On March 3rd, 2017, Breath of the Wild and the Nintendo Switch were released. I remember watching the pre-development and long awaited hype to begin a new adventure, Zelda was and is my childhood.
I think it says a lot when you play Zelda games and feel nostalgic entering a world where both gives you the resonance and feel that theres so much to discover in a hero's eyes.
Being pretty young, I always began to watch the Zelda series through Let's Plays, hoping that I would experience it one day. So, in 2011, I finally got Skyward Sword on the Wii, I was enraptured by how characters like Zelda and Link were in this Castle in the Sky lifestyle. I guess I'm saying that this game was my first to play in the Zelda franchise...
I'll be honest, Skyward Sword is not my favorite Zelda game, but it has those moments that made it exactly what hooked me on to being a fan. It made me begin to play the rest of the franchise, Twilight Princess, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, Windwaker, Spirit Tracks, Minish Cap, A Link to the Past, all those games. I even started getting those manga that my sister gave me that somehow explained some of the lore which might not have to do with anything? I had the guidebooks, and don't get me started on the music, I absolutely went to those LoZ symphonies. But Breath of Wild's release was only making me more hyped than ever, to play the newest game that I have been obsessed with for what seemed like ages.
So I grabbed one of my good friends and headed to Best Buy to get the Nintendo Switch console and the newest Zelda game. Not to mention the excitement to barely sleep when I got it. Played the game, and to be honest, it was so enraptured to what they were reaching with open world, but not hitting on what made me love it.
So yes, jump to 2 years later, we have this game that have inspired a lot of gaming companies, and even be side-to-side with Horizon Zero Dawn. But I personally think that such a renowned game like Breath of Wild isn't an exemption of what could have been better, or more to their roots of a Zelda game in general.
I believe that such a game that has the recognizable 'Legend of Zelda' sticks to the roots, the companionship, their story, and the solid basis of characters and pretty deep world building with 3D platform style. In Breath of the Wild's case, what made Zelda's roots Zelda, this game does not have that, but instead, is really a reboot.
While the roots of Legend of Zelda, such as mcguffin items and linear approach might be what they thought would be outdated, their narrative in terms of story was very weak. And sometimes it really feels really hard to address this when people are defensive about it, it's not a big deal to them, and so my opinion is irrelevant, until they realize the potential that was completely missed out in the story.
So no this isn't a rant about how Breath of the Wild is bad, it's not the case at all the game is strong and I'm happy that people love it, but honestly, my problem is that this story makes this game look like a full set of armour without a sword. So to put it into easier words, I put them into categories:
False Advertisement:
I'll be honest, when I first saw this trailer, whoever edited this is a genius to the level of creating a story with so much hype that wasn't there.
You could see the rush of excitement that as a first voice acting Zelda game made the notion that this game has an EPIC cinematic scenes which lots of action in which we see in other Zelda franchises.
You see destruction, Zelda's struggle, Link's struggle, and some characters of basically all the races combining together to fight against the big bad Ganon. But sadly, I think that it really doesn't explain what they really did, and practically in my opinion, ruined the experience of being in this action that seemed to happen so long ago, which brings me into my next point:
Time-Skip:
When we first become introduced to this beginning of Link's journey, it certainly isn't his beginning. In fact, a whole century of events have passed before Link's own recovery from the result of Calamity Ganon.
Obviously it's a little bit of a disappointment, throughout Zelda games, Link is always at the 'beginning' his journey, giving a hero who would be named as just as a kid or a nobody. To become a hero overnight literally, which makes a player feel pretty gratified. But, this is one of the first Zelda games to actually disregard a heroes journey to become from nothing to greatness, even in Link's past within this game.
Now yes, technically since Link's journey would be 'beginning' again, we have the easy plot dragged in, called amnesia. Without amnesia, I probably would suspect that we as players would not agree with relating to our common hero at all, yet I still couldn't with his amnesia.
