Breath of the Wild's Story, Characters and...That Ending

Part 3 of my Breath of the Wild review series, where we talk about its characters, its story, and its less-than-stellar ending.
(NOTE: This review is in-depth and as such it is SPOILER-HEAVY.)
Here's a link to the playlist containing the entire series (so far) in suggested order:
• The Legend of Zelda: B...
This video was edited by the terrifically talented Kane Brough from Farfetch'd Reviews!
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If you like what I do, please consider supporting me on Patreon!
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TWOOTER: @ArloStuff
BOOKFACE: ArloStuff
Additional gameplay credits:
drive.google.c...

[@rickfeng4030]

I actually like the memories. They show Link's and Zelda's relationship form from Zelda despising Link, to Zelda opening up to Link. I just wish they had more memories.

[@irritatedengineer9654]

Zelda’s journal was also very good to read. It gave an actual reason that Link doesn’t talk, and it showed their relationship evolve over time.

[@rickfeng4030]

agreed

[@Jagger0718]

It helps when you read all the champions journals i think

[@happycamperds9917]

They couldn’t have made the champions’ death a memory because Link was not there.

[@AlfredoPuente8]

Link didn't even change expression, having a silence protagonist in a cutscene looks really bad.

[@chain12bb]

I find it extremely unsatisfying that you will never see the “defeat ganon” main quest completed.

[@williamr7416]

because ganon comes back in botw2

[@jyxii8614]

CanisOrtiz He means that after defeating Ganon the quest pops up again even though he has already beaten Ganon

[@steveyg6775]

Yes it does... at the very end of the game the screen turns white and says "defeat calamity ganon" "Completed" in the standard sortnof quest style. Im nkt sure if you had to get every single sort of thing first, like all of the memories to see it but i got it.

[@isandrooo]

Stevey G he means that since it brings you back to your last save right before beating ganon, that quest will never actually be complete

[@steveyg6775]

@@isandrooo isnt that the point???? They cant continue the game... thats the sequals job. Youve finished the game after defeating ganon, go you want them to have another game ready as soom as youve finished?

[@ghostdemy2610]

I just want to mention, there’s a diary in Hyrule Castle that features Zelda discussing her life, and her meeting and growing a relationship with Link. It actually develops Link as a character, which I find astounding. It discusses why Link is silent, as he feels pressure from so many people to be the hero and the savior of Hyrule, that he doesn’t want to step out of line, or just talk in general. It’s not much, and it’s hard to come by, but I think developing Link, the “silent hunk of meat,” as a person with emotions and problems, is a very nice step in the right direction

[@austinmartin2927]

Arlo did briefly touch on that in the video. That diary was definitely an incredible extra in the game! I knew nothing about it and randomly stumbled upon it while exploring the castle, and it blew my mind! lol. Also, there is another Diary that belongs to the King himself. That one adds just as much detail to the story between him and his daughter, the Princess! Totally worth finding!!

[@SophisticatedGoat222]

Honestly, the many diaries you can find across Hyrule that belong to both major and minor characters are some of the best parts of the game. One of the best is definitely Paya's as it's basically just her raving about how hot Link is.

[@austinmartin2927]

@@SophisticatedGoat222 YESSSSS!!!!! I forgot totally about Paya's! that one was great!! Purah's in the Hateno tech lab is also really cool because it explains how her failed experiments made her a child figure.

[@stefanhammersrensen1671]

The dlc also added diaries to the champions

[@Drewsefer89]

There's a few diaries in the game. Not just Zelda's. I read them over so many times cause they give a lot of unique information from a certain characters point of view.

[@rainpooper7088]

„The only time the King appeared before was in Wind Waker.“ „This is the first Zelda game with voice acting.“ Wow, so this is what denial looks like. *MAH BOI intensifies in the distance*

[@kylecampbell565]

Rainpooper plus the King was in a link to the past (his corpse is in the intro and he appears in the ending

[@AlfredoPuente8]

Nintendo made the CDI timeline not canon in 2014.

[@swimmyswim417]

paco ramon The Star Wars Christmas Special isn’t canon either, but I still have hope that someday we’ll get to see Kylo Ren in his Life Day robes.

[@ciaranpatrick6859]

Rainpooper it sure is boooooring around here

[@themegalodonlikespancakes6112]

madgirlmuahaha ya know, I remember a dude in the first episode of The Mandalorian reference life day, had know idea it was Christmas , or from that one special

[@TheMindOfThomas]

For the next Zelda I want it to take place directly after Botw with Link and Zelda going on a quest together to rebuild Hyrule. This would give these versions of the characters a satisfying ending IMO.

[@rafaelmontoya1454]

TheMindOfThomas yes. Either that or a prequel where you build up to become the kingdom's hero by killing legendary monsters and the final boss perhaps being an crooked wizard or a giant beast.

[@fangsabre]

Well it looks like you got your wish. Although from the looks of the trailer Ganondorf isnt done yet. And something's gonna happen to Hyrule Castle. Also I think they might bring the triforce back..... maybe BoTW and the sequel were always meant to be a two part story?

[@arturoescorcia]

Well, you would be happy to know that a direct sequel is now in development according the E3's official trailer.

[@Astrum_Deus]

Yo prayers have been answered

[@dghchurch]

Damn you called it

[@SoralaxPlays]

So... I seem to be in the minority here, but I thought the minimalist nature of the storytelling was actually perfect. I didn't need to see some grand fight between the champions and Ganon, because I knew what would happen. Instead of a blockbuster fight scene, we got something which I felt was far more impactful - the hope, frustration, and efforts of some legitimately charming characters who we know are ultimately going to fail. Seeing these quaint moments - Zelda taking pictures, Mipha treating a wound, Daruk chatting casually with Link, only to get dire when he senses something's off about the mountain - it lends a realism to these people. They are people who have legitimate relationships with one another, and every time I earned a memory, I felt like I was staring through a window into their lives, my heart heavy with the knowledge that all they hold dear is about to be stripped away from them - the irony of the fact that their glorious, heroic battle is fated to be lost. This story did something that no other Zelda story ever did for me - it gave me a reason to want to fight Ganon. In every other game, I fought Ganon because he was the final boss. In this one, I felt myself slowly but surely building a resentment for Ganon, for stripping the champions of their lives, giving Zelda a lifetime of pressure and misery, taking Hyrule from its people, and frickin KILLING ME. The final fight with Calamity Ganon felt powerful because it felt like I was avenging my friends, saving a real nation, and avenging my damn self. It felt personal. So yeah, those are my thoughts on the issue. :P

[@BologneyT]

You're not in a minority. And if you are, it's a very large minority.

[@SoralaxPlays]

@@BologneyT Really? Huh. Weird. I keep seeing Gaming KZbinrs ragging on the storytelling. I don't think I've seen anyone praise it as of yet.

[@BologneyT]

Don't look at the KZbinrs. Look at their comment sections. Or, more specifically, look at THIS Comment section. More than half the people here are disagreeing with some or most of Arlo's objections. Or talking about something else, heh.

[@k1productions87]

the vast majority of those who complain about the ending are in one of the Western audiences (US, Europe, etc), whereas the story is a far more Eastern style, where the journey is the primary focus rather than the conclusion. Its what I often call the "Miyazaki Ending" infamous in Studio Ghibli films.

[@SnazzyLola]

I also liked how the story was told here. I don’t believe the memories were supposed to show the collapse of Hyrule, but rather fill in the missing gaps of who everyone was and the events leading up to *that day*. That’s what the memories were supposed to do.

[@apocrypha5363]

I've never been a Zelda fan before, I had no intention on buying BOTW, I got my Switch in 2018 for Splatoon and Mario. I was feeling down one day and decided to treat myself to a game, I got BOTW just because I knew people raved about it, so that even if it "Wasn't my sort of game" I'd still probably get some enjoyment out of it. It's now my favourite game of all time, and while my gaming back-catalogue isn't exhaustive, it's without a doubt the best game I've ever played.

[@megamachamp835]

Damn. Imagine if you never decided to buy BotW that day. You might've never gotten into the Zelda series and you wouldn't have found your favourite game of all time.

[@themasterteacher]

Apocryphal Shedinja did that dlc. It was awesome

[@ethansumner688]

My experience. Me: nah I don’t want Zelda. Sees it store: maybe... buys it. Favorite game.

[@habencon4082]

Why?

[@autisticgaming2004]

Dude same ! I got BOTW the same day I got Mario tennis aces when that first came out cause I thought " hey the game could be cool ? " and boy do I not regret it BOTW is not my favorite game of all time and got me into the Zelda series it's sooooooo good !

[@pinkflame7237]

I just finished the game today, I think Mipha was the best of the champions. You really feel a sense of loss for her. When you talk to the Zora if they aren't talking about Sidon they are talking about Mipha and how they blame Link for her death. And Mipha's statue is in plain sight so you know the Zora are sad about her defeat. But in the others it's just the village elder saying "Ah yeah this dude was great! Go to his dungeon and I'll give you his favorite toothbrush or something."

[@MikeLovesRabbit]

In fairness to the voice actors, poor vocal performances are, more often than not, the result of poor directing from the booth... and since nintendo is new to this, I'm ready to lay the blame there.

[@Pebphiz]

Yeah, there were obviously some big directing missteps, at least with the dubs I played in. Especially noticeable with Sidon practically whispering while his character makes big, energetic movements and poses.

[@OsamuWuVT]

well i personally have a rule of "everybody gets ONE excuse" i did that for Metroid other M because it was again the first time like zelda will everyone? not really but for me it was they get a freebie pass but next time not so much

[@Graestra]

Yeah that's what it felt like to me, and the fact that there wasn't much for them to work with in terms of character depth.

[@trevorrandom]

I changed it to Japanese so much better

[@RayOfTruth]

I'm so glad they added the dual audio update because the Japanese voices aren't nearly as bad.

