Support NeoGAF

[Haines]

After watching a couple hours at e3 I'm convinced this game will be worth picking up.

Probably grab it in NX. I'm going to avoid all new info as much as I can. I don't want to know everything before I even play the game.

Time to start enjoying games more fresh.

 

[Refreshment.01]

When Nintendo first showed off this game, I had all these images in my head of what this game could be. How in the world did Nintendo manage to surpass them?

For the last 5 years, we have all be asking what does "next gen" gameplay look like. What does that even mean? Some of have been convinced that no improvements to gameplay could be made. That somehow we have reached the pinnacle of 3d gaming and all that was left to be achieved were better stories, better resolution, better aliasing, and more shaders. We were happy with open worlds that were broken, buggy, and had janky systems.

Before this game came out I always wondered when someone would come along and use the more powerful hardware to create better AI, better physics, better systems and better gameplay. Nintendo has finally answered that question with a system that is not even supposed to have the power to this.

When Iwata said, "The fate of a video game system is often influenced greatly by the introduction of a single title" I laughed at him. Yet, I don't even know what the NX is about and I want it. This is only the beginning isn't it? Next gen has finally arrived.

Better AI, Physics and systems? How you came to that conclusion? i think you should make a deeper analisys of games with similar scale in the PS3/Xbox360 systems before reaching a definitive conclusion.

In terms of Gameplay that's an unknown quantity still but it does look really promising.

Edit: Sadly this would be a very interesting discussion but after re reading your post maybe you were exagerating a little for effect XD

 

[RK9039]

I sympathise with you. See my tag lol

That's awesome lmao. No free camera control for Skyward Sword literally killed that game for me, I didn't even mind the combat controls, but I just couldn't get passed the clumsy camera control. Press Z to centre the camera everywhere... so stupid.

 

[James Scott]

Heard someone make a seesaw out of a treasure chest and a metal plank. They dropped a metal ball on the other end and it sent Link soaring in the air.
Miyamoto says that physics is partly why the game was delayed, but it sounds like it's going to be more than worth it

 

[Refreshment.01]

i think having 2 Rune slots for bombs is too much.

They could have just one slot for bombs and have a button modifier so the player changes the shape to the desired form. More clean and eliminates time wasted in the menu selection.

 

[MrSaturn99]

New amiibo functionality revealed.

 

[Choppasmith]

New amiibo functionality revealed.

Wouldn't it be crazy if using Amiibo gave Link different outfits based on the character used? That'd be sweet.

 

[Johndoey]

Waluigi is the realest, if Waluigi was around Ganon would've been put down and would've stayed down. No one would try anything cause Waluigi was around.

 

[ffdgh]

New amiibo functionality revealed.

I want to see the shadow waluigi fight.

 

[WhiteRabbitEXE]

Wouldn't it be crazy if using Amiibo gave Link different outfits based on the character used? That'd be sweet.

I'm gonna say the chance of that happening is like, non-existent, but it would be pretty bad-ass.

 

[MasterSheen]

Anyone know which part of the stream had that giant rock boss fight?

 

[Schnozberry]

I wonder if we're going to see Breath of the Wild on the NX handheld at ~Wii U quality. That might bring a tear to my eye.

 

[Neoxon]

So is Nintendo of Europe doing the English dub like they did with the first Xenoblade game (I'm going off of the British accent)? Also, can anyone identify Zelda's(?) English & Japanese voice actresses?

 

[KingBroly]

I wonder if we're going to see Breath of the Wild on the NX handheld at ~Wii U quality. That might bring a tear to my eye.

Probably gonna be waiting a while on that one.

 

[kuhnbeast91]

With the vast variety of weapons in this game I hope there are throwbacks to popular swords from the past Zelda games like the gilded sword, Fierce Diety's sword, skull hammer...etc. Of coarse we are going to need a weapon storage unit as well, because I would hate to have to throw away cool ones.

 

[James Scott]

Wouldn't it be crazy if using Amiibo gave Link different outfits based on the character used? That'd be sweet.

