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Half-Life 2 and Episodes 1&2 - Why 2023 is the best time to experience this masterpiece. 

Half-Life 2 and its episodes are a cult classic that I revisited in 2022, they are the cool older brother of the gaming industry, sometimes lost on modern gamers now due to their age. But when I picked up the orange box for Xbox 360 I didn't expect this perfect little collection of games to live up and almost point out the flaws of current video games as they did. They have a class about them, a poise, a nuance that makes them feel utterly distinct. 

Much like the cool older brother they have “lived” they have this mystery and status that makes you wish you were there in their hay day, but have a level of care and attention in their design that makes them some of the greatest games that have ever been made. 

In this blog, I will break down how the Gameplay, Story, Atmosphere, and creative freedom make these games just a must-play even 18 years plus after their release!

“Pick up that can” - Gameplay

Possibly the most surprising thing to me when I re-acquainted myself with this masterpiece was the gameplay. The last time I played Half-Life 2 was an era ago when I would sit in my tiny gaming dungeon of a room and wait patiently as the loading screens buffered on my original Xbox! Since then most of the quaint pieces of gameplay had slipped away from my memory as it had been so long. So when I entered into some of these fantastic moments, now flawlessly loading on the Xbox Series X and with some all-time great games under my belt I was invigorated by how much this game stands out to this day as an example of fantastic and intuitive gameplay. 

Physics are are the heart of these games, they are often referred to as a tech demo with a story and the use of these is constantly engaging and makes for some really memorable moments that stand out now against modern games. You are often presented with a scenario that feels like walking into a room with a set of tools hanging on the wall and everything you would need to use them on sprawled out on the floor. Moments that exemplify this are where you are hindered and need to find out via the use of physics how to get yourself to where you need to go. 

As opposed to the more modern takes like Breath Of The Wild where you are literally put into a room with the available tools in the shrines, or God Of War where things at times feel inorganic and forced (you are Kratos why can't you just smash through it?) Half-Life organically places you into scenarios that are obstacles and puzzles but also tutorials and feel like realistic barriers that require problem-solving. 

Such as putting bricks on one side of a see-saw-like plank so that you can use it as a ramp, or using buoyant barrels to fill an underwater crate to rise a platform. Later in the game and into the two episodes the gravity gun opens up so many fantastic and engaging ways to work out how to fix problems like when you can shunt a car into a hole at the top of burrows to stop the Antlion enemies from crawling up out of it. But what makes the physics-based puzzles so fantastic is their variety, their pacing and placement, and that they feel less intentional to get more hours out of the game but genuine obstacles for you to get through to get to where you are going. The tools are often laid in front of you but in a more experimental, do-it-yourself way, you can certainly see how these fed into Portal, utterly brilliant. 

Another thing I must mention before we move on from gameplay is the plethora of weapons that Half-Life offers you as a player and how they not only have a distinct feel but also affect how refreshing and engaging the gameplay feels. The guns are super varied, from the zombie smashing shotgun to the hard-hitting Combine pulse rifle with its ultra satisfying reload animation where tiny spider-like robotic arms discharge and replace the ammo pouches, and a secondary fire that shoots an energy ball that bounces around the room and vaporizes any enemy it comes into contact with. But each weapon doesn't just offer a different means to destroy but a different strategy, Caught in sniper fire? Use cover and sneak up and throw a grenade into where they are. Facing a lot of zombies? Run away through an alley with a gas leak and use the pistol to ignite the flames and watch them burn away! Strider waltzing around laying waste to you and your freedom-fighting pals? Use a rocket launcher and a healthy dose of cover! Antlions burrowing from the floor fly aggressively at your face? Use the ant lion pouch from a queen and they become your new minions to pile into unsuspecting Combine troops. 

Lastly, the gravity gun is the perfect example of how a weapon can be a gameplay tool, use it to pick up objects and smash them into the Combine. Or zombies, or Zombine! Use it to move supplies from unreachable places into your hands, use it to move turrets that are pelting you, Or when supercharged use it to literally grasp the very physical being of your enemies and toss them into each other, or better yet the abyss of the citadel. The gravity gun is one of the most diverse weapons in any game I have ever played, Offering a means to overcome obstacles and puzzles, but also cleverly use it to attack enemies with projectiles! Whatever the weapon the joy of using any of the ones given to you in Half-Life is that there is rarely a moment that they don't also offer you the opportunity to use your ingenuity and find clever means to make them the most lethal, and fun they can be!

“The right man in the wrong place can make all the difference in the world” - Story

Half-Life and its episode's narratives on the surface are about a struggle against a brutal enemy, to bring down an overarching power as a rebellion. To fight Stormtrooper-like enemies and bring down the greater evil that controls them. But before you walk through a crowd of people and are awarded a medal of honor from the alliance, that you hopefully donate to the Wookie that accompanied you along the way, you should realize that this is more than a battle against a cackling Sith lord in a hood but a visceral tale of control, totalitarianism, loneliness, humanity, hope, and desperation that I believe especially now strikes a powerful cord. 

In the wake of the Black Mesa incident, the combine is now almost in full control of the human race, but rather than a swift obliteration there is something more desperate and demoralizing happening, humans are in a suppression field that stops them from breeding. They are under lockdowns in numbered cities being fed on repeat the words of Dr. Breen, a voice that seems to have the feeling of something that is trying to offer you comfort but there is a disconnect, the feeling that although his words are presented in a manner of assurance that there is something just not right, and leaves you with a feeling of unease. 

His echoing words saying, “Welcome to city 17, it’s safer here” then later justifying the current state of goings on and the suppression field in a long speech answering a concerned citizen that had written to him which included disconcerting comments like, “Do our benefactors really know what's best for us? What gives them the right to make this kind of decision for all mankind?”, “Our true enemy is instinct, inseparable from instinct is its dark twin superstition, instinct is inexplicably bound to unreasoning impulses, instinct has just become aware of its irrelevance, and like a cornered beast it will not go down without a bloody fight. It must be fought tooth and nail, beginning with the basest of human urges: the urge to reproduce. We should thank our benefactors for giving us respite from this overpowering force. The suppression field will be shut off the day that we have mastered ourselves. And that day of transformation, I have it on good authority is close at hand”

Although I have abbreviated Dr. Breen's words I believe even here there is enough to unpack, the combine are a disconcerting and mysterious entity, they wish to remove instinct and combine people into subservience, they do this by keeping people scared and forcefully policed. But they also apply further means to shatter the human spirit, keep people moving, and keep people confused and lonely, the people you first meet at the train station echo this, the woman waiting for her husband who she was separated from during the stopping of a train, the man who warns you off the water, “They put something in it, to make you forget, I don't even remember how I got here.” and a man pacing in anxiety about the trains explaining, “They are always departing but they never leave, there always full but no one ever gets on” all of this confusion caused by the combines clever schemes to sever what I believe is the most important human need, connection. One of the ultimate forms of that is sex and the ability to reproduce. Humans are being “Humanely” culled by the suppression field.

The combine are a powerful, intimidating force that makes people submissive through fear, now before I get all “does any of this remind you of the world you're living in now” I will say that Half-Life's story is a sight grimmer than the current state of the world we live in, but the removal of individuality, the lean towards subservience, the use of harsh physical fear inducing policing to establish control, and the voice of a man in a suit in control of where you reside telling you everything is okay but there is just that feeling of mistrust like he’s leading you in a direction that is in no way beneficial to you but certainly to him and his “benefactors” do all in some way make me feel a little uneasy about my own reality and I think that alone is a powerful thing for a video game to evoke in someone. 

