I don’t think you need to choose between one or the other. I really think Nintendo could’ve made the Divine Beasts themed dungeons if they wanted to and not have sacrificed any of the exploration aspects of the game.
I think you misunderstood me or rather I phrased it wrongly.
What I meant with "removing BotW overworld mechanics", it was about the fact that said overworld mechanics - the whole physics engine and the freedom aspect - was ALSO used on the dungeons. Thus, said mechanics was used on a concept which wouldn't work at all.
Therefore, of course both can function as long as the dungeons follow its traditional terms.
But if I had to choose, I’ll take atmosphere over exploration 10/10 times, especially in games like Breath of the Wild where you can physically see the entire map almost right at the start of the game. BotW to me definitely suffers from the “Big Empty Field” syndrome. It doesn’t feel so much like I’m exploring a world when I can see the entire thing right from the outset.
I 100% agree.
Don't get me wrong, I love BotW overworld BUT I'm afraid there is no really significant remarkable and memorable places outside of the Faron region and Central Hyrule. Especially the beach suffers from it, you can also read a valid explanation - ie, the one link which
@playa4321 posted - why it's empty like that.
It may just be me but if I see a giant open field...I’m done lol. I don’t need to physically set foot on every inch of that field to feel like I’ve explored it. It’s a big field, I get it.
I'm sure the dev team will add lots of new stuff into the BotW 2 map, it will almost look like it's a new map.
You only explore 2-3 buildings in this city, but the entire city itself goes to create the atmosphere of a ruined city constructed by gods that has been lost to the flow of time. If anything, not being able to explore the entire thing just makes me that much more intrigued about the world of Lordran and its history. Lost Izalith is another great example:
Absolutely.
Levels in DS/DS3 are magnicient in general due to its phenomenal designs and how each level is connected to the whole world.
You do not even really need openworld to create such a feeling of freedom. Therefore I hope, the Zelda team recognizes it too and starts mixing up freedom and linearity at once.
I do not need to beat the final boss in the first minutes or hours. I do not need to directly visit powerful areas to feel freedom. As long as the game captures the pure atmosphere of beautiful and connected level designs along with exploration, I'm absolutely fine with it, even if - for example - you are restricted exploring a single area in the sequel.
After all, I believe the sole focus will be on the story and dungeons this time - that's why the dev team was looking for competent level designers for dungeons.
By the time you trek through the Demon Ruins and all of the monstrous foes therein, Lost Izalith feels like you are literally entering the pits of hell, and you’ve descended far lower in the world than you were ever meant to.
That's why atmosphere is also heavily important in video games.
Look at Termina for example, all areas captured a very impressive feeling of abstract atmosphere and in lore stuff. Or Wind Waker with the Great Sea.
Btw, soundtracks are part of said atmosphere; I agree that soft music isn't bad if you explore stuff in Central Hyrule but I feel like they still made it TOO easy. There are 10 regions, yet almost all regions share the same boring soundtracks.
I'd have liked to have a more themed-based soundtrack in the Faron region or Lanayru region - on the other hand, the Death Mountain has its own soundtrack as well as snow regions. Yet again, they are not that atmospheric compared to other Zelda titles.
The Divine Beasts were supposed to be a huge aspect of BotW’s plot but they feel like afterthoughts without much identity.
As I said, BotW was supposed to have 10 dungeons, thus 10 Divine Beasts.
Did you see the images?
https://doutzen-kroes.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F185794151151
"Despite their strong resemblance to animals in silhouette, they also contain elements of palaces, factories, and bridges. They were designed to look like living machines and possess traits that make them both cute and unsettling."
It's actually insane how many thoughts they had how to make each individual Divine Beast interesting with bridges, palaces or factories. Therefore, it's highly likely they tried to mix traditional themed-dungeons with new ideas, for example mobile dungeons. That would have been a great idea.
I mean, Vah Ruta would have 4 - 6 large layers with many small and large rooms, like a solid 3D Zelda dungeon.
And all other 3 Divine Beasts do not look that small either, especially Vah Medoh.
Compared to the previous Vah Medoh, this one is rather a joke:
The whole wing area is actually the boss room meanwhile OG Vah Medoh had several large palaces- or factories-like rooms in which one of them could easily be a boss room as well.
Hyrule Castle was great because it's large, had an epic soundtrack and its atmosphere was phenomenal - although it also quite suffered from BotW's overworld mechanics...
Anyway, the Divine Beasts were meant to be hardly less than Hyrule Castle as you can see what the Art Director described.
This is why Majora is my favorite Zelda game, it commits harder to its abstract atmosphere than any other Zelda game commits to its relatively simple atmosphere imo.
IMO all Zelda games - especially the 3D ones - are very close in comparison. However, if I have to choose a game, it'd be OOT, followed by MM, WW and TP.
But in terms of atmosphere, it's definitely MM.
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2022 release date