
Well, there we have it - Nintendo showed us many hours of footage from the newly named The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild after a short opening salvo of Pokémon Sun and Moon. The Treehouse team, with special guests including Shigeru Miyamoto and Eiji Aonuma, showed a lot of the underlying mechanics and gameplay of the 2017 Wii U / NX release. The area on show was also impressive in scope, which is remarkably only a fraction of the game world (according to Eiji Aonuma).
From the initial reveal trailer to the extensive showcase from the Treehouse team, we saw a lot of what the title will have to offer. Outside of showcasing the game there were few 'gotcha' reveals in the live stream, outside of new amiibo, though Nintendo's press release and websites did reveal some release dates and even Mario Party Star Rush for 3DS, which will be shown on day two (Paper Mario: Color Splash will also be shown off).

We'll have a lot of features, editorials and - yes - hands on impressions in the hours and days to come, but first off we want to know what you think. Did Nintendo triumph with its day of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild? Let us know in the polls and comments below.
Comments 206
Gotta say better than last year with only 1 game (pokemon doesn't count...it never did)
I wanted to say I'm excited for it.....but then my concerns outweighed the first vote.....
Enough said.
This is a day 1 buy for me
They may not have flashed many games about, but Zelda seems to be the big highlight if E3 so far. All they need to add is a single NX screenshot to really whet people's appetites and encourage NX and Zelda preorders.
@Nin10doh Why doesn't it count? It's just as proper of a game series as any other, and Sun and Moon are improving leaps and bounds over X and Y.
I want this to go down in history here. If Nintendo EVER says they are rocking up to E3 with only one game on the show floor to be playable and they are devoting a whole day to showing it off, there wont be much spoilers, and we wont even scratch the surface after 6 hours.
It's not that they didn't have other announcements and games to show, it's how the hell do you realistically work THIS into a shorter presentation style.
Day one purchase.
Zelda U isn't very technically impressive imo (NX can probably fix that), but the artstyle and atmosphere is definitely keeping my interest. Sony still won I think, but Zelda by itself was way, way, way more impressive than anything that EA, Bethesda, or Ubisoft had to show.
Also, bonus points for that Wolf Link functionality. Nintendo finally implemented amiibo right in that regard, and it looks really cool.
Well as far as showing off one (technically two) game goes I'd say it went as well as it possibly could. The lack of new games will always make this particular E3 a bit sour, but thankfully Zelda exceeded my expectations (though seems to have divided others like every other entry). On the other hand a game this enticing doesn't make the wait for NX and everything else next year any easier.
Slipping Pokemon into that Zelda sandwich was a little odd, but totally Nintendo. BotW looks fantastic.
Zelda was amazing!
That's it.
I saw Zelda and stopped watching their E3 as I had no reason to continue if they weren't bringing anything else. I like LOZ but I don't love it. If you enjoyed Nintendo's E3, cool. Personally I think one game isn't going to give them the win, even if Zelda is that good.
I'm getting this game. I've had it preordered since last year. But I'm more excited for Sun/Moon and the other 3DS games. I'm not a big home console player really. At least this year with a baby to look after. Maybe once my third child is in school and the baby is able to take naps during the day for longer than 10 mins, I might be able to play games that I don't need a portable to play lol.
Zelda seems to be inspired by games like The Witcher with the Armor giving Defense and weapons breaking and giving Attack stats. So now instead of just getting a green, blue and red tunic we can wear multiple clothing giving different defense and other bonus like ice resistance.
It also seems to take part in the Wind Waker timeline with the Korok showing up.
They did decent work. Breath Of The Wild looks amazing, but despite that they could've done a whoooole lot more, and it's FAR from the best E3 ever. I guess 2014's still remains 1#.
It might have actually pushed me to pre-order the NX when it's announced later this year (hoping there's a Zelda bundle, but I don't remember that with the Wii).
Really liked that last Shrine outside of the Plateau (and Chiko - can she just play all of the games from now on?!), the art style is gorgeous in motion and the subtlety of the soundtrack is a huge difference from most games (even Nintendo's).
I'm excited for zelda, it looks really interesting and completely different from what I'm used to in a Zelda game. I didn't watch all of the footage though because I love exploring and didn't want a lot of the scenery or areas to be spoiled.
I'm really looking forward to pokemon, I'm excited for all the new features.
There are a lot of nintendo games coming out soon that I'm really excited for.
@MarinoKadame Multiple clothing and hairstyles by the looks of it.
I went absolutely crazy when I saw the reveal trailer. SOO EPIC!
I will say though, my only gripe was for Nintendo to show some NPC/towns/etc. I know they specifically said they didn't want to show any plot-lines, but it could have snuck in quick flashes into the main trailer... just to keep the naysayers happy. Definitely not expecting that stuff in the demo though.
But overall, I absolutely loved the trailer. Hope there is more depth to the game than the demo alluded (I know they wanted to keep it simple and focus on the game world). I'm sure there will be though, it is Zelda after all.
Also, lastly. I'm curious to know what the mechanic is in this game. That's maybe not the right word, but what I mean is there's a 3-day cycle in MM, 7-year cycle in OoT, time travel in Oracle of Ages, etc.
My personal thoughts are that since Link is supposed to "wake up", that he was in stasis, and from a different era. I think there is DEFINITELY A TIME TRAVEL MECHANIC to this game, or something of that sort.
But hey everyone, WE GOT ZELDA TODAY
Looks like witcher 3 with a Zelda coat of paint. I'm sold!!!!
It was a huge gamble to put so much stake into a single title, but without a doubt it's paid off in spades because this is looking to be a phenomenal title that honours the series hallmarks, whilst breathing in fresh air.
it definitely is a triumph by any other game series' standards. the only question here is, "did they make the greatest game of all time, again?"
Call me a dumbhead, but barf.
THIS is the Wii U's final swan song!?
Bye, Felicia (i mean Nintendo)
The trailers at E3 kicked ass this year. Forza Horizon 3, Halo Wars 2, now LoZ: Breath of the Wild...can't wait for the fantastic game lineup!
There's many positives from what they've shown.. however I hope they utilise their time well to improve the look & polish of the title to make heads turn.. here's hoping the NX is a beast and pushes this baby well
No matter how good Zelda looked, showing 2 games is not enough in my books. I have nothing to be hyped about for this year. I would have LOVED more info on games already announced like the Metroid game and their future VC plans. But we got 2 games. This just felt like a "Sorry about the Wii U" presentation.
It looked nice, but it was what everyone was expecting. There was nothing impressive or anything new, passable performance from ninendo.
@Yrreiht totally agree with you.. speaking of Metroid.. the NX better be a suped up killer beast.. Metroid deserves a huge AAA release that'll be an industry poster child - Prime was killer for its time.. but time has passed.. they need to rock the boat again. It's about damn time Nintendo.
Game looks incredible and I can't wait for it. Still, for me E3 will always be about a bonanza of announcements and surprises. I really missed having an actual digital event, and I hope it's back next year.
Not sure, to both.
I'm not surprised the overwhelmingly positive vote is winning on a Nintendo-focused website. I liked it but I need to see a lot more to justify a purchase. Open world games are a dime a dozen, it's what you do with it that makes you stand out and honestly Zelda is just not standing out right now. Take away the name and you have yet another open world title.
I think it's obvious that Nintendo firmly believes that they have something special here. Who am I to question that? I think we need to appreciate that Nintendo has taken a big chance here and they have clearly pulled away from the formula. From what I watched, it reminds me a bit of the Witcher 3. But when I played the Witcher 3 for the first time, I thought of it as the 'M-rated Zelda', and maybe that's why I enjoyed it so much. I remember when I was playing and I found myself saying 'oh, it'd be cool if they had that in the next Zelda game'.
I almost see this game as if the format of the original Legend of Zelda from the NES had translated over and gotten to evolve in 3D instead of having the series stuck in the "3 dungeons-plot twist-more dungeons-endgame" pattern. I feel like this is the natural progression of the original Legend of Zelda.
I've been excited about this game ever since they first announced they were working on a new Zelda game. It'll be a day one buy for me. Would love to get some info on the story and some characters and I'd like to see some towns too. But, I'm happy with what I saw.
As for Nintendo's E3... er... showing two games just doesn't cut it for me. But with the Wii U on the way out... can you blame them? They probably don't have a lot to show that isn't NX related. I would have liked to have seen Paper Mario Color Splash though.
I think Sony brought the heat again this year. Next year with the NX will be definitely be the E3 to watch though. Metroid is coming, I just know it.
They really only showed two games with one being released later this year and another next year so there still is the drought of quality games coming for Nintendo.
@MrYuzhai After having no real mario, zelda or animal crossing on wii u, I really like to hope so.
And yes zelda is coming and theyve made plenty of remakes while we wait, but BotW is coming at the end of the wii u life cycle. Why should anyone buy one when the NX is out.
Totally euphoric!
