PS4:
-Bioshock (Remastered) - 8.5 / 10
-Bioshock 2 (Remastered) - 9 / 10
-Bioshock: Infinite (Remastered) - 9 / 10
-Bioshock: Infinite's DLC Burial At Sea: Episode 1 (Remastered) - 8.5 / 10
Nintendo Switch:
-The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - 9.5 / 10
I finally finished The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for the Nintendo Switch, finished it off yesterday. I had the game for almost a month (since launch, the 3rd of March 2017) and aside from a few breaks of playing Horizon Zero Dawn on the PS4, Breath of the Wild is what I focused on playing the most.
Short version: It's got a few minor issues, but it's the best Zelda game I have ever played and one of the best games I've ever played in general. Amazing, near perfect title. 9.5 out of 10.
Long version: Absolutely loved this game. Hyrule is bloody huge this time around, offering an imaginative and expansive environment. Exploring this fantasy world was one of my favourite things about this game, and I really appreciated the scale, as well as the sense of discovery and reward involved.
I liked the simplicity of the game's story, as in, how there was little hand holding or overall guidance. Again, this appealed to the whole "sense of discovery" for me. As soon as you leave the Great Plateau (the game's starting point), you can go almost anywhere you want. I liked how the game didn't force you to go to this temple first, then that temple etc. No longer was the route A to B.
Visually, the game looked amazing. Sure, it doesn't have the graphics of Horizon Zero Dawn, nor does the Switch have the power of a PS4, but Nintendo insured that Breath of the Wild had an incredible art direction. I loved the simple, mostly piano style soundtrack too. It matched the game beautifully.
The shrines were a lot of fun. I liked how short they were, how each and every shrine was just a puzzle. It was cool.
The cooking mechanic was pretty fun too.
So, while I loved this game... a few small gripes.
The weapon durability system was an interesting mechanic that at times, would be frustrating. Some weapons couldn't even last an entire fight against one foe.
Riding a horse felt clumsy. I had unlocked Epona (one of the best horses in the game) using a friend's Amiibo, and despite having a maximum bond level right off the bat, controlling Epona felt awkward. I hardly rode horses in Breath of the Wild.
Combat wasn't all too fun, actually. I enjoyed all the boss battles, but fighting regular enemies felt annoying. Enemies were often quite fast, capable of lunging away from you, so I found I would often be trying to chase enemies who would just run away and attack from a distance (those damn lizards). I didn't like how the end of a combo attack would always knock the enemy away, thus creating further distance, resulting in me having to chase them again.
I heard people experienced bugs while playing Breath of the Wild... luckily for me, I experienced none. The closest bug I suffered is that my game did once crash on me, forcing me to restart my Switch.
Regardless of these issues, this is the best Zelda game I've ever played and one of the best games I've ever played in general. This is a real contender for Game of the Year.
9.5 out of 10.
