So I'm resuming with my playthrough of Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity and I feel like the story is... better than BOTW? Better than most KT games?

[Comrade Grogu]

Damn, this game reminds me that BOTW actually kinda did suck in terms of story.

Not only is Koei Tecmo doing well with someone else's property, they're doing well with their own story-telling! Why? It couldn't have just been the people that they had on the project helping them out, right? Then again... What happened? Was it Koei Tecmo that made the story good so far? Or Nintendo's representatives that were helping them out? Both?

It's just that I feel like there's a sense of scale and progression that was lacking in BOTW. I'm not saying that the story is ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC or whatever, but I'm certainly enjoying it better than BOTW in terms of characters. I kinda wish that Nintendo would look at this game and use this as a template or influence. To be frank, even back then, Nintendo wasn't good at story and Legend of Zelda is literally just "King Arthur in the 21st century." Even so, I dig this game.

Keep in mind that I'm on chapter 3 or something and just fought off the Yiga in Castle Town or something so the story has plenty of opportunity to go downhill.

But for the time being, this reminds me that a Nintendo IP is actually capable of good characters/good story/good setting/etc. And yes, I know that Nintendo clearly is capable of such things, as has been shown in the past. I've certainly played their good stories here and there. I just kinda see BOTW now as a bit of a missed opportunity now that I'm playing Age of Calamity.

So yeah, I'm not saying that Nintendo doesn't "have it in 'em" but I think that this game is kinda serving as a reminder of what they're capable of or what their IPs are capable of.

(Again, I stress that I'm still early into the game and this game has ample opportunity to disappoint me later on).

On another note: this is the best Koei Tecmo gameplay yet in terms of Warriors titles, imho.

Discuss.

 

[Comrade Grogu]

...I realize that the OP is a bit may be off-putting to others, but I didn't make any of this maliciously. In sum, I was just saying that I think that the Zelda series has been lacking in the story and characters department, at least with BOTW. Just my 2 cents, really. I hope I didn't piss anyone off like I did with my last thread.

Thanks!

 

[Deleted member 47347]

You're in for a ride!

 

[MattyG]

I really think some of the character work they do, particularly with Zelda later in the game, is fantastic on a level that Nintendo should look closely at and strive for with BOTW2

 

[Freezasaurus]

I mean, unlike BotW, Age of Calamity actually has a story. The fact that BotW's story essentially all took place in the past was one of my major criticisms over that game.

 

[Diogo Arez]

Easily, I found the story in BOTW to be trash tbh, it was probably the thing that made me not like the game as a whole.
AoC impressed me a lot with its story and by the end I was so immersed I couldn't care less about enemy repetition

 

[Tochtli79]

Play to the end and get back to me. Personally I didn't like the second half of the story. BotW went to some more interesting places even with its limited plot. But a lot of people did enjoy AoC.

 

[Olinad]

Wait until you finish the game. My opinions on the plot have changed a couple times throughout :)

Anyways, I thought the Zelda team was very involved with the plot part of this game?

 

[lorddarkflare]

I mean, unlike BotW, Age of Calamity actually has a story. The fact that BotW's story essentially all took place in the past was one of my major criticisms over that game.

Click to shrink...

This 100%

BOTW barely has a narrative. What it has is lore. Boring, boring lore.

 

[DecoReturns]

Reads more that you like that there's more story and that it's straight forward.

the story itself in Age of Calamity isn't anything special.

but in ones case, BOTW is a story that starts like in its last chapter, since you essentially have been told you have to rescue Zelda and you can go do it almost immediately, the rest is you trying to piece together the past or learn about the current world. It's not a typical Zelda told story. Age of Calamity is the usual type of story in games.

 

[sredgrin]

I mean, it's better than most of KT's other stuff, sure, but that's not a high bar to clear.

As far as better than BOTW, it uh, sure feels like there's MORE, but that doesn't neccessarily mean better.

 

[CloseTalker]

BotW is one of my favorite games of all time, but improving on its story is an incredibly small feat

 

[Zuko]

I agree with this. The story telling here is what Breath of the Wild should have been. The way they told the story in AoC is far superior, though I understand why they had to tell it a certain way for BotW.

 

[Deleted member 81119]

Breath of the Wild has a barebones story
Age of Calamity has an awful story

Pick your poison

 

[OnanieBomb]

Sometimes less is more

In video games less is almost always more

 

[Jawmuncher]

BOTW does a lot of good things, but the story is definitely not one of them personally. Might be because it's so forced on the player find a lot of it themselves (Which some feel is a positive).

