Games of the Decade: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is about a ruined world

To mark the end of the 2010s, we're celebrating 30 games that defined the last 10 years. You can find all the articles as they're published in the Games of the Decade archive, and read about the thinking behind it in an editor's blog.

Vah Medoh was my favourite out of all the Divine Beasts in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, because of the magnificent view it gave me of Hyrule. As the mechanical bird flew through the sky, I could see the Duelling Peaks in the distance and, below me, the vast canyons that surround the Tabantha Frontier. I was stuck by the vastness of Hyrule, bringing with it the knowledge that I still hadn't, at the time, visited every location in the game.

Breath of the Wild is constantly encouraging you to explore Hyrule - be it a falling star, the glimpse of a dragon in the distance or a new mountain to climb. It ignites a desire for exploration that sends you across a barren desert or up a perilous mountain to discover a dragon curled around its peak. Using the pictures saved within the Shiekah Slate to uncover Link's lost memories is a great combination of storytelling and environmental puzzles, coaxing you into travelling to new locations. Every cave, hilltop and river are designed to tempt you further off the beaten path, until you can't quite remember what you were doing in the first place.

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