[@facilityhues]

Arlo: I just felt like there wasn’t enough explanation for what happened 100 years ago Age of Calamity: hey

[@cooperthompson5855]

I myself am a very simple man. I quite enjoyed the ending and the cutscenes. But, the thing is, if the cutscenes had all been these epic action sequences with explosions and fighting and everything. I feel it wouldn’t really fit with the direction the rest of the game was going. The simple cutscenes were more focused on the subtle emotions and development of each character. For me, this fit perfectly with the rest of the game. Also, the few times where the story really picked up felt a lot more momentous and epic. In addition, the ending cutscene was more about letting *you* think about what would happen next. It was about letting your imagination run wild based on what you’ve seen throughout the rest of the game. In conclusion, the story was a lot more subtle because it made the epic moments feel greater and because it fit with the rest of the game. Although, it’s ok if you disagree. I tend to like more simple storytelling myself.

[@KairuHakubi]

plus they're link's memories. it's not as if he saw the battles happening from epic angles. .. though twice, it was zelda's memories.. so that's weird.

[@mayorcharli7908]

Agree, if it had action sequences it would feel run of the mill. I kind of like learning about the fallen Champions by talking to people and hearing how people felt about them. The story is like that generally-the more you talk to people, the more you you learn about the story.

[@Antasma1]

Just like Samurai Jack

[@chocococo40]

This is *exactly* how i felt about the story :-D If they had been more forceful about the story I probably wouldn't have liked it nearly as much. The main plot is very simple, but the subtlety in the cutscenes got me more intrigued than any other Zelda game before. If there had been more, or longer cutscenes, the little pieces that we did get probably wouldn't have felt as special as they did here. Also, the ending was really satisfying and I feel like it would have ruined it for me if they explicitly showed what happened afterwards. (Sorry if this was hard to understand, I'm not a native speaker)

[@ssamDJ]

I think the point Arlo was trying to make was that the story was portraid as being much more prevalent than it actually was based on the trailer.

[@digitalparty9891]

Arlo, that part where she says "Do you remember me?" is very important. The theme of the story is "WHO ARE YOU?" When you beat it without finding all the memories, it leaves behind a very sad and tragic ending.

[@DragonFangX]

Maybe its my overactive imagination but I've been fine with the minimalist storyline for Breath of the Wild. My mind fills in the blanks and excites me. If I had one disappointment, I wish we could have saved the champions... or atleast Mipha...

[@bath_4843]

Mipha can die for all I care! Zelda x link forever!

[@heavydonkeykong5190]

I could never decide between mipha/link and Zelda/link. I usually support Mipha more purely because it's the underdog pairing, but really, I love them both equally. Toon link and Tetra is still my favorite Zelda shipping tho.

[@mushroomyploom]

@@heavydonkeykong5190 Zelda and tetra are the same person so it doesn't matter

[@heavydonkeykong5190]

Yeah but Tetra is a different person than the Zelda in botw, oot, etc.

[@mushroomyploom]

@@heavydonkeykong5190 yeah but it's too zelda

[@ToHellWithReality]

I disagree with regards to the ending, especially the true ending. As shown in an earlier cutscene, the Silent Princess struggles to grow. The zoom out to the flower at the end is a nice, subtle hint that the world will definitely be able to grow and prosper in Ganon's absence. For such a calm game, that ending is appropriately positive and peaceful.

[@momsaccount4033]

Yeah, makes sense, but not everybody is as "smart" as you. Not everybody has the ability to take subtle hints like that. Sorry to burst your bubble but the collective mind of the masses are pretty dumb. Besides, no matter how you put it, subtle symbolism never makes for a satisfying ending. There is nothing wrong with symbolism in anything, and before I move on, don't get me wrong I love Breath of the Wild and I am absolutely hyped for the sequel (and before you point me out yes I know I am commenting on a 1 year old comment I do what I want to do ok)... I admit that, when I (just recently) finished playing the game, I said that the game was amazing, but I was thinking about the entire game, not just the story aspect of it. From here, basically just copy and paste what Arlo talked about the first part about the "story" of BotW, not the "plot". It's really hard to explain for me, and this all probably sounds like a dumb kid ranting on the internet like people would see all the time, but I just wanted something... more from the game. I completely agreed when Arlo pointed out how it felt like Nintendo didn't hire any novelists to flesh out the characters and instead just... did everything themselves. It sounds lazy, and it probably is, but at the end of the day, I can't blame Nintendo. I played BotW to make my own journey (and roleplay as a badass Link in the process but we're ignoring that part), not to follow the "plot" of the game, as cool as I thought the premise and foundation was... There, have my hot take I guess (At this point you're probably thinking, who in the world has time to write any and all of this? lol)

[@eugger3011]

@@momsaccount4033 I can smell the Reddit from this comment.

[@momsaccount4033]

@@eugger3011 Understandable have a nice day

[@lnsflare1]

I mean, was that ever in doubt? Hyrule generally terms to thrive and rebuild just fine whenever Ganon/Demise/etc... aren't actively trying to destroy it. Like, Link and Terra managed to build an entire brand new kingdom to the point where it had a national railway service around a 100 years after the end of Wind Waker/The Phantom Hourglass.

[@tracerbullet85]

I honestly thought of what I think is the perfect way to fix the story. When you unlock a memory, have the game take you back in time and play it. You play as the Link from 100 years ago with the equipment he would have had, and after you finish whatever fight/event took place in the memory (in a closed off area of course) you get rewarded with the cutscenes we already have. Seriously, imagine how fun it would be playing through the battle that lead up to this moment: 10:57

[@MasterLee2011]

So basically assassin's creed?

[@BigFearedBalloon]

.....Man that would have been cool. Plus you could have potential sparring sessions with the 4 champions, which could have acted as mid bosses in the memories on your journey against their divine beast. A boss fight against a champion, would show you, how they fought, how skilled they were, what strategies they used, giving a lot of depth to the champions.... but nope... they are forgettable.

[@tracerbullet85]

Yeah that would be pretty sick. It would make the characters way more memorable

[@theannoyingotaku8113]

I have an alternative: Keep the story in the present at all times, but expand on it. The quests with the champion descendants would be longer and more diverse, with more cutscenes and more time to get to know their characters. There would be more memories of the champions and their relationship with Link (who would be a bit more expressive). There would be more memories relating to Link himself. Perhaps something about his parents. And most importantly: More big quests. The Tarry Town quest was a charming way of showing that humanity was slowly getting back on its feet, taking back some of the most dangerous places. More stuff like that. Maybe a quest where the Hylians take back an enemy infested plot of land and set up camp permanently after you beat it. Or a quest for each of the champion descendants where you help them on an extra mission and help them develop as people. Maybe a series of quests related to finishing off the Yiga clan. Just quests that genuinely feel like they impact the world in some way, providing a sense of hope against opposition. Maybe have some sort of post game reward for completing all the quests, in the form of a final quest where you take back Hyrule Castle and can freely explore the area free of the fear of enemies while keeping access to the weapons and whatnot as they lie on the floor. Oh, and cut the exposition dump in the beginning. Have the mystery unveiled through memories.

[@tracerbullet85]

@@theannoyingotaku8113 Well of course that would work as well. I was really just talking about making the current story more impactful rather than changing it and/or adding new parts entirely

[@tristanneal9552]

Personally, I think it would have been much better if the memories were playable sequences. If you fully regained your memories by directly interacting with them and reenacting them instead of just passively watching them.

[@Doughboy123x]

*clap* Brilliant! :D

[@DigiBrad]

About the voice acting though, this game needed it. With the format of how they told the story and how character / dialogue heavy it was, if they just did text it would have been a lot less interesting and more boring. I personally won't mind if they keep doing it but i also don't mind if they drop it

[@alexanderchilton911]

They have to continue with the VA. Or Nintendo will never get better at it.

[@connora770]

My only gripe with voice acting was that Zelda’s voice acting was awful.

[@Antasma1]

Ditto

[@jamyesolano5257]

⊂_ヽ 　 ＼＼ ＿ 　　 ＼( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡~) 2 　　　

[@gracet7533]

BUT AARRGH Zelda sounded so annoying. Sorry

[@mike.s.605]

"none of the voice work is good" -- there's a solution for that: options -> audio -> japanese. never looked back; was amazing.

[@dillonmalbrue1545]

But what did fluent japanese speaking people think of it?

[@remixtheidiot5771]

Dillon Malbrue not fluent at japanese, I am learning it though and I watch plenty of anime so... Compared to (good) anime? NO! Japanese voice acting is also terrible in botw! The 'actors' put no emotion in their lines and are sometimes just so monotone and empty an boring they make me wanna sleep. I have replayed botw a couple dozen times by now and with each playthrough I play the game in a different language. Since the game has so many options. It would be a disservice not to..! No matter which language I was listening to, all of them are terrible. Maybe for slightly different reasons than the english ones, but terrible nonetheless. Some might have poor acting, poor delivery, and or other, but regardless, they are indeed terrible. Nintendo focused too much on localization and hiring a craptonne of voice actors that quality was sacrificed for cheaper costs. Quality over quantity I say... How could you forget such a thing Nintendo?

[@rubengalindo8298]

Remix The Idiot the Spanish one for me was good

[@HelloKolla]

It seems in Hyrule Warriors theyre finally giving a shit bout voice acting, if you see the trailers

[@Laura-mn2ni]

@@remixtheidiot5771 tbh the voices you hear in anime are really different from natural japanese..

