them with a 10-minute gameplay trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. During the gameplay snippet, Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma says through a translator that Tears has changed the world “in many ways,” including pieces of Hyrule that float high in the sky, or “sky islands.” [...] Today’s trailer, which continues to show Link and his verdant world at its best and adds even more gameplay mechanics to the ones previous trailers revealed, is hopefully only the start to Nintendo preparing to open up the flood gates of cold, hard Zelda information. It doesn’t have much time, anyway—the game releases for Switch on May 12. [via: Kotaku]
My daughters and I watched this this morning and we're all losing our minds. "Fuse" alone seems endlessly fun.
posted by saladin at 6:59 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by saladin at 6:59 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
This video took me from "abstractly excited about a new title, because Nintendo is worth excitement" to "tiny inner child screaming." This looks like a dream.
posted by Tom Hanks Cannot Be Trusted at 7:05 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Tom Hanks Cannot Be Trusted at 7:05 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
PSA for people looking to preorder digitally - if you have a Nintendo Online account, you can purchase a set of game vouchers for $100 - and Tears of the Kingdom is an eligible title. In addition, you can buy eShop credit for less than face value at Costco, further cutting the price down.
posted by NoxAeternum at 7:15 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by NoxAeternum at 7:15 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
If you haven't watched the video, I highly recommend doing so if you're interested to see the new runes.
I think this game is going to be Zelda: Makerspace.
posted by nightrecordings at 7:16 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
I think this game is going to be Zelda: Makerspace.
posted by nightrecordings at 7:16 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
Garage Link or Tinkerer-Link is the best Link.
I'm so excited for all these new powers. Here's a good breakdown of all the new runes/powers via Polygon.
I am so excited and thrilled to see what the community (speedrunners & high-level combat/tricks) will do with these new abilities/powers. We're going to see some wild ass creations and I love that I can already see myself playing this game for the next 700+ hours.
I booked 4 days off in a row that weekend so I won't be bothered by adult responsibilities and can just be a kid in a candy store. Cannot wait!!!
posted by Fizz at 7:24 AM on March 29, 2023 [6 favorites]
I'm so excited for all these new powers. Here's a good breakdown of all the new runes/powers via Polygon.
I am so excited and thrilled to see what the community (speedrunners & high-level combat/tricks) will do with these new abilities/powers. We're going to see some wild ass creations and I love that I can already see myself playing this game for the next 700+ hours.
I booked 4 days off in a row that weekend so I won't be bothered by adult responsibilities and can just be a kid in a candy store. Cannot wait!!!
posted by Fizz at 7:24 AM on March 29, 2023 [6 favorites]
A short list of critical information about this game that we can discern from this video.
- 1:22: Koroks are now visible in the wider world and travel it with giant backpacks and need our help. The Korok lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over, but it can't. Not without your help. But you're not helping. Why aren't you helping, Link?
- 1:25: Beedle! Everyone's favourite fast-travelling vagabond merchant cryptid is back!
- Trees on with the sky islands are yellow autumn colors, and you can see a few of them on high peaks on land, it's interesting that this gets a specific callout. Breath of the Wild doesn't have a tree at all where you see that yellowed one at 1:28
- 2:24, after the Ascend demo, in the upper left - what is that thing that's been carved into the hillside in the distance? When they pan around at 2:40, is that cube hovering in the distance one of the labyrinths from BotW? Sure looks like they've just been torn out of the ground to hover, I wonder what's under them.
- The Zonai have entered the chat. It will be fascinating to see how that part of the story plays out, there have been hints about the Zonai rattling around in the background of Zeldaverse since at least Ocarina Of Time, most prominently in Twilight Princess before Breath of the Wild, including a few subtle hints that Ganon (and I guess therefore the Gerudo?) are descendents of the Zonai themselves.
- 5:25: geez, that dragon is really high up. Looking forward to finding out how far up this world goes. (And how far down, given that we also saw strong hints of a Proper Underworld in the two earlier trailers.
- A use for Keese Eyeballs! Keese were my favorite critters in BotW, they were so stupidly courageous. You could have just wrapped up killing a silver lynel and one of them would flap up to you like "this is my moment!"
- More technology needs to work after you hit it with a stick.
- Lots of long rails and mine carts in the distance, 10:33 notably. We saw these in a previous trailer, getting around this world is going to be a blast. And what's that glass-sphere lens on a pedestal in the background?
