Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity is the much-anticipated prequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The new Hyrule Warriors game was announced at the beginning of September and came as a pleasant surprise to many Nintendo fans. The game will tell the story of what happened 100 years prior to the events of Breath of the Wild, including many details about the battles that took place and the relationships between the characters.
The hack & slash action RPG is set to release on November 20. The developers have released several details about the design, gameplay, and storyline, and it's safe to say that there is much reason for excitement.
10 The Best Of Both Worlds
The producer and project manager of Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda, Eiji Aonuma, approached the team that created the original Hyrule Warriors with the proposition to make another game that would tell the story of a pre-Great Calamity Hyrule. As a result, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity will be a unique crossover between Hyrule Warriors and The Legend of Zelda.
In matters of gameplay, it will be a true hack & slash game with lots of enemies to fight at once. Story-wise, it will be part of the Legend of Zelda canon. A pretty exciting mix!
9 Amazing Predecessors
What's more; the original Hyrule Warriors and Breath of the Wild were both great games. Hyrule Warriors, originally released in 2014, sold well and received mostly positive reviews.
Breath of the Wild did even better; it was widely considered to not only be the best game of 2017, but one of the best games ever made. Since its release, Breath of the Wild has continuously remained in the top 10 bestselling Nintendo Switch games. Although it is no guarantee that Age of Calamity will be equally good, the success of the previous games gives a lot of reason to have faith in the developers.
8 The Story
In Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, we will finally get to know all the details of what happened 100 years prior to the events of Breath of the Wild. So far, we only learned that the Great Calamity was an epic battle between the forces of good and evil which, unfortunately, did not play out in our heroes' favor.
The Champions got killed, their Divine Beasts were seized by Calamity Ganon, and Zelda placed Link in a Slumber of Restoration before sealing herself and Ganon away in Hyrule Castle. But what did the battles look like? What interactions did our heroes have before and during the Great Calamity? With many new cutscenes and the opportunity to fight in the Great Calamity yourself, all such questions will now be answered.
7 The Playable Characters
Playing as Link is fun, no doubt about that. But playing as Link and some of his closest companions is even better! In Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, you will also be able to play as Princess Zelda, young Impa, and any of the four Champions that were introduced in Breath of the Wild.
The player will therefore get the opportunity to try out and master many different playstyles, as all characters will have their own unique fighting abilities. Furthermore, it will be great to learn more about each individual character in the process.
6 The Runes Return
Koei Tecmo announced that the special abilities as seen in Breath of the Wild, called 'Runes', will return in Age of Calamity. The four Runes in the previous game consisted of Remote Bomb (round or cubic-shaped), Cryonis, Magnesis, and Stasis. They allowed the player to strategically defeat foes and solve puzzles.
They were a great addition to Breath of the Wild's gameplay, and will therefore be a welcome feature to Age of Calamity. On top of that, the Runes will be used by all characters in their own personal style, thus making them even more complex and exciting tools.
5 More Young Impa: Yes Please!
The elderly Impa in Breath of the Wild was many a fan's favorite. Ever since the beginning of the Legend of Zelda franchise, Impa has been an important recurring character. She usually acts as Zelda's nursemaid or guardian, and as an advisor to Link.
In Breath of the Wild, the player meets a now elderly Impa who helps Link in his quest to defeat Calamity Ganon. It is not surprising that Zelda fans were happy to hear that the brave and quirky Impa would return in Age of Calamity. It will be interesting fo fans to see Impa as a young woman, and to learn more about her bond with Zelda and Link.
4 Multiplayer
It has been confirmed by Nintendo that Age of Calamity will feature a local co-op multiplayer option. Although the multiplayer option is somewhat limited as it does not feature online multiplay and no more than two people can play at the same time, this is still great news for those who wish to take on the Bokoblins and Lynels together with a friend.
As long as you can find someone to share a couch and a Joy-Con with, you don't have to take on Calamity Ganon all by yourself.
3 A Different Hyrule
At the time of Breath of the Wild, Hyrule had fallen back into some kind of medieval state bereft of modern technology and plagued by monsters. However, the remnants of the highly advanced society that was destroyed during the Great Calamity were still visible in the form of ruins and rather aggressive guardians.
It gave us a glimpse of the past and made the player marvel at the splendor of what was once a modern, thriving kingdom. It is more than exciting to be able to discover this earlier, happier version of Hyrule first-hand.
2 The Baby Guardian
There is a mysterious character that even young Impa can't compete with though; Baby Guardian. This three-legged technological cuteness looks like a fabergé egg decorated with a shiny blue gemstone.
As shown during the Tokyo Game Show, Baby Guardian is accidentally discovered and activated by Link and Impa while the latter is fleeing from a horde of Bokoblins. Baby Guardian, after some of the cutest bleeps ever uttered by a machine, starts following Link around. Although its exact role is yet unclear, one thing is quite certain; Baby Guardian will be a fan-favorite.
1 A Truly Epic Pre-order Bonus
How do developers get people to order their game before the release date (and before negative reviews get the chance to be written)? By promising amazing extra rewards! Nintendo is no different in this respect, which is why they chose the best pre-order bonus any gamer can possibly think of: a spoon.
That's right; buy the game now and you get the exclusive Lucky Ladle as a bonus. If that is not a reason to be excited about Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, we don't know what is.