#2017 game

[theuntitledblog]

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch) - REVIEW

Breath of the Wild grants you the freedom to approach it in whatever way you see fit. Unlike your more typical open world games, this doesn't generally tell you where to go, what to specifically look for or what order things should be done. This is a game that lets you explore, to go out into this fallen kingdom and discover the characters and stories on your own terms. It's a potentially overwhelming set up depending on the type of gamer you are, if structure is your thing then Breath of the Wild may frustrate with its minimalist approach to storytelling. Even the map gives nothing away as the villages, towns, stables and (many) ancient shrines that you come to discover become visible on your map only after you've actually found them. If absolute freedom is your things however, then Breath of the Wild is definitely for you and while it took me a little time to embrace it on its own terms, there is so much to admire about the game.

Easily my favourite thing about the game is the artwork which has a hand drawn quality to it and is only slightly undermined by the Switch's performance which occasionally struggles to cope when a lot of things are going on. But Breath of the Wild is a strikingly beautiful and almost melancholic experience as you roam the vast, open landscape battling monsters, collecting resources and exploring this ruined version of Hyrule. Regions vary when it comes to the terrain which includes snowy tundra's, scotching deserts, rain soaked hills and volcanic mountains, lush green fields and open meadows. What I like especially, and what keeps everything together, is Hyrule Castle at the centre the world and visible from all corners as constant reminder of what the overall goal is. There is a lot to explore and the game is smart in how it rewards exploration. Monsters can pose varying combat challenges that requires you to be adaptable in how you engage and what weapons to use. The scavenging of ingredients and raw materials is essential for upgrading plus you can combine them in almost unlimited ways to create health boosting dishes and elixirs for all environments and situations that would normally force you change equipment and/or armour. The choices are endless and requires plenty of experimenting to get right. After 120 hours, I'm still discovering things in regions I've visited several times over and it is testament to the world design and gameplay that I'm still wanting to revisit these regions over again.

When trying to summarize Breath of the Wild, I think it comes down to some of the design choices and details that allows you approach the gameplay in various ways. The physics system for instance is surprisingly clever and realistic with things that you probably couldn't get away with in other games, you can here. I've completed many puzzles in a method that I'm fairly certain wasn't the intended way but worked all the same. The game keeps you constantly on your toes with the ever changing environment and weather patterns affecting everything from visibility, climbing and even your health depending on what equipment you can have equipped. The cold regions can cause damage if you don't have the right clothing or elixirs (the same for hot) while some foes will only be susceptible to certain weapons so you may be forced to alter tactics or avoid conflict altogether in that moment. The game has such depth and so many surprises that in the moments where I was starting to lose interest, there was always something new to adapt to, find or explore. No other game I've played on the Switch has forced me to alter my approach as much as this or even just simply admiring the design choices as this.

VERDICT

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is one of the finest games I've played on the Switch with gorgeous artwork and an incredible world to explore. Its minimalist approach to story is not usually my preference but here it works as you will get lost in this version of Hyrule and become invested in the plight of its inhabitants. A terrific game indeed.

5/5

[scaringspiders]

Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, and artistic sincerity

Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is a game that makes its intentions clear right from the beginning. This is a game about a woman with psychosis, and it aims to provide an authentic representation of the experience through simulated auditory and visual hallucinations. It does this through the accumulation of research and expertise provided by academic researchers and those with firsthand experience…

[pigeon-princess]

Smile!! 

[amelia-mariee]

people be like “omg this is my comfort movie” and it’s a bunch of people having the worst day of their life

[tealottie]

[vick-shimmer]

"I hate you."

[tevintersnakes]

back in the fallout pit, fortunately my art has improved since 2016 so I can draw doctors hanging out together somewhat effectively now

[venturetime]

The Paper Mario series turns 24 years old today!

To celebrate, I drew Mario with all his travel companions from both Nintendo Switch entries!

[dewey-ing-it]

“Eh, luck’s overrated”💚

[qu0rky]

will i ever watch/read that? no, probably not.

but do i still go on ao3 to search up its most popular homoerotic ship and get infodumped all the necessary lore in order to enjoy the fics? yes, give me 14 more of that.

