Breath of the Wild’s stamina meter is an improvement of Skyward Sword’s, for sure. Skyward Sword’s stamina meter is also used to run, roll, and perform special attacks, and since this is not an upgradable resource, its presence is sometimes bothersome. Also, with vertical exploration, Skyward Sword introduced a stamina meter that gets drained by physical effort, giving players another resource to manage.

In addition, fall damage was highly reduced in Skyward Sword, and while climbing in vines was first introduced in Ocarina of Time, the mechanic was never so extensively used as in Skyward Sword. It turns out Skyward Sword is also about vertical exploration, which fits perfectly the theme of a land lost in the skies. Breath of the Wild is highly praised for the vertical exploration it introduces to the franchise, allowing players to climb freely to reach any point of Hyrule’s map. RELATED:‌ 'Skyward Sword' Ending Explained: And So 'The Legend of Zelda' Begins So, I’m sorry to burst your hate bubble, but without Skyward Sword, there could be no Breath of the Wild. As the new Skyward Sword HD release allows many fans to discover the game for the first time, players might find it curious to notice how Breath of the Wild is, in many senses, a direct sequel to the despised Legend of Zelda installment. Breath of the Wild, on the other hand, received immediate critical acclaim and quickly became the biggest commercial success of the franchise, with almost 23 million copies sold on the Nintendo Switch and more than 1.6 million on the Nintendo Wii U.īreath of the Wild is fondly remembered for the many innovations it brought to The Legend of Zelda franchise, to the point that it’s often described as “revolutionary.” While the game should indeed be praised for everything it gets right, many of Breath of the Wild’s mechanics and themes were already present in Skyward Sword. The initial release’s clunky motion controls posed a challenge on its own, and many players were displeased by the cinematic structure of the game, which was more focused on linear quests than on exploration. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is, without a doubt, the most divisive entry in The Legend of Zelda franchise since 1987’s Adventure of Link.

Breath of wild zelda