But what the story of half-life also does is highlight something that I certainly believe in and that is the unbreakable human spirit. Instinct is the very deep biological call that makes us question the uncomfortable and rise up against it. It's the feeling that calls you to remove yourself from situations that feel wrong. Even if it's that time you're offered a cigarette for the first time and your heart sinks and you think, I shouldn't be doing this. Gordon Freman embodies this, not only for the humans but for the Vortagons too, he is this silent anomaly, that finds a way no matter the situation of force against him, he is the guiding light you play as and every individual fighting the good fight against this suppression rallies behind him and gets to bask in his “freedom” the “free man”. The supporting cast are brilliantly written characters that fight with an upbeat and at times comedic energy against this seemingly unbeatable, unrelenting enemy with limitless resource. Alyx particularly has a great aura, a cheekiness, and slight air of flirtation, but also a childlike nature to her that makes her character particularly lovable, seeing her react to her father or dog is heartwarming, and her mischievous nature showing in excellent moments like when the lights cut out and she makes a zombie noise and laughs as you rush to turn your torch on worried you have unwelcome company but its really just her. 

Each character in halflife and its episodes which are mostly solitary games manages to have genuine feeling and is really well delivered in the moments they get to shine, even Dr. Breen as an antagonist is perfectly performed and used in the narrative. They all add to the great storytelling and they all really motivate you to fight for the people around you, for freedom, and against those who seek to quell it. 

Lastly like with any great storytelling, there is almost more mystery to half-life than there is revealed to you, who are the benefactors? What happened during the seven-hour war? How did Gordon get to city 17? Who is and what are the motives of the Gman?.......................................

{Fades to black} - *A Man in a dark suit approaches with slightly of center, but piercing turquoise eyes*

“Rise and shine…….rr, reader of this blog, Rise and shine! Not that I wish to imply you have been… sleeping on this read. No one is more deserving of a rest. All the effort in the world to understand would have gone to waste until….well, let's just say your time to continue reading has….. come again”

“Welcome…Welcome to city 17” - Atmosphere

The penultimate and perhaps to me most important part of this piece is about the atmosphere, Half-life has a near unexplainable magic in its atmosphere. Not only the source engine itself seems to carry this feeling but the sound effects and music do too. This is that of an eerie almost alien feel. Like you are being watched, but also alone. It's powerful, the sense of being disconnected with what is going on around you but also being intrinsically linked to everything around you as the protagonist. 

The sounds of this game are so distinct, from the distant monotone robotic overlord voice echoing throughout the streets of city 17, to the sounds of the Combine's muffled voices behind their gas masks and the loud flat line as they die, the hissing of Headcrab's, the guttural moaning of the zombies that sound not only terrifying but also like they are suffering, the thundering, alien but yet mechanical moan of a strider, the hum of the gravity gun, the slight tinniness to the sound of anything being moved as if the sounds were recorded in a vast empty room. There is something individual about all of it, but there is a near indescribable nuance that seems to spread between the music and sounds that mirror that feeling of something Alien, of being watched, of being alone, a feeling of despair but also a feeling of hope and at times a sense of calm. Later games like The Last Of Us combine these feelings also but what makes half life special in comparison to The Last Of Us is that it manages to add that spooky otherworldly feel into that mix also. 

A great example of this that I must highlight is the moment when you are under a bridge high above some water and there are these broken metal rails that loosely connect in a platforming section to the other end. As you begin to cross the song “Lab Practicum” plays, this song is filled with preternatural noises and a gong-like synth combined with the whistling wind hits you. (GO ahead and give it a listen) It is a stop-and-stare moment that along with the platforming, the metallic sounds of Gordons feet hitting the metal rails between jumps, and the intense rattle as one of the mysterious trains plows overhead, this is the most “Half-life” feeling moment I can possibly describe from the game. In my opinion, it connects with that part of us, that 6th sense or that “feeling” you get. I will now just place a couple of quotes below I found on the youtube link to this song that not only illustrates how this same piece connected with others but that they also tap into this “feeling” it gives them. All of these games throughout leave you with moments of this. It's just fantastic. 

“This song makes me feel like there is something important I have forgot but I don't know what”

“This song feels like wanting to go home, but knowing there is no home”

“The only way I can describe this is, it's not depressing but just feels like eternal loneliness”

“The Abyss stares back”

Lastly, in this section about the fantastic atmosphere of these games, I must quickly tip my hat to a certain section of Half-Life 2 and that is Ravenholm. As a kid I think Ravenholm was the first time alongside my lifelong best friend that I truly felt fear, the game forces you through this area after cruelly building it up with the chapter name “We don’t go to Ravenholm”. This area is completely overrun by zombies and turns the game from a puzzle shooter to a horror game just for this segment, it's dark, gloomy, and full of zombies old and new. Especially the “Runner” zombies with their distant echoing howls, as opposed to the usual moans of the slower zombies they are particularly terrifying as they sprint on all fours at you and squeal aggressively as they lunge at you. The mood and general ambiance of the zombie-riddled wasteland give this area a distinct and horrific feel. But what I really want to highlight is the first moment you lay eyes on Ravenholm as I feel like with the bridge that this is a seminal moment.

The broken sign lays before you in white block caps you read “RAVENHOLM” and there is a tree with the bottom half of a body strung up on it swaying gently. The feeling of this area is just so eerie and you just have that awful gut check as you gaze upon this obvious and harrowing obstacle in your way and think to yourself “Nope”. This section is an example of how these games throughout the main and episodes flip the script, put you into different scenarios, from the citadel to the outposts, to city 17 and they all have a distinct, interesting, and memorable feel, but what is magic is that those feelings being watched but also being alone, those “spooked hairs on your neck stand up and you check behind you but no one is there” feelings are particularly special and something truly worth experiencing.

“This is the Freeman. The Combines reckoning has come” - Creative freedom

My final reason that I think that these games scratch the “Man this is a great video game and I am thoroughly enjoying myself” itch so well in 2023 and beyond is the feeling of freedom this game has. In a world where movies/games/media feel like it's rinsed dry and has no end in sight this game has a real refreshment to it. As Disney descends back down the hill to the skinny malnourished Star Wars cow, to give her yet another milk to package up and sell to us again, I personally feel a tiredness, a slog that feels like “Create, consume, create, consume” with characters being brought back that stood alone as excellent stories to be given more context and back story, that in my opinion detracts from one of the greatest things about storytelling, Mystery! Now Mos Isely cantina feels like a school reunion as you can probably name 90% of the characters in there and explain how they are all linked when, to begin with, it was this murky bar with strange and fantastic creatures drawing your eye and filling you with wonder. 

Despite standouts like God Of War or Last of Us franchises that go back to the cow and find a new udder with perhaps even tastier milk than the first, Games feel to me like they are restricted like they need to only go back to the safe, and familiar ground but feel like they are under pressure from external forces to ensure they tick political boxes and comply, to market well or be seen to fit in. Which I think in certain circumstances makes them come across as pieces of art made by people who don't really “love” what they are making. They are often filled with obvious and tiresome tutorials and safe narratives. Although I am fully confident that games will continue to be amazing works of art, they definitely feel like they are products more than art at times now. Narrative games releasing with skins you can change the main character to if you purchase them. These kinds of things can make them lose that special magic. 

Half-life is free of this, you can tell there is true craftsmanship behind each moment. That the people that made this game really cared about it, they cared about the narrative, the characters, the world, and the setting, and really cared about keeping this game mysterious. Half-life features a diverse cast of characters that don't feel deliberate but natural. Its narrative is about oppression, humanity, and hope. But none of it feels like it is trying to make a political statement, of course, all art derives from life, but you can tell it's from a time when people were not scrutinizing it because of social issues, and it is just a piece of art. It's a strange mysterious game full of fantastic fun, that shows you where to go without a mini-map and a curser ahead of you, it guides you without words. Silent tutorials like walking up and seeing a flammable barrel and ahead of you a slippery surface leading to the tongues of aliens that you get caught in and they pull you into their mouths above, so you throw the barrel down first and shoot it as it ascends and blow them all up. It gives you problems and the tools without a prompt appearing saying “Barrels can be used to blow enemies up if shot”. Its design does this for you, it makes you think but gives you the tools to work out problems as I mentioned earlier. This along with its narrative that is in my opinion about highlighting that gut “Feeling” of “this isn't right” and ensuring you fight against it makes these games feel so special, especially now. 

