Breath of the Wild: Wolf Link and Guardian amiibo

Before I share my general impressions about the gameplay and game world of Breath of Wild, I want to focus on another detail: the amiibo usage. Early on I have been know for being opposed to the whole amiibo idea, even calling them a scam, as long as they don't fulfill certain standards. amiibo should ideally bring the figurine to live ingame, instead of just unlocking some content. It should offer something fully optional, not taking away from those, who like to complete their games, but don't want to track down amiibo to do so. At the same time it also should give you a nice incentive to use the amiibo regularly. All of this together is hard to pull off and Nintendo miserably failed a couple of times with this, where I really got worried as a fan.

But not in Breath of the Wild. The Wolf Link idea is perfect. That's how you implement amiibo! If I didn't have the Wolf Link amiibo already, I would gladly buy one.

It's not just some physical DLC lock, you scan the wolf figurine and you get freaking Wolf Link in the game as a companion. That's so beautiful and it looks amazing, even though Fallout already did the dog thing. It's really nice to have this, but at the same time you won't miss anything crucial, if you don't have the amiibo. Well done!

I also like, how they incorporated the hearts from the Cave of Shadows into the thing. The better your record is, the longer Wolf Link will be able to stay at your side. I do have a 20 hearts record, but I wonder, if the floors and Hero Mode will make any difference. You can get 20 hearts on floors 6, 20 or 40. You can also play through the Cave of Shadows in Hero Mode or not (all other records are not saved on the amiibo and should be irrelevant). Maybe the wolf does the most damage, when you reach floor 40 in Hero Mode and only minimal damage at default...

Anyway, there also have been three more amiibo announced for the game. Archer Link, Horse Link and the Guardian. I'm only really interested in the Guardian one:

Those creatures are terrifying and it would be nice, if the amiibo somehow helps you against them. As some kind of cheat. It also could be a way to make the game harder like the Ganondorf amiibo in Twilight Princess HD. It could simply spawn one of these monsters right were you are, if you want some crazy challenge. That would be another good use of amiibo, where I wouldn't mind purchasing the figurine.

I suppose the Horse Link amiibo could summon a horse and the Archer Link amiibo gives you arrows - similar to the Link and Toon Link amiibo in Twilight Princess HD, or even a new bow, if you need one. I don't think that these two amiibo will be all that interesting, but let's see.

New Hyrule Blog Logo

After this Blog's little Anniversary and the introduction to the new era of Zelda, it's probably time to say good-bye to the old Torvus Blog LOST logo and present this blog under something more fitting.

The site's background always has been reminiscent of what Breath of the Wild will be all about: standing on a cliff in front of a massive Hyrule for you to explore. This classic viewpoint has been the ideal of Hyrule Blog from the start, so only the small change of the logo was required to have this site enter the new era visually.

Welcome to the new Hyrule Blog!

Breath of the Wild: Timeline Theories

Update: Read my follow-up post, Timeline Merge Theory.

Zelda fans right now certainly will go crazy over timeline theories again. It's obvious that Breath of the Wild does take place long after the Zelda series as we know it. We have entered an age of technology and we see the remains of past places, like the Temple of Time. So, the real question is, which of three timelines will make a wild breath into the future!

My personal favorite before the E3 presentations was the Downfall Timeline, because of several reasons. The world of Zelda II - The Adventure of Link has been the largest in Zelda yet and it made sense to expand from there. They also wanted to go back to the roots, so placing the game after the NES Classics would be meaningful. It also fits the idea of a ruined Hyrule very well with a rusty Master Sword back on the pedestal that we knew from A Link to the Past, as well as the idea of resurrecting the Hero, where the Downfall timeline is where Link's death actually has outcomes. Ganon also gets mentioned as the antagonist (it seems like he was imprisoned inside Hyrule Castle) and he has been prominent in the Downfall timeline mostly.

But Ganon appeared in Four Swords Adventures as well and we get to warp in Wolf Link as a companion (this part is probably non-canon, though), so the Child Timeline might be also a candidate. We even see structures that are reminiscent of the Hyrule from Twilight Princess, like the Great Bridge of Hylia. What speaks against this specific timeline is the fact that we still have the Temple of Time in the new game in some shape, while it was completely ruined in Twilight Princess.

