The Temple stage was first introduced to the Super Smash Bros. series in Super Smash Bros. Melee and would go on to be featured in every subsequent entry. While not the first stage to represent the Zelda franchise (that honor goes to Hyrule Castle in the original game), it definitely remains the most iconic. In…
Link’s Awakening‘s soundtrack is just chock full of bangers. The boss music goes so hard. That musical sting when you get your sword at the beginning of the game? Iconic. The dungeons? Don’t even get me started. But the music that slaps the hardest is found at the top of the map. Tal Tal Mountain…
Breath of the Wild has one of the most amazing maps in video game history. More than five years after the release of this Zelda masterpiece, people are still finding new things throughout the vast regions of Hyrule. When I first played the game, one of the locations that caught my attention right away was…
The major geological changes throughout Zelda series can be fun to analyze. It’s very surreal to play Breath of the Wild, arguably the most current game in the series’ timeline, only to immediately thereafter play Skyward Sword and get thrown rapidly back in time. Peering back into Hyrule’s very beginning, armed with intimate knowledge of…
Recently I’ve started participating in a number of competitive fighting game tournaments, including those dedicated to the legendary Super Smash Bros. series. Specifically, I’ve played in quite a few Super Smash Bros. Melee and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournaments as of late. Many have criticized the Smash games over the years for not faithfully representing…
Since the latest trailer released for Tears of the Kingdom, there has been a lot of speculation about how the mysterious Zonai people fit into the picture. All that we truly know about them is that they were part of an ancient barbarian tribe. Their history supposedly predates that of the Hyruleans, having been present…
The Wind Waker is not just my favorite Zelda game of all time, but also my favorite video game in general. I love everything about it! The sailing replaced the well-worn horseback riding mechanic, and exploring a flooded Hyrule was definitely a new and exciting experience. While sailing across the Great Sea, you’ll come across…
Some things in Breath of the Wild are true secrets, while others are simply things you didn’t look for or missed entirely. This one falls into both categories. If you look on the map southeast of the Dueling Peaks Stable, you’ll see a mountain range. The highest peak in this range is Mount Floria, and…
One of the most enticing things about Breath of the Wild’s Hyrule is the way local legends merge with ancient history, enriching a world that the player is free to explore. An amazing example of this is the fountain of the Horse God, Malanya. Its location is moderately out-of-the-way for the player, being in the…
After slashing his way through the three tutorial dungeons, young Link opens the doors to the Sacred Realm and is thrust into a far more dangerous adventure, with all of Hyrule relying on his success. The weight of the world is forced on the boy’s shoulders all at once. However, within the Sacred Realm, he also…
Look, I understand I’ve been pretty harsh on some of the dungeons and areas in the Oracle games. I really love these games, I swear I do! There are tons of fun areas to explore. In order to traverse a lot of these places, you’ll need to recruit one of three animal assistants: Moosh, the…
One day, while out exploring the Lanayru region in Breath of the Wild, I decided to open up my map and search around to see if there were any cool places to check out. I noticed a spot called “Peak of Awakening,” and my thoughts instantly went to Link’s Awakening; I wondered if this location…
Breath of the Wild’s opening is iconic. It follows the classic format of having Link waking from a dream, but this time, our hero has been asleep for 100 years. The Hyrule he knew is gone, he doesn’t know where he is, and anything he did know has been forgotten. The Shrine of Resurrection itself…
In my first playthrough of Breath of the Wild, the first legitimately intriguing location I encountered after leaving the Great Plateau was Hickaly Woods. I was still getting used to the open world around me, grappling with how big Hyrule truly was, and Hickaly Woods felt like an exciting example of how much detailed lore…
A common complaint about Breath of the Wild that I often hear is that the open world is awesome until you play for more a couple hours and realize just how empty it is. A lack of people and towns to visit make the huge world too boring. Well, to all those haters, I say…I…
