First and foremost, I wanna point out that my friend told me with Fujibayashi being the scenario supervisor of the game, as well as him and Aonuma having a lot to do with the conceiving of the story, it's very fair to consider this a canon entry in the mainline Zelda series. As for what that means for the mainline games, it's about as impactful as Spirit Tracks is on Majora's Mask. My friend's words. As for me personally, I'm content with calling it a canon Zelda, and that's how I'll be thinking of it until something tells me otherwise.
I have to say, AoC had some of the best cutscenes in the Zelda series. Beautiful, dynamic, often entertaining, and hitting the feels chords just right. I think this game did a wonderful job exploring Zelda's struggle, as well as with those around her trying to help her reach her destiny. Impa and Urbosa are standouts for me in how they interacted with her. They each did her part to encourage her in their own ways and it was lovely.
I know I said before I would be upset if this game were to revise BotW's history, but I dunno. It was something about the way it happened. I feel like they really nailed the setups and the deliveries in just the right way that made me like it. I got really emotional when Rhoam supposedly died, and even more so when he returned and he and Zelda finally got their closure together. The look on Rhoam's face when Zelda forgave him made me cry. The futile struggle of the Champions versus their blights, the expressions they make as they realize they're going to die and the light overtakes the screen, and then at the last moment their future Champions come to their aid... They did good on those, espeically Sidon's. There was a moment later when Sidon gets some sisterly validation and he has to choke back tears. I had to choke back tears, too, buddy.
The baby Guardian, the little one, Terrako. I always thought he was cute, and then we find out he's a time traveler and the cause of a new timeline split. That soured me on him a bit, but he grew on me again as I played through the game. He's good. I really appreciated how everything he did was just to make Zelda smile. Every single action he took. It was all for that. Just like the Deku Tree said in BotW, she has a smile like the sun, and protecting that smile was worth the new timeline split for me. I expected him to get maliced and we'd have to fight him, but even if I saw it coming, it still made me sad. The memory of Zelda building him and showing her mother was really sad and sweet, too.
I think, if it weren't for the demo tipping me off about it being an alternate timeline, I would have gone in with expectations and ended up getting crushed. But because we knew ahead of time, I wasn't surprised about the time travel twists. I decided to wipe my expectations clean and just enjoy the story as it came at me. I think that's part of why I ended up liking it despite it being what it is. I don't think the tragedy of BotW needed a fix, and there is definitely a part of me that still wishes for that angst-filled hopeless struggle, fighting in vain against the Great Calamity. But you know what? After a certain point, even I started to fill with hope about their success. The miracle chance to turn things around that all the characters were fighting and bleeding for, the amazing story presentation in the battles like the last stand at Akkala Citadel, and the gorgeous and stunning music that accompanied it all made its way through to my heart. I started hoping for a miracle right alongside the characters. And I think that's the main reason why I ended up liking it.
There are still awkward bits about it for me. The natural consequence of time travel, I guess. The future Champions expressed already knowing Link, so we know they came from a time after having fought at Link's side 100 years in the future. This means they came directly from BotW, and I think it's a fair guess to say they came from postgame BotW. So I wonder, which future did they return to? Their own future, the original one that we know, or did they end up in a new future where they live in the aftermath of their time-travelling deeds? I wonder, with this game being canon, if this will impact BotW 2. Before I played the game, knowing it was an alternate timeline made me not want it to have anything to do with BotW 2, but I dunno anymore. I think in general I'd prefer BotW 2 to stay on the original timeline, but I think I'd still like to see some references to AoC's events in some form. Hmmm. It's tricky. Time travel is tricky. Alternate timelines are tricky.
In any case, there you have it. I am a changed man. As much as I didn't want it to be this, I ended up really liking it a lot. I am not immune to sappy, happy endings, I guess. The story that I liked more than I thought it would, plus the boundless fun of the gameplay, makes AoC a really amazing game and I love it very much.
It's just so fun to imagine.