Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
One of the key selling/advertising points of the Nintendo Switch was its joint release with the newest instalment of the Legend of Zelda series: Breath of the Wild. The game took 5 years to create, and was released in March 2017. It went on to receive raving reviews and many awards in the gaming community. In this episode of the Legend of Zelda universe, Link (the hero and protagonist) wakes up from a 100-year coma with no memories, no idea where he is and only a Sheikah Slate at his disposal. This Sheikah Slate is a small tablet (exactly like the one the user has to play the game), that offers a map of Hyrule (the fantasy-country of game play), “runes” that have special powers (create bombs, magnesis, stasis, and an in-game camera), and an inventory of everything in Link’s possession.
This game is different from previous Legend of Zelda games in that while there is a story to it, no part of it is mandatory to follow. The game is “open-world”; in that the user can explore any part of the world unimpeded and if they so wish, can run straight from the tutorial to the final boss in only their underwear and brandishing a stick off the ground. In the game, Link can activate Towers to fill in parts of his map and survey the land, and Shrines that contain one or multiple puzzles that once solved will grant in-game rewards. These rewards can then be used to level up Link’s stamina or heart containers. Throughout Hyrule, there are many villages and stables, and Link can travel by horseback, raft, paraglider or by teleportation using the Sheikah Slate. Other game play includes: fighting small (or large) monsters, hunting and gathering to create dishes and elixirs, as well using different outfits to boost different abilities (stealth, attack power, defense power, warmth or coolness, or even being fire-proof).
So, Why the Nintendo Switch?
It’s worth noting, before I get into my personal commentary on the Switch, my skill level when it comes to video games (seeing as that is the topic of this report). I would not consider myself a “gamer” (as some might put it), in any sense of the word. I can count on one hand the number of games I’ve played for more than a couple hours and I wouldn’t even say I’m “good” at playing video games at all. I quite often struggle to remember or use even basic controls. My interest in games is usually story-based and heavily influenced by the art style. What a console can offer has never been my main point of interest, unlike many other users. Despite not playing many games, Nintendo has always been a favourite of mine. The style of their consoles and devices have always appealed to me (controller size/handling/style, overall simplicity) and I’ve found many of their games appeal to more “casual” users such as myself.
With that being said, what is it about the Switch that I found interesting? Breath of the Wild is the first ever video game that I’ve completed, and the Switch is the first console I’ve ever bought for myself. As I mentioned, my main focus when it comes to games is the art style and story, and Breath of the Wild had me mesmerized in those respects from the start. But this report is for a Computer Science class, not a Visual Storytelling class, so let’s get into some technical details.
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Nintendo has always been at the forefront of the gaming industry, starting all the way back in 1985 with the Nintendo Entertainment System [Nintendo], which kickstarted the video game industry in North America. In 2006, Nintendo released the Wii, the first console with a controller that worked as a pointing device and that could detect motion in three dimensions [Wikipedia]. Now, with the release of the Switch in 2017, Nintendo is once again attempting to bring something new to video game table. Having a console be powerful enough to stand up to competitors such as the Xbox One and Playstation 4, but be small enough to be considered handheld, is not an easy task. Its predecessor, the WiiU, also had a handheld screen. However, this could not standalone from the console and was merely an added, specialized controller. Whether or not Nintendo was successful in creating a hybrid console is up for debate (and the main topic of this report), but in my opinion the Switch has created a new “genre” of gaming device and it will be interesting to see in coming years how the industry responds.