The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is a 2017 action-adventure game created by Nintendo EPD for the Wii U and Nintendo Switch. The story takes place near the end of the Zelda timeline and follows Link as he tries to rescue Princess Zelda and stop Calamity Ganon from destroying the world. Players explore the open world of Hyrule, gather items, and complete tasks like puzzles and side quests. The game’s world is not structured, encouraging players to explore and experiment. The story can be completed in any order.
The game took five years to develop after The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011) was released. Directed by Hidemaro Fujibayashi and produced by Eiji Aonuma, Nintendo EPD aimed to change how Zelda games worked. They added features like detailed systems for how objects move and interact. The team got ideas from games such as Shadow of the Colossus (2005) and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011). Monolith Soft, known for the open-world Xenoblade Chronicles series, helped design the game’s landscapes and terrain.
Breath of the Wild was released on March 3, 2017, as the last Wii U game published by Nintendo and a new game for the Nintendo Switch. It was praised for its gameplay, open-world design, and attention to detail. Some reviewers noted issues with how the game performed on certain systems. The game won many awards, including Game of the Year at the 2017 Game Awards and the 21st Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. It sold over 34.51 million copies by March 2025, becoming the best-selling Zelda game and one of the best-selling video games ever.
Breath of the Wild is seen as one of the greatest video games. Journalists called it a major milestone in open-world design because of its focus on experimentation, physics-based gameplay, and unexpected events that happen during play. Many developers used it as inspiration, and it is often compared to other open-world games. A spinoff, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, was released in 2020. A sequel, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, came out in 2023. An improved version for the Nintendo Switch 2 was released in June 2025.
Gameplay
Breath of the Wild is an open-world action-adventure game. Players explore the kingdom of Hyrule while controlling Link. The game allows players to move freely without following a strict path, as areas have no clear entrances or exits, and players receive few instructions. Instead, players are encouraged to explore and solve problems in different ways. A new physics system lets players interact with the environment in creative ways, such as using metal objects to attract lightning during thunderstorms. This system, called the "chemistry engine," determines how objects behave and react to each other. For example, players must avoid carrying metal during storms but can use it to strike enemies with lightning. These features create a world where players can experiment and complete the story in their own way.
As Link, players can run, climb, swim, and glide using a paraglider, but Link's stamina limits how long he can perform these actions. Players can collect items like weapons, food, and materials from the environment. Unlike earlier games, weapons and shields wear out over time and eventually break. Many items have multiple uses, such as wooden weapons lighting fires or wooden shields collecting arrows. Players can gather food and materials by hunting, collecting fruit, or taking parts from defeated enemies. Cooking combinations of these items creates meals and elixirs that restore health, stamina, or provide temporary benefits like increased strength or protection from cold.
A key tool for Link is the "Sheikah Slate," a magical tablet that helps mark locations on the map and take pictures of objects, creatures, and enemies. These pictures are stored in the "Hyrule Compendium," which helps players find valuable items. The Sheikah Slate also allows players to create bombs, move metal objects, make ice on water, and pause objects temporarily. In combat, players can target enemies for precise attacks and use special button combinations for advanced moves. Enemies can also be defeated without weapons, such as by rolling boulders onto them.
Besides exploring, players can complete quests and challenges to gain rewards. Activating towers and shrines adds map markers that players can teleport to. Activating towers also reveals areas on the map, though names appear only after exploring. Shrines contain puzzles or battles against robotic enemies. Completing shrines earns "Spirit Orbs," which can be traded for extra health or stamina. When Link has at least 13 hearts, he can reclaim the Master Sword in the Korok Forest. The Master Sword never breaks but needs time to recharge after heavy use. Other challenges include solving puzzles to earn "Korok Seeds," which expand inventory space. Towns, villages, and stables offer quests, shops, and interactions with travelers. Players can also use Amiibo figures to summon items or characters from previous games.
The Nintendo Switch 2 version includes new features, such as "Zelda Notes," a service on the Nintendo Switch App that provides audio tips from Princess Zelda to help players with gameplay.