Would be cool if you could get a temporary mask featuring the character giving you some buff (Mario adds fire to your attacks, etc) Would be a big challenge to implement so I'm not sure if it's worth it, but it could be neat.

 

[Aaronrules380]

Depends on who the old man is.

Yeah, the old guy clearly knows more than he lets on if you see all his dialogue. I imagine he'll be fairly important later on as well

 

[Gutss]

I want hero mode to be mad hard like clothes armors can broke..

 

[Servbot24]

Before this game came out I always wondered when someone would come along and use the more powerful hardware to create better AI, better physics, better systems and better gameplay. Nintendo has finally answered that question with a system that is not even supposed to have the power to

The physics and AI are cool for a Nintendo game, but this has been going on in the rest of the gaming world for many many years.

 

[Masterspeed]

I watched the story gameplay bit from Gamespot. Thought it was really odd

Spoiler

that Link answered 'I heard a voice' to the Old Man and he's just like 'yup, that's quite common and not at all suspicious.'

I'm pretty sure that's just an every day thing in Hyrule...I mean...the world was sent into eternal flooding from a man who's...well...immortal in a sense?

 

[batfax]

With the vast variety of weapons in this game I hope there are throwbacks to popular swords from the past Zelda games like the gilded sword, Fierce Diety's sword, skull hammer...etc. Of coarse we are going to need a weapon storage unit as well, because I would hate to have to throw away cool ones.

Bring on that Razor Sword. Back when durability first became a major factor to obtaining a more powerful weapon!

edit:

I'm pretty sure that's just an every day thing in Hyrule...I mean...the world was sent into eternal flooding from a man who's...well...immortal in a sense?

Lore-wise, a Hylian's longer ears supposedly helped them hear the voice of the goddesses. Maybe people hear 'em a lot these days.

 

[GhostTrick]

The physics and AI are cool for a Nintendo game, but this has been going on in the rest of the gaming world for many many years.

Truth to be told, not to this level.

 

[BY2K]

Trailer now at 6 Million views.

 

[Neoleo2143]

The physics and AI are cool for a Nintendo game, but this has been going on in the rest of the gaming world for many many years.

This level of Physics interactions within this level of polish is basically unheard of. Most games may only do a couple of these things. Trine's Physics puzzles come to mind and are highly praised. Stealth mechanics are also nothing new, though audio meters generally aren't particularly common outside the dedicated Stealth Genre with forerunners such as Thief, usually it's closer to a more binary state in action adventure. Environmental effects also usually don't have a significant impact on the gameplay outside damage and atmosphere with the occasional game using a sandstorm increasing stealth and changing visibility. In Zelda when it simply rains, your combat options (and that of your enemies), ability to cook, ability to climb all are impacted in a meaningful manner.

Edit: Most notably, the Climbing mechanics are heads and shoulders above most of the industry only (to my knowledge) exceeded by systems in SoTC and Grow Home that are dedicated to these mechanics in climbing.

Zelda:BoTW is a game where all of these (potentially game encompassing) interactions are occurring within one game to a surprising level of development, rewarding player creativity to an unprecedented level with minimal scripted sequences. It's less Pitfall in the platformer genre, and more like Deus Ex.

 

[Alienous]

The environment requires more stamina to climb the steeper the climb, and the more slippery the surface is (due to weather).

That's some Kojima shit.

 

[Huge Succeeded]

The physics and AI are cool for a Nintendo game, but this has been going on in the rest of the gaming world for many many years.

Explain. I want to know what you define as 'this', most of all. Not to say that this game represents some sort of marked advance where physics and AI are concerned - it certainly doesn't. However, there's something to be said for the execution, the gameplay-mechanic centric design of this open world, and the interconnectedness of its individual elements - which I've not seen equaled in any open-world RPG I can recall. Genuinely, the closest thing that comes to mind is MGSV, a game that's noted for its reactivity and its mechanical interplay (the latter of which is what has me making the comparison).

