A familiar legend

Two years later, many parts of Breath of the Wild still ring familiar to me. It's a trade-off for how awe-inspiring and memorable my first playthrough was; a replay doesn't feel quite as "special."

But that's not to say the thrill is gone, as it was when I replayed BioShock Infinite or Majora's Mask. This iteration of Hyrule remains thoroughly majestic, bursting with wonder, plentiful with activity. So much of Breath of the Wild is just satisfying to participate in.

(The "endgame" stuff I whined about before is still fairly unsatisfying. But hey, I'm trying it this time, so it can't be all that bad ... right?)

One positive of this playthrough is that I'm appreciating the storytelling a bit more -- now that my expectations for it are low. The supporting cast is flat (granted I haven't worked up to The Champions' Ballad just yet), Link doesn't emote, Ganon is an amorphous blob, and Princess Zelda is annoying and kind of shitty. But! when you realize her personal plight, the shadow of self-disappointment that she wallows in, Zelda's shittiness becomes a little easier to relate to and her character can seem borderline convincing.

I think Zelda's backstory probably would have worked better if, contrary to being totally non-linear, some of Link's flashbacks were up-front with that perspective on the princess. ... but since the ending is lame anyway, lacking any sense of payoff for her, maybe it doesn't matter.

On that note, this time through the game has crystallized my thoughts on some parts of Breath of the Wild that could really be improved, and which I hope are improved for whatever comes next. Like, I'm okay with the breakable weapons and the limited weapon slots, but I'm disappointed that there isn't permanent access (like with the Sheikah Slate) to commodity functions like torch-lighting and food-cooking.

Holding a shield is a huge defensive advantage, both passively (lowering enemy damage) and actively (blocking attacks). Which is a dramatic disincentive against two-handed weapons. Link's jump-dodge just isn't good enough; I think two-handers also need a block/parry button.

And there needs to be some anti-rain ability. Rain takes away too many valuable gameplay tools - climbing, lighting a fire, seeing clearly - with no mitigation except to teleport away from it. Here's hoping for some kind of magic umbrella, or maybe even a reverse Song of Storms.

As for the Switch game's advantages over its Wii U version, without putting them side by side, it's hard for me to say if the display resolution, or level of detail, or frame rate are any better. Far-off objects are still indistinct; long gliding sessions still show plenty of pop-in; and busy areas like Kakariko Village or the Great Deku Tree still drop frames prodigiously.

But as before, the game experience is compelling enough that these shortcomings are easy to ignore.

In short, I think that on revisiting, I'd say yeah: Breath of the Wild is still the new "best Zelda."

Progress: Killed the evil shit again, 120 shrines, all the sidequests, bunches of Korok seeds, more equipment upgrades than were really useful.