These games have a freedom, a narrative that doesn't need explaining because you are supposed to wonder, to question why? I don't think you are ever supposed to really know what's happening. We don't really deep down know why we are what we are as humans, or what is beyond? Or what was before? But like Gordon here we are in this moment, faced with it all, with near no explanation and we may as well pick up a crowbar and follow our feelings and do what we can do help do what we can to feel free. They feature gameplay that promotes being inquisitive and finding a way to move beyond your current obstacle where you can tell the developers care about every moment you find yourself in. There is magic in their atmospheres that evokes so many feelings. They are the foundation from which so many fantastic games have drawn from. They have a timelessness that makes them seminal and so very playable now. They are masterpieces and I belive that the reasons above should give you the motivation to grab yourself the orange box and fire up a console or jump on steam and give these games a playthrough in 2023. if you're lucky it’ll be your first playthrough or if not like me last year give them another whirl and enjoy the nostalgia trip as perhaps you will find the experience, “Freeing”.  

{Your eyes blur as if reality is crashing all around you, a man in a suit approaches again}

“Time…….. Is it really that time again? It seems as if you have only just arrived. You have read a great deal in this short timespan, You've done so …. Well in fact, that I have received some interesting offers for your services, ordinarily I wouldn't contemplate them. But these are …….. Extraordinary times.”

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Elden Ring. Better Lore than Skyrim? Better environmental storytelling than BOTW? Here is why I think the answer is yes!

Now before we start I must introduce myself as someone who is a connoisseur of open worlds in video games. Possibly after narrative, they are my favorite thing about a video game. But in most instances, the worlds themselves are intertwined with the narratives, or they tell a story of their own. In my opinion, Elden Ring’s world is the main character of this game. A character with thousands of intricate pieces that makes up its person. A fascinating mysterious and awe-inspiring place.

What makes a great open world?

Great open worlds can be found in many video games. Ranging from the likes of Breath of the wild where weather and biomes give places unique personalities. Raging erupting volcanos surrounded in thick heat and inhabited by the Grorons. Green sprawling fields with gentle winds populated with smatterings of settlements on the Hillians with farms and communities. Also the Glistening sands of the Gerudo, and the rich blues of the water kingdom of the Zora. All of these places seem to speak without words and have a personality that gives context to their dwellers without any words being spoken. Elden Ring has shades of this but is in so many ways different.

Then there is the rich lore of Skyrim, where each town and city has scriptures and textbooks explaining its origin. Steeped in a deep history explained from different points of view of historians, the ages of history have gone by pretty accurately documented. From the Altmeri Dominion to the dragon bloodline of the Imperials. The mysterious past of the dark elves. Races like the Khajit and Argonians from distant lands with detailed pasts of slavery and war. Religions and magic, Demonic Deadric princes that taint the world with curses and spawn hellish beasts from the plains of oblivion. Dragons led by the ancient Alduin beset to take over the world and Partharnax the leader of the Grey Beards teachers the power of the shout.

Even ancient demonic mothers whose bidding is followed by a cult of assassins. There is much more than this too and all of it is an incredible world to lose yourself into. 

You can hear this via NPC conversation and reading texts (Or if you’re like me watching hours of lore videos explaining even the worlds creation) all of this creates a fascinating attachment to the world and makes it a great open world even when perhaps the environments don’t particularly convey it as well as the likes of BOTW at times.

What makes Elden Ring’s world so special is that it blends both of these and in many ways does both better.

Environmental Storytelling.

Its environments tell the same tales as Breath Of The Wild in its weather and biomes. The towering Erdtree offers the same impressive and intriguing visual example of endgame as Hyrule castle engulfed in Ganon’s Magic. But what the Erdtree does offer in my opinion is a great deal of majesty. It commands you to observe it, to be beholden to its wonder. The large heavenly rays it omits even from greater distances always seem to catch the eye.

Other areas such as the Liurnia Of Lakes take on a dead marshes feel with fog-covered water filled with various types of dangers. Towns half swallowed by water, murky trees, and sights such as a water dragon and a giant walking mausoleum are dotted around the focal point, the majestic glimmering Academy Of Raya Lucaria. This place is as mystical as the likes of Hogwarts and has a truly magical feel, starry embers backlit by a bluey moonlike glow give the Academy this presence without speaking any words. A place that feels like a destination of wonder and learning.

The Royal capital is just as such. Royal. It has a scale that instantly strikes you the melody of golds and autumnal oranges surround you in a place that feels somehow simultaneously like a fairy-tale and a fearsome foreboding land of majesty.

But biomes are incredibly varied too with Caelid and Dragonbarrow offering a dusty Barron feeling land with mushroom-covered dragon corpses dotted around the land painting the picture of death and peril.

North of the capital there are the snowy peaks of the giants that give the feeling of scale that a land inhabited by giant creatures would. Huge carcasses from the war with Godfrey dot the land with gargantuan skulls becoming one with the snow around them. The place is perilous and feels like a no man’s land just by its precarious routes of travel and formidable and of course huge foes filling each opening. The fact that it is the peak of the map gives it a sense of height that matches effortlessly with its inhabitants.

All of these places have the same magic as BOTW, almost as if they were created in its blueprint. Both games places speak without words through their layered construction, weather, inhabitants, music, and overall feel. They tell you a story of what they are, what they have been through, or what has lived or still lives in them with not a word of dialogue. You just feel it. It just makes sense. Like how the perfect piece of orchestral music can tell a story and make you feel things without any lyrics. This is a magic that few games share with these two.

What makes Elden Ring a worthy compatriot of BOTW in this oh-so-small club of games that have the very best environmental storytelling, is the way that it follows the very same blueprint but expands on it due to its scale. The way areas can have a calm silence in the same way BOTW does as you are exploring but as opposed to BOTW where you see a Lynel or Hinox where the piano takes a dramatic turn into a stressful ordeal. Elden Ring turns an area from a peaceful stroll to a cataclysmic event! As a choir erupts and a beast scarcely imaginable lays the smackuth down on your candy ass. 

This analogy is where I am leaning in the direction of thinking that Elden Ring eclipses BOTW’s environmental storytelling because it has everything that BOTW gives you but dials it up to 1000! Dynamic different areas with weather and scenery changes? BOTW has many but if you included the whole of Hyrule into Elden Ring it would feel like just another section of this utterly massive map. Epic encounters with things that scare you into submission? I would rather the now somewhat comforting sight of a Hinox in comparison to a giant hand screeching along the floor at you in a spider-like fashion or a bus-sized lobster erupting from the floor to rain death upon you in many different ways. 

Any of this specifically excellent type of environmental storytelling Elden Ring in my opinion offers an even more dynamic and detailed version of. creating for me even though it wouldn’t exist without BOTW its environmental storytelling is a step up. Both games main character is really their world and to step it up from pretty much perfect is some feat.  

Lore.

Elden Rings lore feels like its barrier to entry is youtube. When you play it NPCs speak to you in seemingly cryptic “Ye olde English” quotes. A perfect example is this quote from Ranni, “I am the witch Ranni, I stole death long ago, and now search for the dark path” until you look this up its meaning could be lost on you (I was one of those) but the need to look it up is the first thing that sets it aside from the likes of Skryim. I want to focus on that.

