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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild | Review Thread

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F

Fledz

Member
ElzarTheBam said:
At the very least you'll need an axe. Did you get the one very very early on in the game?
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Oh fuck, is that what you're supposed to do?!?!

Haha, I went around.
You can backtrack to the right and walk up the mountain past the goblin things, then scale the cliff down to the shrine. Wow, multiple ways already. Love it.
 
P

PunjabiPlaya

Member
HIGH DEF JEFF said:
Having just played for over 2 hours the controls alone make this an imperfect game.
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I agree there's a lot of inputs and literally all buttons are used for something, but it just takes a little learning. I'm probably about 3 hours in (lost track of time while playing honestly) and I've gotten a pretty good grasp on all the controls and starting to get down the advance combat moves. It just takes a little time to memorize the inputs, nothing too complex.
 
G

Griss

Member
Fledz said:
For those of you worried about graphics and performance, this was me:

1st Hour - "Oh man, you can definitely notice the lack of AA. Frames could be a bit better in some spots. Colours look a bit washed out. It's good but man, imagine this at 1080p with AA and better FPS :eek:

By around hour 3 or 4: "This game is fucking amazing. Who gives a shit about AA or washed out colours, it looks amazing, it plays amazing, it feels amazing. Wow"

Genuinely that much of a swing. I can totally see why reviewers have seen past some of the hardware limitations because I certainly have. I can see myself falling in love with this game in no time and I bloody impulse bought it this morning!

Re performance, it seems better to me than the preview videos that I've seen in recent weeks. Day 0 patch might not be perfect but it looks to have done something. I only played docked by the way, will test handheld when I inevitably get kicked off the TV lol
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You had literally the exact same experience as me. The IQ and performance really were an initial shock that dampened my enthusiasm, but the game design obliterated that utterly after about one or two hours.
 
J

jman2050

Member
Fledz said:
For those of you worried about graphics and performance, this was me:

1st Hour - "Oh man, you can definitely notice the lack of AA. Frames could be a bit better in some spots. Colours look a bit washed out. It's good but man, imagine this at 1080p with AA and better FPS :eek:

By around hour 3 or 4: "This game is fucking amazing. Who gives a shit about AA or washed out colours, it looks amazing, it plays amazing, it feels amazing. Wow"

Genuinely that much of a swing. I can totally see why reviewers have seen past some of the hardware limitations because I certainly have. I can see myself falling in love with this game in no time and I bloody impulse bought it this morning!

Re performance, it seems better to me than the preview videos that I've seen in recent weeks. Day 0 patch might not be perfect but it looks to have done something. I only played docked by the way, will test handheld when I inevitably get kicked off the TV lol
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My general viewpoint is that technical issues, even moderately severe ones, can be fixed. And nowadays, they almost always are.

Deeply flawed design and implementation issues are more permanent, and thus are a much bigger deal as primary criteria in judging a game.
 
P

Pinky

Banned
MTC100 said:
And they're putting quite the effort into it, I think there are some that even create new accounts just to downvote Zelda and some of the 0-1 Reviews are just hilarious:

funftx66.jpg
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My God... the salt is incredibly potent. How embarrassing.
 
U

Ultra Numb

Member
Metacritic user scores mean absolutely nothing.

Fortunately, actual review scores have gotten more reputable over the years. 90+ games aren't happening every week anymore, let alone 95+

If the majority think that its a game of the generation tier game and the few issues it has is far outweighed by the pros and don't sour the experience? I have no reason to doubt. Can't wait to play it.
 
S

Skux

Member
Servbot24 said:
The bolded is me all the time. Life is great when you play video games for the love of video games rather than the love of tech specs.
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Video games are technology. Gameplay is not the only thing that makes a game great. Technical performance is a piece of the package the same as story or music and should be judged when reviewing a game.

Unfortunately almost every reviewer has forgotten that.
 
G

Griss

Member
Honorio said:
I'm so glad that you loved the game griss
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Not as glad as I am :)

Seriously, this sets Zelda up to be one of the premier franchises in gaming again for a good long while. As a hardcore Zelda fanboy it was sad to see it drop from those heights. It's back, and it feels amazing.
 