The Adult Timeline gets supported by the Koroks, who seem to be very close in appearance to the Wind Waker. Those might even be the same guys, who have planted the trees all over the Great Sea in the hope that more land will grow. And these could be the lands, where the Great Sea was ages ago... But we already got a Hyrule there and Breath of the Wild shows a remarkable lack of rails so far. And again, the Temple of Time shouldn't be here anymore, if those are the new lands after the era of the Great Sea, unless the Temple survived somehow and they simply decided to move the Master Sword elsewhere. But the Temple of Time pretty much points towards the Downfall Timeline and it's possible that the Koroks simply existed there as well.

If it's in the other timelines, due to the Temple of Time the game would have to take place either before Twilight Princess or The Wind Waker, which wouldn't be all that satisfying. Nintendo would have to bother with connecting the games correctly or they would leave a mess behind. And the Sheikah technology would get wiped away afterwards, while it looks like a promising new feature for the future of Zelda. I think, this game would be best at the end of the timeline(s), where it can freely lead into a new era of the Zelda series, instead of being just another note within the timeline. And that's probably best after the NES games. All other games since the classics went either backwards or sideways. And now it's time to move forward.

But I have a bold prediction: why not all three timelines? Already in Skyward Sword the technology to mess with time was displayed by the timeshift stones and the Gate of Time. The latter was even related to the Sheikah and the Goddess Hylia. I suppose the Sheikah or Hylia, who could even turn out to be the (new) Goddess of Time, could take a similar role to Cia in Hyrule Warriors, overseeing all the times. Now, maybe they saw a reason to merge the timelines back together. (I know that theoretically this would be impossible and pure nonsense, but so is time travel into the past.) Maybe a great evil (Ganon or even Demise in some other form) arose in all three timelines and to contain it they fused them all together, which created the new Hyrule in Breath of the Wild, where elements from all the Zelda games are coming together.

The things that existed in all three timelines got fused and now show traits of all their versions: Hyrule, Ganon and the Hero. This would explain, how this "Calamity Ganon" could take so many different forms, because he's essentially Demise's reincarnation from all three timelines. And this would explain, why get to meet Koroks on top of the Temple of Time.

I could already picture, how in the story the timeline gets displayed on one of the Sheikah screens explaining the convergence, displaying Ocarina of Time and Breath of the Wild as the polar opposites in the timeline...

The timeline got split into three, much like the Triforce. And to further this symbolism it would be meaningful to reunite all three universes at some point, much like the Triforce.

That might be a crazy idea, but it would also be an interesting way of "rebooting" the franchise without completely ignoring its previous installments. Instead it would fuse all the different universes back together into one experience. If Breath of the Wild really is supposed to be the next revolutionary installment of the series, it should have a similar influence on the timeline as Ocarina of Time did, instead of being just another entry, where it would be overshadowed by the games around it, because it needs to fit their realities. And I personally like the idea of fixing the "damage".

Open your Eyes, Samus

Now we know, why there hasn't been a new Metroid game in six years. It's because Zelda is doing the Sci-Fi Action Adventure now.

They are not only going back to the roots of The Legend of Zelda, they are digging them up. Originally for the first Zelda game they had a technology vs. fantasy setting in the mind, with a dual world of past and future. The Triforce even was supposed to be electronic chips... And it seems like they actually went back to this concept.

Enter the Sheikah Slate. It really is a "slate" and not a book. I personally held on to the book, because I kept thinking in the realm of magic and fantasy, while this game enters fantasy tech into the world of Zelda. The slate really is a technological device, which probably represents the Wii U GamePad in your game as your main item. It even lets you scan things like in Metroid Prime.

But it's all very well done. The entry to the game gives me the chills. The Resurrection Chamber is eerie and that the Hero is actually recreated by technology feels thrilling. I love, how the Sheikah are responsible for the modern technology and guiding you, even without being present in person. They always have been a mysterious race and they are the perfect representatives for such an idea. It's better than introducing yet another new race just for this game, especially since we already have so many different races in Zelda (excited to see the Koroks again).

