Why do i love zelda

Thank you for caring enough to go through with that! Here is your reward! After an initial starting area, where Link is equipped with several tools "runes" that serve as the base for much of the game's puzzle solving, you're free to go wherever you want.

Think you're tough enough to take on the game's final boss, Ganon? Go right for him. He's in Hyrule Castle, which you can get to immediately — if you survive the walk there.

Or perhaps you'd like to take a break from the game's many quests to just explore the massive world of Hyrule? Go for it! There's a ton of stuff to see and do. This is a game that rewards exploration of its massive world. Much like "Breath of the Wild" encourages exploration and discovery, it rewards your interest in its characters. Towns full of people dot the landscape, each citizen ready to chat.

Some have missions, but many just have a silly story to tell or a song to sing. It's a classic trope in Legend of Zelda games, but it's got new levels of polish in "Breath of the Wild. Beyond just reacting to what you say, what time of day it is, and your previous actions in the game, Hyrule's many characters also notice if you're walking around in your underwear. It's a silly touch, no doubt, but it's another testament to Nintendo's attention to detail with "Breath of the Wild.

Of note: You don't have to be a longtime fan to play "Breath of the Wild," though there are plenty of nods to previous games that fans like myself will appreciate. One of the best things about playing "Breath of the Wild" right now is the conversations I'm having with other players. The way I approached the entire game is different from each person I speak to, and it fragments even further when we start digging in to specific quests or puzzle solutions.

And that's because of the structure of the game: It's not just an open world, but also a living world. Since that living world responds to many different inputs, there are many different ways to accomplish the same objective. That's part of why solving puzzles, or completing missions, or even defeating enemies including bosses!

Those conversations with other players often turn into new discoveries about what you can do in "Breath of the Wild. It's the kind of conversations I remember having as a year-old playing "The Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past" for the first time. Swords and shields have limited durability and will eventually break and be removed from the inventory. What I love about this mechanic is that it forces the player to make lots of decisions: Do I use my strongest weapon, or save it for later?

Do I hang on to all these rare magic wands or pick up a strong sword? The fragility of the equipment constantly begs the player to improvise in the middle of combat, making gameplay that much more immersive. But, the strongest reason for the inclusion of this mechanic is to keep the player hunting for weapons.

In most sandbox games, like Grand Theft Auto, you buy the gun you want and you just have it for the rest of the game. It's a one-time thrill. In Breath of the Wild, since your gear keeps breaking, you're always hunting for powerful weapons. And, once you know which enemies wield the most powerful equipment, you can zip over to where they congregate and fill up on, say, Lizal Tri-Boomerangs, when you're running low.

Finally, my favorite design element innovation in the game and possibly in any sandbox game is Korok seeds, which can be found throughout the world and used as currency. The reward for trading those seeds in is huge: inventory expansion. You find so many amazing weapons and shields around the world, but more often than not you don't have room for them in your inventory, so you need to either abandon your newly found treasure or toss a great item you've been saving.

With over Korok seed puzzles, the potential to create an arsenal of goodies feels dynamic and boundless. Korok seeds also reward the "adventurer" within the gamer. While a common player behavior in open world games is exploring, and while it is satisfying to climb some crazy mountain just for the sake of doing it and seeing the vista, it always feels a little hollow.

But in Breath of the Wild, you are given a tangible, hugely helpful reward for your curiosity through these seeds. If you're simply in the mood to spend a couple hours collecting them, it's a day well spent and the action of doing so sets you up nicely for your return to the world the next day.

Ultimately, I think this mechanism makes the world feel "lived in" and purposeful outside of the larger puzzles and challenges thrown your way. Because it is a master class in making a sequel that feels both fresh and familiar. I love it because all of the mechanics paraglider, shrines, towers, cooking, breakable equipment, Korok seeds feed off of one another to propel players to continue and feel genuinely rewarded every time they turn on the console.

If you haven't had the pleasure of trying it out, I strongly recommend it: there are so many adventures, stories, and secrets to enjoy. Have fun. Developers interested in contributing their own Why I Love column are encouraged to reach out to us at news gamesindustry.

