The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Open-world action-adventure game redefining Zelda conventions.
In 2017, Nintendo EPD released *The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild* as an action-adventure title for both the Wii U and the Nintendo Switch. The story places Link near the end of the Zelda timeline, on a mission to rescue Princess Zelda and stop Calamity Ganon from ruining Hyrule. Players roam an open world, gathering items and tackling puzzles and side quests. The game’s world is deliberately loose, pushing players to explore and experiment, and the main story can be finished in any order. Development took five years, starting after *Skyward Sword* (2011). Director Hidemaro Fujibayashi and producer Eiji Aonuma led the team at Nintendo EPD, aiming to break from Zelda traditions by adding detailed chemistry and physics engines. They looked to *Shadow of the Colossus* (2005) and *The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim* (2011) for inspiration. Monolith Soft, known for the *Xenoblade* series, helped design the landscapes and terrain, drawing on their open-world experience. The game launched on March 3, 2017, as the last Nintendo-published Wii U game and a launch title for the Switch. Critics praised its gameplay, open-world design, and careful detail, though some noted technical issues. It won many awards, including Game of the Year at the 2017 Game Awards and the 21st Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. Sales records fell for a Nintendo launch title, and by June 2026, it had sold 35.76 million copies, making it the best-selling *Zelda* game and one of the best-selling games ever. Journalists often call it one of the greatest games of all time, highlighting its focus on experimentation, physics-based sandbox, and emergent gameplay as a landmark in open-world design. Many developers have cited it as an influence, and it remains a common benchmark for open-world titles. A spin-off, *Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity*, came out in 2020, and a sequel, *The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom*, followed in 2023. An enhanced version for the Nintendo Switch 2 arrived in June 2025.
In terms of gameplay, *Breath of the Wild* is an open-world action-adventure game where players control Link and explore Hyrule. Nonlinear play is central: there are no clear entrances or exits to areas, little instruction is given, and free exploration is encouraged. A consistent physics engine lets players solve problems in many ways instead of finding one correct answer. A “chemistry engine” sets the physical traits of most objects and governs how they interact. For instance, during thunderstorms, metal items attract lightning strikes, so players must avoid carrying metal or can throw metal objects at enemies to redirect the bolts. This design creates a loose, interactive world that rewards experimentation and allows the story to be completed out of order.
Link can run, climb, swim, and glide using a paraglider, though his stamina limits these actions. He picks up items from the environment, such as weapons, food, and other resources. Unlike earlier *Zelda* games, weapons and shields wear down and eventually break. Many items serve multiple purposes: wooden weapons can start fires, wooden shields can catch enemy arrows, and some shields work as makeshift snowboards. Players get food and elixir materials by hunting animals, gathering wild fruit, or collecting parts from defeated foes. Cooking combinations of food or materials produces meals and elixirs that restore health and stamina or grant temporary boosts like extra strength or resistance to heat or cold.
A key tool is the Sheikah Slate, a magical stone tablet. It marks waypoints on the in-game map and takes pictures of materials, creatures, and enemies, storing them in the Hyrule Compendium, which helps locate valuable items. The Slate also lets players create remote bombs, manipulate metal objects, form ice blocks on water, and briefly freeze certain objects in time. In combat, players can lock onto targets for precise attacks, and certain button combos enable advanced offensive and defensive moves. Enemies can be defeated without weapons too, such as by rolling boulders off cliffs into their camps.
Beyond exploration, players take on quests or challenges for rewards. Activating towers and shrines adds waypoints to the map that can be warped to at any time. Towers also reveal territories on the Slate’s map, though location names appear only after visiting them. Shrines scattered across Hyrule contain puzzles or battles against robotic foes. Clearing shrines gives Spirit Orbs; collecting four lets players trade them for extra health or stamina. Once Link has at least 13 hearts, he can retrieve the Master Sword in Korok Forest. This sword never breaks, but it can run out of energy after extended use and needs a 10-minute recharge. Besides shrines, the Divine Beasts—giant mechanical animals—act as extended puzzles, each tied to a unique animal and element. Small puzzles throughout Hyrule reward Korok Seeds, which can be traded to expand inventory space.
