In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, I headed east to the next shrine. The path there took me up into the mountains, where it was very cold. Fortunately, I had some spicy sautéed peppers to help me combat the cold. The bad news was that it only gave me two minutes and 30 seconds of immunity to the cold! So I knew I had to be quick.
As the timer ticked down, it became clear (by looking at the map) that I wasn’t going to get there in time. Not even close. But I saw a spiraling path up a stony peak, so I ran like green lightning. With just seconds to spare, I made it to the top and found the old man there!
He gave me a warm doublet that I can use to stay warm up in the mountains. Good, I sure needed that! I was then able to continue my journey to the next shrine without having to worry about the cold.
About five minutes later, I made it to my destination: The Keh Namut shrine. Inside, a new “cryonis” rune gave me the power to create a pillar of ice from a water surface. That’s a very specific ability. 😛 But the ice pillars can be used as stepping stones to cross water, or as obstacles for enemies.
I used the new ability to complete the shrine and earn my 4th spirit orb. As I left the shrine, the old man flew down from the sky once again. He told me where to meet him, and then he disappeared into thin air. Wait, if he can do that, why does he need the paraglider in the first place?
I took a long detour on my way back. I followed a river and found some goodies behind a waterfall. And of course, I stopped to climb a tree and admire the scenery.
Eventually, I made my way over to the Temple of Time. After praying near a statue, I was able to trade in my four spirit orbs, and the tin man Link got a new heart.
The old man then appeared and told me who he really is. I won’t spoil it here, though. After he gave me a little history lesson, he told me to go to Kakariko Village. He pronounced it differently than how I’ve been saying it all these years, but what does he know? 😛
Once he was done talking, he finally gave me the paraglider. Now I can glide down off of this plateau and into other parts of the world. The game has just opened up quite a bit. Time to sail!
I started heading in the general direction of Kakariko Village, but it’s so easy to get distracted along the way. I stopped to investigate some fireflies, I stole some food from enemy camps, I hunted down a fox, and I saw some strange things…including some Koroks.
On the way, I spotted another shrine: the Bosh Kala shrine. This one was a bit different, because it didn’t give me a new rune power. Instead, it just tested my ability to use my paraglider. Gusts of wind blow and you have to sail across the gaps.
One of the jumps took me a couple of attempts, but I quickly got the hang of it. Completing the shrine earned me a new spirit orb.
Near a bridge, I made a short detour to blow up some enemies at camp, using a bomb arrow. It was super effective.
I love bomb arrows. #zelda #botw pic.twitter.com/MjFirICNnq
— JVGS Jeff (@jvgsjeff) March 14, 2017
After that, I returned to the Proxim Bridge and began walking across. Finally, I spotted another living person I can chat with! It’s been a bit lonely so far, with nobody to talk to other than the old man. So it’s a relief to finally see someone. He pointed me in the right direction.
I saved my game before reaching the Dueling Peaks, but I’ll be going there next time.
I am loving Breath of the Wild more and more as I go on. But it still doesn’t quite feel like a Zelda game. I think one main reason is that there’s generally not any overworld music playing. You’ll hear wind, animals, nature sounds, and other effects for atmosphere, but that’s not the same.
Even the shrines are sparse in the music department. They have quiet, atmospheric melodies here and there, but it’s subtle. Zelda games often have great soundtracks and memorable tunes. So far, that is not the case with Breath of the Wild. I’m hoping that changes soon.
See you next time.