Plot
The game Breath of the Wild takes place at the end of the Zelda timeline in the kingdom of Hyrule. A warrior named Link, who has forgotten his past, wakes up in a place called the Shrine of Resurrection, which is located on a high area overlooking Hyrule. He meets an old man who later reveals himself to be the spirit of Rhoam, the last king of Hyrule. Rhoam explains that Link has been sleeping in the Shrine of Resurrection for 100 years and tells the history of Hyrule and Link’s past.
Long ago, the Sheikah people helped build Hyrule into a highly advanced civilization. This civilization was protected by four large, animal-like machines called the Divine Beasts and by an army of machines called Guardians. When an ancient evil named Calamity Ganon appeared and threatened Hyrule, four brave warriors were chosen as Champions. Each Champion piloted one of the Divine Beasts to fight Ganon. At the same time, Princess Zelda, who had the blood of the Goddess Hylia, used her power to trap Ganon while being protected by her knight.
Ten thousand years later, Hyrule had become a medieval kingdom. The people of Hyrule studied old writings and saw signs that Ganon was returning. They searched for the Divine Beasts and Guardians to prepare for this threat. Princess Zelda trained hard to unlock the magic needed to defeat Ganon while also studying the Divine Beasts. A knight named Link was chosen to protect her because he could wield the Master Sword. After Zelda found Link, the Champions—Mipha, the princess of the Zora; Revali, the archer of the Rito; Daruk, the warrior of the Gorons; and Urbosa, the leader of the Gerudo—gathered to pilot the Divine Beasts. Zelda and Link would fight Ganon directly.
When Ganon appeared on Zelda’s 17th birthday, he took control of the Guardians and Divine Beasts, turning them against Hyrule. King Rhoam and the Champions were killed, and Link was seriously hurt while trying to protect Zelda. Zelda used her magic to save Link. She sent him to the Shrine of Resurrection to heal, hid the Master Sword in Korok Forest under the protection of the Great Deku Tree, and used her light magic to trap herself and Ganon inside Hyrule Castle. Rhoam tells Link that Ganon has become stronger while trapped and asks Link to defeat him before he destroys the world.
Link leaves the plateau and meets Impa, a Sheikah elder who once served the royal family. Impa tells Link to free the Divine Beasts. Link travels across Hyrule, revisiting places from his past and remembering his life. At the request of Hyrule’s people, he enters the Divine Beasts and breaks Ganon’s control over them, freeing the spirits of the fallen Champions, who then pilot the Divine Beasts. During this journey, Link is helped by Sidon, the Zora prince and Mipha’s brother; Yunobo, a descendant of Daruk; Teba, a Rito warrior; and Riju, the young leader of the Gerudo. After retrieving the Master Sword from Korok Forest, Link enters Hyrule Castle and fights Ganon. The Divine Beasts weaken Ganon, and after Link defeats him, Ganon transforms into Dark Beast Ganon. Zelda gives Link the Bow of Light, which weakens Ganon enough for Zelda to trap him again, restoring peace and allowing the spirits of King Rhoam and the Champions to leave the world. If the player completes an optional quest where Link regains all his memories, a post-credits scene shows Zelda saying that Hyrule must be rebuilt and that she and Link will begin this task together. As Link and Zelda look over Hyrule, Zelda tells him that even though her powers have weakened over time, she has accepted this change.
Development
Nintendo EPD, a part of Nintendo, created The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for the Nintendo Switch and Wii U. Series producer Eiji Aonuma said the team wanted to think about how to change the usual ways of doing things in Zelda. Development began right after The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011) was released. Aonuma heard from players who wanted a more connected map to explore areas between gameplay sections. In 2013, Nintendo tried nonlinear gameplay in The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, which many praised. At E3 2014, Aonuma said he planned to change dungeons and puzzles—important parts of the series—and redesign the game so players could reach the end without following the story’s order. Since Nintendo had never made an open-world game as large as Breath of the Wild, they studied The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Shadow of the Colossus, the latter of which shares climbing mechanics. Fumito Ueda, the creator of Shadow of the Colossus, was friends with Aonuma. For the art style, the team used inspiration from Japanese anime they grew up watching, including Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki’s work. Link, the main character, was redesigned to be more gender-neutral so players could relate to him.