I prefer Nintendo showing off one breathtaking game for a long period rather than showing several games that don't interest me at all like last year (except for Starfox Zero I guess).
I resent the idea that any company can "win" or "lose" in E3, I think that's a disgusting way of thinking.
@Gamecubed I understand but as a fan and someone who purchased a wii u, i cant say im happy
@MrYuzhai Can't wait to see how much potential the NX has. If the Wii U truly is at the end of its line, the NX should use Nintendo's full list of IPs to avoid a second disappointment.
I feel like this Zelda title has the potential to be the next Ocarina of Time, by that I mean a complete refresh of the series, like OOT did.
Went in with the lowest of expectations, came out like a giddy idiot that couldn't stop thinking about how amazing Zelda U was.
Sure, there was the frustrating lack of new software (or even software at all) but I think Nintendo did a nice job not raising people's expectations like they did last year. Can't wait for this game's release.
@shani Thank you for that. I'll will always say that gamers win E3, not the companies. This E3 was pretty decent, to boot. Fighting over which company had the best showing is just as dumb as fanboyism.
They've still got plenty of time to add loads of polish to this. It's probably at about 70% at the moment. They'll probably mess around with it a lot more after E3. It looks VAST! As usual we'll hear more from the 2% than the people who are more excited.
Predicting carnage in here after they show Paper Mario again though...
2 games at E3 is not enough !! specially zelda Wii U ANNOUCED 2 years ago and a pokemon game that looks like any other pokemon game ( x y and omega & alpha )is not enough ... no new games its even worst than last year ! i think next year E3 will be amazing with NX and lots of games !! but so far this year worst than last year for me ... i was shocked no confress or digital event like last year
This is THE game of E3 for me. God, its been awhile, but it looks like Nintendo is producing another masterpiece (we haven't really had one of those since Super Mario Galaxy). This is the side of Nintendo I love: the side that takes chances and goes for the moon.
I am wondering how much graphical disparity there'll be between the Wii U and NX version, though.
as nice as Zelda looks it's unimpressive on the whole since it'll likely preform better on the NX anyway.
So in all, they seem content to abandon the WiiU fanbase.
Sad there weren't any surprises. I could've used a pick-me-up. Been a rough month.
@HeroOfTime32 I can't say you're wrong, but I could point out that Link has to be awakened at the start of most Zeldas. He's a really lazy guy until the adventure kicks in!
My only dislike was shooting game and having it turned into a fully-cooked piece of food. Hunting isn't realistic in any game, but if you're going to do it, make Link collect raw meat.
Zelda had a very shirtless reveal.... All joking aside the game looks INCREDIBLE! I hope future Nintendo titles play like this game!
If i learned something about the E3 is that some people can't be pleased in any way (Link is too small. Link is too tall. There's so much grass. There's no enough grass. Zelda loves Link. Zelda is a lesbian...) and they haven't played the game yet.
Alot of responses on this site and other talk about this being a Witcher/Skyrim clone. This to me just shows that people responding are either new to video games or just need to remember games that came before, not just in recent years.
I say that because as I read these comparisons, my first thought was The Legend of Zelda for NES was one of the first sandbox go where you want games I can recall.
There might have been one before that also.
I remember when every new MMO was called a World of Warcraft clone because of the same reasons.
Ah well, just a silly rant to add to the current ones.
I am excited for it, I will be getting it, that is all that matters.
The trailer was amazing, it was everything I expected and more. I'd say day 1 buy for me, but I'm not sure which console to get it on
While more games is usually better, I rather have just one that completely blows my mind, than several "good" games I may or may not care about.
Yeah, a lot of people will say Sony or Microsoft won E3 but this one single game has me more excited than any of the other conferences this year.
This game looks incredible already and we've only seen the smallest fraction of it. I think it really gives off an 'original LoZ' vibe, it's a huge open world and they basically just let you loose in it.
I'm going to get so lost
I still feel like they should've had more new games to show, but you can easily see why they felt so confident about this game for it to anchor their presentation. The size and scope of this game is inconceivable.
@WiltonRoots: Yeah and people shouldn't forget, this was just a small fraction of the whole map and this small fraction alone is said to be so big that people can't explore this fully during E3.
I guess it could be even bigger than XCX?
Loved the world and items, but want to here more about the storyline and charcters
@shani I hope so
Game looks great. Kind of a lonely, low tech XBCX world to explore and a single player masterpiece. Also Nintendo is showing more games tomorrow so the just 2 games talk isn't overly accurate. It will be interesting to see what other announcements we get the next 2 days.
To be honest I hope a new Metroid is similar but instead of the different environments they have different planets to explore
Having enjoyed today.....it was slow, at times boring and it was only 2 games. The pr announcements could have been snippets in between the sessions and they could have added short bits in between to help. I'd give it an ehhh ok and Im hoping tomorrow has some surprises and a decent Tokyo Mirage Sessions treehouse
Breath of the Wild basically just guaranteed my pre-order of an NX.
Which really shouldn't surprise me, my last 3 Nintendo consoles were all bought with the release of Zelda.
Any hope for MG3 or Pikmin 4? Probably not, but still expect MK8 DLC and Mother 3
I think these polls are pointless and meaningless on websites like Nintendolife. 90% of the readers are Nintendo fanboy and would swallow whatever Nintendo throws at them. Same go for Sony-specific websites, Xbox-specific websites, and so on. Put this on a more general website like GameFaqs, IGN, and such, and you'd get entirely different (and more meaningful) results.
@PK_Boss11: Actually, when I was playing XCX, I was hoping that Breath of the Wild's world would be a bit smaller but in return more polished and better looking. Well looks like they achieved exactly that, it looks way more polished than XCX and absolutely beautiful!
And does the Shekiah Slab being the game pad confirm that Zelda NX have a handheld component?
Hell yeah! They're back! Easily their most ambitious game ever and I hope it succeeds. I do think they've borrowed a bit from Monster Hunter and Xenoblade Chronicles but there's nothing wrong with that..
But overall I need to make a balanced assessment in the cold light of day once the initial euphoria has worn off. Tomorrow's another day. Let's see what it brings in terms of new announcements.
But hey, you can both glide and snowboard down mountainsides on a shield. What's not to love about that?
Excuse the quality, that's not an official screenshot. It's a photo taken with my phone of a video paused on my TV and it still looks great.
The new Legend of Zelda was just amazing...but it's only one game...at E3. I think that is just unforgivable
@mariovslink62 if they was looking to win they would have brought the nx and launch games.just sayin
@JpGamerGuy90
"I'm not surprised the overwhelmingly positive vote is winning on a Nintendo-focused website"
You should be. This crowd angrily decries half the crap Nintendo shows nowadays. This is the first time in AGES I've seen such an overwhelming concensus over a game. And for good reason.
"honestly Zelda is just not standing out right now. Take away the name and you have yet another open world title."
I'm sorry but that's just hogwash there. I own every console and handheld this generation, I own pretty much every open world game there is. And the LAST thing Zelda Breath of the Wild is, is "just another open world game".
No. "Just another open world game" is stuff like GTA/Watch Dogs/Far Cry. This is Zelda. It's about as different as it gets. Not only is the artstyle amazing, the world drop-dead gorgeous and the dungeon puzzles amazing, but they've improved this game in every conceivable way! The whole Darksiders thing goin on with upgraded weapons/equipment is EXACTLY what I and others have always wanted. Cooking raw meat for steaks like Monster Hunter? Creating fires, chopping trees, you can climb anything, go anywhere, pick apples off any tree...
I'm sorry, I loved Sony's God of War and Horizon Zero Dawn, I loved Microsoft's Halo Wars 2 and Forza Horizon 3. But this?
This tops them all.
@Josh2396
Under normal circumstances it wouldn't be forgivable. But this is a unique circumstance where NX is being revealed in a couple months, so they kinda have to wait until then. Zelda is our down payment. The rest of the announcements come with the NX reveal. All those launch games, launch window games and future projects to build hype. Stuff like Pikmin 4, Beyond Good & Evil 2... games we know exist but they're holding off on.
As beautiful and serene that BotW seems, it's still not as strong as Super Mario 64 at this point in time, to me. (Super Mario 64 could have single-handedly carried the N64 in the beginning, but was accompanied by an entourage to back it up at E3 1996, twenty years ago, whereas BotW has nothing to back it up, in 2016) It's a great effort, but I've seen the types of gameplay on display here before elsewhere.
The cinematic shots did a good job with giving the presentation a sense of awe and mystique, but the aging fidelity (and overly long development cycle) is definitely showing. This game might have wowed me like Super Mario 64 did, if it were showcased four years ago, and released three years ago. It's too late now.
Zelda didn't save E3 for me. Microsoft came from behind with the Scorpio, and Sony came in with guns blazing on their games. (Including their latest so-called "Zelda killer"... we'll see on that one) Not to mention I'm more of a PC/retro console gamer at this point, so I guess my tastes have changed over time. This wasn't an Ocarina of Time moment for me.
