I love this game so far. A few hours in and I just left the plateau. The game didn't even properly start at this point, and yet it doesn't feel like I was playing a tutorial or anything. It just lets you do what you want and yet you feel guided and not lost. I feel like the devs respect the player's intelligence in this game. I have no idea how anybody could have already finished this game within a day or two, but oh well, some people just can't take their time to enjoy things... The physics systems work together like a charm, you feel smart when you figure out your own solution to an enemy camp, and nobody holds your hand. I could do without any quest markers whatsoever, but at least the game gives you the chance to explore on your own and ignore the mini map. I wish there was an option to turn off the mini map altogether, but as long as I just don't look at it it's fine. I love how you can simply pay attention to the NPC's words and you can find your way across this massive world without ever having to consult a map or even place the beacons. I loved the recipe puzzle from the cottage. Nobody told you you have to do it, nobody told you how to figure it out. You read the diary and put it together yourself. No trial and error required and you instantly know that you've figured it out before even trying. So satisfying. You may never stumble across it and even if you don't you can still progress in the game just you need to take a different route. This is what an open world game should be like. Take note, Ubisoft. So yeah, brilliant so far.

I'm a few hours in and STILL on the plateau... and I'm ok with that! Taking my time, exploring a lot, doing that recipe sidequest etc. This kind of freedom to explore is what I've wanted from a Zelda game since Ocarina. The original Twilight Princess trailer got me so excited for exploration but ended up being a huge letdown, but this game has everything.

[quote="Hypernova"]Same here. Loved it so far, I have tamed 2 horses and I died at least 20 times after clearing 8 shrines. [ispoiler]Oh yeah look out and pay attention for people on the road, if they goes by the name "traveler" and they just stand there, there's a good chance that's a Ganon's minion (and they can teleport and do attacks that can take away 3 hearts)[/ispoiler].[/quote] Whoa, spoiler that beef! I'd have liked to have found that out on my own.

Fixed that. [ispoiler]Also there is a fairy fountain that enchance your gears a little bit beyond the shrine at Impa's village.[/ispoiler]

Small thing, but I'd highly recommend going to Hyrule Castle early. I'm assuming the late game has you rushing in with high armor/weapons, taking things head on, but going in early turns it into a stealth game essentially, and it's amazing. I made it to the final boss and got a lot of good stuff, then teleported out.

Spoilers about Link's clothing/equipment (relating to why he isn't shown off with a green tunic) [spoiler]Why is Link's basic design concept of his classic green outfit so taboo this time around? The proper new "Wild" green ensemble is an enormous pain in the ass to get (only for the stats on them to be proportionately lackluster), whereas the classic outfits are not only locked behind a paywall that will often be three times as expensive as it was meant to be (thanks, Amiibo hoarders/scalpers...) but then are shoved, piecemeal, behind a time-restricted lottery at that. Jesus [i]Christ[/i]. Don't get me wrong, I find that BotW is nothing short of a masterpiece, something that Nintendo's desperately needed for some time now. But it's actually bumming me out that there's so much pushback against the player to be a good ol' green cap-and-tunic Link. By the time I get to, I've either blazed through goddamn near all of the game's offerings or paid $30 for a plastic figurine.[/spoiler] My progress [spoiler]76/120 Shrines All four Sacred Beasts calmed Master Sword and Hylian Shield found (I found the Master Sword by COMPLETE accident, too) Haven't fought Ganon yet; still wanna explore more[/spoiler]

@ Guinea: You can turn off the minimap using the Pro HUD afaik To be honest, I don't really have the dedication to really get immersed in the game so the game is just OK for me. I prefer more linear structures myself, so the open world aspect isn't something I like. I never played any other open world game before, so I can't compare it, but besides the visuals being subpar, going off of other's opinions I assume this game really did the open world formula right. It's just not for me.

To anyone who has played this game: So you have to sacrifice orbs to Hylia so that she can grant you more stamina and health? I could have stood people just talking about the fake religion, but it seems like this game says that it has real power (within the world of Hyrule). Do you have to do this in-game to complete the game? If so, that is very disappointing after waiting for over 3 years.

Gerudo: I haven't actually gotten to it in the story, but I wandered for fun. [ispoiler]THE LABYRINTH WAS AMAZING! Wow that was cool! I was gliding around and faintly saw some maze-looking thing way off in the distance. Getting to it and seeing just how massive it was, wow! That was one of the best moments of the game for me.[/ispoiler] [quote="P-Star7"]To anyone who has played this game: So you have to sacrifice orbs to Hylia so that she can grant you more stamina and health? I could have stood people just talking about the fake religion, but it seems like this game says that it has real power (within the world of Hyrule). Do you have to do this in-game to complete the game? If so, that is very disappointing after waiting for over 3 years.[/quote] It's not necessary to complete the game of course, but it's highly recommended. It's how you get heart containers and how you can run, climb, and glide for longer. I understand where you're coming from; having been a very religious person in the past, these are the sacrifices you make when you have such a perspective. If your standards include not pretending to worship fake gods in a fictional work, then your standards mean you can't play Zelda.

Yes but unlike real world religion, Hylia was a real Goddess in the Zelda universe, so your prayers are actually answered. :cool: It's just a game. I've only just gotten to Kakariko Village after probably hours and hours of playtime. This game is immense... going to need to get a babysitter at some point so I can play it for a solid day and actually make some headway. Playing from 8:00 - 10:00 just isn't enough time to get anything solid done.

