Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity is marketed as a prequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and one major selling point for this idea is getting to see Hyrule 100 years before it becomes the ruinous wasteland that Link explores. For example, Hyrule Castle is destroyed in Breath of the Wild, but still stands complete in Age of Calamity. One of the best parts of Koei Tecmo’s hack-and-slash Zelda spin-off is seeing which areas are sectioned off to become new, explorable maps.
However, the massive open-world Hyrule presented in Breath of the Wild is not wholly represented by the spin-off game. There are many recognizable areas for fans of the series, from the Lost Woods to the Great Plateau restored to its former glory. Yet there are plenty more areas that could return as future maps. Given Age of Calamity datamining suggests DLC characters are coming, here are some areas that could come alongside them.
One great thing about Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity bringing back areas such as Akkala Citadel is how the developers had open rein to show them in a different context. One such area in Breath of the Wild that deserves this treatment is The Forgotten Temple, which hosts a massive Goddess statue and the Rona Kachta Shrine.
What makes this area appealing in terms of designing a Dynasty Warriors-style map is the potential for a segmented story to be told throughout the course of a mission. Players could start in the Tanagar Canyon and have to approach the fully refurbished temple. After breaking through the enemy encampment at the entrance, the developers could pay further homage to Breath of the Wild by making the interior stuffed to the brim with Guardians assaulting the Goddess statue.
The area surrounding Rito Village is a snowy map in Age of Calamity, offering players a new twist on the grassy region in Breath of the Wild. There are plenty of naturally cold areas in Breath of the Wild that could be converted into a new map, including the stand-out Mount Lanayru that is covered in crystals leading up to the Spring of Wisdom.
The Gerudo Highlands are notable for how they could present a variety of environments to explore in different chunks. Similar to areas like Hyrule Field in the base game, the flat Risoka Snowfield is an open area with room to pack massive threats and the freedom to explore places like the Statue of the Eighth Heroine. Players could also ascend to run through the canyon carved into Gerudo Summit, a common place to find the dragon Farosh; visit the thunder emblem housing Keeha Yoog Shrine; and potentially see what the huge stone sword at the peak once belonged to.
There are “Coliseum” missions in Age of Calamity, but they strangely do not take place in Hyrule’s literal Coliseum set just outside the Great Plateau. Rather, they are challenges with escalating difficulty set within Test of Strength Shrine chambers. That leaves open the possibility for DLC to reintroduce this area as it stood before Calamity Ganon left its exterior covered in malice.
A new map could feature an approach via the Aquame Bridge, similar to how Age of Calamity centers battles at the Akkala Citadel. However, the Coliseum interior is where things get interesting. It is structured so Link can ascend five levels in Breath of the Wild, with rings set up around the empty battlefield in the center. Age of Calamity could either keep this progression in place, letting the player fight different enemies until they reaches the top, or it could fill the upper layers with cheering fans who watch as waves of baddies are wiped out by different heroes.
There is a late-game collection quest placed on Eventide Island, but Age of Calamity did not turn this fan-favorite area into its own unique map. It’s commendable that the developers avoided such an easy option, as there more developed areas throughout Hyrule that Age of Calamity brings to life. However, Eventide could come back similar to how it appears in Breath of the Wild and retain what made that experience special.
When Link first reaches Eventide Island in Breath of the Wild, the trial to unlock Korgu Chideh Shrine asks him to activate three ancient mechanisms after being stripped of his armor, weapons, and items. This back-to-basics gimmick was fun for many players, and Age of Calamity could also remove a player’s upgraded weapons and other bonuses if it sends them to the island. It’s hard to say whether this would translate as well to the Dynasty Warriors hack-and-slash formula, but if not there’s always Lurelin Village and Cape Cales just across the ocean.
There are three labyrinths in Breath of the Wild: South Lomei Labyrinth, located beneath the resting place of Divine Beast Vah Naboris; North Lomei Labyrinth, located east of the Tabantha Snowfield; and Lomei Labyrinth Island, located in the northeastern corner of the map. They all look ostensibly the same, and are perhaps not the most visually pleasing areas to translate, but they could add interesting gameplay.
The Yiga Clan Hideout is an enclosed, maze-like map in Age of Calamity, but there isn’t much in terms of surprise appearances there. One of Hyrule’s labyrinths could task players with finding their way to the center (or finding their way out) without knowing what kind of monster may appear around every corner. South Lomei would likely make for the most interesting map given its close proximity to the seven Statues of the Heroines in the East Gerudo Ruins.
There are plenty more regions in Breath of the Wild deserving of being turned into a DLC map for Age of Calamity. Rebuilt areas such as the Lanayru Promenade or the mysterious, darkness-enshrouded Thyphlo Ruins could offer interesting reasons for fans to jump back in and grind out more kills. However, only time will tell whether new maps are even in the cards for potential DLC.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity is available now on Nintendo Switch.
![\"IT電腦補習](\"http://itteacheritfreelance.hk/test/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/logo2-2.png\"){kind=logo}
www.itsec.hk
www.itsec.vip
www.itseceu.uk
Leave a Reply