@japongt Sony won just with God of War then re7, let's not forget spiderman.really let's not forget death stranding.crash 1,2 and 3 remakes.does that help you.i play Nintendo and sony.but a true fan boy to nintendo.but this gen ps4 and wii u is the best.
As amazing Breath of the Wild looked and tantalizing enough for me to go preorder it (I hope), the whole presentation just dragged a little too long for me. Decent effort, but needs a bit trimming down, in my opinion.
It was a very poor E3 from Nintendo. Zelda was not that impressive. Many of these features that are new to Zelda have been in other games for years. That's not going to impress me.
I feel that it could use a bit more polish, but I'm super excited about it; easily my most anticipated game for the coming year. Give me Mother 3, MK8 DLC, and maybe something else and I'll be satisfied. I do feel like Nintendo overwhelmed us with new info, they probably should have spread it out over 2 days, with their other games being live streamed after the Pokemon one on Thursday.
Gotta be honest: it blew my mind even with my low expectations
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@LeRaposa
"Many of these features that are new to Zelda have been in other games for years. That's not going to impress me"
So, does a game feature have to be totally unprecedented to make it good? If that were true, nothing shown this E3 would impress. Horizon Zero Dawn? Seen those features before, meh. God of War? Seen that before, meh. Spider-Man? Seen all that before. Forza? Halo? Resident Evil? Nothing I haven't seen before.
It's not about doing something "other games have never done" it's about mixing and matching the right mechanics and features for the perfect recipe of entertainment. Like mixing foods you've already eaten 1,000 times in your life before into a new recipe to create a new total flavor you've never experienced. Zelda uses known mechanics and features, but mixes a new recipe of blending to create a new experience.
Zelda was an amazing game even WITHOUT being open world, or having upgradable gear and equipment, or hunting and gathering and crafting, or having the entire world be interactive in some form.
So how much more amazing will it be WITH all that on top? I mean, if a person honestly didn't like what they saw that would be one thing, but that trailer was so good I question how anyone at the very least isn't slightly impressed.
You'd almost have to hate Zelda or video games in general.
front page of https://www.reddit.com/ woop woop!
also 10 BOTW related posts on the front page of r/gaming as of writing...like damn
@Josh2396 It's a good thing they don't have only one game at E3 then.
Nintendo did fine in their own thing, they're obviously not comparing themselves to Sony and Microsoft and their appearance today was fun overall.
I'm pretty excited for this. I normally don't care for open world games but this seems to have enough things to do to keep the world busy. I really hope we get to see full dungeons soon enough, since they've said they'd be even more complex than shrines.
@JaxonH Or perhaps, games like Skyrim, The Witcher 3, the Mass Effect series, and even Xenoblade + Xenoblade X, have all greatly expanded our expectations. Meanwhile, mainline Zelda looks like it's trying to find inventive ways of playing catch up, to make up for new entries being absent on Nintendo's main console line for the better part of a decade. Things have changed since 2010. And the outcomes of the old "it'll be done when it's done" Blizzard/Nintendo philosophy aren't as pure as they once were.
Breath of the Wild will definitely stand out in the sea of flotsam, but I doubt it'll be the shining beacon that Super Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time were.
@Nin10doh how so? Pokemon has always been more popular than zelda and sales and hype around the new games prove that.
Nintendo did a terrible job presenting Pokemon at E3 like it's some unknown game that no one is excited about. it should have had a booth dedicated to the new Pokemon games showcasing the Alola region. Pokemon has always been more popular than the Zelda franchise and undermining it like this is disrespectful to Pokemon fans
@PK_Boss11: I just went back to watch the Treehouse stream from the start (because I had tuned in late) and at 02:06:30 they show the Great Plateau (the E3 area) on the map and then zoom out. At 02:06:46 you can see that the Great Plateau only makes up about 1/70 of the map on the screen (and we don't even know if there's more off-screen).
That's really really huge!
@Josh2396: Actually for me it's the opposite. Apart from Starfox Zero and Mario Maker, none of the Nintendo games that were presented during E3 2015 were interesting for me. I'd much rather Zelda gets all the attention than Nintendo showing a few C-quality games just to present more than one game. No one needs lousy games like Mario Tennis or MP10 or boring properties like Animal Crossing, they would only take up precious time that we need to see a tiny fraction of Breath of the Wild!
@KH22: And you know this how? What hype are you talking about? I don't see websites making a header about the new Pokemon games, but about the new Zelda game.
I'd say it's the opposite, Pokemon is way less popular than LoZ, it's more of a niche game. In fact, I don't know a single person who plays Pokemon, but I know tons of people who grew up playing Zelda and still love that franchise. And I've never seen people running around in Pokemon merchandise, but you do see people wearing Zelda merchandise. And as far as I know, Pokemon doesn't have its own symphony concert tour that is sold out every year.
I think Pokemon is only really popular in Japan and in Europa/NA it is/was only popular among kids. That's just a tiny fraction of the popularity that LoZ has among people of all ages.
Anyone know if you HAVE to use the Wolf Link amiibo in TP first in order to summon him in BotW? Or can I get the amiibo and use it without TP being involved?
Thanks nintendo, is not fare compare to #PlaystationE3 (a lot of games) vs. #NintendoE3 a single game but for me nintendo is the winner!!
After that trailer debuted, was anyone else like "SHUT UP ABOUT POKEMON AND GET BACK TO ZELDA!"? Me and my kids were. Lol
@shani What are you talking about? Pokemon 3DS games are the best selling games on the 3DS and most of its sales are from Europe and NA and Nintendo is the source for that https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/sales/software/3ds.html
Pokemon has a Pokemoncenter.com , dedicated for Pokemon merchandise and it's for North America only. Things sell out in minutes there. Targets, Walmart, Gamestop sell Pokemon merchandise and the trading card game. World championship happens every year and players all over the world go and compete with the video game and trading cards. It's currently the second best selling franchise after Mario. I'm sorry I don't know how you are at Nintendo dedicated website and don't know that Pokemon is insanely popular.
@PlywoodStick
Idk, the only things those games did to raise expectations was increase world size and push graphical boundaries. The only expectations I care about are "how fun is this game". Even so, this game does not disappoint, either graphically or in world size. It's more than adequate in both those respects.
This game looks like it has the potential to be my favorite game of all time. And even if it doesn't achieve such perfection, at the very least it'll be one of the greatest. Of that I am certain.
I've played everything this industry has to offer. And yet Zelda still blew me away. It just looks incredibly awesome and fun.
@invictus4000 To be honest, Pokemon should have been after Zelda. If they'd shown Pokemon before the Zelda trailer, people would've still been clamouring for BotW. At least showing it afterwards would've allowed for Pokemon Sun/Moon to get the attention they deserve.
@JaxonH honestly i wasn't impressed, this will be my first zelda game (PC gamer since 90s) and i find it lackluster. Environmetal detail is lacking, textures seems to lack detail, barren terrain. I mean the art direction is good but meh techbically. The mecahnics doesnt seem to be anything new to me.
In open world games i like to wander atound and create my own mini stories and adventures (thats what makes open world games fun for me) if the environment and visuals are lacking it may affect my immersion and enjoyment of the game.
@Syrek24
"With a single game, Nintendo won E3 in my eyes"
Sony had the best showing this year by far. God of War alone was one of the top games shown, and Detroit just looks amazing with so many possible outcomes from choice, and Spiderman... finally a great Spiderman! Been too long since Maximum Carnage and a Separation Anxiety on SNES. RE7, Crash trilogy remastered, Last Guardian, Horizon Zero Dawn, Kojima's game... Game after game after game, just bam bam bam bam bam.
But, the single greatest game I saw this E3, was undoubtedly Zelda Breath of the Wild. What a mind blowing game. Just unbelievably awesome. Hard to believe it's actually a Wii U game!
@diwdiws
That's probably why. You haven't played Zelda before. Zelda is one of the funnest games there is. Even the handheld Zelda- Link Between Worlds, is one of the best games this generation.
You're looking at it through the lens of other open world games you've played. But once you know the magic of Zelda (and it's not in the open world- that's just icing on the cake) you would be excited as I am. It's a completely different model than any open world game you've played. Darksiders would probably be the closest comparison to this new one but even that doesn't do Zelda justice.
Trust me, play it and you won't regret it. And the visuals, I'll just say this. It's looking better than pretty much any Wii U game to date. So if this disappoints visually, then you must really care about visuals a lot.
@invictus4000 No
I was blown away!
They showed so much that it got a bit spoilery in the sense that the first experience won't be as fresh compared to going in blind, but the demo and the presentation was pretty smartly put together!
I'm positive that there's gonna be a TON of stuff still to be discovered for ourselves!
@JaxonH your basically asking me to risk it hahaha. Ofcourse im gonna compare it to other open world games, thats all i have to compare it to since i havent played any zelda game before. I mean in just finished Witcher 3: Blood and compared to that, the trailer and treehouse showcase seems lackluster.