[@Zelda-sr6ro]

So for you character development is action sequences? For me, after watching all the memories one after the other, I came out with the opinion that the story of Breath of the Wild was the best ever seen in a Zelda game. It's the first time that we really have mature themes developped within the characters, especially Zelda. She has real emotions, real doubts. We see her struggling through the expectations placed on her shoulders and I found it very moving. I personnally think that the contrast between a character-focused (or Zelda-focused) story and an epic-world-focused gameplay for the rest of the game was really great. We see the world, its beauty, its landscapes and its inhabitants during the whole game. Having cut-scenes and an ending focused mainly on Zelda, Link and their relationship was, in my opinion, more than great.

[@LuisGustavoSodre13]

Agree! This game really develops theirs characters, the memories focus is that. I don't think showing a lot of fighting cutscenes would make it better

[@dghchurch]

That's not what he said though

[@chloro8306]

Zelda is a horrible cliche. Every aspect of her character is designed in service of her relationship with Link. She's painful to watch

[@eldenlean5221]

@@chloro8306 I mean every aspect of link is designed with his relationship with zelda in mind... That's kinda the point my guy. They are destined to fight evil Incarnated side by side. I don't see what the problem is.

[@chloro8306]

@@eldenlean5221 No. I mean, no, you're wrong. Every aspect of Link is not designed in service of his relationship with Zelda. Nothing about Link is designed in service of his relationship with Zelda. In how many games did Zelda fight side by side with Link other than the final battle? Coming up with narrative excuses to sequester Zelda out of the story and the action until the very end kind of supports my point, my guy.

[@MehdiHusain]

I guess if they had shown in the cutscenes how awesome those battles had been, the game itself would have felt pale in comparison. Personaly, I like the way those cutscenes were understatements of the past, leaving the rest to my imagination. And my imagination ran wild. In 60fps without drops in framerate.

[@vuppet5684]

Honestly, the story is said to be weak. In parts, I can see that. But the characters more than make up for that. You have mipha’s love for link, urbosa’s protection over her town, revali with his rivalry with link and daruk with his strong strength, but soft heart. The characters are of course great, but this has to be one of my favourite incarnations of Zelda. You don’t see her as some lone princess, you see her as a powerful person. But, she doesn’t know how to unleash that power and you can see her struggle through the memories. Link still doesn’t talk, but he still does give such an array of emotions just by looking. He protects zelda and makes her warm up to him. He puts his life on the line to save her, and instead, she saves him. The characters all have their charm. Honestly, I find the characters and the story alongside it kind of underrated. Some of my favourite zelda characters ever

[@ralphthejedimaster]

agreed except on link, I really wish he was as expressive as wind waker link. his dialogue options show that he has a lot of sass, so seeing him roll his eyes in cutscenes and other such things would be hilarious and really bring the character out

[@tempest2789]

I believe the issue with the Champions is how one dimensional they are. Mipha is the nice girl in love with a man that doesn't love her cliché Daruk has little to no personality, asides from the fact that he is strong, nice, loud and not very bright. A nice meathead, basically. Revali is just a douche that hates Link because ego And Urbosa is a sarcastic mother figure. The diaries allowed us to see certain sides of them, but why text? The Champions have enough charm to be likable for a while, but then? They're dead. Why should I care? What are their backstories? Do they have insecurities? Families? (Asides from Mipha) Struggles? Half of the time, I wished for the story to take place before the Calamity. To see the Champios fleshed out. Zelda is the best she has ever been, on that we agree. Link is okay too, no complains. But the Champions deserved better and it's sad that we might never see them again. I find so sad that FANFICS can give the Champions more than one dimesion, but then again, Nintendo is rarely a master of storytelling. Hell, the timeline was made by fans

[@MewLillyPad]

I feel like the story itself is par for the course for a Zelda game, which is why it's seen as such a problem since everything else in the game received such a huge upgrade. People expected everything to be improved, when in reality Nintendo just hasn't been super strong in the story department. Sure, they've done great things but they're severely spread out and usually only small tidbits in the games they're featured in (Example: Rosalina's story in Mario Galaxy) Nintendo isn't particular good when it comes to picking out writers either so they probably went with the safe bet of doing their usual effort in the story department so they didn't potentially sabotage their own game (Like they did with Fire Emblem Fates)

[@Jasonwolf1495]

those characters are about the most basic archetypes possible. They don't do anything.

[@VonBoche]

@@tempest2789 I completely agree with you. I was rather disappointed in the DLC for spending yet more time fleshing out characters whose involvement in the plot is either long past (the memories) or formulaic (going through the divine beasts). It's especially annoying when considering that there are likeable characters in the present that, if developed through new quests or stories, would have attached you more to the world you can experience instead of adding details to a past you can't change (which is all the DLC does story wise, now I know Daruk was afraid of dogs ! That's endearing enough but so what ? He's dead !) and has no bearing on the future of Hyrule or Link. The game really needed more little stories here and there. Secondary quests that don't reward you with anything substancial but add flavor to the world and its inhabitants. I just wanted a date with Sidon, god dammit.

[@AshyMuted]

"Maybe Breath of The Wild will get its own Majora's Mask equivalent" Huh.

[@SalvaBidoof]

Yes the sequel

[@ShadowWolfRising]

The interesting thing I remember hearing about this story is it's begining to imply the bloodline of the 3 (Link, Zelda, and Ganon.) are getting diluted over time. The various aspects of them are starting to wear down. Which then lead to creative ideas for future games, like someone brought up the idea of a game based around an Incarnation of Ganon fighting against his inner nature as a incarnation of Ganon.

[@Pebphiz]

@touma How is that at all what happened with Ganondorf? He was a mean desert guy who decided he wanted to take over Hyrule and get the Triforce. At no point did he have any kind of moral hang-ups.

[@Pebphiz]

@touma You specifically named OOT with no mention of Wind Waker in your comment. And Ganondorf in Wind Waker wasn't so much about how he felt conflicted with what he was doing, but instead that he had a reasonable motive for it. In the end, his goal was essentially to save Hyrule, and the three "heroes" killed him and destroyed the kingdom forever. It felt morally ambiguous and kinda freaked me out when I was younger.

[@nitez2730]

I really want the ganon thing

[@grymdylan]

touma the oot incarnation is....almost every single one in every timeline and game. that’s the point.

[@stephenobrien6983]

I don't think the bloodline really matters. If it did it destroys the concept that anyone can the hero and just leads it down the path of eugenics. All the royals of Hyrule are probably inbred anyway, just like the royals in real life. Monarchies are fucked up.

[@tehnomsthewalrus]

I disagree, I think the memory of when Link finally falls is amazing. In the beginning of the game you find your way walking through the gates of Fort Hateno, which is surrounded by at least 100 dead guardians, and you think to yourself, wow there must've been a giant battle here. And I was thinking about that for a huge portion the game, just wondering what happened there. Finally, you find out that it wasn't just a huge battle. It was Link's last stand.

[@AlexfromNorway]

the ending, and especially the end-boss wasn't the best in the series, but overall - just an amazing experience.

[@kurag5198]

The final boss music on the other hand is probably the some of the best in the franchise

[@TheAlibabatree]

@@kurag5198 Dark Beast Ganon theme is the most interesting and exciting music Ive ever heard in a video game.

[@TheAlibabatree]

@OMEGGA I dont remember that lol but cool! I agree!

[@TheAlibabatree]

@OMEGGA Oh, ok, i vaguely remember that. As far as DLC, Im not really that interested unless they did something huge, like restored all of the towns and cities, or gave us huge different portion of map to explore. Which, at that point, might as well be a new game.

[@TheAlibabatree]

@OMEGGA That would be cool, i never thought of that. I know they kind of made these plots up as they were going along, but it would be really neat if they could come up with a good narrative to weave them all together in a believable way. I would definitely buy any dlc they release, but I'm ok with waiting for a new game too.

[@ZippyRagu]

I was satisfied with the ending. It didn't excite me, I don't know why you expected for it to be soooo conclusive though, it was a simple story, with a simple ending.

[@CarliLove]

That's it.

[@-carn-4827]

Yep and some zelink lol

[@Ericland_Entertainment_Inc]

And sometimes the simplest of ideas are the most effective, as it was for me

[@MrChrisPic]

Does the ending even have to be good when there’s a direct sequel coming?

[@RhythmGrizz]

The addition of voice acting is literally one of my very favorite things in Breath of the Wild. I've always wanted voice acting in Zelda. It makes me so happy

[@Encyclicals]

Now that we're after E3 and Nintendo revealed they're making a direct sequel, have your sentiments changed about the ending?

[@GrammerPancreas]

IMO it just ended up becoming a really shitty cliffhanger, instead. OoT had a much better ending and that got a direct sequel, too.

[@tahepicduck8787]

I feel like malice is the real enemy in this game. If you look at the compendium on the floating skull things it say that the malice takes control of mindless things. Such as those skulls, the divine beasts, guardians, and I believe that Ganon is mindless at this point as well and is being controlled by the malice. Not my original theory, I think I saw it on one of the zelda theory channels. (don’t remember which sorry)

[@edwardrowlett1519]

Yeah, I remember seeing that video too

[@gin9410]

I would love another game that uses the malice, I mean, if the theory is right and it does control Ganon and the like, that could make for some pretty scary moments

[@auravaury]

It's a Nintendo black crisis video and it's great! I think it's the Malice theory video or something like that

[@willem6161]

It’s my favorite Nintendo Black crisis video

[@em.the.awful.waffle]

I agree except for when you said the Divine Beasts are mindless. The champions talking to them implies that they have some sort of mind.

[@AshBrian96]

I didn't realise people disliked the voice acting, I thought it was phenomenal, especially Patricia Summerset and Sean Chiplock. And I adored the ending too, both battles were awesome and the story wraps up nicely but with an opening for a sequel. It was fantastic.