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Concrete design elements One of the main reasons I love Legend of Zelda is its commitment to consistency and concrete design elements that reflect the game's origin and stay true to what made it successful in the first place. Concrete design elements serve several important functions: Give the series a unique identity Give long-time players comfort and consistency Provide nostalgia for past in-game experiences Ensure the experience will be fun, leading to higher sales potential I challenge you to find a Mario game where he doesn't jump on enemies, a Kirby game where he doesn't inhale baddies, or a Metroid game where Samus isn't wearing her iconic suit.

The look, presence, and meaning of these elements may change from game to game, but the powerful ones always return" As far as this author is aware, Majora's Mask is the only mainline Zelda game that didn't have the Master Sword. Innovative design elements On the flip side, players don't just want more content, they also desire fresh ideas and gameplay. The rewarding symbiosis of shrines, towers, and paragliders Very early on, players are trained to look for two kinds of glowing orange structures: shrines and towers.

You can cook and break stuff A common design element in open-world sandbox games, and one of my favorite features, is a focus on collecting and crafting ingredients. The joy of foraging for Korok seeds Finally, my favorite design element innovation in the game and possibly in any sandbox game is Korok seeds, which can be found throughout the world and used as currency.

Ganondorf was also shown to be more than the embodiment of power - he was also intelligent and treacherous, as evidenced by how he swore allegiance to the King of Hyrule before betraying him, and by how he tricked Link into opening the path to the Triforce.

Too bad his dialogue doesn't reflect his smarts - it's hard to believe that at one point he asks Link, "You want a piece of me?! Ocarina of Time presented players with a Hyrule that was much more diverse than ever before. And not just in terms of terrain - it was the first game in the series to really introduce various races of sentient creatures beyond the typical human-looking characters.

Ocarina of Time gave rise to the ephemeral Kokiri, the rock-munching Gorons, and the fishlike Zora which were a far cry from the Zora monsters in previous games , as well as new human tribes in the Sheikah and the Gerudo. Most of these new races have gone on to be prominently featured in later Zelda titles. During his quest to save Hyrule, Link encounters and makes an emotional connection with many characters, including Princess Ruto of the Zora, Malon of Lon-Lon Ranch, and Nabooru of the Gerudo all of whom apparently want to jump Link's bones.

But no connection was more powerful than that with Saria of the Kokiri tribe. At the beginning of the game, before Link had discovered his destiny, Saria was the only one that Link could truly call a friend, and later on Saria sacrifices her future to become the Sage of the Forest Temple so she can empower Link from the Sacred Realm.

As she leaves one world for the next, you're left with the heartwrenching words, Saria will always be your friend The Zelda games have always sported fantastic music, and Ocarina of Time is no different.

The once-advanced capabilities of the Nintendo 64 allowed the music to sound much richer than previous games in the series returning tunes like Zeldas Theme and the Kakiriko Village theme were amazing , and the sheer number and diversity of the tracks were especially impressive.

Two songs, though, stood above the rest: the Hyrule Field Main Theme which offered nearly four minutes of unique music and smoothly adapted itself depending on what was happening onscreen and the incredibly catchy, Western-tinged Gerudo Valley theme.

Also of note were the songs you played with the ocarina itself, which offered surprising richness considering they were composed with only a few simple notes. Ocarina of Time is notable for being the first 3D Zelda game, but it took the series into the fourth dimension, too.

As the Hero of Time, Link's spirit was able to travel between two time periods: that of his child self and that of his adult self. As child Link, Hyrule is a relatively peaceful place, but as adult Link, you discover that the world has fallen under Ganondorf's control; Hyrule Castle Town is in shambles and is populated by zombie-like Redeads, Zora's Domain has frozen and become uninhabitable, Hyrule Castle has been replaced by Ganondorf's personal citadel, and the entire world is permeated by a pervasive fear.

Aside from providing powerful storytelling, the time-travel hook allowed for unique puzzles and solutions. The two versions of Link brought some nice diversity, too; though they played mostly the same, each Link had access to distinct items, such as the slingshot for young Link and the bow for adult Link.