Anyway: yes, this is showing all the signs of being an incredible game.
posted by mhoye at 7:54 AM on March 29, 2023 [14 favorites]
- 1:22: Koroks are now visible in the wider world and travel it with giant backpacks and need our help. The Korok lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over, but it can't. Not without your help. But you're not helping. Why aren't you helping, Link?
- 1:25: Beedle! Everyone's favourite fast-travelling vagabond merchant cryptid is back!
- Trees on with the sky islands are yellow autumn colors, and you can see a few of them on high peaks on land, it's interesting that this gets a specific callout. Breath of the Wild doesn't have a tree at all where you see that yellowed one at 1:28
- 2:24, after the Ascend demo, in the upper left - what is that thing that's been carved into the hillside in the distance? When they pan around at 2:40, is that cube hovering in the distance one of the labyrinths from BotW? Sure looks like they've just been torn out of the ground to hover, I wonder what's under them.
- The Zonai have entered the chat. It will be fascinating to see how that part of the story plays out, there have been hints about the Zonai rattling around in the background of Zeldaverse since at least Ocarina Of Time, most prominently in Twilight Princess before Breath of the Wild, including a few subtle hints that Ganon (and I guess therefore the Gerudo?) are descendents of the Zonai themselves.
- 5:25: geez, that dragon is really high up. Looking forward to finding out how far up this world goes. (And how far down, given that we also saw strong hints of a Proper Underworld in the two earlier trailers.
- A use for Keese Eyeballs! Keese were my favorite critters in BotW, they were so stupidly courageous. You could have just wrapped up killing a silver lynel and one of them would flap up to you like "this is my moment!"
- More technology needs to work after you hit it with a stick.
- Lots of long rails and mine carts in the distance, 10:33 notably. We saw these in a previous trailer, getting around this world is going to be a blast. And what's that glass-sphere lens on a pedestal in the background?
Anyway: yes, this is showing all the signs of being an incredible game.
posted by mhoye at 7:54 AM on March 29, 2023 [14 favorites]
Nintendo are just so good at casually leaving little hints, mysteries and cleverly misleading breadcrumbs in the backgrounds of these trailers, knowing that people are going to dissect them frame by frame. Nothing that appears in this video is an accident, not a single pixel, and I have to respect that as a craft.
posted by mhoye at 8:00 AM on March 29, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by mhoye at 8:00 AM on March 29, 2023 [3 favorites]
Link's "ultrahand" ability is a throwback to this toy sold by Nintendo back in their playing cards and mahjong era.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 8:20 AM on March 29, 2023 [9 favorites]
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 8:20 AM on March 29, 2023 [9 favorites]
I am playing LoZ on NES right now with kiddo. Plan is to go through them chronologically (skipping a few). Really looking forward to trying this out in five years or so!
posted by SaltySalticid at 8:29 AM on March 29, 2023
posted by SaltySalticid at 8:29 AM on March 29, 2023
I’m so excited for this game! I had a terrible year last year and haven’t touched my Switch since June as a result. Took this as an opportunity to get the sexy new special edition console + Pro Controller and cannot wait. This looks like my dream game ー a bit of Skyward Sword and BOTW? Sign me the hell up!
posted by ener at 8:52 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by ener at 8:52 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
Other things from the trailer: Note that the compass is now displaying coordinates in three dimensions, and caves appear to have checkmarks next to them indicating some degree of completion?
posted by mhoye at 9:02 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by mhoye at 9:02 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
I expect that the answer is yes, but: will I be able to enjoy this without having finished BotW? (I'm a chronic endgame-avoider and wandered off to do other things after getting maybe 75% of the way through the game)
posted by rivenwanderer at 9:02 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by rivenwanderer at 9:02 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
Absolutely! You didn't even miss anything spectacular by not "finishing" it, the main fun is the playing.
posted by GoblinHoney at 9:06 AM on March 29, 2023 [4 favorites]
posted by GoblinHoney at 9:06 AM on March 29, 2023 [4 favorites]
So much of the fun of BOTW was in exploring for me, and I was wondering how the sequel would or could continue that, if the map didn't change beyond a few new areas. The fuse and ultrahand mechanics seem like a great way to continue the fun of exploration in a new way! I foresee myself wasting many hours trying bonkers combinations or building weird shit to solve game puzzles in ways Nintendo probably didn't intend but which will be very fun. The sheer comedic possibilities of weird weapon combinations will keep us and streamers entertained for a long time to come, I imagine.