[ispyspookymansion]

[kimseokjinn]

The fake maknae line

[im-tired-404]

Me when I see a piece of media about something I’m hyperfixated on:

[14dayswithyou]

no way you dropped the biggest river lore in the tags and moved on like it was nothing 😭 can i ask if this is still your intentions with him? bc it sounds like you changed your mind halfway 🤔

im ngl though i really enjoy how ren and river are similar and different to each other, but does that mean river would hurt his angel but leave our friends alone the same way ren would never hurt his angel but would unalive all of our friends? since they're suppose to be each other opposites. i really hope this makes sense 😬 my final question is what is ren doing on thursday? i want to go on a cute pier date again 🩷🌸

@secretkoa asked: and can i hear more about what unsent memory is suppose to be about or is that off limits? idk if i asked this in my previous question so ignore me if i did! thank yuo and remember to drink lots of water 🐸🌱

⌞♥⌝ For those who haven't seen the original post, I want to quickly clarify once more that while River was originally my OC, he's since been picked up and revamped by my friend Jesse/@unsentmemory!!

However, now that Jesse has stepped away from the yandere community, River's fate (and da fate of Unsent Memories) has kinda been put on the sidelines for the foreseeable future.

‼️ Massive Unsent Memories and River spoilers under the cut ‼️ CW for: mentions of gore, torture, mutilation, self-harm, etc.

With all of that being said, yes, Jesse's original intention for River was for him to be your standard "serial killer-turned-yandere once he accidentally catches feelings for his latest victim (Bunny)". The only main difference is that I originally planned for River to be a generic murderer first, whereas Jesse had him become a yandere right off the bat.

You also asked to know more about Unsent Memories, and I think giving a general synopsis(?) would be fine?? ^^ But basically... After getting involved in a car accident, Bunny wakes up with amnesia and gets tricked into thinking that this random guy — whom they've never met before — is their loving, supportive boyfriend named River. In turn, he convinces Bunny that staying in their shared home would be more beneficial than staying in the hospital as it might rekindle some old memories, he'd be able to take care of them, and it would be easier for them to recover at their own pace. But surprise!! River is actually a frequent patron at the Murderer Motel™ and now has trapped Bunny in his Torture Basement®!!! <3 He also maaaay or may not've been the one who hit them with Ren's car as well... ^^ Oopsie daisy hehe

And yeah!! Similar to what you've said, River was also supposed to share (somewhat of) a narrative foil with Ren!! I personally wanted them both to have similar, complimenting vibes with each other — all while having completely different/separate motives and incentives when it comes to the object of their affection. I'm glad to see it was conveyed well enough; even after Jesse's additions to River's characterisation :3 I know I already shared some examples in the previous tags, but I can share a few more:

Where Ren puts Angel's feelings and opinions above his own, River purposefully ignores Bunny's and does everything for his own personal benefit. Essentially, "I'm doing this for you" vs "I'm doing this for me".

While Ren would never dream about harming Angel in any capacity, he's perfectly happy to kidnap, extort, torture, and kill everyone else... In contrast to River, who's accustomed to torturing and brutalising others for his own twisted enjoyment and sees it as a way to show his interest in Bunny.

Kinda silly how Ren claims to be a freelance programmer (but is actually a hacker) and how River claims to work at a music shop (it's a coverup for his second torture chamber lmaoooo).

[CW: implications of SH] Ren is willing to go as far as mentally and physically hurting himself if Angel asks him to, whereas River is willing to physically mutilate Bunny if it means keeping them by his side. [end CW]

With that being said, you can assume that Ren is easily swayed by Angel's words, opinions, and emotions, whereas River can easily sway and manipulate Bunny due to his own feelings and emotions.

This is something I've actually mentioned before, but Ren always prefers things to be tidy, so he often cleans himself up after disposing of his victims. Compared to River, who casually wears the bloodstains with pride and blames it on getting a bit rough with someone else during a boxing match.

It's no secret that Ren is willing to change every aspect of himself to earn Angel's love, and River is willing to change his serial killer ways to return Bunny's love. Da power of friendship and repressed childhood memories gksdgjh T_T /silly

Ren pretends to be a Normal Guy© with tons of empathy to spare, whereas River pretends to be a Regular Person℗ with the heart of a himbo.

I could go on but you get da point lol

So, yeah!! This is essentially the vibes we had planned for River (and Unsent Memories) before Jesse stepped down /pos ^^ I feel like talking vaguely about UM is fine since River only has a small cameo in 14DWY — and I'm sure that if Jesse ever returns from war (/silly), they'll give River muuuuch more justice than I possibly can :3c

[moomoofoo]

thank you magia record