What i mean about visuals is the little details they put in the environment, what i saw in the trailer and the treehouse is the forests, plains, ruins seems two toned and barren of environmental detail. The trees looks like placeholder assets. I mean my favorite thing to do in elder scroll games or the witcher is to go to unbeaten paths and be wowed by the environment.
Again visuals are all i have to base my opinion on the game since i dont have a history withbthe franchise
It was alright. Nothing unique or exemplary, but it looks like a good game. Nintendo's E3 was rather poor if we're talking overall when compared to their competitors, but Zelda looks good.
But again, they had NOTHING that really stood out against everything else.
@JaxonH i guess for me and people like me who has no history or nostalgia for the series, i am asking nintendo for a reason to give my money to them when (based on my initial impression) there are other more impressive open world games out there.
@Xaessya
Ah the good old End of Generation Nintendo drought. Nothing is more certain in a Nintendo console's life cycle than a drought at the last couple years.
@JaxonH I think what did impress me the most about what was shown for BotW was the serenity of the close shots, and majesty of the zoomed out shots. It's clear that the team has taken cues from elsewhere, and worked wonders on the presentation. It's certainly better than anything else shown at this E3. Of that, Nintendo did not disappoint.
But still. No new games, only new info. And for me, as with some others here, BotW is something to watch out for, but it doesn't shake up the formula enough to really make us feel "Wow, this changes everything!"
@diwdiws
It's not an open world game though. It's Zelda, and just happens to have an open world. Kinda different.
It's not just my recommendation though, it's the fact that the games are fantastic
pic upload
If you want open world open world, buy Skyrim. Buy the Witcher. Buy anythig else but this. If you want Zelda- which is truly unlike any of those games, buy this. But I tell you now this is not nostalgia speaking. This is experience playing the franchise- I know it's fantastic. That's why people love Zelda so much. It's funner than it appears by watching, even though watching this one was very fun for me.
The game was a success in my eyes. I really like Zelda and if the NX actually ends up not being another wii u, then I'll buy it in that.
Next year gonna be quite the year for me.
@Project_Dolphin I don't know about that. Super Mario 64 was a masterpiece of game design, but what made it legendary was having that combined with the huge leap in graphics, the new controls and abilities, increased sound depth and range, the adjustable camera, almost no loading times due to using cartidges instead of CD's, the whole package. If Super Mario 64 only had great new controls and abilities, but looked, sounded, and ran like a Sega Saturn 2D game in the vein of New Super Mario Bros or Yoshi's Story, let's face it- no one was going to be impressed just by that. Pleased, yes, but impressed to the degree that the Super Mario 64 that we know did? Let's be honest- hell no it wouldn't have changed the industry's direction as the one we know did.
@MarinoKadame I practically yelled when the korok appeared. Maybe we'll get to do a bit of sailing?
@diwdiws Zelda titles have been like that since... Forever. Only middling technically, but great art direction. There is a particular charm each entry has that draws certain people to them. Either it clicks with you or it doesn't. What the high scores don't tell you is that Zelda sells FAR less than many other series that are just as highly acclaimed. That's not a fault of the series, it's just the result of that charm- it doesn't hit on a general audience like the Elder Scrolls can. (Which, if we remember, didn't do so back in the Morrowind, Daggerfall, and Arena days, it wasn't until Oblivion that it became popular.) Yet Zelda's impacts can be felt elsewhere, even when we don't realize it.
I absolutely loved what I saw. Cannot wait to play it.
@JaxonH ill take your word for it, but you do understand where im coming from right? You cannot fault me for having doubts based on the trailer and showcase.
I think the fact that everyone had very low expectations coming into E3 this year helped it shine, as opposed to last year where people were expecting big reveals. Despite having only one game, it is a VERY impressive one game. I'm glad to see even the notoriously stingy Zelda fanbase is satisfied with what they've seen. Day one buy for anyone that has any interest in Zelda whatsoever honestly.
@HeroOfTime32 I spent all day waiting to find out what the "mechanic" was, though I call it "hook". Never did find one. And there must be one, b/c it's a Zelda game. I was trying to tie in breath and wild, thinking maybe a hot air balloon for travel, or a flying nimbus cloud like in DragonBall - the new Link amiibo is standing beside a cloud. Something. The new magnet power was cool, but it wasn't an ocarina of time or a windwaker baton to summon wind.
So yeah, what's the mechanic? A few people told me it was too soon. Too soon for what, the game was supposed to release last year. In December 2014 they showed Link shooting his bow while riding Epona. I felt like today was a step back from that now 18 month old video.
Biggest thing I did like I can't even do, sidekick wolf Link. Not only do you need to buy an amiibo, you need to buy a $50 game and play it. That's asking too much. They should give you a normal wolf sidekick, let the amiibo skin it to TP wolf Link, sound effect, chain and all, but don't deny me the 1 new game mechanic I like.
@KH22 Thanks for that link, didn't know they had that on their site. But am I missing something or where does it say that "most of its sales are from Europe and NA"?
And the other things you mentioned obviously only apply to NA. Maybe it's just not so big in Europe, I don't know.
But that doesn't really matter regarding my first comment, if you ask me, the 3DS is just insignificant in a broader gaming sense. Because mobile/handheld gaming just can't provide the same depth that stationary devices provide. It's no coincidence that the only really big game in the sales list is "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D", a title that is 18 years old (despite the rerelase). All the other games run in confined spaces, because the screen of the 3DS is too small and it lacks computing power - also, playing more than a short while is just not comfortable on a mobile/handheld device.
This is only my opinion and of course I'm not ignoring the great 3DS software sales numbers in that link. I'm just saying games like Pokemon, Mario Land, Mario Bros., MK, AC, Smash, Tomodachi and Luigi's Mansion are side notes at best and don't deserve the same attention as big games for the big screen like LoZ: Breath of the wild or the next Mario Galaxy (which will probably never happen), for example.
I know there are a lot of 3DS fans out there (and on this site) - I even had a N3DS for half a year - and they might disagree with me. I don't mean to marginalize their gaming experience (having fun is still having fun, no matter how), I just don't get it.
@JaxonH eh... I think Microsoft had the best showing this year. Sony's was great, no doubt... but I didn't jump up and scream in joy for many games shown in Sony's E3 (Crash and REVII were spectacular news, though) unlike in Microsoft's and Nintendo's where the Xbox One S (as well as Forza) and Zelda: BotW alone made this E3 totally worthwhile for me. BotW was especially amazing... just, WOW. IS THIS ZELDA?!
I still want a PS4 this year, though. If Sony announced a PS4 Mini ala the Xbox One S, then Sony might have had the best conference to me. But of course, I think I, as well as you, as well as everyone here, as gamers are in for the treat.
@rjejr I hear ya. But I think I've figured out the "hook". Aunoma hinted at Hyrule being a "living, breathing thing". I think that's the hook. Think about the title too. "Breath of the Wild". It's telling us that Hyrule is speaking to us. Maybe Zelda is "trapped" in the land, or the spirits of a once-prosperous people is trapped in the earth and it is a living breathing world that responds to link and his actions and progress through the game. It has emotions. Maybe in an event where baddies do something bad, I think Hyrule would "mourn" through some kind of in-game action. I also think any "dungeon-esque" items you get, i.e. The important ones, will be given via Hyrule.
Purely speculation of course.
I know that's not a "hook" per-se, but I'm really thinking it's something in the vein of this of some kind where it's a living world.
But wait, on the topic of amiibo...you have to own and have played TPHD too?? Or just own the wolf link amiibo (which I know you obtain via TPHD purchase)?
I did think the other amiibo that were announced were very highl quality though. Really like the new Link one.
EDIT: okay I just saw the amiibo video. Didn't see the cave of ordeals portion. I'm wondering if this is REQUIRED, or if just the amiibo itself will do.
@Project_Dolphin great point. Great game mechanics and whether a game is "fun" or not will always trump other features...every time.
That's one thing I'll give Ninty credit for--they understand this. They always plan a game around the mechanics first, implementation second, and any icing on the cake third.
They were devoting a whole day to The Legend of Zelda, the most revered video game franchise of all time. There's no possible way this was going to be bad. That said, it's not enough, imo, to top what Sony and especially MS brought.
I will say though, there are very, very few franchises I can think of where a new entry would make me drop the cash for a whole console simply to play one game. The Legend of Zelda is one of them, I will more than likely have an NX day one or in the first six months just to play this.
@diwdiws
While it's hard for me to understand how anyone could not be hyped out of their minds after that trailer, I'm trying to imagine myself as a gamer who has never experienced a Zelda game. So ya coming from your perspective of what the industry has shown you open world games to be, I don't fault you for thinking this was just that.
But that's why I would love for you to discover the magic of Zelda for yourself. All it takes is one game. If you have a 3DS I recommend Zelda Link Between Worlds (though you can't go wrong with Ocarina of Time 3D). Otherwise, Twilight Princess HD or Windwaker HD (or even Skyward Sword) can all be played on Wii U.