In the world of Skyrim lore is abundant. This helps give context to the world you are in, it is rich and fantastic and is something I have myself in my most recent playthrough of this classic game absolved myself into. Many NPC conversations allow for insights into the lore and you can find even more in the books and scriptures found with fantastic political standpoints and stories steeped in history and comedy. They are all great ways to further involve yourself in the game you are playing and I would often look to this as one of the very best examples of how to communicate the lore of a game to the player and I still do. But Elden Ring captured me with its lore in a far more visceral way.

Skyrim’s lore especially on my first few playthroughs of the game was mostly lost on me. I would pick up books but never take the time to read them. I would listen to the current problems of the world such as the civil war but not take a great deal of interest as to how it impacts the world or the deep history of it. I would in later play-throughs because I was so obsessed with the amazing world that I wanted to find out more. But I felt as if the game gave me enough that I didn’t feel a call to look deeper.

Elden Ring on the other hand infected my mind with one of the greatest assets in storytelling or with any great story. Mystery. Its mystery fueled me to look into what these quotes meant. Who these people were. What was the Shattering? What is the Golden Order? Who is Marika? What do these crazy words this strangely encapsulating blue witch is saying to me really mean?

It’s the questions without answers that make the lore of this game so captivating. Humans have an inherent inbuilt need to explore, to question, to find meaning. This game leaves you with what feels like everything and nothing at the same time. The shattering, the purpose, the Erdtree, The Fingers, The greater will, It all has a sense of meaning and purpose and makes you feel like you need to push forward and explore this world and give you a sense of belonging to the world. “Rise now Ye Tarnished, Ye dead who yet live, the call of long lost grace speaks to us all. A Tarnished of no renowned. Cross the fog to the lands between, to stand before the Elden Ring and become the Elden Lord.”

It also leaves you with what feels like biblical scriptures, purposes but no direct way to enact them other than to “become the Elden Lord”. Which leads you to have to explore what becoming this means. What this title entails. What you will need to do to get there. Who these zany people are and what their involvement in this all is. What’s good what’s bad what everything means.

It’s this mystery that leads you to the likes of lore videos on youtube and it’s that thirst for knowledge that has you sat at the different Youtube Churches. Listening to how that specific preacher interprets the almost “Word of god” like the way the lore is told to you via the NPC’s and equipment descriptions. These prophets give meaning to this greater will and the Erdtree and how you then walk forward and apply these teachings to your own journey to becoming the Elden Lord. This game like no other encourages real human interaction and leaves doors open for interpretation and this way of storytelling. This leaving doors open enough to see through the crack but not fully understand it is what makes this storytelling so powerful, it harnesses the inner want to discover and make sense of the world around you, which Skryim in my opinion does not evoke in the same way.

Skyrim’s lore when delved into is rich but it feels textbook. Political and derived perhaps from human history in regards to war and how history is written by the victor. How all of its provinces and places have indigenous peoples has a lot to do with race. But for me, none of it feels extremely deep. You feel slight anxiety over what the dominion could do to the world. Or a slight bit of wonder at the history of the Nords and their various wars. But it feels like a history book as opposed to an emotional tale. Facts or scriptures of what happened but not the greatest depiction of feeling when delved into deeper. It is undoubtedly interesting but for me lacks the emotional weight.

Elden Rings in comparison though have true emotional weight. Mystery may be the rabbit you chased down the rabbit hole. But once you arrive at the inner workings of the lore you soon realize that Elden Ring is Shakespearean, It is steeped in tragedy. I will highlight two examples of this that I found to be powerful. Almost every main character seems to have these deeper tones to their stories if you look hard enough.

Margott

The Omen king, he is not only the first boss his name and demeaning comments still ringing in your ears. “Put these foolish ambitions to rest” he whispers as your very soul boils with rage as you think to yourself “FOOLISH AMBITIONS?!! I’m gonna dance on your fucking grave when I am done with your wretched ass” due to being pounded into submission by most of the bosses you build a natural intolerance of them but when you look into just what his name means suddenly this anger is dissipated.

Omen, these are children of gods that are born with deformed horns on them that make them “Curse-born” and considered impure. Omen’s horns are forcibly cut off at birth and this causes most sufferers to die. Margott was imprisoned with his brother deep within the capital. Shut away out of embarrassment. Not allowed to be members of the Golden Order into which they were born. Despite being seen as this Margott still devoted himself to serving the Erdtree.

This affliction made Margott hate himself for what he was. For what he was uncontrollably born as. But he was still desperate to serve the golden order and the Erdtree despite being cast from it. This is then what gives his actions as a character even more depth. As Marika his mother, his brother Rykard, his half brother, and sister Melenia and Mikala, all betrayed the will of the Erdtree. They were all members of the golden order but Margott could not be yet they all chose to walk away from that. When he would die for the opportunity to be a part of it. They betrayed the Erdtree and even in his final stand despite not even being a part of the Golden Order he stands against the Tarnished and dies trying to protect the only thing he found purpose in. Protecting the Erdtree, you can’t help after learning this but feel sorry for Margott as his afflictions, failures, and heartbreak.

Rhedan

General Rhedan, is a monstrosity!! The greatest warrior in the last between and endlessly powerful. Mightiest of the demigods!!! His power is immediate as he shoots his gigantic bow straight into your face before you even begin to think about fighting him. But like Margott there is so much more than meets the eye with him. Another almost Shakespearean catalog of lore gives everything about him a darker deeper context.

His battle with Melenia left him with the rot. This Scarlet Rot following this great battle slowly ate away at Rhedahns brain, ate away at his psyche, and cursed him to roam as a mindless beast who devoured the flesh of freind or foe alike. This previous general is now completely mad with his brain literally rotting away. But it is what he does despite the rotting of his brain that makes his character so powerful and gives it such depth. His horse Leonard, at first comically small for his gigantic frame but when you learn that this horse was his childhood horse that he loves with all of his heart, that when he outgrew it he learned gravitational magic just to be able to ride it without killing it. That as you battle him he hides his horse under the sand when he does his attacks to try and keep him safe. Or the fact that while his brain is rotting away and he’s fighting you, at the very moment he is so immensely powerful he is using magic to hold back the stars and stop any beasts from the void entering the lands between.

When you realize this you feel for Rhedan, a great warrior with a trusty steed. The most respected general in the lands between going slowly and painfully madder and madder but still using his powers to keep the lands between safe. It’s yet another example of how just everything in this epic game has more to it than meets the eye.

Conclusion

These two examples for me are small tastes of what this game has to offer. Its lore is filled with Mystery, love, tragedy, war, religion, order, chaos, and cosmic depth. Unique recoverable emotion in every detail of its characters and lore make it for me stand in a very special and excellent place in regards to video game lore.

Elden Ring’s Environmental storytelling and lore have truly placed it for me in the very same company as the likes of BOTW and Skyrim. For the reasons detailed in this blog, I believe it usurps them in these categories. This in no way diminishes how fantastic those other games are but is a testament to this world and its mystery, and the need to discover it. The connection I’ve found with others interpretations of it. The language used. The astounding environments that speak without words, and the tragedy of its characters all make it a true masterpiece. It has been an experience I will never forget and whether you agree with me or not I hope you have found some of my reasoning to be compelling. I also hope you push past the initial hardship and become as enamored with this magical game as I have.

Until our paths yet cross again may my words ring true in thy ears.

A pleasure it has been to write for thee,

Thou art possessed of that greatest of spirits? One born from the deep roots of the great Erdtree of gaming? A true unblemished spirit embroiled with the love of video games.

Thou hast bequeathed me thy limited time.