It's a really big deal, there could have been so much potential with this, even with the whole open world gameplay. Seeing Link and Zelda together physically in game would have been so much more groundbreaking than seeing it happen through memories, that, would have been amazing.
Honestly, this mechanic of Time-skipping has been done before, time skip isn't new at all in the Zelda series, Ocarina of Time for example leads you into the future to become the real hero against Ganon, as being a kid wouldn't have done the job. But the point of this plot was to go back into time again and again, heck even a temple requires you to do so. It's in your face mechanic so that you know that this is constantly happening without ruining the immersion of gameplay, except for the physical difference of Link of course...
Regarding Time-skip in a story for Zelda, it has been done before, again, Breath of the Wild's mechanic of this 'time' story is a little bit overrun with that type of trend. In Skyward Sword, you leap through the Gate of Time in order to see Zelda and begin the process of sealing Demise. Honestly, this mechanic for the story isn't really done well, but it makes sense story-wise, since Hylia would have recently sealed Demise right then and there, making Zelda in the safest area possible to seal herself. If I can compare the sealing of Zelda to Link being in the Shrine of Resurrection, if we use the logic of Breath of the Wild's amnesia plot it would be like when Zelda awakes from her crystal sleep, and completely forgets Link, Groose, Impa, even her own mission.
Or in another case Link is basically Illia, friggin Illia, WHY DID YOU FORGET ME MY LOVE???
Okay, maybe it's a little unfair to compare, but honestly, when you look at other Zelda games, the narrative of Breath of the Wild's writing isn't really well done in terms of what most of the franchise story-wise has done..
So we jump into getting memories, or cut scenes in which we discover what happens in the past, I know that people will argue that this was made to ultimately let the open-world take front stage in this game. But that isn't necessary because an open world will stand out either way...
Anyways, on to my next feeling regarding the story:
Lack of Empathy:
This is where it hits me hard, me as a Zelda fan went straight into an enormous world just to look for these memories because I wanted to know the story. So the faint pictures from the Sheikah Slate was the only motivation I had, and let me tell you I was slapped in the face when watching one of these scenes after all the effort to find them and see something totally.... off...
Granted we get some plot points here and there, but here's the problem, when you talk so much about certain events and struggles within some scene, I'm not into it, and it's because I'm not physically in that present so therefore there isn't really a need to see the past. And these cutscenes sometimes are only like 2 minutes with absolute no foreground to see more of them, like I'm being brutally honest some of these cutscenes were really pointless. Nothing made me more frustrated than seeing this relationship between people who died 100 years ago, I saw no development that could have been there if we where there in the first place.
I mean I get the feelings for Zelda, I get the feelings for so many of these characters, but there's only so much you can do for a player to get the story from a past. It's not going to really resonate, it made me feel like I should have been when this all happened instead of a hundred years later...
So if there's things happening in the past, then there's no empathy for those characters in the present. Except for the fact that this makes me emphasize for Link's loneliness even more of companionship in this game, which leads me to my next point:
Characters & Companionship:
This has been a hugggeee factor in every Zelda game, you get a helper. Or a companion with you at all times, Navi, Fi, Midna, Zelda, Sheik, King of Red Lions, that friggin' wizard on Link's hat, Ezlo, you friggin' name it, there's always a companion for Link's journey to become the Hero.
Now who was his companion in Breath of the Wild? Apparently it was Zelda telepathically, if you want to count some members of the Sheikah, then, yeah sure. But I'm talking about someone who is with you the entirety of Link's journey against Ganon. Hell, even the Master Sword wasn't your companion most of the time because it would break to overuse, but I'll get onto that factor later..
There isn't any companionship with Link, now there's friends who he meets on the way like Prince Sidon, or Riju. But there isn't any development enough for me to care for these characters because there wasn't story to back them off of. I mean there's the cool back-story of these being the ancestors of the renowned Guardians who once used the Divine Beasts.
