Link is the main protagonist of the Nintendo classic, The Legend Of Zelda. Since the initial release of The Legend of Zelda and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link in 1986 and 1987, this franchise has only grown. Currently, as of May 2022, there are 17 games. My favorites are Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1991), Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (2006), and Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, BOTW (2017). 

Breath of Wild is highly regarded as the best game of all time by IGN. Breath of the Wild took a chance by changing the entire Zelda format by allowing the player to pick the order of the story.

The story begins with Link waking up dazed and confused. Link soon learns that he is the last hope for all of Hyrule, having been sealed away till it was the right time to defeat Ganon. As Link adventures, he learns of the 4 Divine Beasts and their champions, Vah Rudania, representing Daruk and fire, Vah Medoh, representing Revali and wind, Vah Naboris, representing Urbosa and lighting, and the final divine beast, Vah Ruta representing Mipha and water. These divine beasts act like dungeons in BOTW.

Each divine beast has a blight from each one’s respected element. The Fire Blight, Wind Blight, Thunder Blight, and Water Blight all are a small portion of Ganon. After defeating each blight, you are given abilities relating to the champions such as Daruk’s protection, Revali’s gale, Urbosa’s fury, and Mipha’s Grace. As well as gaining these abilities, it also weakens Ganon, allowing for an easier defeat of Ganon.

The story then takes a left turn. BOTW adds time travel into the mix, creating a reality in which Ganon was defeated prior to Link even sleeping. This game also uses characters from BOTW, which makes the story of this universe slightly difficult to understand.

Besides the complex story, the game is very simple. The new addition to this game is runes. Runes allow Link to use abilities such as bombs, stasis which freezes enemies and objects, cryonis which freezes water, and magnesis which is a magnet and can move metal objects. Link also receives a glider in place of the hook shot, which has been seen in many Legend of Zelda titles.

As you explore with the glider you will find shrines that are like small little puzzles throughout your adventure. Each shrine will give a spirit orb and 4 spirit orbs will either upgrade Links stamina or max health. Link has a stamina bar which, when maxed out, allows Link to run for ten seconds. Link can also find weapons and armor throughout the plains of Hyrule however, Link’s weapons break after a certain number of uses which range from each weapon to one another. The game deserves all of its praise as the graphics, even running on the Nintendo switches low frame rate and graphic capability, are stunning and unbelievable. With many collectibles and a vast number of quests and insane variants of enemies, there is always something unique to see.

Personally, I love the graphics and the new approach to the series. With the upcoming release of the sequel, currently named Breath Of The Wild 2, new exciting things are on the way. As a Zelda fan, I am extremely excited about what the series has in store for the future.