A rare sort such as thee to read my scripture,

I extend to you my greatest gratitude and thanks,

Yours sincerely, Ryan, Tarnished, and newly appointed Elden Lord of the Lands Between.

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Assassins Creed Odyssey - A moment where time stood still - Kephisos Spring total tranquility.

In my exploration of the amazing world of ancient Greece in Assasins Creed I have seen amazing sights such as the great stone penises of many a statue, the beautiful cities, landscapes plenty while also enjoying all the missions and camps to clear (Please see my previous blog for why I think everyone should play this game) but one of the most enticing things on the map of plenty is the discovery points. White eagles that you turn green in these wonderful moments where Ikaros swoops over you, and you feel embroiled in satisfaction! One of these Eagle points left a mark on me though that I will never ever forget!

At the northmost point of the map, there is one of these points called Kephisos Spring which is a long branch atop a tall cliff face. These branches feature in the game a lot offering places to perch for wonderful screenshots as your character crouches looking badass. (My lord I need another hard drive for this freaking game the photo mode is to die for so gorgeous!)

When I walked to the end of this particular branch though, I noticed this body of water below surrounded by trees, and I had a calling to pop down the mountain and take a look. As I leaped, Ikaros cried out and time slowed and in an epic fall I landed in a bed of blossom tree petals. As I rose, taking a brief moment to admire my wonderful outfit choice for Kassandra, I was greeted by the calming sound of running water from the slow-flowing waterfall to my left and this feeling washed over me. All the gargantuan sights, bloodshed, battle, tough moral choices, assassinations, the complex family issues, politics alongside the looming threat of the Cult Of Kosmos disappeared. In fact, at this moment all of my own real-life thoughts, feelings and worries disappeared too and I felt meditative, reflective, as well as a feeling of stillness.

I no longer wanted to hold the toggle to the very top and break into a run as I did at most moments of traversal in this game. I no longer wanted to jump wildly from rock to rock,

instead, I wanted to gently climb into the water below. As I clambered down, the knee-deep water surrounded Kassandra and I gently waded through it to a small piece of land in the middle.

The sun glistened off the surface of the water as an Athenian guard came into view, to my left his horse trotted slowly through the water ahead of me.

I was enamored with the ambiance of this place, the sounds of the running water and birds tweeting complimented by the soft ancient greek singing of the soundtrack.

The trees range from the popping pinks of cherry blossoms between a vale of autumnal browns, oranges, and lush greens of the other trees.

The larger waterfall supplying the still body of water below leads to smaller waterfalls flowing effortlessly.

The emotions this brought forth in me are hard to describe. I still had a sense of wonder but also felt connected to nature and with the singing felt somehow connected to some deeper human ancestral energy. It was simply wonderful.

I began to stride through the water, never breaking into a run, admiring all the scenery had to offer when I saw the smoke of a small village down the way built around the flow of this river, masqueraded in the same pretty trees as scattered people made their way up to the spring as it was a direct route to the road onwards, and you have to walk through the river as the Athenian guard did earlier on. The people walked by as I stopped, still drinking in every moment I could, watching them flow by just like the water. The whole scene was like a yoga retreat.

This is where I felt myself really appreciating the intimate detail and beauty of this game’s design. A moment in which it made me feel so otherworldly relaxed and chill. A moment in which I stopped to take it all in and appreciate being alive and being able to escape into these magical worlds that games have to offer us. Videogames are a special kind of magic and as much as the huge and epic moments showcase this, for me, these moments do too. It’s rare these days to just stop and take it all in.

I often do this in real life when I am surrounded by family members and friends when I see my mum laugh or see Kayleigh (my girlfriend) smile when she’s excited or filled with happiness.

Although everything is temporary these moments seem to last longer. Seem to tattoo themselves into our minds and become places we return to when times are hard and we want to escape into our memory. This moment in Assassin’s Creed was one of these for me. A chance to appreciate the beauty all around me.

`I have promised myself when I say my last farewell to this utterly amazing game I will return to this spot and share a moment with it once more. Video games are true pieces of art and boy am I lucky to be able to experience them.

Kephisos Spring A moment where time stood still.

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Assassin’s Creed Odyssey - Why I strongly suggest you should explore the absolute beauty of ancient Greece.

I had never played an Assassins Creed title before Odyssey. It was a franchise that somehow passed me by. I explored the wonders of Witcher 3 and have even hopped into Shadow of Mordor a game made in the mold of Assassins creed but never found a calling to the franchise as there were so many titles I found it to be intimidating. But then during my daily and weekly gaming ritual of listening to Kinda Funny Games Daily and the Kinda Funny Games cast, I began to hear a man some know well. A mysterious mad man of the internet of whom I have attained such recommendations as Journey, What Remains Of Edith Finch, Florence, and much more from start to mention Odyssey on the shows. This man was of course Kinda Funny's Greg Miller a man with great taste for emotional storytelling who somehow I trust to guide me in the direction of classics despite on occasion dressing up as Profession Mcgonigal and squealing Harry Potter point-based madness at his colleagues. Poor Kev and his poor ears. 

Now before I digress into any more Kinda Funny based references, Greg’s Words about Odyssey over time really began to sink in and engage me. His mentioning playing as the female protagonist (which I love to do myself in titles) he had such an attachment to her as if talking about a close friend. This is how I would think about Geralt from the Witcher so my intrigue grew. But this grew the most when he explained about the exploration of the world and how beautiful it was, the repetitive but satisfying checklist-style gameplay, but also the more emotional moments in which he would often mention talking to his wife, Gen about the crazy diverse adventures from the night before as each little story had almost left a little mark on him as he went through it with Kassandra and how the world itself being in the amazing setting of ancient Greece gripped him far more than the sands of Egypt of Assassin’s Creed Origins. So before I even knew the joy of the checklists of the game, I crossed off one of my own in my mind as I listened to Greg talk about this game. Open world? TIck! Emotive storytelling? Tick! Super dope protagonist who you attach yourself to? Tick! Ancient Greece and all the beauty, mythology and magic that comes with it? TICK TICK TICK!! 

So when I saw Odyssey for a ripe 16 smackers on the PlayStation store I could not resist!! Despite being halfway through Ghost of Tsushima. (Another beautiful game for another blog). I dived straight in. I was immediately thrust into a war, playing as the great Leonidas of Sparta and his 300 men surrounded by hordes of Persians. And with my Greek Nostalgia juices flowing the intro subsided and I was presented with the wonderful Kassandra. 

Kassandra 

What a fantastic character! It took about 10 or so minutes for me to warm to Kassandra. Her bullish but sarcastic demeanor made me smile and giggle with the dialogue choices but also feel instantly and effortlessly powerful.

Beyond this, there was a somewhat loving and caring undertone to her voice that also made her oh so endearing. There is depth given to her by her childhood, all be it a fire still ablaze from the trauma caused by Sparta's cruel rules, a set of skills learned from the attentive teachings of her parents, or a kindness and empathy found in most people who have seen the worst the world has to offer and lived to tell the tale. There are many facets to her character that make her so likable as with Geralt in the Witcher 3 you choose her dialogue options and therefore make her decisions which creates a bond with her. 

You feel almost as one while still feeling like you are watching her story unfold. She is scary strong and powerful. Able to crush her foes with the coolest of finishers with swords spears or whatever you wish to use as your killing tool alongside the powers you can unlock like the forever epic “THIS IS SPARTA!” kick where you can yeet your enemies off of the castle walls when you are accidentally caught looking for the camp’s treasure on your wonderful to-do list and they land with a loud thud next to their dear friend and comrade who is looking the other way and therefore heard absolutely nothing, fuck yeah Assasin shit! 

You can also customize her outfits, mix and match your new beautiful chest piece with some swanky shoes and greaves. 