[@golisopodgaming2201]

“Link must beat bad man” The legend of Zelda franchise in a nutshell

[@bensquared8014]

Concerning THAT ending, all of this makes much more sense now that the sequel has been announced. If you're hoping for a more conclusive ending that shows how Hyrule recovers, it will happen there (after they defeat Ganondorf)

[@ChristopherMoom]

So guys, we did it, we made it to the end of the series

[@theboxghost14]

Would you really dishonor our savior by bullying someone else

[@ChristopherMoom]

Yes

[@xenoant7954]

How did this meme go so far?

[@reformedorthodoxmunmanquara]

Hi dad, didn't expect to find you here on the internet, will you ever come back home

[@korneel2816]

Get out of here chara! You made kris pull out his freakin soul!

[@spiritualkilo]

Rewatching this post TotK is so satisfying. Cannot wait for your review of the sequel!

[@BuckBumbleYT]

Woah woah woah When I saw “And that ending” in the title I figured you meant “And that fucking awesome ending holy shit” And to find out you were disappointed in it shocks me that’s when the story clicked for me. I loved that ending it nearly brought me to tears.

[@extremekiwi101]

12:46 "We've only ever seen the king in Wind Waker" King Harkinian from the CDI Zelda games would like a word with you

[@ladymarcy7830]

Does that really count though

[@octokid]

To be honest, I like the fact that Link is injured by some Guardian and not someone like Ganon. It gives Link as sense of character, that in his best efforts to try and help Zelda get her powers, he focused less on himself and it was his selflessness that got him killed. It gives Link growth in the main story as if he's turned his selflessness into a strength rather than a weakness

[@HollowPurple-if2co]

The reason that the ending wasn't concluding is because there is a sequel

[@hotcrossbuns6585]

Exactly. Can't wait for it

[@nevermindo8516]

Oot+MM duh...

[@quinnsinclair7028]

Of course OoT managed to have a satisfying ending while still having a sequel. Individual installments in a wider narrative are still bound by good writing conventions to have an ending. Harry Potter 1 doesn't just spontaneously stop halfway through the last chapter even though it has six sequels to finish the story.

[@alecfrancis47]

I'm only a few seconds in but did you just say that skyward sword had a weak plot? It was amazing! There were so many cool moments with the time travel, the character changed, their interactions with each other felt real, they had developed personalities, and the whole game had a consistent theme! What do you mean it was weak?

[@kylecampbell565]

You ended with how you wanted “A story that lives up to Zelda’s perigee” though in all honesty while the stories are good only a few I'd consider great much less amazing. They are Majora’s Mask, Wind Waker And Skyward Sword, that’s only 3 out of about 20 games. So I wouldn’t call 15% of games enough to consider the Zelda series having amazing stories

[@TheAlibabatree]

I dont think any of them are great. Imo, Breath of the Wild easily has the best, which isnt saying much, but i just dont understand everyone saying its the worst.

[@heavydonkeykong5190]

My favorite stories are wind waker, twilight princess, and breath of the wild. But I feel a lot of the awesome story in botw is buried underneath a lot of things, and requires a deep analysis to uncover. That's the stories main weakness, imo.

[@kylecampbell565]

HeavyDonkeyKong another great story is spirit tracks but given it was my first Zelda I’m probably biased

[@heavydonkeykong5190]

Actually, I liked Spirit Tracks's story quite a lot too.

[@gghhghhghghgghhghhghgh2844]

I think Arlo was just disappointed because the story didn't live up to his childhood nostalgia. That's the only reason I can think of as to why he would cite OoT as having a better ending than Breath of the Wild instead of using...... well, any of the other 3D Zelda's for that example. They pretty much all had more fleshed out casts of characters, but OoT was the one Arlo grew up with, so in his mind, it still has the most amazing story.

[@ibubi4112]

12:55 Spoompls 16:14 shooting ganon with the wrong bow. How much of this is Game Grumps footage lol. 10/10.

[@znerd3664]

Ok. I have been a ravenous defender of botw's story since the beginning. I've heard so many people moan and complain that nothing is happening in present day and that all the story takes place in memories. I for one have always appreciated the genius of this design. The memories allowed the story to exist alongside a fully open world. Being given a rough idea at the start of what happened 100 years ago makes it so that no matter what memories you find first you still have a clue what's going on. It felt like the best way to tell a story without linearity; something that stories REQUIRE. That said, I actually agree with you Arlo. While I do think you were a bit harsh, you still offered a remarkably balanced assessment. They should have shown more action, they did skip out the best parts. I love your review series so far Arlo. Always love your content!

[@RayOfTruth]

It was heavily influenced by Studio Ghibli's Princess Mononoke.

[@alyssaagnew4147]

I cannot be the only one who would pay cold hard cash to see a Legend of Zelda movie done by Studio Ghibli.

[@thecozykinoshow]

@@alyssaagnew4147 i would literally sell my house

[@hubblebublumbubwub5215]

the story certainly wasn't

[@emilykortan1740]

Hubblebub Lumbubwub HAHA

[@psychokinrazalon]

Hubblebub Lumbubwub Watch Princess Mononoke and you’ll see why it is.

[@tomasbedoya2901]

I actually loved the story because most wasn't told to you, you had to investigate, find out by yourself, discover the lore which, if you looked, was very deep. The diaries and tales found throughout the map build up a historical record that I found wonderful

[@ArtTheGaleWind]

"Twilight princess have a great story and Skyward sword have a weak story" Excuse me, what?

[@labrynianrebel]

Strike that, reverse it.

[@seabassthegamer6644]

Strike that, slap a big "Opinion" stamp on it.

[@Thunder117]

Thats right, twilight princess has the best story in all zelda

[@NeoNeoNeo]

Yup. I've heard a lot of bad opinions in my day, but that has to be the most objectively false one ever. Skyward Sword straight up has the best plot of any Zelda game, period. Twilight Princes barely has one to speak of.

[@ArtTheGaleWind]

First, I'm not saying that Twilight princess story is bad, but it is just ocarina of time but edgy, second, I know it's an opinion, and in any moment I'm saying Arlo can't have an opinion, but that doesn't mean I can't say what I think of the stories of both games

[@goldam1986]

The final boss fight. I don't care if it was easy, it was well made and designed and epic, I loved it. I lost on my first attempt. Mainly because I never rode a horse at all, during my journey. My unknown named horse stranger crashed into Calamity Ganon's foot. And we both died.

[@The_RedVIII]

I have to defend Skyward Sword here. It has the best characters of any Zelda game. It has the best version of Zelda and the best Zelda/Link relationship in general. Ghirahim is one of the most interesting Zelda villains. And even Fi is a really cool designed character, if only she wasn't that annoying. Also, I totally disagree with most things you said about Breath of The Wilds story. The way it is told was sluggish. I don't think it's fun to track down the spots on the picture to find "story beats". At one point I just started to look it up on a guide where to find the spots. Other open world games do story much better, as much as I love the game.

[@TheNightmare75II]

RedVIII I agree with most of what you said here. Skyward Sword is definitely not my favorite Zelda game, but whenever I look back on it, I remember some really great story-related moments in it. The scenes with Ghirahim were always a treat, and seeing Groose's character develop from an arrogant and irritating (albeit entertaining) nuisance to a relatively humble guy trying to the right thing in such a way that didn't feel forced made him one of the most loveable characters in the whole series to me. Breath of the Wild didn't have any "wow" moments in its story. There's no suspense and no meaningful surprises. The memories make for some nice cutscenes, sure, but you learn very little that is actually interesting. And I'm sick of this lazy argument that, "Zelda stories have never been on the same level as The Godfather, so therefore, I don't see the problem with making a Zelda that has almost nothing going for it in the story department." It's no excuse. Personally, I think every other 3D Zelda's story blows BotW's out of the water because it's actually significant in all those games. It's something you're taking part in, something that actually concerns you, the player, as opposed to you a century ago. The other argument I can't stand, which is along the same lines as the other one is, "Zelda has never been that great in terms of story. It's not about the story. It's about the exploration." This is especially annoying to me because the people who use this argument use it to excuse any flaw (replace "story" with "dungeons" for example) anyone points out while simultaneously putting down basically every other Zelda game. Sure, Zelda's never been about dungeons, story, or bosses, but at the same time, it's about all of those things because they all play a role in the Zelda series. It's just as much about those things as it is about exploration. The bottom line is that they kind of sacrificed a lot of important components of the series in the name of a free, open world. While what the game does right makes up for a lot of its flaws, it doesn't erase those flaws either.

[@The_RedVIII]

@@TheNightmare75II very well said. While BOTW is probably my favorite Zelda game because of its world, I do agree with everything you said. There is still a lot they can improve upon in the next game, especially with the story and the dungeons.

[@calebp6114]

Thank you! The dichotomy of divine servants - Fi and Ghiraham added a great layer of depth to the series, and Groose is hands down the best character in all of existence... JK with Groose, but still, I have lost a lot of respect for Arlo's 'facts'. The plot twist in SS concerning Zelda actually made sense, and for me anyway, was a suprise.

[@TheNightmare75II]

@@The_RedVIII Agreed. I hope I don't come across as disliking BotW. I had a lot of fun playing it. I just hope they improve upon the story and dungeons, as you stated, and give us more diverse boss battles. So far, it seems pretty promising that they'll bring back dungeons: gamerant.com/new-zelda-game-nintendo-job-post/ Now, I suppose this could just be for a Skyward Sword HD remake or something, but the fact that one of the job listings includes "concept design" for dungeons makes me think it's a new game they're working on. I'll just have to wait and see, though.