P

phanphare

Banned
Griss said:
Not as glad as I am :)

Seriously, this sets Zelda up to be one of the premier franchises in gaming again for a good long while. As a hardcore Zelda fanboy it was sad to see it drop from those heights. It's back, and it feels amazing.
Click to expand...

man, I can't wait to get back home and really dig in

I played about 45 minutes yesterday and it was cool but I haven't really experienced anything yet
 
S

Servbot24

Banned
Skux said:
Video games are technology. Gameplay is not the only thing that makes a game great. Technical performance is a piece of the package the same as story or music and should be judged when reviewing a game.

Unfortunately almost every reviewer has forgotten that.
Click to expand...

Performance isn't the same as story/gameplay. Story/gameplay is the featured content of the game. It is what the game is. Performance just props that up. Performance is good if no one is thinking about it while appreciating the story/gameplay. It's important that the art sits on a solid stand of course, but unless the stand topples over it doesn't really come into the conversation. The threshold for when it is distracting will change according to the sensitivity of the viewer, as well as how devoted the viewer is to appreciating the art.
 
T

The Wart

Member
MTC100 said:
And they're putting quite the effort into it, I think there are some that even create new accounts just to downvote Zelda and some of the 0-1 Reviews are just hilarious:

funftx66.jpg
Click to expand...

Gombazo's friend is going to achieve 50% of history. I don't know what that means but it sounds very impressive. We are in the company of greatness.
 
R

Radical Edward

Member
Skux said:
Video games are technology. Gameplay is not the only thing that makes a game great. Technical performance is a piece of the package the same as story or music and should be judged when reviewing a game.

Unfortunately almost every reviewer has forgotten that.
Click to expand...
Sooooo Tetris has a shit story and shit graphics 0/10
Reviews are subjective. Personally, i'd give Witcher 3 a 6/10 and EDF 4.1 a 8 / 10. I'm not going to freak out because many give W3 a 10/10
 
N

Nepenthe

Member
How different facets of a game are judged is dependent upon an individual game's goals and accomplishments. Mediocre performance in one area can be mitigated by excellence in another. It's not a situation where every title starts at a perfect score and is robotically docked for every flaw and grievance. People primarily experience games emotionally, just like any other art, and then we go back to try and parse the reasons underlying those emotions.
 
yurinka

yurinka

Member
Smiles and Cries said:
Not sure if any expectations of reviewers is fair.

I feel annoyed if a reviewer is willing to state that 'I don't give 10s' vibe or stance in a review but if they find good reason for a 9.5 I am fine with that.

I think as fans we need to respect reviews verdict even though we wanted them to love a game we are hoping is deserving of a perfect score. This is harder to do when the reviewer is someone you love to follow.

Example, I find myself uncomfortable with EZA's 4.5/5 because I am a big fan of those guys and wanted love / hype from those guys.

Waypoint's review filled that love and hype that I was hoping from EZA
Dan from Giantbomb also filled that spot.

So I think when you are a fan of reviewers and hyped for a game, you kinda want those reviewers not to play that 'I don't give 10s' game

So when it comes to a game like this we have high expectations which I am not sure is fair
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I think the problem is with reviewers who mention some things as negative for years -like framerate drops, certain gameplay mechanics or random stuff copied from previous open world games, etc.- in similar games (example: certain Horizon or Ubi games reviews) and score them with lower score. But when reviewing Zelda avoided to mention them and give it a 10.

Reviewers who also gave Skyward Sword or even Majora's Mask 3DS port a 10.
 
F

FloweryMarston

Member
Big One said:
At this point Nintendo would probably be losing profit if they've paid off everyone, lol
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I mean, even projared and egoraptor, youtubers that go very hard on 3d zeldas are saying that this is the best one in a while, many people that have no reason to be "paid" off are saying this.

Many outlets even say that of all publisher, is one of the best in terms of not really putting pushing for a score for their games.

