20 ms·

Never played Zelda before. First Nintendo device was a Wii but did not buy Zelda. My daughters loved the Wii (sports,resort) but last year it finally went down

Never played Zelda before. First Nintendo device was a Wii but did not buy Zelda. My daughters loved the Wii (sports,resort) but last year it finally went down (green tint screen). I thought about the WiiU but knew the Switch was on track and decided to wait it out. The game has taken up our free time. I let my daughter drive but "we" played - as Zelda newbies we were helping each other out with ideas. Took about 2 days, but we finished the plateau with just one internet cheat [stasis shrine]. We are still getting a hang of the controls/camera and fighting. The game is so clean, scenic, responsive, detailed, responsible and well thought out. An immersive alternate reality. Kid friendly to boot. I still know so little since we do not have prior Zelda history. Is there a trick to getting Rupees? Where to find arrows... how do we get powerful tools like swords and bows? Can I sell a horse that I trained? Better clothing? What do you buy vs find? In spite of all that we managed to finish the plateau and when we flew down in the paraglider, it actually felt like we accomplished something. And thats key... we were always making progress or when stuck went and did something else before coming back. Side note: So what made me buy Zelda given that I had no history with it? Well, it was really the only real game that the system launched with (not counting 1-2 Switch as it is a demo). Lucked into it. I am not sure how Nintendo did it. Perhaps I did not understand who Nintendo was (via the Wii). This game seems to expose their true capability and soul. Maybe there are other non Nintendo games as fluid as this; I just don't know. Switch Negatives: Just an opinion... Wii Sports is better than 1-2 Switch.

greggman 10y ago
You're better off having not played previous Zeldas IMO I just finished the game and finally went online and realized I missed a ton of the new fun because I was playing like an old Zelda. I didn't realize the extent to which it's a sandbox. To give 2 ideas that hopefully are not spoilers. You can throw things at enemies and theyll pick them up. So throw them something useless. Another is you can for example attach and octo balloon to pretty much anything and then use a leaf to blow it somewhere. I dont know if those are good examples I just know I really didn't look for all the creative ways to combind the things you can do
- deskamess 10y ago
  I can see how the first tip can come in handy! I have not got an octo balloon yet, so it is something to think about. We just threw away our leaf but reading this thread I just realized where we could have used it. Maybe playing this game slowly is ok. I do not see any downsides to going slow - that has required a change in my thinking. As you, flukus, and others have said it is a different game requiring some rethinking from old and new players alike.
flukus 10y ago
> I still know so little since we do not have prior Zelda history. It doesn't help, BotW is very different to all the previous games. Finding better swords and bows gets a lot better in time (probably another dozen hours), eventually you don't have to worry about stuff breaking so much (my biggest gripe early on). But yes, you do have a misconception about nintendo, they are usually on the cutting edge of what can be done. That bit with the paraglider for instance, that's what stepping out into Hyrule field for the first time felt like 20 years ago.
- cmrdporcupine 10y ago
  > that's what stepping out into Hyrule field for the first time felt like 20 years ago. Or what taking the boat out onto sea in Wind Waker felt like. They really have got feel right. Though I think some of the atmosphere isn't there in this Zelda. I miss the music that plays at dawn in Wind Waker and also in Twilight Princess (and probably others). A very nice melody that doesn't seem to be in this game.
  - mathw 10y ago
    There's a bit of music that occasionally appears which seems to reference the dawn theme, but a lot of standard Zelda musical cues are mostly absent, and almost none of the ones that are there go where you'd expect. The approach to music in this game is so much more minimal, and they deliberately twisted it all slightly, probably to reinforce how BOTW is different to its predecessors while sharing some of the same ideas.

greggman 10y ago

You're better off having not played previous Zeldas IMO I just finished the game and finally went online and realized I missed a ton of the new fun because I was playing like an old Zelda. I didn't realize the extent to which it's a sandbox. To give 2 ideas that hopefully are not spoilers. You can throw things at enemies and theyll pick them up. So throw them something useless. Another is you can for example attach and octo balloon to pretty much anything and then use a leaf to blow it somewhere. I dont know if those are good examples I just know I really didn't look for all the creative ways to combind the things you can do

deskamess 10y ago
I can see how the first tip can come in handy! I have not got an octo balloon yet, so it is something to think about. We just threw away our leaf but reading this thread I just realized where we could have used it. Maybe playing this game slowly is ok. I do not see any downsides to going slow - that has required a change in my thinking. As you, flukus, and others have said it is a different game requiring some rethinking from old and new players alike.

flukus 10y ago

> I still know so little since we do not have prior Zelda history. It doesn't help, BotW is very different to all the previous games. Finding better swords and bows gets a lot better in time (probably another dozen hours), eventually you don't have to worry about stuff breaking so much (my biggest gripe early on). But yes, you do have a misconception about nintendo, they are usually on the cutting edge of what can be done. That bit with the paraglider for instance, that's what stepping out into Hyrule field for the first time felt like 20 years ago.

cmrdporcupine 10y ago
> that's what stepping out into Hyrule field for the first time felt like 20 years ago. Or what taking the boat out onto sea in Wind Waker felt like. They really have got feel right. Though I think some of the atmosphere isn't there in this Zelda. I miss the music that plays at dawn in Wind Waker and also in Twilight Princess (and probably others). A very nice melody that doesn't seem to be in this game.
- mathw 10y ago
  There's a bit of music that occasionally appears which seems to reference the dawn theme, but a lot of standard Zelda musical cues are mostly absent, and almost none of the ones that are there go where you'd expect. The approach to music in this game is so much more minimal, and they deliberately twisted it all slightly, probably to reinforce how BOTW is different to its predecessors while sharing some of the same ideas.