It's also really delightful to me that this seems like a direct response to streamers kludging together weird contraptions within the mechanics of BOTW. Like Nintendo was like "oh, great idea, let's make that a mechanic!"
In general, these new mechanics seem like such a clever and impressive way to expand the ways you can problem solve in the game, in ways that will accommodate different playing styles. Like the Keese eyeball + arrow thing, what a great way to help out players who may have shitty aim in an in-game way that doesn't feel cheaty.
One thing from the trailer that had me raising my eyebrows though: Link can fully dive into the water from like a mile up without taking any damage?? I feel like I tried that in BOTW and went splat.
I'm kind of bummed I won't be able to play it immediately, as I will have family in town those last couple weeks of May, but I still can't wait to play it!
posted by yasaman at 9:21 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
It's also really delightful to me that this seems like a direct response to streamers kludging together weird contraptions within the mechanics of BOTW. Like Nintendo was like "oh, great idea, let's make that a mechanic!"
In general, these new mechanics seem like such a clever and impressive way to expand the ways you can problem solve in the game, in ways that will accommodate different playing styles. Like the Keese eyeball + arrow thing, what a great way to help out players who may have shitty aim in an in-game way that doesn't feel cheaty.
One thing from the trailer that had me raising my eyebrows though: Link can fully dive into the water from like a mile up without taking any damage?? I feel like I tried that in BOTW and went splat.
I'm kind of bummed I won't be able to play it immediately, as I will have family in town those last couple weeks of May, but I still can't wait to play it!
posted by yasaman at 9:21 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
If only one could design one's own in-game avatar....
posted by seanmpuckett at 9:23 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by seanmpuckett at 9:23 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
Link can fully dive into the water from like a mile up without taking any damage?? I feel like I tried that in BOTW and went splat.
You can die from a fall on land, but not into water.
posted by mhoye at 9:25 AM on March 29, 2023
You can die from a fall on land, but not into water.
posted by mhoye at 9:25 AM on March 29, 2023
The thing that amazes me about Zelda, and ot a somewhat lesser extent Mario, is how they keep introducing new mechanics and concepts.
It doesn't happen every game, but it happens with surprising regularity.
Super Mario 64 was the first 3D game that really got the camera right.
Ocarena of Time was one of the first games that really made the transition from 2d to 3d really well.
Wind Waker had cell shading that was, for the time, astonishingly good.
Breath of the Wild practically spawned an entire new genere of light survival open world games with gliders and 3d climbing as a core mechanic.
After 41 games they still find ways to introduce new things and that's just astonishing.
posted by sotonohito at 9:28 AM on March 29, 2023 [9 favorites]
It doesn't happen every game, but it happens with surprising regularity.
Super Mario 64 was the first 3D game that really got the camera right.
Ocarena of Time was one of the first games that really made the transition from 2d to 3d really well.
Wind Waker had cell shading that was, for the time, astonishingly good.
Breath of the Wild practically spawned an entire new genere of light survival open world games with gliders and 3d climbing as a core mechanic.
After 41 games they still find ways to introduce new things and that's just astonishing.
posted by sotonohito at 9:28 AM on March 29, 2023 [9 favorites]
Me: "I'd really like to see a sequel to Breath of the Wild."
Nintendo: Ok.
Me: "But also Skyward Sword. You know, in the sky."
Nintendo: We can do that.
Me: "But... with an underworld and dungeons. And we find out what's going on with all that dragon/lizard people."
Nintendo: Sure.
Me, pushing my luck: ".... And you know what would also be great? A remade Banjo Kazooie, Nuts & Bolts. That whole build-your-own-vehicle game. From fifteen years ago. On the XBox 360. That was amazing."
Nintendo: You are not going to believe this.
posted by mhoye at 9:40 AM on March 29, 2023 [25 favorites]
Nintendo: Ok.
Me: "But also Skyward Sword. You know, in the sky."
Nintendo: We can do that.
Me: "But... with an underworld and dungeons. And we find out what's going on with all that dragon/lizard people."
Nintendo: Sure.
Me, pushing my luck: ".... And you know what would also be great? A remade Banjo Kazooie, Nuts & Bolts. That whole build-your-own-vehicle game. From fifteen years ago. On the XBox 360. That was amazing."