It's strange to me, we have a game that people are saying that can be an all time classic and instead of getting excited, because it's from nintendo it can't possibly be a good game right?
 
F

Fahzgoolin

Banned
For a game like this, it's strange there isn't weapon crafting or repair. What a burden...

I'm open to it, it just seems very strange prior to playing. I hope it doesn't ruin the fun.
 
V

Valkyri von Thanatos

Member
Was going to get this for Wii U, but the fairly frequent sounding sub 20fps particularly in villages is deflating my hype. I might have to pick this up on the first revision of the Switch in 2018/2019. It sucks because it is apparently pretty great, but I can't accept frequent sub 20fps. Early impressions made it sound like it was just occasional ~25fps drops, but it sounds like it chugs nearly constantly.
 
I

Instro

Member
yurinka said:
I think the problem is with reviewers who mention some things as negative for years -like framerate drops, certain gameplay mechanics or random stuff copied from previous open world games, etc.- in similar games (example: certain Horizon or Ubi games reviews) and score them with lower score. But when reviewing Zelda avoided to mention them and give it a 10.

Reviewers who also gave Skyward Sword or even Majora's Mask 3DS port a 10.
Click to expand...

Do you have proof of this happening...?
 
D

Deckard Chapel

Banned
Honorio said:
I mean, even projared and egoraptor, youtubers that go very hard on 3d zeldas are saying that this is the best one in a while, many people that have no reason to be "paid" off are saying this.

Many outlets even say that of all publisher, is one of the best in terms of not really putting pushing for a score for their games.

It's strange to me, we have a game that people are saying that can be an all time classic and instead of getting excited, because it's from nintendo it can't possibly be a good game right?
Click to expand...

I'm interested to see Egoraptor's review of The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild :)
 
M

Malus

Member
It's funny how I went from pretty calm and not really feeling the hype today, to freaking out as soon as I got the box in my hands. It's so beautiful ;_;
 
E

ekim

Member
Gaminar said:
Just an observation or call it my opinion... the mostly middle aged 30 year old men playing this game living out nostalgia in front of their eyes see these same inconsistencies in other games and take away points in reviews. But because the name "Zelda" is tied to it... I feel like the hyperbole and myopic vision is just way too much.

No game is perfect.
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I'm 30 and this is my first Zelda. The review scores are deserved after I played it for ~12 hours now. So it's definitely no nostalgia here.
 
G

Gaminar

Banned
Maxinas said:
Someone in this thread already worded it quite well, no game is perfect,true, and a 10/10 doesn't mean exactly that. Get over it buddy, people think the game is amazing, that's their opinion.
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Amazing versus perfect are not the same thing. Experiences are subjective and that's fine if they think it's amazing, that's absolutely fine. If I'm going against the status quo, it doesn't mean I'm in the wrong. Jesus, I don't know who's saltier; the fanboys or Zelda fans.

Inspectah_Deck said:
I only have one question to you:
Did you play the game?

If yes, ok, it's your opinion after playing it.
If no, you only sound like a salty console warrior.
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If you read further down, I said I haven't played either of the 2 best games reviewed so far to put me in any console war fanboy crap. So what brings you to the conclusion that I'm a salty console warrior? Your assumption is misplaced.

spekkeh said:
You're using difficult words for a ten year old, impressive.
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Thanks for your argument. Very positive and personal. Bet you do great in debates.

borghe said:
But a 10 isn't perfect. Just like a 5/5 movie isn't perfect. The scale is 1-10. Does the game hit what it needs to to receive the highest score? As the poster you quoted said.. if someone "never gives a 10", then really they are only operating on a 9 point scale and their 9 is still a 10 anyway.

A 10 to me is that the game/movie/whatever hits all of the important notes, all of the nice touches, and as a whole (important there) doesn't leave me with thinking "it was REALLY good, but these 2-3 things really could have been better and were a little distracting". That's not to say there is NOTHING that could be done better in a 10/10... just to say that criticisms there, taken as a whole package, didn't reduce the experience at all for me. Wind Waker is a perfect example of a 9. If it weren't for the ridiculous amount of sailing before the start of the end journey, easy 10. Instead, 9. Red Daed Redemption on the other hand... 10. Even with the typical R* flaws, I spent 100+ hours in that game.