[@primrosett]

Thank you! I was a little shocked by Arlo saying Skward Sword had a weak story while Twilight Princess has a strong one because in my opinion... it's the exact opposite. Skyward Sword Zelda and Link are strongly characterized, they have character arcs and motivations. You can parse so much about Link's personality despite that he doesn't say a word just from how expressive he is. Groose and Impa are great too, meanwhile Ghirahim is a colourfully characterized villain--quite frankly, one of the best the LoZ series has ever spawned in terms of being memorable. That's not even mentioning the cool lore it introduced. Imo, SS's story is it's biggest strength. Twilight Princess doesn't do much for me in the story department. Midna and her story was good, but Link and Zelda are just pretty planks of wood with little to no personality. Zant was cool until he went batshit, and the Twilight Realm as a whole was just... disappointingly poorly-developed and realized. Storywise, I feel like that game is filled to the brim with missed potential. Very shocked it was Arlo's example of good LoZ writing.

[@emilhaugsbakk7281]

Actually this game wasn’t delayed so it could be released on the switch. The developers got so many new ideas and decided to make the ULTIMATE Zelda game instead of just another Zelda game. Also the physics took a long time because changing one thing affected the whole world. I just got mad about you saying it was delayed so it could release on the switch because this is a masterpiece because it was delayed so much.

[@kylecampbell565]

Well the delay from 2015 to 2016 was for the new ideas but even nintendo admitted the delay to 2017 was just to let it launch with the switch www.theverge.com/2016/4/27/11516430/zelda-wii-u-delay-nx-version

[@Chick_NCC]

It was delayed five fucking years and we get this shit of a story??? Don’t get me wrong... I love the game and I love the story... but it could’ve been a much better story... it had so much potential... the champions were super interesting... the descendants of the champions were also super interesting (with this I mean the characters that help you with the divine beasts such as Sidon and Teba) and we didn’t get closure with the ending... they even say it in the ending... such a waste of potential

[@kylecampbell565]

Nico Castro actually it was only delayed a year and a half

[@BologneyT]

+Nico Castro I feel like they INTENTIONALLY didn't give us closure in the ending. Like they worked hard to make an ending that was good but DIDN'T give us closure... which I guess is kind of an oxymoron...

[@matthewbalser2235]

@@BologneyT and now I guess we see why they didn't give us closure with BotW 2 or whatever it will be called

[@VermilionRen]

I think the ending harkens back to the first Zelda: Ganon is defeated, Zelda and Link reunite. "This ends the story".

[@davidgordontakesitindabutt5392]

In other worda, you are saying BOTW has an 8-Bit ending. Great. That was worth purchasing the Switch for

[@eldenlean5221]

@@davidgordontakesitindabutt5392 I mean if the concept of an allusion flew over your head, sure it's an 8 bit ending. Or maybe they didn't provide closure to the story because the story hasn't ended. Just my two cents tho, I understand why people would find the ending lack luster(which in a way it defenetly was) I just do t reall mind it in the greater context of the game.

[@stevegignac]

Small correction - you don't need to free or even enter a single Divine Beast to get the "true ending" - it is unlocked solely from finding all the lost memories.

[@SliderGamer55]

The story was fine, but I do feel it could be so much more still. Link's Awakening and especially Majora's Mask are proof that you don't need some JRPG quantity of storytelling and cutscenes for it to work brilliantly, but in this case, I do just wish there was more. Maybe because the storytelling didn't match the huge scale of the world, maybe because it couldn't decide if it was a somewhat minimalist story (dare I say SOTC-like) or a grand cut-scene focused (both in present and past) and side character focused story. But I did feel it was missing something. It doesn't ruin the game by ANY means, but as soon as I see what Zelda stories can be, even ones that don't focus too heavily on story, and some of the better things this game DOES do with story, I can't help but want a game that masters the types of storytelling it was going for. And there are also plenty of missed opportunities that would've added to the game. Like the fact that one of the memories takes place above a ruined town, and when you see the flashback there's nothing focusing on the actual town in order to contrast before and after Ganon's destruction is just one really missed opportunity for storytelling. And I'm mostly talking about...traditional storytelling. Exploring this weird, partially ruined world as a video game, is brilliant. The story is just your adventure in this world, and it does that great. But it still tells a story as a traditional narrative on some level, and I just feel it could do so much more.

[@vaisiiusna7098]

The LEAST they could have done was remove the fucking "Defeat Gannon" quest after you beat him. You reload back into the world, right before you defeat Gannon. And NO ONE KNOWS YOU BEAT HIM. Just you. Sure, that would be a fine ending for a game that doesn't continue afterwards. But this game does. I spent almost a week playing, and was ready to play in a post-gannon world, and now I can't even play for 10 minutes without realizing that all of the time spent on this game will lead to nothing inside of it because the very core mission that is to defeat Gannon, CAN'T happen.

[@tomwaterwitch]

Here's the thing about that final form. The original plans of Gannon in the Ocarina of time was that you had to climb him as he was a giant ala Shadow of the Collossus, but the N64 just wasn't powerful enough to do that. They could of done it this way! Espeically since climbing was a major part of the game! It would be a final test of your stamina skills!

[@kylecampbell565]

tomwaterwitch you’re right! I’m guessing they didn’t do that is because they felt they already realized that concept wig Dig-a-leg in Mario Galaxy

[@jacobjordan8340]

Jusy to point out, there is some great symbolism at the end with the silent princess shot. The petals are flowing in the wind and an npc in the game tells you how the petals of the silent princess represent unending love...beautiful. there's lots of lore in the game like this sprinkled about that really elevates the tone of the story

[@showalk]

Skyward Sword? Weak plot? Excuse me? That story drove me to keep playing more than any other Zelda game I'd played up to that point.

[@quinnsinclair7028]

Skyward Sword had amazing lore, its plot was pretty tired and cliched "bad guy wants to kidnap the girl, rescue her" affair.

[@wyattmcmanus3119]

I gotta say I love that they didn’t show a lot. It added to the mystery and the sadness of all the champions and everyone dying. We didn’t get to see it, we weren’t there. They were just gone when Link woke up and there was nothing he could do about it

[@dallaynavokan5513]

Not only that but it also feeds into the "put it together yourself" idea that's so prevalent throughout the whole game. The love story especially being one of those that you have to put together on your own. I actually loved that the game doesn't bang you over the head with the plot, it assumes that if you were clever enough to get the memories, you're clever enough to not need to be told every single tiny plot detail. LOL. But, then again, I had someone that I could discuss things with and we figured out the plot together as we played the first time so that probably made it easier. I mean, I would have missed that you actually buy back your own house COMPLETELY if it wasn't for my husband voicing that thought one night when we were talking about it. Point is that having to follow the clues and put them all together made the storytelling completely interactive instead of just sitting there and watching a cut scene that tells you everything. The ending actually reminded me of Buffy the Vampire Slayer's smile. Buffy, smiling now that she can finally live her life after all these years of fighting. I also think NintendoBlackCrisis has the best explanation of that. I will admit that it took me a little while to figure that out myself but, now that I have, I really have to admit that it really is a great ending-- just like everything else in this game, it just takes a little while to figure it out.

[@hihyou]

You're pretty salty. My only issue with this video is that you're very quick to call it "laziness" and can't even entertain the thought that it might have been design choices. Open ends are a thing, you know. The game also remains thematically consistant in that it is melancholy all around : visuals, musics and narrative. I will agree that the trailer sets a completely different tone, though.

[@BologneyT]

You don't know how far down the comments I had to scroll to finally find a person criticize the laziness label and instead say DESIGN CHOICES!

[@MagicUzer]

or lazy design choices

[@joshuaunderwood7]

Speaking of anime, I am so damned happy that Zelda *isn’t* an anime/JRPG. To paraphrase what Egotaptor said in his critique of OoT; I want to adventure because that’s what I do. I want to go defeat Gannon because I’m a hero, not because somebody told me to.

[@Muirbidul]

Secret of Mana came out in 1993 for the Super Nintendo, plays a bit like a top down Zelda, and is better than Alltp in just a bout every way while still being a maligned "jrpg" If you want an empty experience where you can do whatever you want, go play Skyrim, the cockroach of videogames (it won't ever die).

[@lalehiandeity1649]

Joshua Underwood JRPG Zelda would be 🔥

[@cassiedevereaux-smith3890]

I could not disagree with you more about the memories ending. I love that rather than fleshing out the events, they focus on character moments, moments about relationships. The events can be inferred from the environment. The stunning setting at Fort Hateno, where on one side is a field of (mostly) deactivated guardians. There is a wall that is damaged but standing, with some makeshift reinforcement of broken segments and..... on the other side a forest, free of guardians. We can SEE that a battle raged. We can see that somehow, they were stopped by some awesome force, by fierce fighting that perhaps cleared the area of wood and destroyed so much. We see that the wall, the defense held. THAT is far more exciting to me than seeing the battle could ever be, partly because it involves me figuring it out... a puzzle in and of itself. So when we get that ending, Link and Zelda... with the latter talking about rebuilding. We see Silent Princess flowers that had previously been revealed to have been dying out in the wild, and they're thriving, beginning to fill a field..... this is far more potent an indication that the taint of Ganon's presence has been purged, and that life and hope are returning to Hyrule. THIS was powerful.... because it wasn't spoon fed. IMHO, the story is at last a puzzle in a game that centers puzzles, and it becomes so much more satisfying than it could have been if told in any other way.

[@Pichuscute]

Yeah, tracking down Link's memories was some of the most fun I had in the game. Actually sitting there with my map and just analyzing it for hours trying to find where I think something can be just based on the stuff in the background of a picture. It was a level of engagement with a world I hadn't experienced anywhere close to that before. I'd love to see the concept expanded in the future.

[@RapidRuby84]

If only we could actually interact with those past memories rather than having short cutscenes. Heck, even an OOT idea going back and forth in time would be awesome for this game.

[@stevenn1940]

This is the exact reason WHY they didn't show any of the "awesome stuff we're told about." Because they specifically didn't want that thought in the back of player's minds. It's hard to get the feeling of "existing in the aftermath" if you're existing in the prior events, too.