Nintendo: You are not going to believe this.
posted by mhoye at 9:40 AM on March 29, 2023 [25 favorites]
Dumb q: Will this only be available for the Nintendo Switch?
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 9:45 AM on March 29, 2023
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 9:45 AM on March 29, 2023
Will this only be available for the Nintendo Switch?
Yeah. It's not unheard of, but it's exceedingly rare for Nintendo games to show up on non-Nintendo devices.
posted by mhoye at 9:49 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
Yeah. It's not unheard of, but it's exceedingly rare for Nintendo games to show up on non-Nintendo devices.
posted by mhoye at 9:49 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
Will this only be available for the Nintendo Switch?
Officially, yes. But an emulation/port will be uploaded to PC very quickly.
posted by Fizz at 9:49 AM on March 29, 2023
Officially, yes. But an emulation/port will be uploaded to PC very quickly.
posted by Fizz at 9:49 AM on March 29, 2023
Yeah. It's not unheard of, but it's exceedingly rare for Nintendo games to show up on non-Nintendo devices.
*holding out for the CD-i version*
posted by gc at 9:50 AM on March 29, 2023 [9 favorites]
*holding out for the CD-i version*
posted by gc at 9:50 AM on March 29, 2023 [9 favorites]
I expect that the answer is yes, but: will I be able to enjoy this without having finished BotW?
The weakest part of BotW BY FAR is the end game. Spoilers ahead, I guess, so be warned.
The big bad guy who's been looming ominously for the entire game? You fight him, and kill him. The fight has a couple phases. The last phase is the worst boss fight I've ever played in a big-budget game. It is the subject of ridicule and scorn for how easy it is, and how bolted-on it feels compared to an otherwise amazingly in-depth game. Once you win, you get unceremoniously dumped back at your last save from just before the final confrontation, with no explanation of what's going on. The game world is unchanged, aside from a couple of minor quests that open up from side characters.
Don't worry about finishing BotW pre TotK.
posted by Mayor West at 9:51 AM on March 29, 2023 [4 favorites]
The weakest part of BotW BY FAR is the end game. Spoilers ahead, I guess, so be warned.
The big bad guy who's been looming ominously for the entire game? You fight him, and kill him. The fight has a couple phases. The last phase is the worst boss fight I've ever played in a big-budget game. It is the subject of ridicule and scorn for how easy it is, and how bolted-on it feels compared to an otherwise amazingly in-depth game. Once you win, you get unceremoniously dumped back at your last save from just before the final confrontation, with no explanation of what's going on. The game world is unchanged, aside from a couple of minor quests that open up from side characters.
Don't worry about finishing BotW pre TotK.
posted by Mayor West at 9:51 AM on March 29, 2023 [4 favorites]
I expect that the answer is yes, but: will I be able to enjoy this without having finished BotW?
You're fine. I finished it a few weeks ago mostly out of a sense of obligation and to say that I'd done it. (Okay, I also felt a bit bad leaving Zelda waiting for so long while I furnished my house and petted doggos). You get a cut scene and then you just pick up where you last saved, hunting korok seeds or whatever else you like to do while wandering around Hyrule.
posted by synecdoche at 10:09 AM on March 29, 2023
You're fine. I finished it a few weeks ago mostly out of a sense of obligation and to say that I'd done it. (Okay, I also felt a bit bad leaving Zelda waiting for so long while I furnished my house and petted doggos). You get a cut scene and then you just pick up where you last saved, hunting korok seeds or whatever else you like to do while wandering around Hyrule.
posted by synecdoche at 10:09 AM on March 29, 2023
One of the most fun parts of BOTW was how the systems interacted and people discovered great synergies and tricks.
It looks like Nintendo gets that and is trying to create new interacting systems to enhance that kind of gameplay.
But how much of that original greatness was just accidental or at least emergent unintentionally? Can Nintendo capture that fairy in a bottle again?
posted by jclarkin at 10:21 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
It looks like Nintendo gets that and is trying to create new interacting systems to enhance that kind of gameplay.
But how much of that original greatness was just accidental or at least emergent unintentionally? Can Nintendo capture that fairy in a bottle again?
posted by jclarkin at 10:21 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
The last phase is the worst boss fight I've ever played in a big-budget game. It is the subject of ridicule and scorn for how easy it is, and how bolted-on it feels compared to an otherwise amazingly in-depth game.