 

[celigio]

It's nicely presented and very entretaining, but the story wouldn't work without what BOTW established before

 

[julia crawford]

A lot of the story of botw is the historicity of its world, how each town reflects that, and also the geography

 

[Deleted member 3017]

Breath of the Wild has a barebones story
Age of Calamity has an awful story

Pick your poison

Click to shrink...

This.

I'll take the barebones poison.

 

[Deleted member 90924]

Not a big fan of musuos, but watched the Age of Calamity cutscenes bc I was interested after playing BOTW. I don't really like what they do with the story, including the alt nature of it. But, it definitely presents the story in a lot more compelling manner with actual cutscenes. BOTW's story is more about atmosphere and does a great job telling that story of that world through its environment. Legend of Zelda really is a gameplay first franchise and that's ok. I do hope BOTW 2 tries to be a bit more interesting with its plot, more characters and characterizations. Would really like to see them expand the quest system to tell fuller stories with it, even if it means it moves a little bit away from the go anywhere do anything at any time nature of BOTW and means a little bit more instanced content.

Also, I would like better voice acting lol

 

[Deleted member 81119]

This.

I'll take the barebones poison.

Click to shrink...

Same. I wish Breath of the Wild had more of a story, but if it did and it was anything like Age of Calamity's, then I'm good.

 

[JuniperAndSage]

Not all stories follow the same story structure.

 

[Anustart]

The story in mainline zelda games is garbage that's only there to give you a reason to go exploring.

Yada yada ancient evil, collect *x* doohickeys to break the seal. Is the plot to most zelda games.

 

[Ryuelli]

I haven't played Hyrule Warriors AOC yet, but having a better story than BOTW isn't exactly a high bar.

 

[fiendcode]

AOC's story was OK but even among Zeldas it's pretty low tier. Better than BOTW or HW1 though yeah.

 

[DragonKeeper]

I really can't get over people hating on BotW story. You have the set up as told by the king at the beginning, but that's not the story. But that's what everyone wants to be the story - Lasers! Giant robots! fwoosh Explosions!

The story is a character sketch of Zelda and it's very nicely done, even as brief as the vignettes are. The rest of the story is related as "lore": information you get observing your surroundings and talking to people. BotW has a fine story appropriate for the quieter, more contemplative tone of the game.

Age of Calamity, doesn't really do anything different. It tells the same story BotW did but leaves out Zelda and Link's relationship while adding

Spoiler

Time travel nonsense so the alterations don't have to count

. It's not a better story nor is it even a different story. You just spend more time with more characters and there's a lot of action. It's just a different mood.

 

[Glio]

I wouldn't say the story is better, it's just told in a more cinematic and traditional way.

 

[Comrade Grogu]

You're in for a ride!

Click to shrink...

Good to know!

Phew! I was worried that the story would get bad afterward.

 

[Hailinel]

Wait until you finish the game. My opinions on the plot have changed a couple times throughout :)

Anyways, I thought the Zelda team was very involved with the plot part of this game?

Click to shrink...

They may not have written every line of dialogue, but they definitely had sign-off and input on the storyline at the very minimum.

As far as whether AoC's story is better than most KT games? That seems unfair to KT, who actually have a pretty good history of storytelling mixed with notable weaker efforts.

 

[Hilarious_Bearious]

The story in Age of Calamity is quite enjoyable, buuuuuuut....

Spoiler

I hated the bullshit alt-timeline ending. I thought I was playing a prequel which would explain how Ganon was contained and Link wound up almost dead. I was sorely disappointed. My understanding is that the stuff up to the part where the future guardians show up is the same as the main BotW universe, so that's neat.

Apart from my dislike for the ending, it's a delightful romp with some amazing cutscenes.

 

[fundogmo]

Loved the story in this game. It truly felt like the main character was ZELDA and you were using your resourcefulness to unite the living and breathing world of Hyrule against a cataclysmic event, having witnessed what's at stake in BotW. It's a pretty simple story, but I was blindsided how much I was rooting for everyone during the final battle.

 

[GamerJM]

I haven't played Hyrule Warriors AOC yet, but having a better story than BOTW isn't exactly a high bar.

Click to shrink...

Yep. I say this as someone who loves BotW. Same for KT games as well.

 

[Comrade Grogu]

They may not have written every line of dialogue, but they definitely had sign-off and input on the storyline at the very minimum.

As far as whether AoC's story is better than most KT games? That seems unfair to KT, who actually have a pretty good history of storytelling mixed with notable weaker efforts.