[@RapidRuby84]

@@stevenn1940 that's a good point (love your username by the way). It feels like there is a lot of potential that Nintendo missed out on to make the game better. Regardless of that though, I did still enjoy the game.

[@MrSupahLink]

God no. That would mean the player would have to spend tons of hours, just walking around only to talk to a few people.

[@redfooter7354]

Ocarina: 5 cliffhangers a good ending. Breath: 5 cliffhangers a bad ending.

[@Antasma1]

To be fair, sequels did reveal the fate of those Hyrules (and soon to be Breath of the Wild too)

[@OracleTruth24]

Skyward Sword's story was a weak point? Even from those who had distaste for the game had some praise for the narrative.

[@calebp6114]

Philip, you are a voice of reason in a time of darkness.

[@SailorChiMoon]

There's a lot of dislike over this video, and sure, I don't agree with the points, still big shout out to the amazing time and effort Arlo is spending to give us an honest and thorough review! He isn't bashing it, and even though I liked this story type, it's amazing to hear another point of view! Keep going Arlo! We love you, and love to hear what you have to say!

[@cloudrider9142]

I disagree, the execution was not as bad as people think. They HAD to tell their story very (!) differently due to the way the game was structured, it's openness called for a different, looser and maybe unconventional way of storytelling! After all, the Soulsborne and Metroid Prime games use the exact same type of telling their story and in both the bulk of the story is text, environmental and takes place mostly in the past. And the DLC DID add more to the Champions, with the inclusion of their diaries, new cutscenes and 4-6 new short monologues when you replay the bosses! I agree, the story is probably the worst aspect of BotW, but it's not as abysmal as people describe it. And frankly, Nintendo games are first and foremost gameplay - centric, then comes music and art. Storytelling is just not a priority or strength of them...

[@theannoyingotaku8113]

There could have been something... More though. Maybe various side quests fleshing out the champion descendants and showing that humanity is slowly recovering and fighting back, making permanent changes in the world like the Tarry Town quest.

[@amandaslough125]

@@theannoyingotaku8113 I agree in here. I remember playing through the game and going "why is everyone only talking about the dead people? We're just going to ignore the next generation? I wanna know about the future."

[@zmanred011]

I think the cutscenes are more for shedding light on the RELATIONSHIPS between Link, Zelda, and the Champions, rather than the events that took place.

[@hrstar24]

I thought the story here was fantastic and told in a great way. I loved the way they portray Zelda as a kid who is stuck with this destiny, struggling to learn how to use her power, worried about failing, etc. The art style and music make it seem a little light hearted, but the story is actually pretty dark as you learn about the past, and basically learn how all the friends you knew 100 years ago were murdered and you failed in protecting Hyrule. I do agree with Arlo though, some epic cut scenes of watching the champions fall, Hyrule fall, etc. would have been AMAZING

[@iliya1933]

I'm SO glad you were somewhat critical of the story development of two things: The memories and the other races/characters in the game. Based on the trailers for the game, I was anticipating an epic story where you go around a calamity-razed Hyrule, joined by an archaeologist Zelda, convincing the champions of the different races to join your side and eventually leading them all in an epic charge on Hyrule Castle and Ganon's forces. One thing that added to my excitement for this was the part of Twilight Princess that I liked the most, which was joining the resistance society in Telma's bar. You had actual comrades that were working with you to overthrow Ganon, even if they didn't have much actual knowledge of the supernatural stuff involved (like Ganon's power and the Twilight Realm), and even if the only thing they did in the game was help you get to each dungeon (although they did slightly help you out in one part when you finally stormed Hyrule Castle). I always felt like that aspect of Twilight Princess was not realized as fully as it could have been, and, regarding BotW, I was really hoping for character interaction in a Zelda game that actually meant something significant or lasted for longer than a cutscene or two lines of dialogue or something. Unfortunately for my BotW experience, as it turns out, the champions AND Zelda are either all already dead or basically trapped in magical stasis for the entire game, and while it was cool to work with the secondary characters of each race in getting TO each dungeon, which was a lot like the experience in Twilight Princess mentioned above, those characters did literally nothing else in the rest of the story. It was really cool to follow Sidon down the river to Zora's Domain, but that and the fight with Vah Ruta was all he had to do with anything. And those things didn't take that long. And it was even less in the case of the Rito village's story. I don't even remember that guy's name, he was in the game for so little. Basically, just like you said, I was COMPLETELY misled by the trailers. I thought we were going to fight an absolute war with the Guardians with all the races of Hyrule by our side. I will say, the exploring aspect of the game and the things you pointed out in your sound design video picked up the slack that the story elements left (and the exploration was THE BEST), the lacking story still left a hole in my experience, particularly after finishing the game. I said basically the same thing you did after defeating the last boss (and I really did like the cinematic second form): "Wait, that's it?" At least in Mario Odyssey, you got to see Peach travel the world to the various kingdoms that you'd been through previously; there was definitely post-game content there (LIKE THE MUSHROOM KINGDOM) that felt satisfying, to say the least. That was one thing I really liked about Paper Mario: TTYD. The ending was satisfying, and then you still got to go around and clean up everything else you didn't do before defeating the final boss, but the dialogue of the NPCs changed to acknowledge that you'd saved the world. And I don't always mind not being able to play a file post-final boss, but wouldn't it have been great in BotW? You could have had new side quests that helped rebuild parts of Hyrule Castle and the surrounding regions that were devastated by the earlier calamity, you could have had members of various races moving to other locations and diversifying the world in areas other than just Tarrey Town, and you could have had various celebration events in the different regions/towns celebrating the defeat of Ganon. I really felt like so much was missed in the story aspect to this game, and I'm glad you're honest and vocal about that as well. And I have to disagree with you on one thing here: I don't think that Zelda doesn't need voice acting. I just think that there wasn't enough done with her voice acting in this game that it didn't actually feel like it mattered in BotW. If we'd had a full-fledged story like I mentioned above, I think it would have been awesome to have an animated Zelda.

[@alexanderchilton911]

In retrospect, I actually like this game's story/characters - as I watch all the cutscenes and dlc memories in order.

[@GnykT]

In defense of the lackluster "development" in Link's memories: From a gameplay/plot perspective, I agree with you. However, I think the memories that matter the most to Link would involve the people he cared about. His meaningful memories, like many other people, focuses on quality time with loved ones. From this perspective, the "in-universe" perspective, it makes sense to me.

[@mii6619]

I respectfully disagree with your assessment of the story Big Blue... I won't bore you with my counterpoints but I don't think it is as bad as you think it is. Sincerely, a big fan of yours

[@DigiBrad]

The story is definitely not bad (and i personally love it), but i must admit that there could've been more, just more

[@mii6619]

I agree.. They could have done more.. But for me personally I liked the way it was done.. Allowing us to find the story and giving us just enough information to fill in the blanks.. My imagination was never before so stimulated by a game

[@Physictsdrumtoo]

The story does seem bare bones. Not character development. Not going into the lore of the divine beasts. I would’ve love to unlock additional cutscenes of a divine beast being built.

[@mii6619]

@@Physictsdrumtoo I would call the story cliche.. But not really bare boned.. because it's all there, It's pretty well hidden mind you but it's all there in Cutscenes NPCs and Journal entries.. But it is your standard redemption of the fallen hero story that is popular in anime..

[@MasonOfLife]

I agree

[@dfloriza]

I’m not sure where I stand in the community with this, but I did a 100% of this game and I wasn’t upset at the ending because I didn’t really pay attention to the ending. To me, the ending was the result - Ganon was defeated. What happens after is a moot point to me. If nothing happens after killing a terror that destroyed the world and raised hell for 100 years, I’m cool with it. It’s the era of calm. Nothing should happen. Most people would want something with more grandeur, but the ending made sense. There won’t be a gigantic celebration because everything was destroyed and only little pieces of civilization remain. It was still a hell of an experience 😄

[@bingobongo1615]

dfloriza Yes, yes, yes. People are spoiled a bit by a certain type of Hollywood movie ending - even if the ending is bad then there always must be a conclusion at the end. Reality is often different.

[@BagelSandwichMan]

I disagree with pretty much everything in the video but it is a good video anyway.

[@ChiliDUDE27]

My favorite memory in the game is the one where Zelda and Link are running through the rain and Zelda trips and begins lamenting about how she let everyone down. All the people who are dying and her failure to master her powers. The reason why I love that cutscene so much is because in most fantasy stories, when something like this happens, the character usually demonstrates hardened resolve. They stand back up and beat the big bad guy and the day is saved. But in this cutscene, Zelda's reaction to everything is very human and very understandable. She just... breaks down and starts crying. It was honestly kind of heartbreaking to watch and it's the depth of character this game needed so much more of.

[@acheman8836]

Great review. The story was good despite most of it was told by flashbacks, although not subtle, it was basically Zelda's journey, she blamed herself for not sealing away Ganon and only her love for Link triggered it by the end as hinted throughout the adventure which I love. I didn't mind the weapon durability system as it made my experience better but for the next one, I would prefer traditional dungeons, boss battles, a traditional soundtrack, a combat system as good as Wind Waker's, and magic to play a role again. Unlike Arlo, I personally didn't like that technology played a huge part in the game, I didn't like that all but they should keep the climbing, the puzzles and the exploration because all of this made this game so damn good despite by few criticisms and nit picks. Still a 9/10 from me. Edit : Skyward Sword's storyline was amazing and the best one in the series. I'm sure most would agree despite what they think of the game itself.

[@moodinessrants6695]

I don’t think I’ve ever disagreed with Arlo on something this hard. To me, the memories were used to tell the story of Zelda’s growth. Breath of the Wild was her story, seen through Links’s eyes. I feel like the simplicity of the scenes they chose was intentional. They wanted to focus on the quieter moments, to draw attention to the subtle character moments, rather than just animating fights we know happen anyway. And the ending was perfect to me. But hey, to each their own I guess.

