Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's Director Was Right About Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Guillaume Broche, a rising star and creative leader Claire Obsker: Expedition 33You said glowing things about it recently. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Broche's praise for the 2017 hit isn't all that groundbreaking.breath of the wild It ended up receiving near-universal acclaim, but it's interesting to consider how candid the director has been about other popular franchises. GTA “boring.”

Broche's commentary also The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildEspecially as Nintendo evolves with other products. zelda same project ocarina of time make again It can be easy to get a side job breath of the wild In the wake of other amazing open world releases such as Elden Ringand even BotW continue Tears of the KingdomSome might argue that it is simply a better version than its predecessor. But such comparisons are beside the point. breath of the wild It effectively revolutionized the open world genre at the time, which was oversaturated, formulaic, and artisanal, defined by frivolous work, copious map markings, and painfully uninspired exploration mechanics. breath of the wild It was a breath of fresh air (no pun intended) and even today, almost a decade later, it still surpasses many AAA open world titles.

“It's truly exceptional” – Director Clair Obscur's praise for Breath of the Wild is right on the money.

In an interview with Jeux Video Club in June 2026, Guillaume Broche expressed the following thoughts: breath of the wildYour location in the game:

It's truly exceptional. In my opinion, this is the first open world game that actually delivers on the promise of an open world: simply no minimap. You have a big map, but you really get a sense of exploration. When I see something, I want to go there.

Broche tends to be concise and realistic. breath of the wild Comments are no different. calling BotW “The first open world game to really deliver on the promise of the open world” is certainly a strong statement, but when you think about the ambitions and pitfalls of the open world genre, it's actually quite reasonable.

take The Elder Scrolls 5: SkyrimAnother RPG often cited as “the best open world game of all time.” Skyrim It's constantly been hyped as the next level of open-world exploration, and director Todd Howard infamously touted its “see that landmark, go to that landmark” freedom ahead of release. and while Skyrim It has a strong open world design in some ways, but it's bogged down by restrictive quest design, waypoint-based discovery, and environmental design that doesn't allow you to deviate from the already established path.

Meanwhile, there are few off the beaten path breath of the wildThe vast natural world effectively requires a more free and flexible exploration style. Moreover, discovery comes by organic means, as finding shrines, villages, secrets, and other points of interest almost always depends on the player's own innate curiosity. You can also choose to ignore map markings and quests. Skyrim Although I prefer a similar navigation approach. breath of the wildYou have no choice but to pass by without those guardrails. in Skyrim, Far Cry, Assassin's CreedIn other smaller open world games, you can travel to almost any point of interest. in breath of the wildAs Broche said, you really want to visit these places.

What Other Games Can Learn from Breath of the Wild's Open World Structure

Unsurprisingly, after 2017, there were a lot of games that tried to copy it. breath of the wildis a success. For example, Ubisoft has a signature open world design and BotWWith the 2020s Immortal Phoenix RisingThe results were surprisingly good. It still has a lot of Ubisoft's DNA, and it's certainly not at the same level of quality and originality as Ubisoft. breath of the wildBut this is definitely a step in the right direction. Other open world games, e.g. Ghost of Tsushima and Elden RingWe also get clear clues from: breath of the wildis an organic design philosophy.

But we can also see less direct applications. pivot again Claire Obsker For a moment, Broche's aforementioned remarks convey respect for: breath of the wild Sandfall could not have been avoided during development. of course, Claire Obsker It's definitely not an open world game. At least not in the following sense: breath of the wildBut the general philosophy of the latter seems to have influenced the former in some way.

A good example of this is: Claire Obsker's endgame side content that gives players the ability to travel through the Hub Zone and engage with “Spokes” in new ways. At this point, the game is actually hiding quite a bit of meaningful content, showing players unobtrusive new landmarks that actually provide key boss battles, story beats, and more. This shows not only attractiveness but also a kind of confidence. Claire ObskerIt affects not only the exploration and development of the game, but also the intelligence and persistence of the game player. It entices them by gesturing toward an inherently satisfying discovery, rather than railroading them through unpleasant map markings or waypoints that take away from the mystifying experience.

In this way, Claire Obsker Inspired by breath of the wild in that same way The Witcher 3 Inspired by dark soul: CD Projekt Red clearly took inspiration from FromSoftware's melee combat and grueling RPG design. The Witcher 3 The game itself is clearly more similar to other Western RPGs. Claire Obsker's most important gaming influences are turn-based JRPGs such as: final fantasy 10However, curiosity-based exploration and a willingness to hide important content in selected areas indicate an affinity for: BotW. Sandfall Interactive may not have explicitly set this. breath of the wild– I was inspired breath of the wild The more obscure mechanical details surrounding exploration, a strength that Broche values, seem to have trickled down. Claire ObskerThe design philosophy of is irrelevant.

system

released

March 3, 2017

ESRB

E for Everyone: Fantasy violence, alcohol, mildly suggestive themes.

developer

Nintendo EPD

publisher

nintendo