Before full development, the team made a playable 2D prototype similar to the original Zelda to test physics-based puzzles. The final game uses a modified version of the Havok physics engine. At the 2017 Game Developers Conference, director Hidemaro Fujibayashi, technical director Takuhiro Dohta, and art director Satoru Takizawa gave a presentation titled "Change and Constant – Breaking Conventions with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild," where they showed the prototype. Aonuma said the physics engine in Breath of the Wild was a major step for the series, explaining it "underpins everything in the world" and makes things work in a "logical and realistic way," allowing players to solve puzzles in different ways. He mentioned a challenge during development when he entered a game area and found all objects had been blown away by the wind. Early in development, the game was to include "double hookshots," which would let players swing like Spider-Man. This feature was removed because it made the climbing mechanic too easy. The team realized adding too many actions for Link would complicate controls, so they focused on increasing the number of events players could interact with in the world.
Nintendo’s goal in making the new Zelda game for the Wii U was to rethink the usual ways of playing Zelda. Aonuma said the team wanted to move away from expectations like completing dungeons in a specific order and return to basics to create a fresh Zelda experience. Breath of the Wild was built with touchscreen features for the Wii U, but developers found switching between the GamePad and the screen was distracting. These features were removed when the game was developed for both the Switch and Wii U. The Wii U GamePad also influenced animation; Link is right-handed in Breath of the Wild instead of left-handed, matching the GamePad’s control layout. The Switch version performs better than the Wii U version when connected to a TV, though both run at the same resolution when used as a handheld. The Switch version also has better environmental sound quality. Ideas like flying and underground dungeons were not included in Breath of the Wild due to the Wii U’s limitations and were used in later games. Aonuma said the art design was inspired by gouache and en plein air painting to help players see the world’s vastness. Takizawa said the Jōmon period influenced the ancient Sheikah technology and architecture because of its mysterious nature. The landscape was based on locations near Kyoto, the hometown of director Hidemaro Fujibayashi, and partially designed by Monolith Soft, who helped with level design. The starting area was made a plateau so players could see the world’s large environments.
Aonuma said the physics engine was a major step for the Zelda series. He explained that the engine allows players to solve puzzles in many ways, not just one. For example, in Breath of the Wild, a puzzle might have multiple solutions using physics. This gives players more freedom to explore.
Breath of the Wild was the first main Zelda game to use voice acting in cutscenes, though Link remains silent. Aonuma said he was moved by hearing a character with a human voice for the first time and wanted to give players a similar experience. The team recorded voice-overs for all cutscenes instead of just key scenes, as originally planned. Nintendo provided voice-overs and subtitles in eight languages. At first, players could not mix voice and subtitle languages, but an update in May 2017 allowed them to choose. After five years of development, the game was completed, and Nintendo held a celebration. A patch added traditional and simplified Chinese and Korean translations for the Switch version when the game launched in Taiwan and South Korea in 2018.
The original score was composed by Manaka Kataoka, Yasuaki Iwata, and Hajime Wakai. Kataoka and Wakai had worked on previous Zelda games, Spirit Tracks and The Wind Waker, respectively. The soundtrack was mostly written and performed on piano, focusing on ambient music and sounds rather than the melodic and upbeat styles of earlier games. Wakai said this helped make the environments feel more real and was a challenge the sound team accepted.
Release
In January 2013, Aonuma announced the game for the Wii U during a Nintendo Direct presentation. He stated the game would change how the series worked, such as allowing players to complete dungeons in any order instead of following a set sequence. The next year, Nintendo showed the game’s high-definition, cel-shaded visual style during an E3 press event. Originally planned for a 2015 release, the game was delayed early in 2015 and not shown at that year’s E3. A Wii U version was confirmed later despite the development of the Nintendo Switch. In April 2016, the game was delayed again because of issues with its physics engine. In June 2016, Nintendo let attendees play the Wii U version at E3, where they also announced the game’s subtitle, Breath of the Wild. Many publications listed the game among the best at E3.
Breath of the Wild was released for both the Wii U and Switch on March 3, 2017. It was the final Nintendo-published game for the Wii U. The Switch version came in limited "Special Edition" and "Master Edition" bundles, which included a Sheikah Eye coin, a Calamity Ganon tapestry with a world map, a soundtrack CD, and a themed carrying case for the Switch. The Master Edition also included a figurine of the Master Sword. An "Explorer’s Edition" was released for the Switch on November 23, containing a two-sided map and a 100-page book with story details. In Europe, the game had unique packaging artwork. A five-disc, 211-track soundtrack was released in Japan on April 25, 2018.