It's the little things that change what this game 'is' relative to other open world RPGs. I've never played an open-world RPG where I can encounter a ravine and just... chop down a tree, or drag a metal door over, to make a bridge myself. Or where I can actually use the spreading of fire as an active gameplay mechanic beyond burning my enemies out of cover. Or where I can snowboard down a hill, to pick up speed, so that I can glide across vast distances. Or where I can throw a rusty sword at an enemy during a rainstorm, have him pick it up in favor of his lame little club, and watch as he's struck by lightning. Or where I can beat bosses to death, by grabbing a large metal object with a magnet, and slapping the everloving shit out of them with it from afar. Or where I can shoot an enemy with an arrow from stealth, and leave it confused and angry toward someone else. The thing that I'm excited about most of all is that this game takes the 'journeyman' aspect of open world RPGs and endeavors to make it intrinsically fun and engaging throughout. In any other established open world franchise, a map this size would probably turn me off, but based on what I've seen of Zelda, I can envision myself having shitloads of fun just surviving and traversing that world, before I even consider things like combat or puzzles.

Plus I really appreciate how this game takes elements found in traditionally much more complex games and endeavors to make them more intuitive and more relevant to the core gameplay experience. As someone who traditionally eats up survival games, just seeing demo players drop flint and firewood on the ground, to strike them with a metal object and make a campfire appear, makes me giddy. Not to mention things like temperature serving as active gameplay mechanics, which I enjoy, but which I also tend to have to mod into games to begin with. And cooking, and climbing, and weapon degradation (being able to destroy spent weapons by just throwing them at enemies for critical damage is fkn boss), etc.

 

[LurkerPrime]

This level of Physics interactions within this level of polish is basically unheard of. Most games may only do a couple of these things. Trine's Physics puzzles come to mind and are highly praised. Stealth mechanics are also nothing new, though audio meters generally aren't particularly common outside the dedicated Stealth Genre with forerunners such as Thief, usually it's closer to a more binary state in action adventure. Environmental effects also usually don't have a significant impact on the gameplay outside damage and atmosphere with the occasional game using a sandstorm increasing stealth and changing visibility. In Zelda when it simply rains, your combat options (and that of your enemies), ability to cook, ability to climb all are impacted in a meaningful manner.

Edit: Most notably, the Climbing mechanics are heads and shoulders above most of the industry only (to my knowledge) exceeded by systems in SoTC and Grow Home that are dedicated to these mechanics in climbing.

Zelda:BoTW is a game where all of these (potentially game encompassing) interactions are occurring within one game to a surprising level of development, rewarding player creativity to an unprecedented level with minimal scripted sequences. It's less Pitfall in the platformer genre, and more like Deus Ex.

Dragon's Dogma let you climb large-sized monsters (ogres and bigger, basically, and nothing else, IIRC). Makes me wonder if BotW will allow for it... given the size of some enemies, my imagination can't help but get the better of me.

The dungeon possibilities with all of these mechanics at hand is downright exciting.

 

[KingBroly]

Dragon's Dogma let you climb large-sized monsters (ogres and bigger, basically, and nothing else, IIRC). Makes me wonder if BotW will allow for it... given the size of some enemies, my imagination can't help but get the better of me.

You could climb the Stone Tallus boss.

Zelda's not really known for big bosses, though.

 

[TwEE-N-Toast]

I watched the story gameplay bit from Gamespot. Thought it was really odd

Spoiler

that Link answered 'I heard a voice' to the Old Man and he's just like 'yup, that's quite common and not at all suspicious.'

That is what Ganondorf would say, to throw link off his trail.

 

[Gleethor]

Probably gonna be waiting a while on that one.

Nintendo got Xenoblade to work on N3DS, and porting a console NX game to handheld NX will probably (by design) be easier than porting a Wii game to N3DS. Handheld versions of most NX console games wouldn't surprise me at all and would be a really nice selling point.

 

[Neoleo2143]

Dragon's Dogma let you climb large-sized monsters (ogres and bigger, basically, and nothing else, IIRC). Makes me wonder if BotW will allow for it... given the size of some enemies, my imagination can't help but get the better of me.

The dungeon possibilities with all of these mechanics at hand is downright exciting.

The Design of what I imagine the designers intended as the first boss of the game features the climbing mechanic to get to a weakpoint while it tries to shake you off. You can beat it without it, but there's a much bigger margin of error if it ends up hitting you.

