Nintendo Publishes 'Zelda: Breath Of The Wild' Making-Of Documentary
Much like its protagonist making his way through deserts, mountains, forests, and other dangerous terrain, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild took a winding path to release. It was supposed to debut in 2015 as a Wii U exclusive; instead, it was released March 3, 2017 for Wii U and the Nintendo Switch. Even now, it seems the team isn't ready to leave Breath of the Wild--it's the first game to feature downloadable content in Zelda's long history.
Now, fans will get a peek at how this game made its way from concept to (almost) finished product with a three-part documentary called The Making of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Each video has a different focus: the first is devoted to the game's original concept; the second discusses the game's story and characters; and the third is all about how Nintendo made its own twist on the open-world genre with the "open-air" Breath of the Wild.
The videos are all 10 minutes long. (Minor spoilers ahead.) That's not bad for such a large game: Breath of the Wild is packed with 120 shrines, 900 collectible Korok seeds, four dungeons, and many different items and side quests. It's also one of the least constrained Zelda games--there's no companion or strict limits on where Link can travel. It's no wonder Nintendo wants to strut its stuff with 30 minutes of behind-the-scenes footage.
The Making of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild makes a good companion to the directors' 90-minute talk at GDC 2017. There, we learned more about how the game works mechanically through what director Hidemaro Fujibayashi called "multiplicative gameplay," the "clever lies" behind its physics and chemistry engines from technical director Takuhiro Dohta, and the Studio Ghibli-reminiscent style from art director Satoru Takizawa.
If you've enjoyed Breath of the Wild--or if you simply want to learn more about how the game broke from series norms--all the videos are worth a watch. You can also learn more about one of the game's platforms, the Nintendo Switch, in our hands-on article about the hybrid game console. And if you're curious about what Nintendo has planned for the first Zelda to offer DLC, you can check out our report on Breath of the Wild's coming expansions.
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Nathaniel Mott is a freelance news and features writer for Tom's Hardware US, covering breaking news, security, and the silliest aspects of the tech industry.
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dstarr3 I look forward to when the Zelda honeymoon is over and people can have more sober discussions about how the game isn't 100% absolutely the definition of perfect.Reply -
zahoome A couple of the videos got re-uploaded, so your links no longer work. Here they are:Reply
The BeginningStory and CharactersOpen-Air Concept
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turkey3_scratch Reply19424414 said:I look forward to when the Zelda honeymoon is over and people can have more sober discussions about how the game isn't 100% absolutely the definition of perfect.
As an owner I'd say my only con is the frame drops. Other than that awesome game. -
dstarr3 Reply19424743 said:19424414 said:I look forward to when the Zelda honeymoon is over and people can have more sober discussions about how the game isn't 100% absolutely the definition of perfect.
As an owner I'd say my only con is the frame drops. Other than that awesome game.
Performance is a big thing, yeah. I'm also in the camp that's firmly against the weapon degradation. Some folks don't like the rain, I don't mind it.
But yeah, that's all I want to be able to say without having to brace myself for impact from the screeching kiddie fanboys. For the moment, that's just a risk you take, and it's pretty well dumb. -
turkey3_scratch Reply19424926 said:19424743 said:19424414 said:I look forward to when the Zelda honeymoon is over and people can have more sober discussions about how the game isn't 100% absolutely the definition of perfect.
As an owner I'd say my only con is the frame drops. Other than that awesome game.
Performance is a big thing, yeah. I'm also in the camp that's firmly against the weapon degradation. Some folks don't like the rain, I don't mind it.
But yeah, that's all I want to be able to say without having to brace myself for impact from the screeching kiddie fanboys. For the moment, that's just a risk you take, and it's pretty well dumb.
I like when wooden weapons degrade but metal ones degrading is unrealistic. -
dstarr3 Reply19425361 said:19424926 said:19424743 said:19424414 said:I look forward to when the Zelda honeymoon is over and people can have more sober discussions about how the game isn't 100% absolutely the definition of perfect.
As an owner I'd say my only con is the frame drops. Other than that awesome game.
Performance is a big thing, yeah. I'm also in the camp that's firmly against the weapon degradation. Some folks don't like the rain, I don't mind it.
But yeah, that's all I want to be able to say without having to brace myself for impact from the screeching kiddie fanboys. For the moment, that's just a risk you take, and it's pretty well dumb.
I like when wooden weapons degrade but metal ones degrading is unrealistic.
I think Dark Souls 1 did weapon degradation properly, but the problem was that the degradation was so gradual, it may as well not have been a mechanic in the game, because you probably upgraded weapons well before degradation became a concern. Which, y'know, if I had to choose between degradation so slight so as to never have to worry about it or so extreme that weapons break from spreading butter on toast, I definitely choose the former. I just don't see why the system has to be there at all to begin with.