Also, the idea of the Resurrection actually would allow for different player avatars, including a female one, like Linkle. Or Samus Aran. You basically get created (or kept in stasis) by Sheikah technology for the whole purpose of being the Hero.

Anyway, after you leave the Resurrection Chamber, you enter the world of the new Zelda game in a perfect way: on a ledge with the whole world in front of you. The classic Zelda artwork finally came to life! And it does so right in the beginning of the game. Perfect. You even have an old man there.

And instead of annoying you with tons of cutscenes and tutorials, they just drop you in the world and let you explore the story yourself. How you're entering this ancient Hyrule in ruins near the decayed Temple of Time surrounded by the petrified Octobots is very interesting. It feels all so mysterious and you get to explore all of this.

This is the way, I always wanted Zelda to be! Explore the story by exploring the world. Very exciting times! This game really might introduce a new era for Zelda, one where all the previous Zelda games lie in the distant past, while also reusing tons of gameplay elements from them. More about that later on...

Breath of the Wild – Title Revealed

Finally we have a title: Breath of the Wild. I was tired of calling this game "Zelda Wii U". I wonder, if anyone accurately predicted this title, but I like, how it's not a generic title about an item, e.g. "Bow of the Goddesses" or "Sheikah Slate". Though the title could be abbreviated as "BoW"...

Watch the trailer here. Certainly an impressive reveal with lots of things to process. Voice acting, free climbing, cooking, tree chopping. Feels like some survival experience and it gave me some sort of Monster Hunter vibe. Funny enough: I always wanted to have an axe in Zelda, so the tree chopping part made me cheer.

The end of trailer also supports my theory that this game plays at the very end of the Downfall timeline. The place, where the Master Sword rests, looks a lot like in the original A Link to the Past Artwork:

And the Master Sword looks kind of rusty and old... Also, the Japanese logo actually went back to the design of the classic games, so it doesn't have the romanized "ZELDA".

One big thing in the trailer also has been the environment manipulation. Something like this was to be expected after E3 2014, where the giant monster destroyed one of the bridges and other parts of the environment. You're probably able to repair those and it looks like the book / tablet is doing the trick. This reminded me of Trine, where you're able to move objects in the environment via magic and even use them to crush enemies. The knight armor also looked really cool... So much to talk about!

I will posts more thoughts and analysis later on, after we got to see the huge "tiny portion" in the livestream. I also added a Breath of the Wild tag to blog, retroactively spanning all my previous posts about the game.

Free Climbing View

That's excitement right there!

And I don't mean Link's adrenaline infused hobby of free climbing, but what he will be able to see in full glory, when he reaches the top of that rock. That's the kind of teaser that I want for a Zelda game. Show me some artwork of a landscape and let me marvel on it, study all the details and let my imaginations run wild on how it will turn out in the game. An artwork of Koholint Island was what got me into the Zelda series to begin with...

And you don't get this kind of feeling with Zelda that often anymore. Back in 2009 the EU cover of Spirit Tracks got me excited for its landscape or with Skyward Sword you got these amazing landscape artworks of the three main regions, but the 3DS Zeldas didn't offer much of this, because you knew what to expect from their game worlds. Exploration is the most important thing about a Zelda game and if you show me a well crafted fantasy world to explore, you have my attention. It might also backfire, because the reality of the game won't meet your imaginations.

The good thing is that they can do this ingame, like they basically did in the Game Awards 2014 footage. They can just let you start somewhere near a hill, where you have a good view over the entire world. Like you have in this classic The Legend of Zelda artwork scene with Link looking all over Hyrule and Death Mountain in the background. And you just mark a point in this scenery and say "that's where I want to go first!".

The castle for example. You kind of could see some castle structure in the E3 2014 footage in the far background and some people (including myself) speculated that his could be Hyrule Castle. Whatever this is, it doesn't really look like Hyrule Castle now, more like some cursed version. It looks really dark and you can see this whirl of dark flames surrounding it. I wonder, if this will be one of the four main dungeons, if that rumor was true. It also doesn't have to be the only castle in the game.