Trust me as light-hearted as this seems you will become quickly passionate about how fashionable, colour coordinated and badass your Kassandra looks. All of this makes for one of the most immersive but attaching experiences I've had in a video game in regards to its protagonist. She is a complete joy to play the entire time and trust me, you will fall in love! Unless you choose to play as her drop-dead gorgeous brother Alexios who is more popular, but I can't stress enough how amazing Kassandra is and she will stay with me forever as a fantastic gaming protagonist I wish everyone could experience. 

The Missions and Activities 

I won't stay here too long as the sheer amount of missions on this game makes the likes of Ghost of Tsushima look like a cute 2-hour experience as I'm sure there is easily over 500 hours of content in this game! But before I scare you off back into your burrow with a Shrek-like hand-painted wooden sign saying “I have not got 500 hours I am a gamer and have no time to fill my overgrowing backlog with that kind of time” please hear me out!!

Although there is almost too much to do you almost end up wanting to do too much as the missions and activities in this game gave me the greatest sense of achievement and made me smile far more often than silly fetch quests and checklists of encampments ought to. 

First, I have to shout out the Syncronisation markers on the map not only do they offer a place to be able to fast travel back to, and in possibly the biggest gaming map I've ever seen they are needed but they offer a small moment to take in where you are as the camera zooms out to your eagle, Ikaros as he glides over you and amazing music plays, making every single one of these feel like such a breathtaking moment.

The missions from the main campaign are steeped in emotional storytelling about war and an evil Illuminati-like cult out to control the entirety of the Greek world for evil purposes but also about family and finding belonging while putting to bed demons and facing loss and pain. 

The mini-missions offer great breaks from the main story which range from the heartwarming feelings of helping those in need to slaying epic beasts while also taking on encampments which are teeming with foes. Wonderful moreish checklists that include finding all the treasure, taking out captains, and finding ancient tablets that when completed feel so freaking good. Upon completion, the name of the place comes up in gold across the top of the screen as completed with yet another tick on the main map. My god, they are addictive. 

All of this somehow has personality and offers interesting ways to explore newer areas you visit. I recently went to an island called Messara, the home to the Minotaur, and a small kid offered me a wonderful tour of the town showing me the broken Minotaur statue stating “Here is a lifesize replica of the Minotaur *real Minotaur size may vary*” these moments bring smiles to your face and this game literally has them around every corner! So just as Greg says, you will be filling the ears of your loved ones with these silly little adventures alongside an epic campaign. The missions and activities do not disappoint often garnering the attention of my girlfriend, Kayleigh as she plays her switch but can't help getting sucked into the narratives which is a true testament to how alluring they can be.

The world 

Finally, I stop off at the world itself. Now I have played in such beautiful environments like the Last of us Part 2’s nature claimed cities, God Of War’s vibrant and endlessly gorgeous landscapes and Tsushima’s stunning falling leaves. But despite all this, I have regularly been finding myself asking the question “Is this the most beautiful gaming world I have ever seen?” This is no joke, from great mountains, green fields, lush streams, open oceans, sprawling cities lit by the sublime sunrises and sunsets but also the wondrous glow of moonlight and dark mysterious cave systems, this game offers probably the most diverse environments in any open-world game.

Its colour palette is so varied with the white pillars of political houses and places of worship which are doused in the popping blue of Athenian colours or the blood-red of the Spartans. Huge statues of gods and heroes scatter the landscapes begging to be climbed to get a greater view of the gorgeous places you are in. They stand with such magnitude I find myself often just stopping staring upward in awe head pinned back as if I were in a city watching Godzilla roll by. 

Nature makes the world feel alive with bears, lions, deer, boar, and much more rushing between bushes as you ride by, down to the detail of butterflies taking flight as you walk through the bushes. I have stopped on so many occasions just to take in the beauty as during rain,  sunsets or sunrises this game becomes like a painting. You just find yourself looking around being absolved in its beauty and art. 

The Greek world has a wonder to it. A power and magic. Somewhere between reality and fiction and this game encapsulates the entirety of Greece and all it has to offer and it is so diverse. Different scenery and biomes make you constantly feel like you are playing out the greatest Greek fantasy. All be it walking the streets of a city, looking at the structures and statues expressing the best in human achievement or riding along mountains taking in the epic natural scenery. 

This wonderfully constructed world has etched itself into my soul as one of the most breathtaking places to escape into and I cannot stress enough how worth playing this game is even if it is purely to sightsee and explore as it will take you by surprise no matter what level of epic you may have played before. 

Did I get ya like Greg Got me?

I hope this makes you feel like you want to dip your toe into this game. Whether you are someone who played the original games and dropped off the franchise or are completely new to it, this game has so much to offer in regards to fun, sights, and storytelling. I am glad Greg mentioned this and I can't thank him enough for not only this but all the amazing experiences I've found through listening to him and the other guys and gals at Kinda Funny. This game will forever be with me for so many reasons and I hope that you can find the time to explore this amazing world also as it truly is an epic and boy is it cheap as chips everywhere you go these days so hey! In a world where there are so many fantastic open worlds you haven't played, just think about giving this one a try or if not add it to that big ol’ backlog, it really is worth it. 

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The Music Of Skyrim - An Instant Transportation Tool To Another World.

Skyrim, A world of cold mountains, calming streams,  glistening water, and the gentle trickling of them as they run by, tall sprawling trees filled with dancing deer, deep dimly lit caves with damp glazed walls filled with secrets of the past, thick crisp snow crumbling beneath your feet. Stunning skylines lit by angelic rays of the sun or the glowing moon. 

Thatched roofs of small warm cottages and houses, towering cities of cobblestone bustling with stalls and shops. 

Large echoing Wooden halls filled with the booming voices of Nords, glowing fires surrounded by drinkers of mead and wine readying themselves for the timeless classic “The Dragon Born Comes”. 

From the shadowing mountains covered in crystal white snow to the towns, openings, and forests Skyrim’s fantasy world is one of the finest places to escape into and lose yourself in. 

But there is something that makes all of the aforementioned things feel so real and it’s the veil that covers it all, and seems so effortlessly intertwined with every piece of this fantastic land and breathes life into it all and makes a visually aging game feel so timeless. That is its music. 

In this short piece, I look to break down the Music from this game and why it is a magical example of how music can transport you just by listening to it to a world of wonder and fantasy. 

The Epic. 

Ahhh the pure nostalgic bliss of a memory that is the Skyrim trailer.

Drums batter from a distance as you face a wall of thick stone. “Bethesda Games Studios” flashes onto the screen. Your mind lights up with the thoughts of imperial cities and nuclear wastelands and a familiar sense of knowing that what you are about to see is going to change your life forever. 

“The Elder Scrolls told of the return” now your brain a flurry of intrigue and happiness. You hear tribal voices in unison with an orchestra. “The time after Oblivion opened” the green trees of Tamriel sprout into a forest of memories in your mind swinging claymores and shooting arrows zip by and you land in front of the fiery orange glow of a portal, dark sinister skies surround you as imps, Daedra and other terrors pour out at you. “I was there when the gates of Oblivion were sealed,” you say to yourself with a smirk of pride spreading across your face. 

“When the truth dawns, It dawns in fire” the tribal voices erupt into a unified chorus as you see a stone dragon blow fire. Now your brain explodes into a complete frenzy of excitement. (DRAGONS?!! FREAKING DRAGONS IN AN ELDER SCROLLS GAME?!!) You barely have a moment to react as the narrator says, “But there's one they fear” A tall armored figure stands with a shield breaking through dragon flames, “In their tongue is Dovakin, DRAGONBORN!” 

