Top 5 Places to visit in Breath of the Wild

Warning: This Post will contain some Spoilers for Breath of the Wild.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is a huge game. Exploring all of Hyrule easily takes more than 300 hours. It is a game full of breathtaking and beautiful sights. The sheer vastness of the land can easily overwhelm you and I happened more than once that I completely forgot my initial goal and simply got lost in the amazing land of Hyrule. Nintendo managed to craft a world where simply exploring the land is fun. You don't need hundreds of side objectives and collectibles. The World itself is the star of the game.

Just running around and exploring the land is enough to deliver countless hours of fun. And it doesn't get boring.

Of course this new land of Hyrule houses many familiar areas, which have been a mainstay in the series since the beginning. Death Mountain truly captures the hostile and threatening atmosphere of an active volcano and the Gerudo Desert is always a challenge to survive, but there are also some new sights to discover. Akkala on the northern edge of the land always draws me in with its rough and untamed beauty.

Breath of the Wild offers something for everybody. Old and new fans.

It shows us a Hyrule that is unique and varied (although with a little to many cold areas for my liking). And that's why today I'd like to show you my picks for the Top 5 Areas you should visit in Breath of the Wild.

5: Hebra Mountains

There are four cold areas in the game. The Ranelle Peak, Mr. Hylia, the Gerudo Highlands and the entire Hebra region. And the last one is the area I choose for this place on the list. Hiking through the Hebra Mountains is a great experience. You truly get the feeling of being lost at the end of the World. I had a similar feeling during Twilight Princess while you climb Snowpeak, but here it's on a much bigger scale. Exploring Hebra you truly get the feeling that you're the only human in this fast icy landscape. So imagine my surprise when I found a world renowned Shield Surfer near Hebra Peak. But my inability to beat even the simplest of her courses isn’t the topic of this list.

Hebra is my favourite cold area in the game also because it's full of secrets. Be it the extremely well hidden Giant Whale Fossil in the area or the countless hot springs.

Especially during the night the cold beauty of this frozen landscape always manages to leave me breathless. Turn off your Shiekah Sensor + use the Pro-HUD and just spend an afternoon exploring Hebra. I guarantee you that it's one of the best experiences you can have with Breath of the Wild.

4: Farm Ruin

There isn't much to say about this entry. It's simply here because of the intense nostalgia value.

For many of us Ocarina of Time was among the first Zelda Games we played. Even my little sister loved it, altough her ''playthrough'' consisted of riding Epona around Hyrule Field for hours. But little girl or not everyone loved Links Horse. Winning Epona and escaping LonLon Ranch with her is one of the Iconic Zelda Moments.

For many people LonLon Ranch has a special place in Zelda. It's the home of the lovely Malon and one of the most peaceful places in all of Hyrule. Also there is the music.

The LonLon Ranch has always been close to Castle Town, so when Calamity Ganon destroyed Hyrule one hundred years ago, there is no way the LonLon Ranch was spared. Right? Right! If you explore Hyrule Field just southeast of Castle Town you may stumble upon an old Farm Ruin. And if you take your time to compare the layout of this ruin to the original LonLon Ranch in Ocarina of Time you'll see that this is the same place.

Breath of the Wild often has a melancholic atmosphere. After all the World is in ruin after the catastrophe 100 years ago. But seeing the LonLon Ranch reduced to nothing but rubble hit me especially hard. This was always one of the most peaceful places in the land. For anyone who has played Ocarina of Time this place, better than any other, shows the terror of Calamity Ganon.

3: Satori Mountain

When I first heard the legend of Satori Mountain ingame I didn't pay too much attention to it. A wanderer told me about his encounter with a monster on the top of said mountain. I simply thought the monster would be another Hinox. Boy was I wrong.

Through different encounters I learned more about the legendary mountain and found out that the Beast is the so called Lord of the Mountain. A protector of all wildlife in Hyrule. Now this intrigued me and I decided to find the legendary mountain. Luckily it was just around the corner from Outskirt Stable.

The mountain itself doesn't seem to be anything special at first sight. Halfway up I did find a grove full of apple trees and around the peak a Shrine awaited me, but nothing out of the ordinary so far. This changed when I arrived at the small pond near the peak. There a sight, unlike any other found in Hyrule, was presented to my eyes.

This sight became even more impressive at night, when I was finally able to spot the Lord of the Mountain and well... tame it.

Now, just like with the Farm Ruin, the backstory is what makes Satori Mountain special. But this time it's outside of the game.
I'm sure you've heard it by now, but let me tell the story eitherway. The legend of Satori Mountain is told by Botrick, an NPC who bears a striking resemblance to late Nintendo President Satoru Iwata. During Interviews the developers often told the story that they had the feeling that Iwata watchted over their work, just like the Lord of the Mountain, which name is Satori by the way, watches over Hyrules Wildlife.

2: Zoras Domain

Breath of the Wild succeeded in creating a new Hyrule for a new generation. Instead of focusing on Ocarina of Time and trying to surpass it, they managed to create something new. Twilight Princess often suffered from the fact that it was intended as a bigger Ocarina of Time.

It's funny that Breath of the Wild succeed in many areas where Twilight Princess failed exactly because it didn't try to do that. Zoras Domain in Twilight Princess felt rather lackluster, but with Breath of the Wild they truly managed to create the ''bigger'' and ''better'' version they have always dreamed off.

I strongly recommend taking the story intended route along the Zora River, instead of finding another way across the mountains. (Even though the different Cut Scene when entering the Throne Room is pretty great.)

The constant down pouring rain and strong enemies along the way build up the final reveal of Zoras Domain perfectly.

After visiting the rather modest villages of Hateno and Kakariko seeing this huge structure came as kind of a culture shock. And to be honest no other settlement in Hyrule managed to leave me in awe like Zoras Domain. Also here the threat of the Divine Beast seems the strongest. The constant down pouring rain really creates a brooding atmosphere and the realization that soon all of Hyrule could be flooded is quite dire.

Zoras Domain manages to break away from the blueprint set for Zora villages in the past and create a new and grand design for the race. It's a sight you can't afford to miss when playing Breath of the Wild.

1: Lost Woods

When hearing about the Lost Woods in Breath of the Wild for the first time I wondered how they would incorporate them into an open world game. Would I be able to skip the Woods and head directly to the Deku Tree? Or would they be instanced in some way and mandatory. How would Nintendo handle the idea of getting lost in a magical Forrest if you don't follow the right path? Luckily all my concerns where unfounded and Nintendo perfectly managed to capture the spirit of the Lost Woods. Oh and by they way you can skip them and just fly directly to the Deku Tree with your sailcloth.

But actually venturing through the woods is a one of a kind feeling. Nintendo perfectly managed to create a balance between a calm and serene and a creepy atmosphere. The music and the Koroks in the distance blend perfectly together.

For me this incarnation of the Lost Woods is the best by far. And instead listening to me telling you how good it it is, it is best experienced in person.

So what are your favorite places in Breath of the Wild. Which sight did leave you... breathless. Let me know in the comments.

And as always

thanks for reading.