 

[jonjonaug]

The Design of what I imagine the designers intended as the first boss of the game features the climbing mechanic to get to a weakpoint while it tries to shake you off. You can beat it without it, but there's a much bigger margin of error if it ends up hitting you.

I think that's supposed to be a recurring strong enemy, but not an actual "boss".

Dragon's Dogma let you climb large-sized monsters (ogres and bigger, basically, and nothing else, IIRC). Makes me wonder if BotW will allow for it... given the size of some enemies, my imagination can't help but get the better of me.

The dungeon possibilities with all of these mechanics at hand is downright exciting.

You could climb the cattle and also the large dogs and skeletons in Bitterblack Isle.

 

[Formless]

Explain. I want to know what you define as 'this', most of all. Not to say that this game represents some sort of marked advance where physics and AI are concerned - it certainly doesn't. However, there's something to be said for the execution, the gameplay-mechanic centric design of this open world, and the interconnectedness of its individual elements - which I've not seen equaled in any open-world RPG I can recall. Genuinely, the closest thing that comes to mind is MGSV, a game that's noted for its reactivity and its mechanical interplay (the latter of which is what has me making the comparison).

It's the little things that change what this game 'is' relative to other open world RPGs. I've never played an open-world RPG where I can encounter a ravine and just... chop down a tree, or drag a metal door over, to make a bridge myself. Or where I can actually use the spreading of fire as an active gameplay mechanic beyond burning my enemies out of cover. Or where I can snowboard down a hill, to pick up speed, so that I can glide across vast distances. Or where I can throw a rusty sword at an enemy during a rainstorm, have him pick it up in favor of his lame little club, and watch as he's struck by lightning. Or where I can beat bosses to death, by grabbing a large metal object with a magnet, and slapping the everloving shit out of them with it from afar. Or where I can shoot an enemy with an arrow from stealth, and leave it confused and angry toward someone else. The thing that I'm excited about most of all is that this game takes the 'journeyman' aspect of open world RPGs and endeavors to make it intrinsically fun and engaging throughout. In any other established open world franchise, a map this size would probably turn me off, but based on what I've seen of Zelda, I can envision myself having shitloads of fun just surviving and traversing that world, before I even consider things like combat or puzzles.

Plus I really appreciate how this game takes elements found in traditionally much more complex games and endeavors to make them more intuitive and more relevant to the core gameplay experience. As someone who traditionally eats up survival games, just seeing demo players drop flint and firewood on the ground, to strike them with a metal object and make a campfire appear, makes me giddy. Not to mention things like temperature serving as active gameplay mechanics, which I enjoy, but which I also tend to have to mod into games to begin with. And cooking, and climbing, and weapon degradation (being able to destroy spent weapons by just throwing them at enemies for critical damage is fkn boss), etc.

This is a great point. I think the key thing here is most games just use a "use" key to interact with the environment whereas in BotW you use normal game actions to do many things. This has always played a part in puzzles and I think that history helps here.

 

[MrPhiliasfrog]

So is Nintendo of Europe doing the English dub like they did with the first Xenoblade game (I'm going off of the British accent)? Also, can anyone identify Zelda's(?) English & Japanese voice actresses?

I'm playing through xenoblade chronicles right now and the dub is simply fantastic. Has it been confirmed this is the same team doing the dub of botw?

Trailer now at 6 Million views.

Wow. This is fantastic.


I have watch so much footage of this game and everytime I see something new. This game is incredible.

 

[LurkerPrime]

I think that's supposed to be a recurring strong enemy, but not an actual "boss".



You could climb the cattle and also the large dogs and skeletons in Bitterblack Isle.

Thanks for the correction. It's bene a few months since I last played DDDA.

The Design of what I imagine the designers intended as the first boss of the game features the climbing mechanic to get to a weakpoint while it tries to shake you off. You can beat it without it, but there's a much bigger margin of error if it ends up hitting you.

Ah, cool. I've only seen the trailer so I'm pretty in the dark. But even still, all I see are possibilities.