My first Zelda game, believe it or not, was Twilight Princess on the Wii. Since then I have gone on to play (at least partially) almost every game, even the BS Satellaview (SNES streaming add on in Japan) games translated to English.
Anyways, I hope you give it a try. I don't think it's what you're expecting it to be, but I think that's exactly why you'll actually love it
@Vee_Flames
MS had a decent showing too. I love Forza Horizon 3 and Halo Wars 3, and ReCore oh my goodness!
What they show of Zelda was very good. Can't fault them there.
However what Nintendo don't seem to get is that they need to excite more than just Nintendo fans.
Whereas Sony,MS and everyone else is trying to grab as many new fans as possible with news on hardware and a large variety of software, Nintendo just does one home console game. Yes the Wii U is pretty much dead but hype up its successor.
Anyone that believe showing ONE home console game at E3 is a success seriously has some Nintendo sunglasses issues.
I am not drilling anyone personally, just giving my opinion.
To me this E3 was an opportunity lost to reach a mass new audience.
Back to the game and man it looks awesome. Really can't be bothered to play this on a weak Wii U so I guess that means I get the NX.. Oh well.
They had a good E3 with TWO friggin' games shown? I don't think so.
Zelda looks like a fine game, but it's simply not enough.
@Gamer83
What did you think of ReCore? No one seems to talk about it but I thought it was MS' best game at E3, just looks incredible.
If you do grab an NX for Zelda, at least you'll be able to play some Pikmin 4 as well (we know it's finished as NX launch title). And maybe they'll port over some Wii U remasters or something. Surely Splatoon and Mario Maker will make an appearance in some form. And they've gotta release a Metroid, no way they skip 2 consoles in a row.
@Hotfusion it's not the right time for NX yet. Believe and trust in Nintendo on that one. The market isn't ready for it until next year. It's just an awkward phase where the inevibilty of winding down the Wii U is occurring, and a void is left until that time.
I think they also want a free window (without competing console news) to launch and hype their console. I truly think it wouldn't have gotten the proper limelight if done this week at E3. If done in a typical drought time of the year, and on its own accord, it will be able to stand out, shine, and generate unrivaled hype.
Plus, it just may not simply be ready yet.
@Gamer83 well said. Agreed about the reverence of the Zelda franchise. I'm actually really glad their pulling a "twilight princess" with the dual release. I really think that helped the Wii out too, (aside from a completely new control and gaming concept) having Zelda present at launch. That will always bring gamers out of the woodwork, and will help get the NX snowball momentum rolling.
Unlike the Wii U release with a very low demand 2.5-D Mario game at launch. It just didn't cut it for enticing new, on the fence buyers. The Wii U snowball never got "Kickstarted".
Gotta come out swinging and never pump the brakes to get gamers interested today. And it's especially important in today's ecosystem with Sony & Microsoft competing.
How about we drop the sensationalist wildcards and stop threating E3 as a competence and just look at all the press conferences objectively instead?
@Nin10doh But that same game that doesn't count could have saved the system where your TLoZ is being released. Pokémon does sell more (being it systems, merchandise, anything you can compare) and reaches a larger audience.
But what am I saying? It doesn't count so maybe that's why they have to rely on Zelda, again. Perhaps this time!
Looks great, l can't wait
@HeroOfTime32 Cave of ordeals portion seemed required to me. They do have 9 months to change it though, hopefully for the better.
I like the idea about the living land. Not sure how it will work, like a conscious talking head/mouth thing, or a spirit thing like Native American religion, but it could be in there. Really not sure how that works as a game mechanic though.
I'm currently fixated on my hot air balloon as the game starts on a plateau, how else would he get around? And it wouldn't be as bad as WW b/c you would see the different environments below you - lakes, forests, villages, animlas. Same for Skyword Sword where you really didn't see much. Flying slowly over the land in a hot air balloon, w/ day/night and weather mechanics, could be very cool. He probably would only be able to land it at tie down spots, which limits open world a little, but that's usually how fast travel spots work, 1 location. Only in this case it would be very slow travel.
No date, no story, no characters, only 18 months behind schedule. Oh well.
@HeroOfTime32
Yeah I agree with you on the launch date 100%. No worries there.
I can see where you are going with your argument regarding NX news. However there is no other event that comes close to E3 when it comes to marketing your products. It's the biggest possible advert.
To shy away from promoting your products because of competition at a mass event like E3 is not something most western advertising firms would see as sensible. Maybe that's a Japanese thing, don't really know.
All we can do is wait and see how this all plays out.
Absolutely beautiful and I was blown away when they showed the trailer. Aonuma and Miyamoto still have it baby!
@HeroOfTime32
Funny you should mention that about Twilight Princess. I actually became disenchanted with Nintendo's home consoles (have always loved their portable systems and own multiple Gameboys, a DSi and a 3DS) in the Gamecube era and gave up on it in 2003. I had no interest in the Wii but at E3 2006 after Sony's Five Hundred Ninety Nine U.S. dollars screw up and Nintendo dropping the bombshell that it would have a new console with a new Zelda on day one for $250, I had to be there and the Wii actually ended up being one of my favorite gaming purchases ever, eventhough it slowed down big time after 2010. I agree Nintendo didn't get the ball rolling right with Wii U. After nothing but Zelda and Xenoblade in the last two years of the original Wii, the Wii U needed something big. Had it been Super Mario 3D World, or even better, Super Mario Galaxy 3, things may have been different. I know I didn't get a Wii U until after I bought my PS4 and after completing Super Mario 3D World, I ended up selling it off and made the cash to buy an Xbox One that summer. Looking ahead... Assuming NX isn't priced outrageously I would be shocked if having this game on launch day didn't at least get the NX off to a better start than Wii U. Where it goes from there who knows. A good first impression goes a long way though and I can't think of any better first impression than an amazing, new Zelda game.
Everybody new Zelda would be amazing, but it doesn't chabge the fact that there are very few announcements. Don't get me started on Mario Party! Here's to a new RPG that doesn't flop like Codename Steam tomorrow
@rjejr I do like the balloon idea. Question for ya...was there any hints or images that I may have missed that inspired this thought? Or is it just personal speculation?
I mean, we do have the sail cloth for plateau traversing, and Epona/wild horses for ground traversing.
I'm trying to look for any subtleties at this point for hints. And all I've got is the repetition from Aunoma-San about the world and with that why the demo was focused just on the world.
Either way, def excited for this game! Lemme ask you, lack of "hook" aside, did you like everything you saw (that was allowed to be shown today)??
@Gamer83 100% agree about the good "1st impression".
Kinda hard to make a bad impression with Zelda.
Hopefully Nintendo is remembering what made the Wii so successful (the good parts) and applying those lessons to the NX.
Glad you were an example of someone that the "Zelda trap" sucked them into a console purchase ha. It's true though that a console needs a killer opener. Whether it's Zelda, 3D Mario, or Mario Kart, etc.
I also feel that Super Smash Bros will re-release on NX as a "complete edition" with all DLC included. Cheap and easy to do. A combination of that and Zelda (although neither would be "new" or "exclusive" at that point) would definitely help entice new customers. Because let's be honest, they are both 100% quality titles that are fun and very well done.
@Project_Dolphin I used the Sega Saturn example because BotW is using a similar level of graphical fidelity as titles from 4 years ago.
But yeah, Super Mario 64 actually was "that" kind of game (as if that were an insult towards such games) back in 1996, in addition to having the full package. If we look back to then, we would remember that even though 3D games weren't novel by then, just about every 3D game up until Super Mario 64 looked ugly as sin. Then Nintendo came along and fixed that.
Super Mario 64 was the flag bearer of high fidelity graphics, attractively high end presentation, smooth frame rate, quick loading times, atmospheric soundtrack, (finally) good camera functionality, a new control scheme (control sticks weren't new, but they weren't used very well up until then)... The works, as far as 1996 console game presentation was concerned.
Of course, it's considered a classic now, but twenty years ago, people were worried whether or not Super Mario 64 was going to live up to all the hype. A game has to survive in the present to thrive in the future. Doesn't matter how great a game is if it doesn't attract people in more ways than one, and sinks into the dust of history. It's not enough to have either great presentation or great gameplay, both are needed in unison to push boundaries.
@Hotfusion agreed. That is one thing I will definitely agree with you on....that it will be interesting to see unfold hahaa. Nothing short of it.
You're right though, and it's important to remember that Nintendo is definitely a Japanese company in every sense of the word. I do think it's a Japanese thing, and a personal pride thing.
Nintendo do is just now stepping out of their comfort zone and embracing more "western" ideas and tactics, and that's partially because the market and competition has dictated them to do so to stay afloat and relevant. Especially in an age where less and less youngins flock to Nintendo, it's important to capture the kids again.
It's a reactionary effort.
