Ss it nears its fifth anniversary, many fans of Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild still look back on the game fondly. While this is often the norm for Zelda games, Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild stands out. It was a great way for the Nintendo Switch to kick off its launch, and Breath of the Wild showed off what the platform was capable of. With a new console and Internet connectivity, there was also a decent amount of hype as fans hoped for long-term support through DLC packs.
While some DLC for Breath of the Wild was released, overall the game hasn’t gotten the most official attention. A major part of this is likely focus shifting toward Breath of the Wild 2, which is slated to release this year. Still, there are dedicated fans of Breath of the Wild who are trying to push the original game forward. One of the most impressive efforts for doing so is the Second Wind mod, which offers a plethora of content for fans willing to try it out.
The Fan-Made Second Wind Mod
Split into two parts, Second Wind is an impressive feat even compared to the official Champions' Ballad DLC for Breath of the Wild. Second Wind helps to flesh out the land of Hyrule and addresses some problems that players may have encountered throughout Breath of the Wild. With some general overhauls and key bug fixes, it aims to provide a smoother experience while also adding even more for players to discover.
The first part of the Second Wind mod is called "The Ancient Trials." This acts as an expansion that adds new material to Breath of the Wild including two main quests, one of which will reward the player with an unbreakable Hylian Shield and new enemies. The Second Wind mod is also frequently updated, with the new Octo Boss battle having been added only recently, so even more story content may be added down the line.
The Ancient Trials adds more than just quests, though. It also introduces Ordon Village, based on the settlement from Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, as well as new weapons, armor, shields, sub-worlds, and even overhauls of all the vanilla shrines in Breath of the Wild. This is supported by expansions on other additions made by the community in the past that ultimately aim to round out the world in Breath of the Wild and offer more in-depth gameplay.
While The Ancient Trials has already shown off a lot, the second part of the Second Wind is still in its earliest stages and not much about it is known. However, if "The Ancient Island" expansion brings as much to Breath of the Wild and Second Wind as The Ancient Trials, then fans should have two considerable chunks of content to enjoy. This level of community-made content is on par with some of the best mods for Skyrim and other titles that have seen similar support from their fans.
Despite how impressive the Second Wind mod is, it's worth noting that it isn’t an official release and as such isn’t accessible without using outside programs. The mod is available for both Switch and Wii U versions of Breath of the Wild on Github. A list of patch notes can help fans stay in the loop on what has been added, removed, or tweaked in Second Winds on the mod's Gamebanana page.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is available now for Nintendo Switch and Wii U.
Sources: Github (Switch, Wii U), Gamebanana