great article. I'm pretty excited about the switch, but am waiting a bit until there're more games. Excited for those who are getting it though!
The Nintendo Switch Chicago Preview Event
Friend of the site, Greg Meyer, had a chance to go hands on with the Switch at one of the exclusive events. In anticipation of tomorrow's release, he's put together a bunch of impressions to get you excited for what's coming next for Nintendo.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
By far, the most popular game at the Switch event was Breath of the Wild. For the demo, I had the option to play using the TV with joy-con and grip controller combination with headphones or playing in handheld mode with the joy-cons attached to the system. I chose to play using the TV, as the handheld option didn’t have an option for sound at the event. Players had a twenty-minute time limit to see as much of the game as they could.
Since Breath of the Wild is releasing shortly, I decided to skip all story sequences and run as far as I could and explore Hyrule. Let me tell you, this game is absolutely massive in scope. After waking up in the middle of a temple, I made a quick escape, picking up the Sheikah Slate and some clothes to wear. I’m not a Zelda expert, though I’ve played plenty of the games in the series; so equipping clothes and weapons on Link felt strange to me. It’s not a bad change, just different, and more like an RPG.
Once leaving the temple, I stopped and took in my surroundings. There wasn’t a character waiting at the entrance to tell me all about my adventure or where I needed to go. Instead, I had the vast expanse before me, and I could do whatever I wanted.
Just like the original Legend of Zelda, Link starts off weaponless, but I was able to collect a woodsman’s axe and a rusty sword within the first few minutes. I also entered an old ruin and picked up a bow, with some arrows hidden in some pots. The weapon system in Breath of the Wild is unlike anything in previous titles. You equip a weapon, and can switch between them using the d-pad. Weapons degrade as you use them, which I learned that the hard way when my rusty sword broke while fighting a group of moblins. The bow stays equipped on Link at all times. Pressing the R button pulls out Link’s bow, and ZR fires an arrow. I loved using the bow in Breath of the Wild, as it allows the player to use ranged attacks on the fly without having to set the bow to a button in the menu to pull it out.
There’s danger around every corner in Breath of the Wild. As I ran down the landscape towards the valley in the distance, I’d encounter camps of three moblins patrolling an area. During my first meeting with a moblin band, I raided their campfire and stole a huge slab of meat they were cooking and used it later to refill my health. It took me some time to get used to fighting in Breath of the Wild, as every weapon handles differently. The rusty sword is quick, but breaks after a few uses. The axe and moblin club by contrast were slower weapons compared to the usual sword combat in Zelda, but had more durability to get the job done.
Navigating the world of Breath of the Wild is fun and simple for everyone. Link can climb up or down any part of the landscape he sees. For example, I jumped off a cliff into a lake, swam across, and climbed up the steep rock wall on other side without any issues. The world is a gigantic playground, and I imagine I’ll spend many hours climbing up mountains and seeing just how far I can go.
Breath of the Wild looks like a must own game for every Switch owner and was by far my favorite game of the show. Nintendo put a lot of love into this title, and it shows the moment you step out and see the wild world before you. If the demo is any indication, this game will be one to remember for a long time.
Comments