- developer
- Nintendo EPD
- platforms
- Wii U, Nintendo Switch
- genre
- Action-adventure
- director
- Hidemaro Fujibayashi
- producer
- Eiji Aonuma
Verified Timeline
Lore & Background
Breath of the Wild takes place at the end of the Zelda timeline in the kingdom of Hyrule. An amnesiac warrior named Link awakens in a chamber called the Shrine of Resurrection, located on the Great Plateau overlooking Hyrule. He encounters an old man who eventually reveals himself as the lingering spirit of Rhoam, the last king of Hyrule. He explains that Link has been slumbering in the Shrine of Resurrection for a century, and narrates the history of the kingdom and Link's own past. In ancient times, the Sheikah race had developed Hyrule into an advanced civilization, protected by four enormous animalistic machines called the Divine Beasts and an army of autonomous weapons called Guardians. When an ancient evil known as Calamity Ganon appeared and threatened Hyrule, four great warriors were given the title of Champion, and each piloted one of the Divine Beasts to weaken Ganon. Meanwhile, the princess of Hyrule, who possessed the blood of the Goddess Hylia, sealed Ganon away while being protected by her appointed knight. Ten millennia later, the kingdom of Hyrule had regressed to a medieval state. Reading their ancestors' prophecies, Hyrule's peoples recognized the signs of Ganon's return and excavated surrounding areas to uncover the Divine Beasts and Guardians. During this time, Princess Zelda trained vigorously to awaken the sealing magic needed to defeat Ganon while trying to maintain her personal research into the Divine Beasts. A knight was appointed to protect her: Link, who was chosen due to his ability to wield the Master Sword. After being sought out by Zelda, the Champions—Mipha, princess of the aquatic Zora; Revali, archer of the birdlike Rito; Daruk, warrior of the mountainous Gorons; and Urbosa, chief of the desert-dwelling Gerudo—assembled to pilot the Divine Beasts while Zelda and Link would face Ganon directly. When Ganon appeared on Zelda's seventeenth birthday, he possessed the Guardians and Divine Beasts, turning them against Hyrule. King Rhoam and the Champions were killed, and Link was gravely wounded protecting Zelda. Zelda unlocked her sealing powers, using them to save Link. Zelda had Link taken to the Shrine of Resurrection for him to heal, hid the Master Sword in Korok Forest under the protection of the Great Deku Tree, and used her light magic to seal herself and Ganon in Hyrule Castle. Rhoam finishes his story by explaining that Ganon has grown stronger while sealed in Hyrule Castle, and pleads for Link to defeat Ganon before he regains his strength and destroys the world.
Reader's Guide
Breath of the Wild is an open-world action-adventure game. Players are tasked with exploring the kingdom of Hyrule while controlling Link. Breath of the Wild encourages nonlinear gameplay, which is illustrated by the lack of defined entrances or exits to areas, scant instruction given to the player, and encouragement to explore freely. Breath of the Wild introduces a consistent physics engine to the Zelda series, letting players approach problems in different ways rather than trying to find a single solution. The 'chemistry engine' defines the physical properties of most objects and governs how they interact with the player and one another. For example, during thunderstorms, metal objects will attract powerful lightning strikes; the player must be careful not to carry metal, but may also throw metal objects at enemies to draw lightning to them. These design approaches result in a generally unstructured and interactive world that rewards experimentation and allows for nonlinear completion of the story. As Link, players can perform actions such as running, climbing, swimming, and gliding with a paraglider, although Link is limited by his stamina. Link can procure items from the environment, including weapons, food, and other resources. Unlike in previous Zelda games, weapons and shields degrade through use, eventually shattering. Many items have multiple uses; for example, wooden weapons can light fires, wooden shields can collect incoming enemy arrows, and certain shields can be used as makeshift snowboards. Players can obtain food and materials for elixirs from hunting animals, gathering wild fruit, or collecting parts of defeated enemies. By cooking combinations of food or materials, the player can create meals and elixirs that can replenish Link's health and stamina, or provide temporary status bonuses such as increased strength or resistance to heat or cold. An important tool in Link's arsenal is the 'Sheikah Slate', a magical stone tablet which can be used to mark waypoints on the in-game map and take pictures of materials, creatures, and enemies. These pictures are stored in the 'Hyrule Compendium', an in-game photo album that can be used to locate valuable items. The Sheikah Slate also gives the player the ability to create remote bombs, manipulate metal objects, form ice blocks on watery surfaces, and temporarily stop certain objects in time. In combat, players can lock onto targets for more precise attacks, while certain button combinations allow for advanced offensive and defensive moves. Players may also defeat enemies without weapons, such as by rolling boulders off cliffs into enemy camps. Besides exploration, players can undergo quests or challenges to obtain certain benefits. Activating towers and shrines will add waypoints to the map that the player may warp to at any time. Activating towers also reveals territories on the Sheikah Slate's map, although location names are not added until the player explores that area. Dotted throughout Hyrule are shrines that contain challenges ranging from puzzles to battles against robotic opponents. Clearing shrines earns Spirit Orbs; after earning four of these orbs, they can be traded for additional health or stamina points. When Link has at least 13 hearts, he can reclaim the Master Sword in the Korok Forest. The Master Sword is the only unbreakable weapon, but it can run out of energy after extended use, requiring a 10-minute recharge. In addition to shrines, the Divine Beasts, giant mechanical animals, act as extended puzzles, each based around a unique animal and element. Scattered across Hyrule are small puzzles which, after solving them, will reward the player with Korok Seeds, which can be traded to expand inventory size for weapons, shields, and bows. Towns, villages, and horse stables serve as hot-spots for quests, sidequests, and shops that sell materials and clothing. Hikers and other travelers offer sidequests, hints, or conversation. Additionally, players can scan Amiibo figures with their controller to summon items or call Link's horse Epona from previous Zelda games and Wolf Link from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. The Nintendo Switch 2 version includes new features such as support for Zelda Notes, a service on the Nintendo Switch App featuring audio recordings by Princess Zelda to assist players with gameplay.
Did You Know?
- Breath of the Wild was released on March 3, 2017, as both the final Nintendo-published Wii U game and a launch title for the Switch.
- The game sold 35.76 million copies by June 2026, making it the bestselling Zelda game and one of the bestselling video games.
- Monolith Soft, developer of the Xenoblade series, assisted in designing landscapes and topography due to their experience in developing open world games.
- The Master Sword is the only unbreakable weapon, but it can run out of energy after extended use, requiring a 10-minute recharge.
- An enhanced version for the Nintendo Switch 2 was released in June 2025, featuring support for Zelda Notes with audio recordings by Princess Zelda.
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