Apparently the final Beast form of Ganon was a hastily-done modification. The original version of the end boss fight was that once Ganon was killed in his Calamity form, he would melt into a giant blob of Malice that pooled outside the castle. Link was to climb on the roof of Hyrule Castle and Blobby Malice Ganon would rear up and attack and smash parts of the castle while guardians fired lasers at you, and you would have to leap around using the paraglider and snipe at weak spots as Zelda revealed them, while less and less of the castle walls and roofs remain.
It either couldn't be finished in time, or was too complex for the engine -- remember that BOTW was being developed simultaneously for the Switch and for the Wii U -- so instead Ganon becomes a giant pig that doesn't move and you fight him in a very flat field.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 10:23 AM on March 29, 2023 [7 favorites]
Apparently the final Beast form of Ganon was a hastily-done modification. The original version of the end boss fight was that once Ganon was killed in his Calamity form, he would melt into a giant blob of Malice that pooled outside the castle. Link was to climb on the roof of Hyrule Castle and Blobby Malice Ganon would rear up and attack and smash parts of the castle while guardians fired lasers at you, and you would have to leap around using the paraglider and snipe at weak spots as Zelda revealed them, while less and less of the castle walls and roofs remain.
It either couldn't be finished in time, or was too complex for the engine -- remember that BOTW was being developed simultaneously for the Switch and for the Wii U -- so instead Ganon becomes a giant pig that doesn't move and you fight him in a very flat field.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 10:23 AM on March 29, 2023 [7 favorites]
Partner hunted me up a Switch just so I could play BotW back in 2018 (I think). I played it most of the way through and ready to go to the final castle fight. He started getting into it and started his own game. I got busy with some stuff and some health issues and he catches up. One night he does the final end game and I well … just don’t. I’ve started new games and still have fun. I may never “finish” BotW. If there was ever a Zelda game that was “journey not destination” it’s BotW. Very much looking forward to the new one!
posted by R343L at 10:23 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by R343L at 10:23 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
Already spent time yesterday theorizing with my daughter about various things we could fuse to arrows and what they would do. Really looking forward to attaching food to arrows and feeding people at range.
posted by Zargon X at 10:27 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Zargon X at 10:27 AM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
I accidentally glided into the final boss fight in BotW long before I was ready. One minute I'm gliding around, the next, suddenly it's the endgame. Super weird experience.
I can't wait for TotK. I've been scratching the exploration itch with Skyrim and Red Dead Redemption 2, but these new mechanics look really bonkers and, mercifully, not tedious to use ("loathe" is not a strong enough word to describe how I feel about the tedious-ass crafting system in any of these games).
posted by uncleozzy at 10:35 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
I can't wait for TotK. I've been scratching the exploration itch with Skyrim and Red Dead Redemption 2, but these new mechanics look really bonkers and, mercifully, not tedious to use ("loathe" is not a strong enough word to describe how I feel about the tedious-ass crafting system in any of these games).
posted by uncleozzy at 10:35 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
That video has one of the highest "you are KIDDING me?!" per minute ratios I have ever seen. My faith in humanity is restored.
posted by mittens at 11:17 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by mittens at 11:17 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
I just need to find one Hynox, and I'm done with BoTW. Where are you, Last Hynox?
posted by RakDaddy at 11:19 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by RakDaddy at 11:19 AM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
Did you find the Stalnox inside Hyrule Castle's dungeon?
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 11:34 AM on March 29, 2023
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 11:34 AM on March 29, 2023
Yep. I just need to spend an afternoon with a map and a Royal Claymore.
posted by RakDaddy at 11:40 AM on March 29, 2023
posted by RakDaddy at 11:40 AM on March 29, 2023
After 41 games they still find ways to introduce new things and that's just astonishing.
Speaking as a game designer, nobody comes close to being as continually inspiring a publisher of games than Nintendo. And it's really that Nintendo, more than any other game developer, focuses on movement. Interaction. The gravity of being in a space. They put more time into developing what it ought to feel like to climb a tree than most devs put into their whole games, and it shows.
Nintendo often gets dinged for the "basicness" of their worlds, their lore, their plots. But the relative blandness of what they make is part of the point—it's a feature, not a bug. Because their focus is always so relentlessly on play, and the worlds they make, the stories they tell, all exist to provide a logical shape for the kinds of play they want to offer. Which is how, somehow, I've wound up emotionally invested in three or four different bland versions of Link fighting some bland version of Ganon trying to save some bland version of Zelda: the bond I have with Nintendo characters is the very basic bond of living in a world with them, which matters only because that world—and that verb, "living"—offers me something new. A unique signature all its own.