At this life-altering moment, the booming voices descend into the now famed ��dragon born comes'' a gargantuan combination of choir, powerful orchestral tones, the familiar tune of the Elder scrolls series interwoven into the very fabric of it but in some way dialed up to the very maximum. This music makes you feel as if there is a spiraling swirling wind of a dragon all around you. A presence of size and magnitude. What a moment this trailer was a small well-constructed taste of what this game had to offer, a prerequisite to a game that would change so many lives from a storied and beloved franchise and a soundtrack that would provide such gravitas as to make you feel you are in a world filled with Dragons, undoubtedly unequivocally effortlessly epic. 

This level of music is continually used throughout the game. Most notably when you reach the Soveinguard and take on Alduin. The choir is in full voice as you reach the climax of this epic game. You, the Dragonborn, hours of experience enhancing your skills as your powers are fully amassed readily to seal away the Worldeater, with stars shining bright in the sky the fate of all existence in your hands. 

Another stand out for me is when you approach those distinct markings on the wall as time and destiny seem to call to you, your vision blurs, and those choir voices that seemingly echoed from eternity paint the picture as magic surrounds you, as the ancient power of a shout embodies itself within you.  

This amalgamation of choir and orchestra is a part of this soundtrack that will always stand out to me in its various placements in the game. It truly gives the feeling that you are playing a blockbuster fantasy and hits every time.

Just as it did that first time. your mouth was open, head pinned upwards in a flurry of fear and awe in Helgen as you saw a dragon sweeping overhead. This is my first example of how this game's music has the ability even when removed from its visuals and gameplay to take you exactly where you remember being when you first heard it. Just Magical. 

The Caves and Caverns.

The depths of Skyrim are almost entirely given character by its atmospheric music. Caves have a sense of wonder, a chasm ready to explore. Narrow, damp tunnels that glisten by torchlight. Coffins filled with gold and lifeless-looking Draugr’s ready to awaken and proverbially fuck your shit up for waking them from their slumber.

Apples and cheese are untouched for hundreds of years ready to eat (Must be some wacky Vivec style Dark Elf magic Preservatives covering them). The music in the caves gives the exploration of these dark corners of the world an ominous exciting feel. 

Tense hollow echoed sounds fill your ears in these labyrinths, gently teased orchestral strings are accompanied by dripping sounds and howling winds as if it’s calling to you as it travels through the hollow recesses of these long untouched spaces. 

As before, choirs are used when you enter into the mysterious stone halls filled with carvings and metallic steam-operated pistons in areas of Dwemmer construction, the questions rattle through your mind as you try to make sense of this empty, beautiful structural achievement left behind by an ancient and long passed race. 

This time though the choirs are subtle, gentle, and distant giving you a feeling of something akin to the great halls of Moria in the fellowship. 

The music in caves and caverns seesaws between giving you a sense of archaeological discovery and rumbling unease as danger or treasure could lurk around any corner. 

The music here gives life to these places and acts differently to my point before (which is more of a poignant thrust that makes you feel like you are in the midst of adventure and destiny) Instead, it acts as an atmospheric underlying that pads the experiences in these areas, and in my mind is the difference between feeling you are yet again, in a mindless video game dungeon but transported to a visceral, living and ancient place full of magic danger history and mystery.

The Ambience.

Now my fellow Dovahs of house Kins. We enter the most magical enthralling and nuanced part of the soundscape of this game. This is its ambient music. My heart will never stop being set alight by the majesty of Skyrim’s ambient music. I dare you to play “Awake” and not feel the internal voice of adventure whisper to you. To make you feel the need once more to walk the open world, to roam and adventure, to be smacked into the air by giants, and to refuse Skooma from the dodgy dealers who wander the moonlit roads at night.

The ambient music and all the tracks used in it give every inch of the world a feeling of wholeness. It for me seems to breathe a timeless life into this world that ignites some primal part of us. 

The part of us that wants to explore, to be told a story, that child-like part of us that was first absolved by stories of young girls in red hoods facing mischievous wolves and goats willing to cross the most troll riddles bridges. 

The music builds bridges between the game you are playing and your imagination and creates this seamless slipstream between the both which creates this amazing insatiable feeling because you are entirely in control of who you are, what you do, and where you go that at times these moments and memories are a mix between what you imagine the world to be and the amazing creation presented to you in graphics and gameplay.

This is the true magic of the ambient music of this game its ability to transcend giving context but create a connection between your sense of wonder and imagination and the actual game itself. 

This is what causes that feeling whenever you listen to it. That call to arms. That alluring want to escape back into this world and to experience its excellence again. That need to sit by the log cutter in Riverwood and watch the stream go by, and be filled with a sense of calm that's akin to this game's Shire. The need to take the walk to Whiterun filled with the piping hot news of the return of the dragons and end civil war. This near unexplainable magic is built over hours, days, months, and years of playing Elder Scrolls and taking in its lore and music. It is a true example of how music can be more than just enjoyable sound but a spiritual tool and one of the truest ways to connect our souls to the story we are consuming.

An instant transportation tool to another world. 

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Why now is the best time to play BOTW before its long-awaited sequel crashes into 2022

"Wake up Link!"

 I can imagine it's been some time since you awoke to the distant echo of Princess Zelda's voice. Your Switch is fresh out the box the crisp ASMR-like clack of the buttons, Joycons responding to the acute movement of your thumbs. The feeling of wonder, excitement, and the unbridled sense of adventure that accompanies the moment you first set eyes on the seemingly endless and simply beautiful sprawling landscape of Hyrule. 

Since then your switch has seen such hardship as the vice-like gripping of family and friends as they jostle for position on Rainbow road, the short frantic circular motions as you all wade your way towards a floating balloon in untidy unison as you thirst for another mini-game. It has also seen the slow meandering around trees and cute little houses as you spend countless hours earning and saving up those precious bells for a tyrannical raccoon to rid you of them. A quiet and far too frequently visited island escape breaking through the disconcerting news, crippling boredom and isolation of a pandemic lockdown. 

Or even worse, since you strode upon the open fields, Bow of light in hand, sealing evil away once more, your switch has been left in its tomb of a dock, in slumber awaiting the inevitable return of Ganon.

All these activities, or lack thereof, have I'm sure left your switch crippled, battered, bruised, or completely unused. Perhaps walking in a direction opposite to the one you are pulling in? Well my dear friends this is my short plea to fill your Amazon cart with a brand new set of the cons of joy (not just so you can give these faulty goods to your friends so they can stare perplexed as their Yoshi trundles into the side of the track as you whip past and lap them) but use them as a fresh, drift-free start and fire up Breath Of The Wild. So wake back up, and get one more playthrough under your belt, as before you know it you will be staring at your letterbox like a ravenous dog, drooling waiting to charge at the hand of the delivery person as they drop through your fresh copy of the sequel. 

BOTW is a gift that keeps on giving, its world is wonderful to explore and the variety on display in mechanics, environmental challenges, perplexing puzzles, storytelling, and a plot that doesn't lose any poignancy in replaying are the main reasons I implore you to dip back into this richly detailed masterpiece and I will break apart each of these and leave them as a trail of breadcrumbs for you to pick up and savor as I lead you down the mystical path as the sun glares through the openings of the trees back into the lost woods. 

The World.

“For in dreams, we enter a world that is entirely our own. Let them swim in the deepest ocean or glide over the highest cloud.” - Albus Dumbledore - Harry Potter 

The expansive world of BOTW feels like a world of your own. A true unbridled freedom a huge uncovered map that with each "hyueghh" of links ever so strong Peter Parker like grip to surfaces leading to the top of the tall orange towers that you erupt into the flurry of bright blue as you reveal each piece of this map like stripping back pieces of wrapping paper around a huge painting making you hungry even though you may already remember (even if you know what you're getting as a present) the unwrapping still has the same thrill. The quote above is a fine example of how the world of BOTW feels. You may find yourself swimming in the deepest ocean (nervously peering at your stamina wheel being decimated with each stroke) or gliding over the highest clouds the gentle flapping as the wind tickles your paraglider creating a short calm as you peer down at whatever point of interest has grasped your attention beckoning you towards it to explore it. The world even upon revisiting still fills your soul with the internal whisper of adventure that moves you in a primal way and stimulates like few in video games can. 

