I took a few long breaks from this game so my memories of some areas are fuzzy, but what I can confidently remember is how the game made me feel. I really loved this game and would place it, most likely, at my 3rd favourite Zelda game just behind BotW and Link Between Worlds.
The art-style has aged extremely well, the music is great, character designs are fun and expressive, and that's all just surface-level presentation. Gameplay-wise it feels super fun, too. The sword combat is exciting and feels dynamic in all the right ways, and the bosses are pretty high-quality, as well. Dungeon puzzles make you feel clever and accomplished, and I only found myself confused as to how to progress a couple times.
One thing I found I really enjoyed in this game that I wasn't expecting to was the sailing. Exploring and digging up chests uncovered by sea charts was very satisfying, and I appreciated how there were plenty of little improvised mini-games to play while sailing a long distance (enemy encounters, obstacles, rupees randomly popping up, etc). I very nearly went for 100% in this game, but had a feeling it would become a bit too much of a grind for my liking if I were to do so. I left it on a high note instead while getting as many collectables as I could along the way.
Positives:
+ Combat
+ Characters
+ Exploration
+ Music and Art
+ Puzzle / Dungeon Design
Negatives:
- A couple lesser dungeons that were frustrating or slow
- Latter-half 'fetch quest' dragged a bit too long
The art-style has aged extremely well, the music is great, character designs are fun and expressive, and that's all just surface-level presentation. Gameplay-wise it feels super fun, too. The sword combat is exciting and feels dynamic in all the right ways, and the bosses are pretty high-quality, as well. Dungeon puzzles make you feel clever and accomplished, and I only found myself confused as to how to progress a couple times.
One thing I found I really enjoyed in this game that I wasn't expecting to was the sailing. Exploring and digging up chests uncovered by sea charts was very satisfying, and I appreciated how there were plenty of little improvised mini-games to play while sailing a long distance (enemy encounters, obstacles, rupees randomly popping up, etc). I very nearly went for 100% in this game, but had a feeling it would become a bit too much of a grind for my liking if I were to do so. I left it on a high note instead while getting as many collectables as I could along the way.
Positives:
+ Combat
+ Characters
+ Exploration
+ Music and Art
+ Puzzle / Dungeon Design
Negatives:
- A couple lesser dungeons that were frustrating or slow
- Latter-half 'fetch quest' dragged a bit too long