I'm on board, but I was very disappointed that Aonuma gave some very stupid reasons for Link being right handed. He was left handed in Wind Waker HD/Twilight Princess HD, as well as Hyrule Warriors, so unless they were planning for Wii Remote controls (which they are not thank goodness) there is no reason to change. Small nitpick, but it bugs me when characters are changed for no good reason, especially when they have carried these traits for over 20 years.
Also not happy to hear the NX version will be exactly the same as Wii U. No graphical overhaul, no definitive features, same across the board. Seems like a waste, but in the end this decision will probably net them more Wii U game sales since otherwise folks might be more inclined to wait till they get NX to pick up the game..
@WaveBoy7 see my comment just above. I do think they've come to certain terms with themselves about the state of the gaming marketplace. I think they understand they need to adapt, or at least make a "fusion" between modern, popular gaming tropes, and their classic, innovative and creative Japanese efforts.
I think this is just the beginning, and a taste of what NX will be like I'm thinking.
Which isn't necessarily a bad thing.... So long as they never lose their charm. That's what makes Nintendo, well, Nintendo.
@AshFoxX it was definitely mentioned today that it is identical to the Wii U version???? I must have missed that...
@HeroOfTime32
I was six years old back in 1989 when I first experienced the original Legend of Zelda on the NES at a friend's house. Got my own copy not long after and that series has had its hooks in me ever since. I don't think every one is a hit. I wasn't too high Majora's Mask, Wind Waker or Skyward Sword. But the others? Some of my favorites of all-time. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is one of my two favorite games ever. Ocarina of Time is a top 10 as are Twilight Princess and A Link Between Worlds. I actually had A Link Between Worlds as my Game of the Year for 2013 over The Last of Us and GTA V, both games I'm also a very big fan of. It's actually crazy thinking back to it. A direct sequel to A Link to the Past was always a game I wanted but the way Nintendo operates with the series it didn't seem like much of a possibility. I was so thrilled it happened though and the end product was even better than I had hoped or imagined it would be. There's no doubt we're looking at some more magic with LoZ: Breath of the Wild.
@HeroOfTime32 "When asked if the Wii U and NX versions would deviate with regards to visuals or content, Aonuma replied that the game was the same on both platforms. "The users will be able to have the same experience with the NX version as they will with the Wii U version," he said, suggesting that they'll be equal in terms of visuals as well as gameplay. This is notable because in the last cross-generation Zelda game, Twilight Princess, the Wii version was mirrored from the GameCube release to be more compatible with Wii controls."
quoted from http://www.gamespot.com/articles/zelda-breath-of-the-wild-on-wii-u-and-nx-will-be-t/1100-6440876/
Ahhh....so you're definitely more drawn to the more "classic-like" Zeldas. I on the other hand enjoyed the ones that mixed the formula up more. I.e. - Majora's Mask, Link's Awakening, Wind Waker, etc.
But agreed about A Link Between Worlds. That game had it all. Perfect homage to Link to the Past, with TONS of humor and charm too. That's what I'd like to see in Zeldas again. That's why I like most of the portable titles, bc they can add some levity to the games that the console counterparts just don't (but I like 'em all). It was also my 2013 Game of the Year. If I'm not mistaken, it was also IGN's too, to the dismay of the entire internet LOL.
I wonder where today's Zelda falls in this conversation...too early to tell, but I think it will def be more on the "serious side".
@PlywoodStick
" It's not enough to have either great presentation or great gameplay, both are needed in unison to push boundaries."
That's not entirely true. Game's can push boundaries despite not having great gameplay or presentation. A recent example of this was Undertale, which was showered with praise for pushing the boundaries in video game story telling, despite it having bad presentation and average gameplay. Shadow of the Colossus is a relatively old game that was praised for pushing the boundaries of video games being a form of art with its unique art style and good graphics, and is hailed as a masterpiece despite its bad controls and camera angles and its simplicity.
I think a game can push boundaries if it accels in a particular area and is unique enough to be memorable.
@AshFoxX "suggesting that they'll be equal in terms of visuals as well as gameplay"
I'm hoping there's some room for interpretation there...
Like for instance Twilight Princess was "basically" the same...but at the same time there was a small kicker to buy the Wii version if you thought motion controls were cool. Aside from mirroring, it was effectively the same too.
Gotta be something to make you wanna grab the NX version, aside from obviously, a new console.
But you may be spot on too, in that they don't wanna burn the Wii U owners who were promised this title, and have waited an entire console cycle for it to arrive.
Wow, I almost got a Shadow of the Colossus vibe for a second there with the new Zelda trailer. I love that game, so... awesome
@JaxonH
I'm looking forward to ReCore, no question. Off the bat it had two things going for it when it was announced... New IP in an industry that has become sequel/reboot/remake/remaster heavy and it has a good team of developers behind it. It looks like from the most recent trailer that it's mixing many different gameplay concepts. Some shooting, some puzzles, and having been entrenched in the Xbox camp for as long as I have and knowing what much of that fanbase likes, I think you're not hearing much about it yet because it isn't your typical shooter with lots of action and explosions. There are plenty of us on Xbox who want more than just shooters, but there's no question what really thrives on those platforms. Remembering back to the reveal trailer though, ReCore also seems to have an interesting story hook, so while it's not a game like Gears of War that is going to capture the fanbase right away, I do think it can carve out a nice niche and you'll see quite a bit of talk about it after it releases in September.
As for Xbox One's best game though? I gotta go with a tie between the newest entries in two of my favorites... Gears of War 4 and Forza Horizon 3. I'm also hyped for Dead Rising 3 and will keep an eye on Scalebound. MS definitely brought the heat again. If you ask me, and I know some people hate the 'winning' at E3 stuff but it does matter to some degree, I think MS repeated as E3 winners. The Xbox Scorpio is going to be a beast and bring some much needed positivity back to the Xbox brand that was lost upon the introduction of Kinect and an aversion to new IPs in the latter years of the 360.
While I feel bad for non Zelda Nintendo fans, for me this was the E3 I didn't know I wanted. I was flatlining after most of the other showings (sony was the best so far for me but even it was meh aside from spidey) and I literally got nothing done today as I watched the whole treehouse stream even though I had no intention of doing so. This game is a natural evolution of Skyward Sword (minus motion controls) and it shows. With the potential scale of this game I will likely have to dial back my 2017 purchases because this game is going to occupy my attention for a very long time. Aside from the wait this is an exciting time to be a Zelda fan! Great Job Nintendo!
@HeroOfTime32
Can't remember for sure but I A Link Between Worlds took Gamestop's Game of the Year and the reaction was classic. Them Sony fanboys were uuuupset to say the least. I even had one stalk me on PSN for daring to state on PushSquare that I thought Zelda was a deserving GOTY winner. LOL.
@Gamer83 DOH!! That's what I had meant.. Gamespot's GOTY
@Ryu_Niiyama random question. All of your avatars....where are they from?? Weird, but used to really like the one w/ the 3 gals dancing with their hands up.
@-Red- I would say Undertale had good presentation overall (the low end graphics were merely due to the limits of the Game Maker platform, of which were pushed, while the soundtrack was great) and good gameplay overall, especially on the two diametrically opposed routes. (In addition to having excellent characters and a fairly fleshed out story.) So I would say Undertale pushed boundaries by being positive in both regards.
Zelda was amazing and cannot wait for it! It was certainly the highlight of my E3. But I still think Sony won overall. Pokemon and Zelda was just not enough for Nintendo. But still...Zelda being as awesome as it is almost made up for the lack of news. Almost.
@HeroOfTime32
And yeah, I'm definitely more of a fan of the classic-style Zeldas, mostly because that's what I grew up with. Certainly those other games fill needs though and the fact so many like them just shows the franchise's versatility. Not many can break from the series norm but still have a big appeal.
Breath of the Wild is breathtaking, haha! I love The Legend of Zelda, and this is a new twist to the series. The gameplay seems like a mix of Assassin's Creed, Tomb Raider, and Xenoblade Chronicles. I love exploring and I can't wait to explore The Great Plateau!
@HeroOfTime32 LOL! No prob I get it a lot here. All of my avatars that aren't gaming related (which I've only done like once) are for the Electro Jpop band Perfume. Even my current one is of one of the members Nocchi (my favorite!) when Perfume had their own tv show when they were younger. The band is in their mid/late twenties now. But I love that look on her face since I feel like that when I'm in the comment sections here sometimes. I'll rotate back to the full group in a month or so.
BotW seems like a superb game, one that could sell consoles, one that could even be GOTY but my standard for e3 is more or less the same as the 2014 one, that e3 gave me buckets of hype, this one is kinda meh...
I can actually see why Nintendo wanted to focus solely on Zelda. It appears to live up to the hype, so why not make the most of that hype?
@mariovslink62 E3 shows aren't supposed to be about "winning" anything, they're supposed to be about showing what you got. Nintendo rocked up with one game and it was truely amazing, imo.