Though honestly I usually apply a 5 point scale to things. Nothing we are talking about ever needs more than that. And the 100 point scales used in the industry (including the 9.3 and such)? Ridiculous. Did you like it? If you can't express that across 5 ranks, then frankly you are doing a poor job of expressing your opinion.
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You see I understand everything you're saying because your opinion is based off of your own personal experience, possible brand name and subjective enjoyment. I personally enjoy the reviews that usually don't state numbers but actual opinions on if its worth buying. Numbers are more marketing hype aren't they?

boiled goose said:
Meh. If you haven't played the game yourself this is just a baseless assertion.
"Technical issues" vary in the degree they affect the overall experience.

The praise of Botw seems centered on the new things it does regarding gameplay systems and mechanics. Deviations from current formula. If anything, things like story and visuals are much more vulnerable to "hype".
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I'll get back to you on that after I've played it. I didn't make an assertion because that would imply that I'm 100% on my opinion of the game being bad. I made an assumption instead on the "brand" and "nostalgia" itself and everyone seems to be angry about it... I also subjective am of the opinion that nothing is perfect and that is for ALL games.

ekim said:
I'm 30 and this is my first Zelda. The review scores are deserved after I played it for ~12 hours now. So it's definitely no nostalgia here.
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That's fantastic to hear. Your simple short review is something important to me because it's brand new into the world of Zelda. I have played prior Zelda games and they are quite fantastic. I however also feel you're 12 hours in so the hype hasn't settled down yet. Could you PM me later and tell me exactly how you feel after perhaps end game or 40 hours in? Thank you. I'd appreciate it.
 
E

ekim

Member
Gaminar said:
Amazing versus perfect are not the same thing. Experiences are subjective and that's fine if they think it's amazing, that's absolutely fine. If I'm going against the status quo, it doesn't mean I'm in the wrong. Jesus, I don't know who's saltier; the fanboys or Zelda fans.



If you read further down, I said I haven't played either of the 2 best games reviewed so far to put me in any console war fanboy crap. So what brings you to the conclusion that I'm a salty console warrior? Your assumption is misplaced.



Thanks for your argument. Very positive and personal. Bet you do great in debates.



You see I understand everything you're saying because your opinion is based off of your own personal experience, possible brand name and subjective enjoyment. I personally enjoy the reviews that usually don't state numbers but actual opinions on if its worth buying. Numbers are more marketing hype aren't they?



I'll get back to you on that after I've played it. I didn't make an assertion because that would imply that I'm 100% on my opinion of the game being bad. I made an assumption instead on the "brand" and "nostalgia" itself and everyone seems to be angry about it... I also subjective am of the opinion that nothing is perfect and that is for ALL games.



That's fantastic to hear. Your simple short review is something important to me because it's brand new into the world of Zelda. I have played prior Zelda games and they are quite fantastic. I however also feel you're 12 hours in so the hype hasn't settled down yet. Could you PM me later and tell me exactly how you feel after perhaps end game or 40 hours in? Thank you. I'd appreciate it.
Click to expand...

Yeah sure. :)
 
P

pirateluigi

Member
Gaminar said:
That's fantastic to hear. Your simple short review is something important to me because it's brand new into the world of Zelda. I have played prior Zelda games and they are quite fantastic. I however also feel you're 12 hours in so the hype hasn't settled down yet. Could you PM me later and tell me exactly how you feel after perhaps end game or 40 hours in? Thank you. I'd appreciate it.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry, but this made me crack up. Can he make you breakfast too?

If you want more than numbers, there are numerous long form reviews from people of varying levels of prior experience. Do a little legwork and you'll see damn near everyone has the same opinions on this game. Will everyone love it? Of course not. But this really reads like you are desperate to find a review that hates the game, for whatever reason.
 
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