I feel like GameCube/Wii-era Nintendo dipped a little, in some ways. The play they offered simply wasn't differentiated enough from what other developers were doing... and, worse, from what Nintendo itself had done. It's hard to continually outdo yourself, I guess.
But Breath of the Wild ripped apart so many of Nintendo's famously conservative approaches to game design. And now that they're playing with open worlds—and playing with them in such a different way from how other open-world game devs approach the things they're making—it's exhilarating to see them lean so hard into things that feel radical, not for being new ideas, but for being precisely the ideas that friends and I used to daydream about when we were nine years old playing Ocarina of Time.
(The only other developer who feels like it's doing anything remotely similar is From Software, and Elden Ring is the only other open-world game that's felt remotely compelling to me in recent years. And it's for the same reason, even though Elden Ring and Breath of the Wild could not be more different: they simply feel good, and their worlds both evolved from the experience of simply playing in them. Other open-world games feel like wet cardboard by comparison: I'll begrudgingly play Bethesda games now and again, but it feels like Bethesda thinks of gameplay as something to be begrudgingly tolerated in the name of getting into wonky mechanics and fun lore, rather than as the centerpiece of the medium they're working in.)
posted by Tom Hanks Cannot Be Trusted at 11:49 AM on March 29, 2023 [15 favorites]
Speaking as a game designer, nobody comes close to being as continually inspiring a publisher of games than Nintendo. And it's really that Nintendo, more than any other game developer, focuses on movement. Interaction. The gravity of being in a space. They put more time into developing what it ought to feel like to climb a tree than most devs put into their whole games, and it shows.
Nintendo often gets dinged for the "basicness" of their worlds, their lore, their plots. But the relative blandness of what they make is part of the point—it's a feature, not a bug. Because their focus is always so relentlessly on play, and the worlds they make, the stories they tell, all exist to provide a logical shape for the kinds of play they want to offer. Which is how, somehow, I've wound up emotionally invested in three or four different bland versions of Link fighting some bland version of Ganon trying to save some bland version of Zelda: the bond I have with Nintendo characters is the very basic bond of living in a world with them, which matters only because that world—and that verb, "living"—offers me something new. A unique signature all its own.
I feel like GameCube/Wii-era Nintendo dipped a little, in some ways. The play they offered simply wasn't differentiated enough from what other developers were doing... and, worse, from what Nintendo itself had done. It's hard to continually outdo yourself, I guess.
But Breath of the Wild ripped apart so many of Nintendo's famously conservative approaches to game design. And now that they're playing with open worlds—and playing with them in such a different way from how other open-world game devs approach the things they're making—it's exhilarating to see them lean so hard into things that feel radical, not for being new ideas, but for being precisely the ideas that friends and I used to daydream about when we were nine years old playing Ocarina of Time.
(The only other developer who feels like it's doing anything remotely similar is From Software, and Elden Ring is the only other open-world game that's felt remotely compelling to me in recent years. And it's for the same reason, even though Elden Ring and Breath of the Wild could not be more different: they simply feel good, and their worlds both evolved from the experience of simply playing in them. Other open-world games feel like wet cardboard by comparison: I'll begrudgingly play Bethesda games now and again, but it feels like Bethesda thinks of gameplay as something to be begrudgingly tolerated in the name of getting into wonky mechanics and fun lore, rather than as the centerpiece of the medium they're working in.)
posted by Tom Hanks Cannot Be Trusted at 11:49 AM on March 29, 2023 [15 favorites]
Yep. I just need to spend an afternoon with a map and a Royal Claymore.
is this still about video games
posted by mhoye at 11:50 AM on March 29, 2023 [8 favorites]
is this still about video games
posted by mhoye at 11:50 AM on March 29, 2023 [8 favorites]
They put more time into developing what it ought to feel like to climb a tree than most devs put into their whole games, and it shows.
To this point, I tried to play Witcher III on Switch after finishing BOTW, and it felt like the open world fantasy video game equivalent of that old "Microsoft packages the iPod" video.
(Yes, I know Witcher III released before BOTW. Yes, I know it's a beloved classic for many. It just was no fun for me to play.)
posted by HeroZero at 12:53 PM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
To this point, I tried to play Witcher III on Switch after finishing BOTW, and it felt like the open world fantasy video game equivalent of that old "Microsoft packages the iPod" video.