An enhanced version of the game was released as a launch title for the Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5, 2025, alongside its sequel, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. It was sold as a standalone game, a paid upgrade for existing Switch owners, or a free upgrade for subscribers to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack. The "Switch 2 Edition" includes improved resolution, higher frame rates, HDR support, and integration with the mobile Nintendo Switch Online App, which allows the "Zelda Notes" feature. This feature provides a full overworld map, real-time voiced navigation for collectibles and secrets, and narration about Hyrule’s features by Zelda herself.
In 2017, Nintendo released two downloadable content (DLC) packs through an "expansion pass": The Master Trials and The Champions’ Ballad. The Master Trials, released in June, added gameplay modes, features, and items. The "Trial of the Sword" challenge includes three trials with 12, 16, and 23 rooms. Each room is filled with enemies that must be defeated to proceed. Players start with no equipment and lose all progress if they fail. After completing each trial, the Master Sword’s attack power increases by 10 points, and its blade glows more brightly. By the end of the third trial, the sword’s attack power doubles and glows blue. The pack also includes "Master Mode," a harder difficulty level with faster rank progression and stronger enemies. New floating platforms added enemies and treasure. The "Hero’s Path" feature marks the player’s path on the map, and the hidden Travel Medallion lets players save Link’s location as a waypoint. New items include the Korok Mask, which detects nearby Koroks, and themed cosmetics from previous Zelda games.
The Champions’ Ballad, released in December, added a new dungeon, extra story content, new gear, and challenges. It also introduced the Master Cycle Zero, a motorcycle-like vehicle Link can ride after completing a specific quest.
A complete "Expansion Pass" edition, containing all DLC on a game card, was released exclusively in Japan on October 8, 2021.
Reception
Breath of the Wild received "universal acclaim" from Metacritic, a website that collects reviews. It was the highest-rated game of 2017 on Metacritic and had the most perfect scores of any game in any year. Another review site, OpenCritic, said the game received "mighty" approval, with 96% of critics recommending it. It was the highest-rated Wii U game on OpenCritic and the second-highest-rated Nintendo Switch game, behind Super Mario Odyssey (2017).
Many critics called the game a masterpiece. The open-world gameplay was widely praised. Jose Otero of IGN said the game was "a masterclass in open-world design" and described it as "a wonderful sandbox full of mystery" that invites players to explore. GameSpot called it the most impressive game Nintendo had made, saying it took ideas from other games and used them in new ways to create something unique but still felt like a Zelda game. Edge said the game world was "an absolute pleasure to explore" and praised how players could solve problems using tools they had from the start. Digital Trends noted that the ability to climb any surface and glide across the map gave players freedom that changed how games were designed. Unlike games that guide players with set goals, Breath of the Wild let players choose their own paths, marking discoveries on the map as they played.
Kyle Orland of Ars Technica said the game’s open-world design changed how Zelda games were made. Reporters noted that unexpected interactions between game elements created popular moments on social media. Chris Plante of The Verge said the game would influence future games by encouraging open-ended problem-solving. Digital Trends wrote that players could experiment with the environment in creative ways, leading to tricks discovered even years after the game’s release.
Reviewers praised the game’s details and how it made players feel immersed. Kotaku suggested turning off on-screen elements to better notice indirect clues, like Link shivering in the cold or waypoints appearing when using a scope. Reviewers also noted unexpected ways Link, villagers, pets, and enemies could interact, which were shared widely online. A tribute to Satoru Iwata, a former Nintendo president who died during development, also received praise.
James Stephanie Sterling gave the game a 7/10 score, criticizing its difficulty, weapon durability, and level design but praising the open world and variety of content. Other criticism focused on the game’s unstable frame rate and low resolution of 900p, though updates later fixed some issues.
