For anyone who's on the fence about getting Age of Calamity, I highly recommend playing the demo to see whether you enjoy this type of gameplay because you're going to be hacking and slashing your way through enemies a lot in this game.
It's super satisfying to be able to take on so many enemies at once with all the different abilities and combos at your disposal. And the number of characters keeps the gameplay varied enough to stay interesting while making sure every player will find something to suit their playstyle at the same time.
Aside from that, the gameplay loop of getting materials from levels, being able to finish "sidequests" with them and unlocking new abilities, weapons or challenges really hooked me to the point of 100% completing the game.
Admittedly, I did get tired of the repetitive nature of the gameplay towards the end of my completion, so I don't think I'll revisit this game anytime soon.
The story is probably going to be hit or miss depending on what you expect from it.
Personally, I enjoyed seeing more of all the characters that didn't get very much screentime in Breath of the Wild and while some of the tropes that were used are kinda predictable, the story delivers on both epic and more emotional moments.
I can definitely see how people who wanted this to be a true prequel to BotW were disappointed, but if you're able to look past that, this game is pure fanservice that I think more people would've liked if it weren't for the false advertising.
Another point of contention might be the framerate problems in this game. Whenever there are too many objects or effects on the screen, the framerate drops noticeably. I had an easy time looking past this and eventually stopped noticing the stutters, but other people might be more sensitive to it.
Once again, the demo will give you a good idea of what to expect, although the rest of the game mostly runs better than the demo.
Lastly, I need to talk about the soundtrack because it is fantastic. It takes the themes you're familiar with from BotW and turns them into more orchestrated, heroic versions of themselves, while the new themes introduced here are just as good and memorable as the old ones.
Age of Calamity is a game you're going to get a lot out of if you enjoy this type of gameplay, otherwise I'd recommend just watching the cutscenes somewhere else.
It's super satisfying to be able to take on so many enemies at once with all the different abilities and combos at your disposal. And the number of characters keeps the gameplay varied enough to stay interesting while making sure every player will find something to suit their playstyle at the same time.
Aside from that, the gameplay loop of getting materials from levels, being able to finish "sidequests" with them and unlocking new abilities, weapons or challenges really hooked me to the point of 100% completing the game.
Admittedly, I did get tired of the repetitive nature of the gameplay towards the end of my completion, so I don't think I'll revisit this game anytime soon.
The story is probably going to be hit or miss depending on what you expect from it.
Personally, I enjoyed seeing more of all the characters that didn't get very much screentime in Breath of the Wild and while some of the tropes that were used are kinda predictable, the story delivers on both epic and more emotional moments.
I can definitely see how people who wanted this to be a true prequel to BotW were disappointed, but if you're able to look past that, this game is pure fanservice that I think more people would've liked if it weren't for the false advertising.
Another point of contention might be the framerate problems in this game. Whenever there are too many objects or effects on the screen, the framerate drops noticeably. I had an easy time looking past this and eventually stopped noticing the stutters, but other people might be more sensitive to it.
Once again, the demo will give you a good idea of what to expect, although the rest of the game mostly runs better than the demo.
Lastly, I need to talk about the soundtrack because it is fantastic. It takes the themes you're familiar with from BotW and turns them into more orchestrated, heroic versions of themselves, while the new themes introduced here are just as good and memorable as the old ones.
Age of Calamity is a game you're going to get a lot out of if you enjoy this type of gameplay, otherwise I'd recommend just watching the cutscenes somewhere else.