What I learned in 20 minutes with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Nintendo is banking heavily on its new Zelda game to help move the Switch at launch, and that faith just might be rewarded.

As Julie Andrews told us in The Sound of Music, the very beginning is a very good place to start. Not everyone who played The Legend of Zelda: The Breath of the Wild at the Nintendo Switch NYC event got the first 20 minute of the game (some attendees apparently played the section Nintendo showed off at E3), but yours truly did.

It was, of course, just a tiny fraction of what looks to be a massive, expansive experience. It needs to be precisely that, as Nintendo is placing a large portion of its Switch launch success in Link’s hands.

And while 20 minutes wasn’t nearly as much time as one would like to spend with such a highly anticipated title, it was enough to form a few opinions.

You’ll want to get Breath of the Wild on the Switch

Common sense? Perhaps. But Breath of the Wild is also coming for Wii U, so some gamers might be considering just playing it that way.

(Insert joke about them needing to own a Wii U here.)

That would probably be a mistake. Breath of the Wild is visually stunning on the Switch, something its Wii U counterpart is unlikely to be able to say. Sure, if you don’t have $300+ to buy a whole new system, a new Zelda is better than no new Zelda. Just know this game was made for the new hardware.

Is should be noted that some attendees noted frame rate drops during their play-throughs. I did not, so make of that what you will.

It looks super sharp on the Switch in handheld mode

One of the things the Nintendo employee who helped guide the demo encouraged me to do was to detach the Joy-Cons and use them freely held in either hand. That took some getting used to, but after a minute or two, I was just as effective playing that way as I was with the controllers hooked to the Grip.

He also suggested I take a spin on Zelda with the Switch in handheld mode, and I was immediately taken with how crisp it looks on the tablet screen. I didn’t miss anything but raw scale playing it that way, and it’s easy to imagine lots of people will log hours on it with the Switch out of its dock.

The combat is nicely tactile

The first weapon I picked up after awakening Link from a lengthy slumber was a tree branch. Not too exciting, but better than nothing.

Not long after, I discovered an axe that had to be wielded with two hands. That turned into an adventure, because while it was effective at fighting off the introductory enemies, it nearly knocked Link over with each swing, and I’m pretty sure it lifted him off the ground.

In other words, this is combat you can feel, aided by the way monsters were sent sprawling on successful blows. It’s also aided by the excellent force feedback capabilities of the Joy-Cons. no matter what configuration you have them in, and bodes well for the overall game.

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Unfortunately, right after I had adjusted to using the game map, the MMO-like quest guidance through the large, open world and figured out more movement controls, the 20 minutes were over. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild could certainly still disappoint, but the small slice from the start of the game makes that feel increasingly unlikely. March 3 can’t come soon enough.