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Breath of the Wild Your opinion on BotW's Hyrule Castle

I love me a castle raid in Zelda.

BotW's Hyrule Castle was very different from previous incarnations, some people really loved it but i've seen a lot of negativity too.

What did you like and dislike about HC in BotW and what's your opinion of it overall?
 

Ninja

Well well well
Joined
Jul 5, 2017
Pros
1. The Hyrule Castle song is amazing.
2. Enemies and guardians galore.
3. All areas were nicely done, the lock up, the mess hall, Zeldas study, etc.

Cons
1. No indication you are fighting Ganon when you get in the Sanctum. It would have been nice if we gotten a message like: "There is a significant increase in malice in this area. It would be wise to prepared, do you wish to proceed?".

Overall
I thought this iteration of Hyrule Castle was very well done. The music is probably the best theme in the game, and the difficulty of fighting through all of the baddies and guardians was great on the way to murk Calamity Ganon.
 

Bowsette Plus-Ultra

wah
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Lizard
Not only is it easily my favorite dungeon in Breath of the Wild, but my favorite iteration of Hyrule Castle.

It feels like a dungeon, not just a series of rooms you find keys for. The vast and interconnecting tunnels and hallways beneath the castle encourage multiple approaches not just to navigating the interior, but just entering the castle itself. You can engage it head on, utilize the waterfalls to ascend several stories, propel yourself through the undercroft with a mine cart, or just scale the exterior.

Oh, and the theme is spectacular. While Breath of the Wild's ambient take on music works for most of the game, I'm glad that Hyrule Castle was given proper background music.

Cons
1. No indication you are fighting Ganon when you get in the Sanctum. It would have been nice if we gotten a message like: "There is a significant increase in malice in this area. It would be wise to prepared, do you wish to proceed?".

What about the objective marker on your map indicating Ganon's location?
 

Ninja

Well well well
Joined
Jul 5, 2017
the objective marker on your map indicating Ganon's location?

I get what you are saying. However a prompt still would have been nice. At first I wasn't sure if a cutscene would initiate the fight, or if I would get the chance to explore the sanctum first, or get the chance to put some buffs on.
 

Azure Sage

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I thought it was fantastic. The theme for it is one of the strongest pieces of music in the whole series imo, and the layout is set up in such a way that it encourages you to explore and find all the hidden paths. You could enter from practically anywhere, and explore it however you wished. I loved having that kind of freedom. Every time I visit the place, I do so differently. I would definitely like to have more dungeons of this kind in the future.
 

Castle

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The end game raid on Hyrule Castle is the part of the game I've been wanting to see more of. One of the parts of TP that seemed lackluster to me was the infiltration of Hyrule castle. Seemed to me like the game was gearing up for a Lord of the Rings style epic siege to take back the castle, but instead Link just kinda waltzes on in again.

From what I've been hearing about BotW's end game castle run it's a helluva lot more epic.

I would definitely like to have more dungeons of this kind in the future.
Kinda makes one wish that all of BotW's dungeons were like that... and more of them if it's not too much to expect.
 

Mellow Ezlo

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I freaking love it. The perpetual darkness surrounding it with the many many guardians on lookout give it a true final challenge atmosphere, while the music also has really hopeful vibes. In terms of overall atmosphere, it's my favourite final dungeon in the series now.

As far as gameplay is concerned, it does what the rest of the game does and gives you freedom to explore how you want to. There's no one entrance, there's no one path to ganon. There are many different underground tunnels and passageways in the Castle that allow you to approach it any way you want. This helps really make it feel like a castle, which most of the games fail at in that aspect. One thing I love in dungeons is believability, and wandering around Hyrule Castle, I really do get the sense that it was once a beautiful, grand seat of royalty.

But that's just the layout. The enemies are challenging, especially the lynels (which, if you are not expecting them, would certainly present a great challenge; I knew they were there though so I was prepared). To make it more difficult, I even got a blood moon after I had liberated most of the Castle, so all the enemies respawned, including the one lynel i had already fought, and several guardians that I had used up precious ancient arrows on.

So ya. Best dungeon in the game, best final dungeon in the series, and one of the best dungeons overall. Great atmosphere, challenging enemies, believable layout and design. Basically everything I look for in a dungeon. If there was one complaint I would have, it's that the final boss is a bit underwhelming (not Calamity Ganon, that fight is fantastic). Other than that, I really don't have anything to complain about. This is a truly great dungeon with really badass music.
 
Joined
May 6, 2018
I loved BotW's Hyrule Castle! It's music especially. My BotW music playlist has a Hyrule Castle remix that plays first every time. The whole castle was really cool, although I prefer the inside. It has better music and less guardian turrets.
 

Dizzi

magical internet cat....
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Jun 22, 2016
It was kinda too infested for me to explore properly...like mobolins in the dining room
 

Link Floyd

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Sep 23, 2014
I liked BOTW's Hyrule Castle, there was a lot to explore but unfortunately it was just the ruins of what used to be. Out of all the Hyrule Castle's, I'd say TP's was better though. I think there was almost just as much to explore there, and it hadn't been destroyed by some evil force.
 
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I thought it was fantastic and probably the high point of the game. The enemies everywhere, guardians swarming the place, the multiple ways to approach it, the malicious atmosphere, the music, I could go on.

I was a huge fan of TP's Hyrule Castle and the feeling you got as your slowly made your way higher and higher with the music becoming more and more sinister, but BotW took that concept and cranked it up to a completely different level.
 
Joined
May 7, 2018
Awful layout and music overrated. Don't know why so many praise it. Only redeeming feature the two gatehouses containing lynel guts.
 

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