[@Nin-Tanner]

Yay! Another video! By the way, how many parts will there be?

[@Nin-Tanner]

😱

[@elijahberthume4325]

• Nin-Tanner • he’s joking, it’s reference to Shane Dawson Jake Paul series

[@Nin-Tanner]

Oh. :(

[@squareeggs3869]

I wish I could have over 4 hours of alro talking about botw

[@chloetolp6177]

He said 7-8 parts at his retropalooza panel

[@Nen_niN]

"Ah, Spoompls, you're here too. Outstanding" - Zeldas Dad

[@stevenn1940]

Let me preface this with two things. One, I haven't played the second part of the dlc. Just haven't gotten to it again (had to make a new save. New switch and all). Second, I respect you arlo, and your opinion, and up until this point have agreed with nearly everything you've said in this analysis of BotW. But my good sir, let me just say that on this occassion, on this particular subject, our opinions couldn't be any more different. First of all: You kept saying how you were irritated by how they were telling you about how X Y and Z things happened, like how link got wounded, but that you didn't get to actually see it, or the epic fight. But frankly, I can hear you saying it now if they did do that: "the cutscenes were cool and all, but honestly, it's storytelling 101: let the player DO it, don't show it." Look at that line and honestly think to yourself if that isn't exactly what you would say, if say, they showed link fighting off 10 guardians before being wounded. And honestly, I kind of prefer this method of storytelling: You're picking up fragments of events that happened a century ago *to you*. And letting the player know X thing happened, but not showing it (such as link getting wounded) lets the imagination go wild, and can't be disappointed if what is shown isn't as, essentially, good as you imagined. Secondly, I like the voice acting. All of it. Zelda and Mipha were two of the strongest ones, also. I hope they continue to do voice acting, essentially exactly like this for the rest of the series. Using voice acting to accentuate important moments, and text for the rest is a method that's been used for many MANY years, and one I appreciate. Especially if I don't like the voice actors. Putting up with a voice actor I don't like for a few cutscenes sprinkled throughout 100+ hours? Easy enough. Putting up with that same VA every few minutes for 100+ hours? I'll pass. Plus, at the end of the day, you can mute the game, and read the subtitles, if it really does bother you that much. And third, and finally, why I was actually happy with the plot and the ending, and all that in between: Because this game is good. Not just the gameplay and such, but because, for example, if they showed all those awesome things you kept wanting to see, people would inevibitally ask "why am I not playing THAT? THAT looks cool." Telling but not showing is usually something that isn't a good thing. But showing is worse when it will literally undermine everything you're doing. This game is taking place in the aftermath. But if you're spending the entire time wanting to play the events prior, and not the game you have, isn't it all the worse for it? By the way, I'm not fanboying, or bashing arlo. This is honestly the first 3d zelda game I've played in years (did play link between worlds. Which had a far more active, and far worse story than this one.). The last one I played was probably twilight princess, and ocarina of time before that. And out of those 3, I prefer this story the most. And honestly, I didn't really see the trailers. The only thing I remember seeing from any trailer at all, was the scene where zelda cried into links arms/lap. And honestly, I'm a little bit of a sucker for amnesia stories. It's a trope, but one I like, and it's extremely well done here.

[@lawthirtyfour2953]

I think he would be saying he would have rather played it himself but he would still enjoy it far more if he ATLEAST got to see it. Playing it is 100 points, Seeing it is 50 and just hearing about it is -10 basically. I thought basically all the character interaction was weak though, So I want anything that would make the memories worth watching. Also, I am actually scared that the voice acting keeps going like this, I thought it was so bad it made me angry just to witness it. I would rather the npcs get voices and the important moments remain voiceless because it means the voice acting ruins the most important scenes.

[@stevenn1940]

@@lawthirtyfour2953 I frankly don't get why some people don't like the voice acting. Like, really. The only one that's weak at all is zelda herself, and it's a slightly weak performance.

[@Kojo220]

I agree with you, but I do understand a bit where Arlo's coming from. I thought the story was presented in fun way; finding a new memory was one of the most rewarding parts of the experience. The ending could've been a bit longer, or being able to run around in a post-Ganon Hyrule would've been a cool feature, but I'm satisfied with what I got. I also made it a point to not watch ANY trailers or promotion material before playing the game. Had I done so, I think I would've been slightly disappointed.

[@petery6432]

Honestly, I thought Revali and Urbosa had the strongest voice actors. I always though Mipha and Zelda had the weakest voices of the characters (Although they are still miles above Yunobo.)

[@yoshiminer4289]

These are some of the best videos you have made on the channel. You describe Breath of the Wild with such detail and passion (and of course some criticisms!), that I’m always interested throughout the whole video! And this is kind of strange since I’m so used to seeing your puppet self, as well as whole bunch of jokes, but I think the lack of these things helps highlight the sole focus of your video, which is of course Breath of the Wild. I wouldn’t want every video structured like this, but if you ever want to do something similar to this again, I’d say go for it! I don’t know how much you read through the comments on each video, but if you see this, just know that you’re doing an amazing job!

[@Alufear]

I think the reason the story didn't resonate at all with me was because of some of that good old ludonarrative dissonance. We're TOLD that Ganon's power is growing and that what we're doing is vital to saving Hyrule, but the game barely portrays that at all. Hyrule is a paradise of lush forests, rolling mountains, beautiful lakes, and most importantly, THRIVING villages and cities.The Divine Beasts are treated more like mild inconveniences by the townspeople instead of impending threats, and Ganon's influence over monsters doesn't seem to go any farther than new colors and higher health bars. I honestly never felt that my actions in BotW mattered, because barely any of the NPCs seem to care about Zelda or Ganon, and everyone who DID care is dead. Nobody cares about what you're doing or the world around them, the threat is impotent and never escalates, and the characters we should feel attached to are cardboard cutouts with little to no impact on the story.

[@firenze6424]

Also no real dungeons cave exploration heart pieces or upgradable weapons that don’t explode in 3 hits enemy variety meh music for a Zelda game and ZERO ITEM PROGRESSING!

[@alexh8503]

this

[@BologneyT]

That's a valid way to feel. But... what about all the RUINS? Everything in central Hyrule, (so no more central trade hubs or farms) plus most places elsewhere, are in ruins. Not to mention monster infested. And guardians and Divine Beasts, too. Paradise is kind of a strong term, just because Ganon only seems to target humanoids and not nature. The people do at least seem to take Vah Ruta as an impending threat, as IT IS messing up Zora's Domain. But I guess people are doing what we should expect them to 100 years after a calamity. They've rebuilt and moved on with their lives, found ways to avoid monsters they have to live with somehow, and I guess it's realistic that most people mostly care about whatever their daily affairs are. You're right that most people in the game don't care about Zelda or Ganon, and everyone who DID care is dead, and that feels kinda weird for a game now that I think about it.

[@patricksanchez1684]

The end about the story not being what we thought it would be and them taking the most exciting ideas for trailers is exactly how I felt about MGSV

[@PokemanzMasturAithen]

"Spoompls" Arlo for Guest Grumps confirmed.

[@Genguidanos]

I thought Breath of the Wild had one of the strongest stories in the Zelda series. It succeeded in the same ways and for a lot of the same reason that Majora's Mask did. It eschews a focus on plot for a focus on setting and tone. It tells its narrative through its environment and through the interaction with that environment and the characters, inviting the players to construct their own stories at their own pace. That's why in the months following the games release, the internet was flooded with videos of fun and amazing things people found they could do and discover in the game, rather than just videos of prearranged cutscenes. In, my mind at least, I feel that's much more important for a video game than how many plot twists it has or how cool the action is in a cutscene that you can't actually play. Also it has hands down the best Zelda in the series. We get to see an actual character arc for her and see her relationship with Link develop naturally. It's probably the only Zelda game in the series other than Spirit Tracks that makes Zelda feel like a part of the whole game, rather then someone we just deal with at the start and at the end. It really is her story this time, as much as Link's.

[@jadimich]

*BOTTOM LINE: Don't play Zelda games for the narrative, because that's kind of missing the point.* Shigeru Miyamoto himself, the man who created the franchise and knows more about what makes a good video game than all of the armchair game critics out there, once said that world-building and the ability of the player to PLAY creatively are the most important things. That's why an overarching story/narrative has almost never been prominent in Zelda games. With the exception of maybe Skyward Sword, it's always more about the world itself and the quirky-but-lovable NPCs you run into. It's no different with BotW, where MIyamoto said Aonuma and his team focused more on making it about *going on an adventure* than playing a story. Don't believe me? Visit both links below. If you are getting so disappointed about lack of a guided, cohesive story, I propose to you that maybe you are playing the wrong type of game. Go play The Witcher III or Red Dead Redemption 2 if a strong narrative is important to you. www.eurogamer.net/articles/miyamoto-world-beats-story-in-games www.ign.com/articles/2017/02/13/zelda-creator-shigeru-miyamoto-explains-the-importance-of-story-in-games

[@oyeh8908]

Gameplay is always the most important part of a game, but a good story can make it even more memorable. A basic story that doesn't require much development is fine, but if a developer decides the story will play a big role in the game it's annoying when the potential is squandered.

[@jadimich]

@@oyeh8908 I hear what you are saying, but I just disagree with the idea that "potential" was squandered in regards to Breath's story. It presumes that Aonuma and his team decided that story would be a big focus, when there is nothing indicating that. Visit the links I provided. Miyamoto pretty much outright said that story was not the focus. The bottom line is that Zelda games aren't about the narrative. With the glaring exception of Skyward Sword, story has always taken a backseat. Incidentally, Skyward Sword is also the 2nd worst selling core entry in the franchise, yet it released on the best-selling Nintendo console of all time and the 3rd overall best-selling game console of all time (the Wii). So, take that as you will. I will say, I actually agree with a lot of the other commenters here. I think Breath's story was actually one of the strongest in franchise history, even if it once again was not a heavy focus of the game. But, there's no satisfying some people.