Well, my timeline theory was that either this game takes place right after Skyward Sword, where Hyrule basically got founded in this huge world on the ground, or it takes some time after Zelda II - The Adventure of Link in the Downfall timeline, where you had the largest Hyrule up to date. And this dark castle might as well be the cursed Northern Palace, after Link from the TV show screwed up so bad that he didn't get excused anymore. Maybe we get to explore a Hyrule that has fallen into ruins, which would be a good spot to start over (without rebooting the franchise).

You can also spot some houses and a church, which looks decayed, but this might just be the artwork. And there's a big bridge over a lake, which is reminiscent of the Great Bridge of Hylia, only longer. And we also got a very long bridge in the world of Zelda II. And it all gives me the vibe that these are remains. It could be whatever was built, before Hylia let her people ascend into the skies, or it could be some fallen Hyrule from the past. I'm excited to learn more about the story and hopefully the timeline placement tomorrow.

Death Mountain (let's just call it that) also looks quite eerie with being an active volcano and all these sharp rock formations. I would really like this game to return to classic Zelda traditions, where Death Mountain was called DEATH Mountain for a reason. The most dangerous and deadly area of the overworld and not some Goron amusement park that it had become ever since Ocarina of Time.

But the most noteworthy sights are probably the glowing sword pillars. You can detect four of them in this artwork and they strike me as way points. It's one of the repetitive elements that will fill this world for sure, but at least it looks like something important and more interesting than the many lookout towers from The Wind Waker. Though they do look like the lookout towers from the previous footage, only with some magic light inside them. Hopefully this won't just be like the radio towers from Far Cry, because this would be highly unoriginal and kind of boring.

Tomorrow is the big day and this teaser artwork certainly got me excited! Show me more, Nintendo! (But not too much!)

A Hundred Minidungeons

In exactly 50 hours we will all be watching, how the big new Zelda game for Wii U will look like. So, paying attention to rumors now is probably not the best use of time, because we're going to be smarter shortly anyway... Still, the new rumors from GameXplain did get supported by Emily Rogers and that means that we they could be up to something.

Besides some generic "fantasy vs. technology" talk and weather changes, which is stuff that you would expect anyway, there has been one interesting fact here: the game apparently is only going to have four main dungeons, but will compensate this with over a hundred minidungeons...

Even if this is true, we don't know enough about this, for example how large the individual dungeons are going to be. But overall I'm not opposed to this concept, because I'm a sucker for minidungeons. My favorite part of the Wind Waker is the Triforce hunt, where you explore hidden minidungeons all over the world. I also love the Skulltula houses and the Secret Shrine of Ikana in Majora's Mask. I thought that the Ice Cavern and the Bottom of the Well in Ocarina of Time brought some fresh air into the overall course of the game. And discovering all the secret stations was one of my favorite sidequests in Spirit Tracks.

I want a sense of discovery and normally with dungeons you're just following a mark on the map. You know that there's going to be the next dungeon on the horizon, with the next item and the next boss. And this can get stale and boring after while. You want some discoveries during your adventure and minidungeons in the Zelda series often gave me that.

Of course there's the quantity issue. Majora's Mask had quality minidungeons like the Skulltulas houses, but only few of them. The Wind Waker had more minidungeons, but you were already getting multiple of these fighting caves made of four or five rooms. And with a hundred minidungeons you would expect things to get really repetitive and this leads to the problem of open world games, which I've already addressed recently in my post called "An Ocean of Grass". So, let's see on Tuesday, how much variety there will be.

Having only four main dungeons, which probably decide the main course through the game world, also seems fairly limited. I suppose that they didn't just want to leave lots of marks on your map like you had with Lorule in A Link Between Worlds. The world should be open, but still give a sense of direction for those, who are lost in an open world full of choices.

Let's say you have one big dungeon in the forest, one in the desert, one at the ocean and one on Death Mountain. You probably will be inclined to play the forest first, then go for either ocean or desert and save Death Mountain for last. But you could also play Death Mountain first for a challenge and for replayability.

GameXplain speculated that the minidungeons might act as a key to the main dungeons and this probably might be the case. But I do hope that those don't get marked on a map, but are found by discovering them by yourself. Exploration should be the most important thing in this game.