But speaking of the Guardians, aren't these like Sages? I mean at least in Ocarina of Time you got to meet them physically, well, most of them, and understood their purpose. But it was almost laughable to see these Champion characters fleshed out, rather than the physical ones right next to Link 100 years later, again, the narrative was a little faulty on that part in which did so well in their other games...
Lore:
Here's the thing about this point, lore isn't a huge foreground in most Zelda games. Don't get me started on the timeline you know that's has no sense in it even for this game too. But let's get some things straight, it's almost nit-picky, but honestly, it bugged me so much that I don't know if they had new writers some where or what.
The Triforce. I mean, to wield the sword of evil's bane, you need some sort of power live and wield this powerful sword that seals darkness away. That plot usually requires the triforce. Okay, so apparently Link always has the Triforce in most major Zelda games, but this one it was nowhere on Link....
Honestly, it made me one heck of a confused fan, seeing all the powers that coexist on the mortals made the Legend's purpose true. And also there's a law that no one can wield the Triforce alone...
Except Zelda somehow has all this power? I mean what? Why does that even happen? You know they were even teasing the Wells of Courage, Power, and Wisdom just to see if some fans knew the logic of the Triforce somewhere in our minds, and they didn't even follow that.
I mean is this the power of Hylia? One of the Goddesses? Maybe Nayru? There wasn't any indication of power except the factor of hearing the Master Sword, so Zelda basically hears Fi, so therefore she must be some sort of manifestation of Hylia right?
Granted this isn't a huge factor or point to be argued on, but if you really look into most of the lore isn't related in any way, so I'll let this go, but I'll bring the point back:
If there wasn't much of the story, they could have let out some lore within the world. And evidentally they did not, there was so much potential, yet wasn't done because of the mechanics of game play took the front stage...
So Lastly, here's my last point:
Realism:
Breath of the Wild's story didn't feel real, in the case of catastrophic chaos throughout Hyrule. I mean, it's evident that this Calamity Ganon and the old Guardians are scattered here and there ruining the world as we know it. 100 years later, and civilization is looking alright for some of the races. Zora kingdom seems unaffected, Rito, and Goron, or even Gerudo's weren't really blasted out of existence.
Okay okay, 100 years later leaves room for some reestablishment, so it's a fair argument that these races were in hiding for some amount of years until Ganon's reign calmed down. But in the case of a sense of action to get and save Zelda, there wasn't any rush.
Playing other Zelda games I knew that there was a sense of rush to get to save a specific member Link cared about, like Illia, or Colin from demise against really bad guys, who gave you the sense that only Link can do this task for the sake of saving his friends.
Where was this in Breath of the Wild? Where was this impact to go and get to save Zelda from Ganon, I mean, she's doing alright, where ever she is? But really, Breath of the Wild was a roller coaster of lackluster plot points and a story sacrificed for the duty of gameplay, which isn't new in Zelda games. My argument concluded...
Again, if I'm the minority that thinks this game doesn't have a fleshed out story than it's fine. I honestly am a fan of the Zelda franchise and will be always. Looking 2 years back it truly bugs me that such a powerful and inspirational game like this is the foreground for great success in video game history, yet has such a lackluster story in a Zelda game.
Apparently there have been rumours of the director of Castlevania making another Netflix series that he discussed with Nintendo that deems for it's popularity. Which in some fans eyes, might have something to do with the Legend of Zelda. So maybe one day we might see a Zelda tv-show which I am all for, maybe a dramatic one please! And we also have another game coming out, in which, I will be playing, just come, Nintendo take my money! But make a better story Miyamoto!
Anyways that's the end of this video, thanks for sticking around, if you have any questions or comments, rebuttals against my opinion leave them all below. As I would like to hear what you think about this subject. I don't normally do Zelda content, but if you liked it, give this video a like so I know, and maybe will do some content on the lore! If you want to follow me on any other social media, check out my blog, or support me on Patreon, all of those links are down below as well. Again, thank you for supporting me, or if you're new, subscribe for more video game content like this, and I'll see you in the next video!
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