​E3 2014: Hyrule Warriors Impressions: A Different Breed of Zelda

Hyrule Warriors is an interesting hybrid of action gaming, and developer Tecmo Koei must walk a fine line when adapting its classic gameplay formula for one of the most iconic and, dare I say it, legendary gaming series around. From what I experienced on the E3 show floor, Hyrule Warriors will probably be the best Dynasty Warriors game to hit the market, but is that enough to warrant a purchase?

Set to release on September 26th, Hyrule Warriors does everything you might expect from a Dynasty Warriors title with a Zelda aesthetic: you hack and slash through anything and everything until prompted to proceed to the next Hyrule-themed area where – you guessed it – you hack and slash through anything and everything. In between slaying hundreds of Bokoblins and… more Bokoblins, you face the occasional King Dodongo to shake things up, while utilizing classic Zelda weaponry like the Master Sword and a plethora of bombs accompanied by a series of power ups and special moves.

While this may sound repetitive to the point of sheer boredom, I never found the formula tiring in the twelve-plus minute demo on the E3 show floor, and I have to say, I’m excited to see more of what Hyrule Warriors has to offer. E3 attendees were offered the opportunity to play as both Link and Princess Zelda, while the Nintendo Treehouse demoed Impa and Midna with the promise of even more characters. What this tells me is gamers will have a lot of variety to shake up the formula, and whenever things might get stale, players can simply change their character to start fresh.

Naturally, each character has a unique move set, each with their own special attacks.

Link, for example, has access to a massive, field-clearing bomb, while Zelda is able to utilize the power of the Triforce to summon a gigantic, triangular explosion. Combining these special moves with a varied combo set gives Hyrule Warriors a diverse pallet for gamers to experiment with and should keep gameplay fresh throughout the game’s campaign. Dynasty Warriors has never been known for being a particularly stellar series, and Hyrule Warriors doesn’t make much of a case that anything’s changing in the future. Being attached to The Legend Zelda is going to be the game’s biggest selling point, but with that said, Hyrule Warriors is a ton of pointless, mindless fun. This won’t win any game of the year awards, but fans of the Zelda series will find a lot to like here. Never before have we been able to slash through hundreds of Bokoblins, and that has a certain appeal the mainline Zelda games can’t offer. When it releases on September 26th, gamers can expect Hyrule Warriors to be great fun, it just might not be great. What about you? Are you excited for Hyrule Warriors? Sound off in the comments section.