Click to shrink...

I agree.

I really like Cao Cao's story in Dynasty Warriors 9!




Better in the Mandarin dub.

 

[Spring-Loaded]

It makes good use of the differences in the story, obviously for gameplay (everyone's Sheikah tunes having different abilities), but also for character moments. Also does a decent job at crating new lore mysteries

there are some hype moments as well. Having been so familiar with the story of BotW, it made the story beats in AoC hit harder.

 

[Evildeadhead]

less story in nintendo games the better.

 

[Tygre]

On another note: this is the best Koei Tecmo gameplay yet in terms of Warriors titles, imho.

Discuss.

Click to shrink...

Wow, a better story than other Musous AND better gameplay! Next you'll be telling me it's got less bugs than Cyberpunk.

Talk about damning with faint praise, sheesh.

 

[Comrade Grogu]

They may not have written every line of dialogue, but they definitely had sign-off and input on the storyline at the very minimum.

As far as whether AoC's story is better than most KT games? That seems unfair to KT, who actually have a pretty good history of storytelling mixed with notable weaker efforts.

Click to shrink...

I really like the "There must always be order" scene during the Battle of Jing.

 

[DeadlyVenom]

It certainly has....more story.

 

[Puffy]

That's not exactly a high bar

 

[Comrade Grogu]

That's not exactly a high bar

Click to shrink...

I know that.

 

[Morrigan]

Ehhhhh I can't really comment on the comparison to other similar games or whatever, but the AoC story is complete rubbish. Like, legitimately terrible nonsense.

 

[Spring-Loaded]

Based on the poll where half of all users don't want Zelda to be able to use melee weapons in a future mainline game, it stands to reason some people don't like AoC's story as it gives Zelda actual agency

some seem to prefer helpless, hopeless Zelda from BotW

 

[Theblueshirt]

The way AoC told its story while being set in the Hyrule of BotW is just what I think passionated developers can create. I loved playing through it and I also loved to get to know the background

Spoiler

while keeping the BotW story untouched.

.

There is no scene or dialogue I thought ot was to long and the characters were brought over and enhanced.

Speaking of the story and how it is being presented just leads me to the conclusion that it did a way better job than BotW.

 

[pleaseinsertdisctwo]

I just watched 2 random cutscenes and it seems like yet another game written by someone who has never witnessed an actual convo between two people in their life

 

[eraFROMAN]

AoC actually tells and lets you participate in its story; BOTW lets you write the 100+ hour end of it... ;)

 

[H2intensity]

I wouldn't say the story is better, it's just told in a more cinematic and traditional way.

Click to shrink...

Yeah this. It just different things and I personally love both. I like how BotW story structure because it engage player to explore in non linear way and for that its fantastic.
AoC with traditional structure is also great, it reminds me a lot with many anime story for it super cheesy but still enjoyable. Wait til you reach the ending OP, it's a fantastic ride.

 

[Theblueshirt]

Are there some Italians here? Because in my opinion the voice work was awesome (and probably the best)! I had goosbumps.

Opposed to that, unfortunately, English was weak in my opinion. Probably because it needs to appeal to half of the world. Therefore basic English was used?

 

[Puffy]

I know that.

Click to shrink...

BOTW kind of avoided plot criticism by having a standard fairytale told exclusively through sparse flashbacks, monologues and environments. Although I would have preferred to have gotten what was conveyed in the reveal trailer, who's to say nintendo wouldn't have messed up if they gave it more prominence. AOC dared to tell a story, so you gotta give it props for that at least, hate it or love it.

 

[Hailinel]

Based on the poll where half of all users don't want Zelda to be able to use melee weapons in a future mainline game, it stands to reason some people don't like AoC's story as it gives Zelda actual agency

some seem to prefer helpless, hopeless Zelda from BotW

Click to shrink...

There are ways to give Zelda agency other than make her a melee wielder, though?

 

[Comrade Grogu]

BOTW kind of avoided plot criticism by having a standard fairytale told exclusively through sparse flashbacks, monologues and environments. Although I would have preferred to have gotten what was conveyed in the reveal trailer, who's to say nintendo wouldn't have messed up if they gave it more prominence. AOC dared to tell a story, so you gotta give it props for that at least, hate it or love it.

Click to shrink...

I think that I prefer a story that tries and fails than "no story" at all, if that makes any sense. The former may make me feel cheated in the end, but the latter at least will definitely make me feel cheated. So by the end of it all, I'd like something to have "happened."