I scarcely even understand why I'm so excited for BotW from just the trailer alone, but I am. The music, gameplay, and especially the master sword bit at the end gets me every time.

 

[BorkBork]

Trailer now at 6 Million views.

300k views more to become Nintendo's most popular Youtube video.

EVER.

 

[Yabberwocky]

Depends on who the old man is.

I'm hoping Zelda's stepped-up her disguise game.

...or he's a part of Ganondorf.

...or he's hobo Daphnes and/or a descent thereof.

...or sage owl dude.

Phew.

 

[DecoReturns]

300k views more to become Nintendo's most popular Youtube video.

EVER.

Yeah get that negative 2DS down. Doesn't deserve all that hate. It was just a small console.

 

[Astral Dog]

300k views more to become Nintendo's most popular Youtube video.

EVER.

thats alot of views for a Wii U game .

 

[Crayolan]

I think that's supposed to be a recurring strong enemy, but not an actual "boss".



You could climb the cattle and also the large dogs and skeletons in Bitterblack Isle.

I don't have any evidence for this but I think each region (as they are separated on the map) will have a unique miniboss enemy which can be found just by wandering around, since when you find the Steppe Talus it shows not only its name but also "Great Plain" above it. So in another area you might see "Gerudo Valley">Boss Name, "Lost Woods">Boss Name, etc.

Of course I'm sure in addition to that we'll get major bosses found at the end of dungeons with way more intricate designs than a pile of rocks.

 

[Smellycat]

BTW, I am pretty sure that the next time we will see this game will be at the NX unveiling event/direct, and the trailer for the NX version will be the story one I think. Who knows if we will ever see the Wii U version anymore before release.

 

[Golnei]

I don't have any evidence for this but I think each region (as they are separated on the map) will have a unique miniboss enemy which can be found just by wandering around, since when you find the Steppe Talus it shows not only its name but also "Great Plain" above it. So in another area you might see "Gerudo Valley">Boss Name, "Lost Woods">Boss Name, etc.

Of course I'm sure in addition to that we'll get major bosses found at the end of dungeons with way more intricate designs than a pile of rocks.

Alternately, maybe overworld (mini)bosses will have regional variations. The Death Mountain Talus could be interesting.

 

[Neoxon]

I'm playing through xenoblade chronicles right now and the dub is simply fantastic. Has it been confirmed this is the same team doing the dub of botw?

The British accent in BotW's trailer was pretty on-point, so maybe. But it's entirely possible that an American voice actress just had a convincing British accent.

 

[Thrashinuva]

The British accent in BotW's trailer was pretty on-point, so maybe. But it's entirely possible that an American voice actress just had a convincing British accent.

Maybe it was Hugh Laurie faking a British accent while he was in the middle of faking an American accent.

 

[Yazuka]

Maybe it was Hugh Laurie faking a British accent while he was in the middle of faking an American accent.

We need to go deeper!

Everything i've seen from this game so far looks fantastic! Really looking forward to pay this on NX.

 

[Francokid1]

BTW, I am pretty sure that the next time we will see this game will be at the NX unveiling event/direct, and the trailer for the NX version will be the story one I think. Who knows if we will ever see the Wii U version anymore before release.

I agree. And if Nintendo is actually releasing the NX next spring, I would guess they will reveal it in September. It would be nice to see more Zelda that soon.

 

[TheMoon]

So is Nintendo of Europe doing the English dub like they did with the first Xenoblade game (I'm going off of the British accent)? Also, can anyone identify Zelda's(?) English & Japanese voice actresses?

No. This is a Treehouse localization.

NOE did Xeno, TLS, and PT because NOA didn't want to.

 

[KHlover]

300k views more to become Nintendo's most popular Youtube video.

EVER.

When I watched the trailer before going to bed tonight (about 12hrs ago) it was at 5.7mil. Zelda easily got this.

 

[Inquisitive_Ghost]

Someone needs to put a pin on that flying whatever so we can see around where on the map it hangs out.

 

[PtM]

Wolfs kinda have that look, to be honest:

Yeah, kinda. Wolf Link has an additional head-length to that and is bulkier in the front.