Mechanics.

"I have no words. My voice is in my sword" - Macduff, Macbeth

The mechanics of BOTW are as you well know is like watching that satisfaction video that's popped up on your phone a sensory audibly fantastic and somehow despite how many times you have watched it never seems to feel any less stimulating. All be it the soft sinking of Link's feet as he patters through the snow, the rhythmic clops of your horse as you soothe it for the 10,000th time just in case your bond isn't as tight as that of twins. The clinks of cutlery form the tune of cooking followed by the joyful pop of the *Well done you cheeky little Mushroom Masterchef* tune. The first vengeful swing of a Bokoclub as you clutch it from the body of your latest felled enemy in a scramble as the rest of the pack swarm in grunting and squealing as you emerge from the shards of your broken *and may I add far more useful* weapon to in the words of the great 21st-century prophet Dwayne of house Johnson and "Layuth the Smackuth Down on all their candy asses" *Raises Brow*. Or the many Shika slate abilities at your disposal. Yes. it still feels great to lift that metal box high into the sky the blue curser on the head of the unsuspecting Lizalfos ready to crush his world. One of the strongest beliefs I have is that BOTW's mechanics are unrivaled by nearly any video game and boy oh boy they are a fantabidozi reason all within themselves to dive back in.

Environmental Challenges

“- Donkey: I don't wanna die! I'm melting!

- Shrek: It's just the rain.” - Shrek

As I played through the BOTW in the later stages of 2021 the environmental challenges it poses refreshed me on just how intricately detailed it is. You walk along the tall cliff faces in the tropical forests of West Necluda fruit glistens from the trees and the rain starts to pour suddenly a short zap seemingly momentarily courses through the claymore upon your back a distant memory of a sword and shield lay on the floor engulfed in thunderbolts like a pair of Pikachu's as your hearts are whipped away from you in a flash of lightning as good old Mipha pulls you from your path towards the light washes over you and you frantically rifle through your inventory removing all traces of metal from your person as if you were about to have a sit-down dinner with Magneto to avoid this painful memory repeating itself. Despite your better judgment, you stand before a sheer cliff face rain beats down on you. You have overestimated a glide and now you're stuck and disregarding all sense of self-doubt you begin your ascent you slip like Mufasa as you battle back to your position prior to the slip, you slide back down as your stamina wheel grips your hands tight and whispers “long live the king” as your hand loosen and you admit to yourself the only way is down … and around. You stand facing a mountain drooling hot streams of lava, much like a night out drinking your 6 Fire Elixers deep even though you only needed one. The scramble to the clothing shop as you rush to buy an outfit to soothe the unbearable boiling of an active volcano! The biting cold of the mountains grey, hard to make out the precious orange glow of the shrines that “have got around here somewhere” half expecting to stumble into a White Walker, where thick snow slows the pace of your movements and ice surrounds the tower as you curse yourself for using the last of your fire arrows against that damn ice Keese! Sand covers your freshly woken face as you were tossed from Gerudo like the complete disgrace of a Voe you are because you decided to try on a new helmet you found blowing your rather cute looking via cover! The Harsh dry heat of the desert lies before you golden sands glimmering as you make for the nearest seal. All the environmental challenges in this game create a sense of elemental danger and help to paint the world and make it feel so teeming with life and personality and revisiting it all hits with the same joy of the leaves beginning to fall from the trees as autumn comes. So welcome and so beautiful.

Perplexing Puzzles

"I have no memory of this place" - Gandalf The grey - Lord Of The Rings 

Now, this quote could not be more applicable. Sure you remember the odd trick or two. You know your way from Rivendell to the gates of Moria no bother. But now you stand perplexed at the winding and long dark of a dwarven catacomb hoping for ripe meat off the bone that will never arrive. I felt exactly this as I stood within the 4 divine goliaths trying desperately to remember all the finicky ways to access those coveted terminals. You stare longingly at the upside-down pillar with that perfect little terminal just waiting for you to flash your contactless up to 50 rupees on your Sheikah slate, willing almost for it to drop from the ceiling but no. you and I both know you must use your brain or your old pal youtube! Don't give in just because it's your second time, you're better than that! The Shrines still tease the brain and give you the wonderful feeling of achievement and sense of pride as the piano rift plays and that door opens you ascend the marble stairs and you can approach the strange mummified creature as it hums at you like an Inuit throat singing in an empty school hall as you get another step closer to an extra heart or stamina reel. The payoffs for the Shrines where just unearthing them is the puzzle as a smile eeps its way across your face and you are filled with joy are particularly hit with me this time even if you spend 5 mins choosing what weapon to take out the shrine like the one you just got out the box has overflowed your inventory!! Speaking of that the Korok Seeds and their little “BAHAHA!” Is just as joyful as you drop the rock on their head after because you are a despicable human being. Just me? Didn't think so. Time away allows the puzzles in this game to feel freshly challenging and confusing which is yet another reason the replay is so necessary especially even if the odd one has you saying to yourself "Oh! It's that way." 

Merry: "He's remembered!" 

You - "No, but the air doesn't smell so foul down here. If in doubt, Meriadoc, always follow your nose." (Imagine Merry as a backseat gamer? The Joys!)

Story Telling and Plot 

“Any story worth telling is worth telling twice.” - Rafiki Lion King 1 ½ 

In a world full of deep complex and at times understandable villains in video games such as what God of War and The Last Of Us have to offer. It's nice not to be filled with moral ambiguity as you set off to take on a terror that's just good old fashioned evil just for being evil and you gotta sort it out before the world is plunged into forever darkness and Boko Goblins have 9 - 5 working days dancing and sitting around a fire as the general populous of Hyrule before they slowly waddle their commute back to the giant skull in they call home to rest ready for another day under the blood moon! No one wants that so quelling a greater Darkness all be it simple, is also in so many ways a comfort in a world of more intricate storytelling. This alongside the story beats of recovering the Hero’s of yesteryear getting the band back together for one last kick of Ganon's ass before their stories are complete and they can rest. The smaller side quests and charm of the characters are often endearing especially when you find one you didn't get around to in the first playthrough. Storytelling can be deep and introspective but the oldest trick in the book. The fight of good against evil. Of a hero losing his memory conveniently so that you can uncover the world together. To save a powerful princess who's just about keeping this evil at bay and watching as your handy work shapes and changes the world around you culminating at the moment you stare for the last time at Hyrule castles corruption glowing in the distance unsheath your master sword look around at the pillars of blue and the red lasers transfixed on Ganon (The only time in which I feel for Ganon as when those Guardians point their lasers at me the tune that plays could flip the steadiest ship and is the greatest musical representation of how it feels to have anxiety) You take a deep breath saddle your horse and set off to seal the darkness save Zelda and bring about an age of peace for Hyrule. Who wouldn't wanna do that again eh?

In the end, all be it for the reasons above or just to get that muscle memory back I believe that 2022 is the perfect year to pick up Breath Of The Wild again. To lose yourself to its journey and almost infinite exploration. To experience its brilliance again. To prepare yourself for the apparent Elephant riding alongside Zelda as you uncover and face the new darkness in the next tale of this epic series and to be honest just have a boatload of fun. Promise me you will at least consider it? Slip the game card out of its resting place in your case and give it another go. 

 Here's hoping it's not delayed.