Breath of the Wild broke sales records for Nintendo. In Japan, the Switch and Wii U versions sold 230,000 copies in the first week, with the Switch version being the top-selling game that week. In the UK, it was the second-best-selling retail game that week, behind Horizon Zero Dawn, and the third-best-selling Zelda game, behind The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess. In the United States, it was the second-best-selling video game that month, behind Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands. Nintendo reported that the game sold over one million copies in the US that month, with 925,000 for the Switch. Nintendo president Tatsumi Kimishima said the Switch’s sales rate was "unprecedented." By December 2025, the game had sold 33.64 million copies on the Switch and 1.70 million on the Wii U by December 2020.
After its E3 2016 demonstration, Breath of the Wild won awards from the Game Critics Awards and publications like IGN and Destructoid. It was listed among the best games at E3 by Eurogamer, GameSpot, and GamesRadar+. In late 2016, it won two awards at Gamescom and won the Most Anticipated Game award at the Game Awards 2016.
At the Game Awards 2017, Breath of the Wild won Game of the Year, Best Game Direction, and Best Action/Adventure Game, and was nominated for Best Art Direction, Best Score/Music, and Best Audio Design. At the 21st Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, it won Game of the Year, Adventure Game of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction, and Outstanding Achievement in Game Design, and was nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction and Outstanding Technical Achievement. IGN, GameSpot, Polygon, Entertainment Weekly, Eurogamer, Electronic Gaming Monthly, GamesRadar+, and Game Informer ranked it the best game of 2017. According to Metacritic, it topped 18 lists of the decade’s best games, more than any other game of the 2010s. It was named one of the greatest games of all time by The Guardian, IGN, Edge, and Famitsu. In a 2021 poll by TV Asahi of over 50,000 Japanese people, it was voted the best console game, above Dragon Quest V. A 2023 poll by GQ, which surveyed industry journalists, ranked it the best video game. In 2025, IGN and Nintendo Life listed it as the second-best Nintendo game, behind its sequel Tears of the Kingdom.
Legacy
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild changed how many people think about video games. It introduced new ideas that influenced how games are designed, especially open-world games. Some players spent 10 hours playing Red Dead Redemption 2, hoping it would feel like Breath of the Wild, but eventually stopped because it was different. This is not because other games are flawed, but because Breath of the Wild set a new standard that is hard to match.
After its release, experts and game developers discussed how Breath of the Wild would shape future games. Benjamin Plich, who worked on Assassin's Creed Unity and For Honor, said the game inspired developers to focus on experimental gameplay, such as letting players explore and interact with the environment freely. Damien Monnier, who designed The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, noted that Breath of the Wild combined classic open-world mechanics without forcing players to follow a strict path. Screen Rant described the game’s "reactive physics" sandbox design as a major breakthrough for open-world games, and its chemistry engine, which emphasized interactions between objects, was also praised. PC Gamer called it a new benchmark for its genre. IGN and GQ listed it as one of the best games of all time, with GQ’s list including input from developers, writers, and other experts.
Many games and developers have cited Breath of the Wild as an inspiration, including Genshin Impact, Ghost of Tsushima, Eternal Strands, Immortals Fenyx Rising, Telling Lies, Halo Infinite, Elden Ring, Forspoken, and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. Similarities have also been noted between Breath of the Wild and games like Pokémon Legends: Arceus, Sonic Frontiers, and Horizon Forbidden West. Digital Trends reported that Breath of the Wild has become a common reference point for open-world games. Its popularity also led to increased interest in the Wii U emulator Cemu, which was updated quickly to run the game smoothly. This allowed players to create and share game modifications.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, a hack-and-slash game inspired by the Dynasty Warriors series, is a spin-off of Breath of the Wild. It is set 100 years before the events of Breath of the Wild and was released on November 20, 2020, for the Nintendo Switch.
In October 2025, it was announced that the soundtrack for Breath of the Wild would be released as a 16-side LP boxset and a 4-side vinyl set. These will be available in June 2026.
A sequel, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, was released on May 12, 2023. It was directed by Hidemaro Fujibayashi, who also directed Breath of the Wild. The game was developed during planning for Breath of the Wild’s DLC, as the team had many ideas that could not be fully used in the original game. Tears of the Kingdom expands on the original’s world with a new story and gameplay features, and was influenced in part by Red Dead Redemption 2.