And with that, MS and Sony both had great shows too, it was a pretty good E3 this year imo.
@Dark-Luigi In my opinion 2013 was the best E3 to me, for hype anyway, because of Super Mario 3D World and Mario Kart 8 and many, many others. It was the most overwhelming I should say.
I went with the "looks amazing"/"decent day" combo, which sums it up perfectly to me. The game itself? Top notch, amazing, ambitious, gigantic. E3 as a whole, on the other hand? Eeeeeeeeeeeeh. We'll see what the Treehouse has in store today. And clearly, the 3DS Mario Party reveal didn't do the trick for me. I'd be beyond excited for a 3DS Mario Maker, but - let's be honest - the 3DS isn't struggling enough for a portable Maker to be necessary yet. What really bugs me, though, is the Mario spinoff chosen for a second 3DS entry. We could have gotten a second Mario Kart for 3DS (maybe one that has a blasted single-race mode for single player mode), or even a second Mario Golf, or Mario Tennis. But another Mario Party? Was it really necessary?
Of course, these are merely first-day impressions. We'll see what Nintendo has in store from today on before we judge.
I was a little underwhelmed. It certainly didn't look bad, and I love the art style, but there was all this hope and excitement for a fresh, innovative Zelda, and all they really did was get excited over features that The Elder Scrolls doing 10 years ago. Look at excited people got ove the possiblility of acting. It's 2016!
Of course in will buy it, it's Zelda after all, but I think if people are genuinely amazed by this, they should spend some times playing the critically acclaimed non-Nintendo games out there.
I certainly hated this E3. With no Digital Event, there was no rythm, no surprises, and all we had was a slow, painful reveal for Pokémon SUn and Moon that had nothing exciting, and several hours of spoilers for the newest Zelda. Yay...
At least last years, there was some actual games to look at.
Nintendo have ultimately conquered E3 2016 with a victorious sword raise in triumph!
Okay, its only one game. But at least its a very good looking (and big one) at that. And such a game probably would have overshadowed the rest. Since I won't have a PS4 or XboxOne anyway, Zelda was THE game for me!
Hopefully there will also be a Spaceworld this year regarding NX, who knows!
Not sure I want an open world Zelda. Love open world when done right but so easy to lose interest. Really liked Link Between Worlds but hated the item purchase shop on my 2nd play through. Prefer traditional Zelda.
BoTW will be awesome! It looks like a really long game! I hope there'll be a demo of the game on the eShop... I can't wait to explore everything!
day one for me!
Its nice to see the zelda universe expanding. While it may have borrowed from other games I hope to see it put into a cohesive whole that will surpass the competition. Love the lush arts style
I like that there are a lot of call backs to the first game on the NES. From the exploration of the world to the use of items to reveal secrets within the land. It was good to hear the NES game mentioned as it was in the interviews.
Looked very sparse on enemies to me!
Very interesting game indeed! However it's not MK8 / Hyrule Warriors DLC so not a perfect day of Treehouse, I imagine day 2 will be better.
Also a dreadful presentation, they should have put a Vt together then show treehouse.
Pokemon and Zelda + amiibos were great, but their E3 was kinda disappointing.
If anybody wants some hype to hold them over, heres a level I made when I got off work! I was completely blown away personally. This is the ultimate Wii U game!
Zelda: Breath of the Wild [HYPE]
(6BC6-0000-0257-50C0)
Thanks!
They were right to confirm that the games they were showing BEFORE E3. Remember how many of our expectations were let down at E3 2015? This year, knowing what to expect helped us enjoy it more.
This new Zelda is a triumph.
We were all nervously waiting for the game, Nintendo doing a modern take on its most sacred franchise, going all out, on a subpart hardware. Previous titles were hit and misses, Skyward sword, while great (imo) was lacking on many front and felt very old school.
Could they do it ?
Well, it seems like they can ! The game feels brand new, fresh, full of new fun ideas. A real modern game from Nintendo, no hand holding, minimal clutters, a real sense of freedom. But most importantly it's still a Nintendo game, gameplay trumps everything else, this is not your generic open world-go-anywhere and-get-bored.
Everything that's here in this huge world is there for a purpose, everything interactive. Weather affect gameplay, items can be used in a lot of way. Enemies react to your different action. You're invited to try, to experiment, to discoverd new gameplay,.. to have fun !
And that's why this Zelda is a triumph
@BlatantlyHeroic @Interneto @KH22 My point being that Pokemon was not the main focus whatsoever. Pokemon was just a "Oh yea and this game is coming out also." While Pokemon does sell more across regions than probably any other game has, except Mario, its starting to get tired. Pokemon is still loved for sure, but not to the extent as it use to be.
Overall Zelda is still highly regarded as a top tier game. Its viewed much more highly than Pokemon in reviews and in public opinion. Probably due to it not being released frequently. Now don't get me wrong I played Pokemon to death back in the day, but at a certain point it just becomes like CoD in terms of repetition with slight variations here and there.
I do agree that it wasn't done justice in regards to those who love Pokemon, but in retrospect Zelda is something that has been highly anticipated since 2013, people have been waiting with anticipation, anger, and other emotions for years. Pokemon just doesn't garner that level of excitement as it used to.
@Nin10doh The infamous January 2013 Wii U Direct. I doubt many were expecting that to cover games over the entirety of the remaining Wii U's lifespan. You had 2013 games like Wind Waker HD and Wonderful 101; 2014 games like Smash Wii U, MK8 and Bayonetta 2; 2015 games like Woolly World and XCX; 2016 games like TMS#FE and the big 2017 finale, Zelda.
The game might be great but I didn't like the way it was presented and the event was extremely boring to watch. Easily, Nintendo's worst E3 event ever.
@Nin10doh well I suppose you're just living in your own bubble. the excitement that I've seen for this generation is tremendous. the views for trailers surpassed any XY trailer and the game looks fantastic
With the lack of Red Dead Redemption 2 info Nintendo won the conference for me with one game. I hope the new spider-man game is as great as spider-man 2 and naked Reedus with a fetus looks interesting but the most exciting thing for me was a hopefully functional on ps4 Skyrim.
I'm not a fan of Crash Bandicoot but what a bunch of hype for nothing.
RE 7 demo was pretty horrible but still much better than RE 6. No way I am going to preorder that.
Oh the biker last of us might be good if it has much better gameplay (no naughty dog so good start) and is as open world as the trailer seems. But nothing super exciting.
Wasnt anything special Sony schooled them all,
@Ras To be fair, it isn't fully cooked when you first collect it.
That's why putting it into a fire turns it into a seared steak, which recovers more health and adds extra.
I think that even though Nintendo didn't have enough games to be the best show of E3, Zelda was most definitely the best game shown.
So much more detail and wonderment and fan interaction was shown for Zelda compared to any other single game the competition brought out, and that was only day 1.
Nintendo's got one heck of a game here, and it'll be criminal if it doesn't earn that "best game of E3" award after how many people it's brought in and sent away with smiles.
After watching Sony fabulous presentation with live orchestra, Nintendo suddenly looks so tiny.
Breath of the Wild rocked my socks so hard that they jumped off my feet and began scurrying around the room! =O
Zelda looked superb but as an E3 showing having only that and Pokemon was very poor imo... Showing little content is not what E3 is about.
@WaveBoy7 Yeah, there's just something about Zelda that's looking a bit off to me. I really don't find it impressive or beautiful, at least not based on what I've seen so far.
However, Nintendo did specifically say there wasn't going to be any mention of anything NX at E3, so we can't really fault it for not giving us any more details there.
Q) Did Nintendo triumph with its day of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild?
A) For me, Nintendo triumphed for everything they did aside from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. I do not care for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and whilst it was humorous watching the Nintendo Treehouse playing the game, I cared very little in terms of wanting to play the game.
What I did love about Nintendo's first day of E3 were the Nindies section they had on YouTube Gaming, as well as the brief moment they showcased Pokémon Sun and Moon. Those are games that actually interest me and I loved seeing them. The announcement of new amiibo as well as further games to be showcased tomorrow were also pleasing.
Currently I'd say Microsoft has the best showing so far, but if further days have more games presented, I feel Nintendo might win my heart at even this E3. After all, this E3 has been rather lacklustre, so even Microsoft's presence was only a 'good' rating.
I'm excited for both Zelda and Pokemon. Both appear to be purchases for me; but Nintendo's presence at E3 is disappointing. I actually liked what they did last year. They had the Nintendo World Championship which I thought was very entertaining and the "direct" was good. I would have preferred a "direct" with only Zelda this summer. The Treehouse stuff always feels disjointed to me. It's okay as a follow up to a presentation or "direct" but not on it's own. I stopped watching yesterday because it seemed like the same stuff over and over again.