[@hanakoisbestgirl4752]

Miyamoto is slowly proving he going becoming a senile blowhard. I used to think he was amazing for the stuff he created but as time as gone on he has done more and more to just piss me off

[@ThePerfectKiosk]

The owl guy in other Zelda games is supposedly an incarnation of the king of Hyrule, so he's TECHNICALLY been seen a few more times than it seems.

[@rogueelk4988]

Yea yea, but Zelda is thicc.

[@xenobestx8423]

Rogue Elk Play the Xenoblade games if you want to experience... *THAT*

[@eusticom5821]

10/10 IGN

[@epooders]

Thicc Zelda = Best Zelda

[@pyroshell5652]

Dat personality.

[@ciancaffrey7375]

That gurodo bitch tho

[@Seroth969]

I think the Story chunks had exactly the correct percentage for a Zelda game. Also liked the voice acting! Nice Video arlo

[@k1productions87]

The problem here is cultural. You clearly approach from an American perspective (and you are not wrong in doing so) in where a big sweeping adventure must have an equally grand and impactful conclusion to get that satisfying payoff. This is simply the way we do things. This game however is clearly trying much harder to stick to the Japanese storytelling style over the typical Americanization. Studio Ghibli films are a good example. The impact and satisfaction is in the journey itself, not the conclusion, for it is the journey that builds the characters and forms the biggest impact of the story being told. This is prevalent in what I have called the "Miyazaki ending" where it just kinda ends, and while it is true there is nothing really more that needs to be said or done, American audiences would expect some kind of big payoff that they don't get. This is exactly what happens in Breath of the Wild. It was created with the Japanese audience in mind, moreso than the American. And again... they are not necessarily "wrong" in doing so, it is simply something we are not used to. To say it was simply a lack of effort is however wrong. They knew exactly what they were doing with the ending, it just is a bit of a culture clash that doesn't quite jive with how we perceive story structure. Much the same way at how the silent and stoic character denotes a kind of heroic strength for the Japanese, but comes off brooding and emo for Americans (case in point, Metroid Other M, in which A LOT was lost in the translation). To say "try harder next time" is not a fair statement to make. It would be more accurate to ask for them to keep the American audience in mind to a greater degree next time.

[@lalehiandeity1649]

K1productions Judging from the trailer to the sequel, they’re upping the Japanese cultural influence.

[@quinnsinclair7028]

OoT, ALttP, and MM all had quite but satisfying endings. BotW's wasn't bad, it was absent. It didn't conclude anything. Link and Zelda are on a hill, she says "come with me" he goes, it ends. There no material there to work with.

[@k1productions87]

@@quinnsinclair7028 Material to work with? The very fact it didn't provide a definitive end GIVES them lots of material to work with. The only thing that was book-ended was Ganon, everything else was left wide open. Even with the ending, it appeared clear the next step was to rebuild Hyrule. And honstely I would have loved a Zelda adventure where the entire world was like the Tarrey Town concept, gathering materials and finding people to return to the ruins of Castle Town and build it anew.

[@quinnsinclair7028]

@@k1productions87 That's kind of the problem. An ending is supposed, you know, end. Leaving room for a sequel is all well and good but there is a huge difference between that and just not including an ending and saying "oh, we'll fix it in the sequel". Can you name any other story that simply stops after the climax without any kind of conclusion?

[@k1productions87]

@@quinnsinclair7028 Hmm, ever seen Lord of the Rings? Its not about "we'll fix it in the sequel" rather "we left it open FOR the sequel"

[@DazonVA]

5:50 ARLO YOU JUST BLEW MY FREAKING MIND

[@holdenarledge9672]

Finally. The one I’ve been waiting for. The ending wasn’t perfect, an I look forward to your thoughts.

[@seekingsolutions7078]

I personally really enjoyed the story. I liked the voice acting and the ending was beautiful and poetic. It ends in a "breath" so to speak.

[@wobbuffet1358]

What's pretty funny is that when i first started breath of the wild i took a pretty long break after i left the great plateau. So when I returned to the game, the only thing i knew i had to do was to free the beasts since my friends had told me about their experience with the game. So the first beast I freed was Vah Medoh (since that was the only one I could see). What's even funnier is that I didn't see the main quest "talk to impa" until after I had already freed 2 and begun the quest in gerudo desert lol

[@Existential_Tempest]

A couple of things. Firstly, in terms of voice acting, I would point to Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia as an example of a fully voiced cast adding an immense amount to an experience. The nature of the Fire Emblem series, half of whose core conceit is character interaction, makes voice acting a natural choice as it allows its characters to feel more genuine. As for the acting itself, while I cannot speak for the Japanese version, on the English side of things Intelligent Systems was able to bring in such talents as Erica Lindbeck (Celica), Cherami Leigh (Mae), Patrick Seitz (Zeke) and Ian Sinclair (Berkut), to name just a few, and couple them with excellent direction. The result is seamless, engaging and excellent. As for Breath of the Wild's ending, I have maintained for a while that there was one huge trick that was missed on the part of the designers: why wasn't there a postgame? This would have allowed two things to happen: one, it would have allowed the player to see the results of their actions in defeating Ganon in the organic style of the entire rest of the game, and two, it would have removed the necessity for players to complete everything that they wanted to before beating Ganon, something that entirely undermines the urgency of Link's quest. A postgame needn't have been extensive - a few quests centred around the idea of rebuilding Hyrule, a new line of text for each NPC, perhaps Zelda as an NPC herself roaming around the castle's ruins - because anything like that at all would have gone a long way to answering the questions that were posed at the video's end.

[@Coffe789]

Existential Tempest An endgame would have been nice, but it just wouldn't have made sense. With Ganon gone there would be no blood moons, no agro guardians, and a whole bunch of the story just wouldn't make sense anymore. A whole bunch of dialogue would need to be changed, and cutscenes removed. What happens with the divine beasts? How about obtaining the master sword? Coding this would be an enormous undertaking, and removing enemies + quests would probably just make the game worse. To top it all off, Zelda games just generally don't have post-games. It sucks, but it was also expected.

[@birdflox1337]

i think the memories really give you a good idea of how link and zelda feel like they're responsible for hundreds, if not thousands of deaths, and the collapse of hyrule. zelda does everything she can, yet she still ends up losing to ganon, causing her to break down. link tried to fight ganon to help hyrule and zelda, but got wounded and had to rest for 100 years while being unable to help the people he had doomed. however, when zelda and link come together and fight for one another, they have the perfect amount of motivation needed to finally beat ganon.

[@Elliottallen]

Dude.....Zelda killed link with that explosion. I thought that was pretty obvious

[@corruptedteka]

I haven't seen many people that think that, but it's definitely an interesting interpretation !

[@Rainygirl3100]

I adored the final battle, it really wowed me and really gave me the feeling that I was saving the world from a major threat. Seeing Ganon in a form of pure hatred TOWERING over you really gave a sense of urgency. But, I will agree that I really wanted more after the fact. I wanted to see Hyrule restored after all of its hardship, and see the princess and Link travel around helping the Hyrulean races out. I felt so empty after the credits rolled, like I wanted to keep playing a game that wasn't there.

[@macnamaryb7773]

How did you adore Dark Beast Ganon? NOTHING HAPPENS. "Oh, but he looks so cool". Yes, but does he do anything? No. For a boss that is supposed to be the physical manifestation of hate (the single most powerful emotion) and the true final form of Ganon, I don't see anything remarkable. Or fun. I literally haven't played the game in months because Ganon sapped all of my will to replay the game.

[@Rainygirl3100]

@@macnamaryb7773 It's called having an opinion. You seem to be well aware of it. I loved Dark Beast Ganon and the fight felt epic to me, even though you didn't like it. There's nothing else to say lol, let people enjoy harmless things that they like

[@SoliKareien]

You sorta mentioned it, but my biggest gripe about the characters in the Breath of the Wild is that you're simply /told/ you care about these people, not that you actually grew around them. I, as the player, have never met or interacted with Mipha, why should I care that Link did and why is it so important that she pilots the Divine Beast? I, as the player, have met with Prince Sidon and interacted with him in many ways. The two of us worked together to save Zora's Domain and surmount the Divine Beast. It would be so much more meaningful to me as a player to know that this guy I've been building a relationship with, is now the one piloting the Divine Beast, that they're going to be the one defending my back as I go into the battle that nearly killed "me" 100 years before. We spend so much time building a relationship with living characters in the world /as the player/ and then these characters are just sort of discarded once you've freed the "Champions." It would have so much more impact if there was a more personal connection to the Champions. The dead ones, I never met and I don't know them. These living people I found in the world helped me as I helped them with their troubles, and it would have been amazing to recruit them as a new Champion.

[@thelegendofstonecoldstevea3205]

THIS SO MUCH! I so wanted to see what happened to Yunobo and such after I beat Ganon but all I got was zilch.

[@BologneyT]

That's an amazing opinion. Thinking about it, maybe that's why IRL great people of the past are always forgotten: Sure, they were great, but we all have living people we've actually shared this world with, and that we built relationships with. It's different in BotW's situation, though but still. I think everyone's feelings about BotW's story really boils down to whether they were able to like the Champions or not.

[@MasonOfLife]

I actually like seeing the characters interacting rather than just action cutscenes

[@skullcidd]

Dawn of the final review 22 minutes remain

[@princegoatcheese9379]

I actually forgot about that ending. It was like "BIG GANON FIGHT TO END IT ALL", and then, "Thank you! Hope you had fun! The exit is located in the gift shop."