(Yes, I know Witcher III released before BOTW. Yes, I know it's a beloved classic for many. It just was no fun for me to play.)
posted by HeroZero at 12:53 PM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
An interesting way to address the near-universal criticism of the last game: weapon degradation. I think it's a cool idea to work alongside 'weapons breaking down over time' without removing the mechanic entirely.
I'd love to play this game, but I really, really dislike the hardware needed to play it. I'll be watching videos of play throughs.
posted by SoberHighland at 1:24 PM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'd love to play this game, but I really, really dislike the hardware needed to play it. I'll be watching videos of play throughs.
posted by SoberHighland at 1:24 PM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
The weapon degradation didn’t bug me much in general but I thought there could have been greater variety in the durability. I don’t mind a stick breaking or a boko bow but the Champion weapons I feel should have been practically indestructible. When I got them I hung them in my house to avoid breaking them, even though I know they could be remade.
posted by synecdoche at 1:58 PM on March 29, 2023
posted by synecdoche at 1:58 PM on March 29, 2023
I'm going to be on vacation when this launches and it already hurts. It took me a few tries to get into BotW. It didn't feel like Zelda. But once I did I was hooked. The new abilities have a lot of potential. I loved that they made a motorboat out of logs and fans. BotW already was a game where if it's physically possible you can do it. This feels the same just with more possibilities.
posted by downtohisturtles at 2:54 PM on March 29, 2023
posted by downtohisturtles at 2:54 PM on March 29, 2023
It must be a day ending in 'Y' because here's another Zelda posting on Metafilter.
posted by hairless ape at 3:52 PM on March 29, 2023
posted by hairless ape at 3:52 PM on March 29, 2023
Loved this sneak peek. It feels like the developers closely watched how people interacted with and then really pushed the boundaries of the BoTW physics engine and then took inspiration from it.
posted by muddgirl at 4:36 PM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by muddgirl at 4:36 PM on March 29, 2023 [2 favorites]
I had stopped playing video/computer games entirely from about 2003 to 2017 when my wife, inspired by I don't know what, bought me a switch + breath of the wild for christmas. I don't know if she was expecting the dam would break open and I'd end up getting a ps5 too but Breath of the Wild was just *so good* that I've been chasing that high ever since. Really high hopes for this one!
posted by dis_integration at 7:27 PM on March 29, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by dis_integration at 7:27 PM on March 29, 2023 [3 favorites]
I am so mad at the new release date because I start grad school two days later. I was looking so much forward to the original release date because I would be home on parental leave with my newborn. Nintendo, c'mon! But also thank you for realizing that stuff takes time to do right and hopefully you didn't do horrible things to the developers of the game
posted by lizjohn at 8:04 PM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by lizjohn at 8:04 PM on March 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
The trees and grass... could it be the "Golden Land"?
The Triforce was conspicuously absent in BotW. It featured in Hylian heraldry, so must've been known to the royal family at least historically, but I don't think it was mentioned in the game even once.
posted by swr at 5:27 AM on March 30, 2023 [2 favorites]
The Triforce was conspicuously absent in BotW. It featured in Hylian heraldry, so must've been known to the royal family at least historically, but I don't think it was mentioned in the game even once.
posted by swr at 5:27 AM on March 30, 2023 [2 favorites]
I predict that my Zelda Day post this year will be very entertaining!
posted by JHarris at 2:37 AM on March 31, 2023
posted by JHarris at 2:37 AM on March 31, 2023
Update: I found the last Hinox. It was the Stalnox south of Akkala Stables. With that, plus finishing the Master Trials and visiting the reservoir near the castle, I have 100%ed the game.
I wish games had a Forget Everything You Ever Did Before mode, because the joy of playing BoTW was finding out all the small, weird things along the way.
posted by RakDaddy at 10:09 AM on April 11, 2023 [2 favorites]
I wish games had a Forget Everything You Ever Did Before mode, because the joy of playing BoTW was finding out all the small, weird things along the way.
posted by RakDaddy at 10:09 AM on April 11, 2023 [2 favorites]
« Older "Every picture tells a story" | Some Stylish Substance Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
Ordered mine 2 weeks ago.
Agonized over wether to get the cartridge of digital download. Went for the physical copy. Hope it gets here on the day!
posted by chococat at 6:56 AM on March 29, 2023