As for the game, I'm really pumped to play it. The only thing that bothers me so far is the sound effect that goes off every single time Link picks up an item. I know that's how all the Zelda games are, but for this game it seems forced. I think because it's open world style and the fact that you seem to pickup stuff a lot, I felt like it was constantly going off....and for me that got a bit annoying. Other then that....AWESOME! I can't wait to climb and glide!
Better than last year, but as a e3 presentation, one or two games only with no digital event or press presentation just feels hollow, specially from a major company as Nintendo.
How about that! LoZ:BotW ended up being the most talked about game (for better or worse, who knows?) on social media by a country mile, talk about putting all your eggs in one basket.
http://nintendoeverything.com/wp-content/uploads/e3-social-media-1.png
@locky-mavo Yeah, maybe I shouldn't have used the word win.
That doesn't exactly change my thoughts. I don't think Nintendo's E3 was amazing, just OK. I guess when I say "win" I mean the best conference. The real winners are the gamers indeed.
@mariovslink62 2 Final Fantasy XV, should I suppose that the less talked is actually Persona 5, which isn't on the list.
@Frank90 FFXV looks awesome, though I need to learn about Persona 5 a bit.
@mariovslink62 I'm very excited about both, but I think that a bit more for Persona 5, since 3 and 4 are both amazing, and FF XIII trilogy is disappointing, at best.
@MarinoKadame you can climb the rock golem (you know, the golem in Metroid Prime) like shadow of the colossus
@shani I am excited too, but to be clear, the reason no one could explore fully during E3 is because there was a "Thank You For Playing" time-limit. It is still vast and so people would potentially (definitely) have stood at their demo screen for hours and hours so Nintendo stopped play at about 10 minutes.
@JaxonH I agree with most of the Grumplestiltskins around here regarding the game needing a bit more visual polish but picking on what appears to be THE or at least A core mechanic of the title (the collection and use of varied objects within the environment) is an illogical criticism of a Zelda title.
Firstly, Zelda has always been at its best when the designers took a relatively simple concept and drilled down to find its possibilities. The first 3D games in the series took the 2D entries and expanded those great concepts to fill the new dimensions available. The dynamic highlighted in this demo is a logical step and it is true to the franchise and to the style of its evolution over successive iterations.
I get that other games have used the mechanic, but Zelda did it, arguably, first in a 3D world and with aplomb.
What we see within Breath of the Wild is an extension of an element already within the series at least starting with its 3D entries.
Ocarina of Time boasted a minor element that was used to varying degrees to make use of Link's move set and it saw the player acquiring either Deku Nuts or sticks from Deku Babas depending on their position when struck (attacking or idling) as well a how Link struck them (with a vertical or horizontal slice).
In terms of gear upgrading both Majora's Mask and Ocarina of Time sported cool upgrade side-quests that earned you excellent optional swords and who can forget the Fierce Deity Mask?
An even more appropriate example, if less dynamic, is simply stealing those big tasseled spears from Moblins in Windwaker.
All of these examples were minor aspects of their larger game but they added a sense of depth and emmersion that made their discovery exciting and very memorable. It is a perfectly reasonable game element to expand upon even if Nintendo is late to this particular party - they kind of hosted it in the first place.
Now a lot of folks may be played out on Skyrim-like collection (as brilliant as it can be) and in that regard perhaps Nintendo should have capitalized on their own ideas with this earlier, but again, in many ways Zelda began it.
I do share some apprehension about the apparent loss of specific items that stick with you throughout the game and can be explored for their myriad uses. An environment rich with loot does run the risk of making certain items feel more generic. For instance, I'm not sure yet how I feel about the Sheikah stone upgrades playing the role that the discovery of ability-rich, iconic items played in earlier entries but it's an intriguing twist and far from a deal-breaker for me.
To sum up, what makes Zelda different is the way that the designers take a mechanic and craft it to explore its depth and breadth. A game where there are multiple practical uses for that stick you found, or that pot lid is just the Zelda team making its own ideas from early in the franchise count in a deeper way. That's good design.
@HeroOfTime32 Hot air balloon idea I think came from an episode of Doctor Who I saw a couple of nights ago, not the game. That pic of Link on the plateau overlooking all that vastness made me think it would be a nice thing to slowly fly over and enjoy the view. I can't recall a video game making good use of a balloon, this seems like the perfect place for it. I'm sure it won't happen, we already have the leaf, but it would set the game apart from Skyrim. And I need my fast travel, hate back tracking. Those 100 shrines would probably make for nice locations, maybe turned on later in the game.
As for the rest of it, well I really like the pet wolf. It would be really cool if he could run alongside while you were riding Epona. Really cool actually. But I'm all about story, and so far they haven't shown us any. And I'ma big graphics snob, so after Horizon, XCX and God of War this just looks like a big still life painting to me. A beautiful one, but empty, and I like stuff. My favorite part of the trailer - by far - was the ducks in the pond, looked almost real.
@KH22,
99% of the commenters are not part of this website's team. I'm sure that the editors are well aware that you wear Pikachu underoos - in fact I'm sure a few of them have Pokeball panties.
@rjejr,
Read post #202. Zoom out for a second in your thinking. The mechanic, at least one of the core mechanics, is exploring, making use of, and battling the wild. It is not Breath of the WIND. If that's not enough for you I get that but Zelda is always at its best when taking something relatively simple and drilling down to find its possibilities.
@Mainsaile Good point about "wild", not "wind". Well there goes that idea all shot to blazes. I'd say "Breath of the wild" could turn Link into different animals for different purposes - bird, money, mouse - except they already sort of did that in TP.
I still can't believe they'd let LoZ:Skyrim be the main "hook" though. They only showed 1%-2% of the game, it always takes probably 10%-15% of a Zelda game until things start getting good. Took practically half the game to get the skell in XCX. Well the flying skell, ground skell was earlier.
Time travel, other dimensions, dark realms, there's always something in a Zelda game. Maybe Link can use the "breath of the wild" to control animals like Dr Doolittle? Either posses and take control them like Game of Thrones, or ask them for help like The Hobbit.
@HeroOfTime32 You know, I think that might even be better than a balloon. :-=)
Quality 1st day.
It definitely looked amazing, but I don't think it was enough for Nintendo to "win" E3.
Zelda was amazing looking and I can't wait to play it when it releases holiday 2017 when it's finally done.
However, Nintendo still had an awful E3. They managed to bore people with the Pokemon stuff. And there wasn't much else to show outside a few Indy games which look cool but they aren't exclusive.
Yes, Zelda was the most talked about game on social media.... but every Nintendo fan was talking about it because there was no other options. PS4 and Xboner and PC had so many things to show off, people were tweeting about lots of games and didn't stick to one game because there was so much to talk about.
Nintendo was decimated by this year's E3, heck they weren't even the ones who showed off a new console, MS was! So yeah, Zelda looks great, but not sure if it will be enough to get NX off to a great start when it's going up against Scorpio, NEO, VR and who knows what else.
@smashbrolink Well, that sounds fine, then. I just watched a few seconds to keep the game fresh for me, but I saw a guy shoot a bird and when he climbed up to it, it was a roasted leg. Maybe he was using a magic arrow or a fire arrow?
@Nin10doh Yeah, really. That's what I was thinking. Last year Nintendo talked about multiple games and it was extremely disappointing. This year they only needed one.
Nintendo is my favorite of the big three, but for people to think on here that Nintendo did great this year are clearly out of touch with reality. It's wasn't Nintendo's worst E3 (the year of Wii Music and soccer moms) but you simply can't win E3 with just one game that we have know for almost 3 years now.
@Ras It was just a raw bird leg, but I suspect if you use a fire arrow it might result in something already cooked.
I guess we'll just have to wait and see.XD
@Meaty-cheeky That's just it, though; we haven't "known" very much at all about the new Zelda.
Having it mentioned and being shown a couple of teasers isn't anywhere near to being the same thing as the info dump and demonstrations that Nintendo brought this year.
The booth for the game alone was worlds away from anything the other competitors were providing to attendees of E3 to experience.
Can't wait!
I was actually a little worried about E3 this year, but this game just blew my mind! I wouldn't say that Nintendo won E3(I think that honor goes to Sony), but I think it did very well anyway.
E3 was simply a big disappointment for me regarding Nintendo. I'm not a fan of Zelda. Never have been, never will be. So to spend an entire day or two talking about a game I have minus 10 interest in at a much anticipated show that occurs once a year...
Well, it's easy to see why I'm displeased, I expect.
The 10 minute snippet of Sun and Moon was great, and I'd love to see/know more. But I'm not so short-sighted to expect more when they're clearly not finished ironing out the finer details. The protagonist character's movements seemed so... robotic. So that was all I really needed to see to know showing more definitely wouldn't do anyone (especially Sun & Moon) any justice.
Still, I'd have loved to have seen more games that are coming our way, and other surprises we don't know about. All of that together would have made for an exceptional show - it always does. But for me personally, Nintendo dropped the ball on this one, and I hope they take this on board for next year. Otherwise I won't continue to blindly follow at their heels like I always do.
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