[quote="Kritter"]Yes but unlike real world religion, Hylia was a real Goddess in the Zelda universe, so your prayers are actually answered. :cool: It's just a game. I've only just gotten to Kakariko Village after probably hours and hours of playtime. This game is immense... going to need to get a babysitter at some point so I can play it for a solid day and actually make some headway. Playing from 8:00 - 10:00 just isn't enough time to get anything solid done.[/quote] As a Chrisitian, you may have read Ephesians 5:4, so please be more thoughtful when you're makig jokes. Also, I know it's just a game, but (and sorry for not remembering which verse this is) what someone says shows what is in their heart. Just like how they probably wouldn't put in a drunkard parent who beats their kids, or kids who have to sell their bodies, means that they find those things to be grave matters that they shouldn't portray. So it shows that by including fake religions - even worse, one which is shown as REAL, shows their values. It's one thing to SAY that "The Goddess did it" or "This sword is filled with magic" because we can think that that it's a mistake in the Hylian's perception, but when it's shown as real is where a huge issue grows.

I'm an atheist, but really it's not the point. If you find religious themes in video games uncomfortable then you're probably not going to enjoy Zelda games as a whole. That's a whole other topic of conversation though.

Religious discussions don't go over very well. MFGG is a pretty diverse place that consists not only of evangelicals, but also more liberal Christians, angry atheists, and probably several other viewpoints. If we allowed discussion of it, things would be said that are a lot more offensive than magic in a work of fiction. If you're against this particular game, I'm afraid you don't have much productive to add to the discussion; let's stay on track please.

So I've been playing this game fairly non-stop for a while now, and... It's pretty damn good. Not perfect, goodness no, but pretty damn good. One thing that grinds my gears is the complete lack of touch screen functionality on the Wii U version. You can't even use it as a keyboard to enter in names - all it does is swap between the TV and the GamePad screen, and that's it. No map, no setting waypoints, no nothing. It's pretty disappointing, since I'm sure they've shown that particular feature off more than once at E3 demos. My guess is they either removed it to improve performance (which is pretty choppy - on rare occasions I get soft freezes and screen tears, but there's framerate issues all over), or to give it parity with the Switch version which is... kind of awful, not gonna lie. Makes the portable Switch version the definitively better version now. Besides that? The gameplay's excellent. You have very few actions but lots of ways to use them, like in Skyward Sword. Combat is simple, yet satisfying when you pull off shield bashes or perfect dodges, and winning often feels like it actually takes a little effort compared to previous Zelda games, especially when you get ganged up on. I like the variety of weapons available. I like how you get the traditional "items" very early on and have them throughout the whole game, making puzzle solving more about using your resources well than just "well get the thing and then you can progress". There's one particular mission in the game where you [ispoiler]have all of your items removed and have to do a puzzle using only what you can find - it's a fantastic extended reference to Link's Awakening, which was my favourite Zelda game.[/ispoiler] The world is huge - I'm surprised how little time I spend on a horse at that, as well. Climbing up to something tall and then gliding far away just seems more useful half the time. There's definitely a lot to do though - finding Koroks, Shrines, and even saving random people from monster attacks. I still haven't been everywhere. I've died at least a dozen times and expect to die at least a dozen more - the game's actually quite difficult, which is refreshing for a Zelda title. Resources like arrows and Rupees are also quite tight a lot of the time, too. Story seems interesting. Not saying any more than that due to spoilers. All in all, I'm pretty happy with it so far.

Also, there's a reverse "Satan" statue outside of Hateno Village that allows you, for a fee, to exchange your Heart Containers for Stamina Vessels and vice-versa. So it's nice to see that you're not locked into your choices with the Goddess Statues. (I call him Satan, because c'mon... he speaks in a voice only you can hear, makes bargains for people's essences, and was stranded by the Goddesses for his evil). Once I clear out all the Shrines (39 to go!), I almost wanna try exchanging all my Heart Containers for Stamina Vessels and see how far I can dash with an absolutely full stamina meter.

[quote="BullockDS"]Conversely, there's a reverse "Satan" statue outside of Hateno Village that allows you, for a fee, to exchange your Heart Containers for Stamina Vessels and vice-versa. So it's nice to see that you're not locked into your choices with the Goddess Statues. Once I clear out all the Shrines (39 to go!), I almost wanna try exchanging all my Heart Containers for Stamina Vessels and see how far I can dash with an absolutely full stamina meter.[/quote] Oooh, you should also eat a super-fast-movement food and something that extends your Stamina Meter before you do that. Just for maximum distance.

Can we please use spoiler tags lol

Anybody else found Sidon's (the [ispoiler]Zora Prince[/ispoiler]) "heroic" pose hilarious?

Turns out that [ispoiler]if you go to Hyrule Castle from the north-north-west end (find a shore with glowing blue rocks (should be 3) and use the glider to get across the moat), avoid/kill the stationary guardian and get inside the dungeon (use Cryonic to lift the gate), there are some impressive loot there. Including the iconic shield after you defeat the skeleton boss (its eye is the weak spot.) You can access it as soon as you get off the plateau.[/ispoiler]

[quote="Hypernova"]Turns out that [ispoiler]if you go to Hyrule Castle from the north-north-west end (find a shore with glowing blue rocks (should be 3) and use the glider to get across the moat), avoid/kill the stationary guardian and get inside the dungeon (use Cryonic to lift the gate), there are some impressive loot there. Including the iconic shield after you defeat the skeleton boss (its eye is the weak spot.) You can access it as soon as you get off the plateau.[/ispoiler][/quote] Maybe it was just me, but I found it a bit easier to fight the [ispoiler]Bone Hinox[/ispoiler] there than the regular variants. Maybe less so "easy" and moreso "less tedious". Man, it's so fun to [ispoiler]use the Hylian Shield to shield surf since it's unbreakable[/ispoiler].