The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

About The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Nintendo released The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for the Switch and Wii U in March 2017. This title marks a major shift as the first three-dimensional open-world entry in the long-running franchise. You play as Link, who wakes up after a century of slumber to find Calamity Ganon threatening Hyrule once more. The game removes strict quest ordering so you can explore the entire map immediately. Critics loved it enough to give it scores like 97 on Metacritic and 95.1 on IGDB based on nearly three thousand ratings. It stands out as a definitive adventure title that changed how players approach exploration in this genre.

Gameplay

Your primary loop involves climbing almost any surface, gliding down with your paraglider, and managing stamina carefully. You can pick up weapons found on the ground or in chests, but durability means they break after heavy use so you must constantly scavenge for new gear. Cooking food at campfires gives temporary buffs to health or resistance against weather. The game challenges you to solve environmental puzzles using physics rather than giving you a specific solution. You might lure enemies into traps, shoot arrows from high ground, or use fire to burn grass and create updrafts. Sessions often feel like a series of discoveries where you decide your own path through the landscape instead of following a linear track.

What Players Think

PlayPile data shows this title has serious staying power with players logging significant hours. The community moods lean heavily toward Chill and Story-Driven experiences, with four votes for relaxation and three for narrative focus. One user even tagged it Cooperative despite being single-player only. Review aggregation reflects this love, with the IGDB score sitting at 95.1 out of 100 from 2784 distinct ratings. Completion rates suggest many players stick around to see everything since there are no hard gates preventing you from seeing the end credits early. The average playtime is high because people get lost in the world, and the critical consensus remains that this is one of the best video games ever made according to major outlets.

PlayPile's Take

This game costs a standard retail price and offers over forty achievements for those who want to master every system. It fits players who enjoy freedom over hand-holding tutorials. You will spend most of your time climbing cliffs or figuring out how to melt ice blocks rather than fighting on rails. The high critical scores are earned because the world actually respects your choices. If you own a Switch or Wii U, buying this is an easy decision given the depth and lack of grind compared to similar open-world titles. It remains worth playing today even years after launch.

Storyline

Link is awakened in a room by a voice calling him and learns that he has been asleep for 100 years after failing to stop a monster called Calamity Ganon. Although the monster is being held in Hyrule Castle by Princess Zelda, Calamity Ganon's power continues to grow and if not stopped he will eventually break free with enough power to destroy the entire world. Link embarks on his quest to defeat Calamity Ganon and save Hyrule and Zelda.