Breath of the Wild Named Rolling Stone’s Greatest Video Game of All Time

Posted on January 08 2025 by Julia Wilson

Rolling Stone recently published their 50 Greatest Video Games of All Time list, and their rankings are topped by none other than Breath of the Wild.

The magazine describes Breath of the Wild as “revolutionary,” stating:

“It took the very simple premise of the original — a hero dropped cold into an unfathomably huge world — and ran with it to the furthest extent. Other open world games let you feel like you’re exploring, but Breath of the Wild makes every action a personal puzzle to solve. Leaving behind the endless fetch quests, checklists and markers of the genre, it’s a freeform game of discovery, where its colorful environments and subdued orchestral score lead players along by hinting at their curiosities.”

When compiling the list, Rolling Stone evaluated how influential a game was on release and how it is currently viewed when played today. The list includes many significant games, such as Animal Crossing New Horizons (50^thplace) and The Game Awards’ 2023 Game of the Year Baldur’s Gate 3 (19^th).

The games that made the top ten are as follows:

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017) – Nintendo Switch
Tetris (1989) – Game Boy
Grand Theft Auto V (2013) – PlayStation 3-5, Xbox 360-Series X|S, and Windows
Super Mario World (1991) – Super Nintendo
The Last of Us (2013) – PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 (Remaster), and PlayStation 5 (Remake)
Half-Life 2 (2004) – PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, and Android
Metal Gear Solid (1998) – PlayStation, Windows
Final Fantasy VII (1997) – Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Windows, iOS, and Android
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011) – Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 3-5, Xbox 360-Series X|S, and Windows
Super Metroid (1994) – Super Nintendo

The Legend of Zelda fans will also be delighted to hear that Breath of the Wild isn’t the only Zelda game that made the list, as 47^th place went to A Link to the Past. Although, interestingly, when Rolling Stone offered a definitive ranking of the Legend of Zelda games last year, that list was topped by Tears of the Kingdom, with Breath of the Wild in second place and A Link to the Past in fourth place.

What do you think? Should there have been more Zelda games in the top 50? And do you agree that Breath of the Wild is a worthy winner? Let us know in the comments below!

Source: Rolling Stone (via Nintendo Life)