Despite being set in the increasingly confusing and muddled Zelda universe, Hyrule Warriors is unlike anything you’ve seen from a Zelda game. Although it contains no small amount of homages both large and small, the action takes place within the unfamiliar Musou genre instead of the commonly seen action adventure titles of the past.
But what is a Musou game?
It’s fun! It’s so go***mn fun I could explode!
In short, Musou is itself a short-hand for the type of game popularized by the Dynasty Warriors franchise and it’s spin-offs. You take to a sprawling battlefield populated with hordes of enemies, go to where the game tells you to and more-or-less hit every button (it doesn’t really matter) on your controller repeatedly until you’re forced to stop. That’s really really over-simplifying the core concept, especially given that Hyrule Warriors does contain an actual level of depth in its easy to understand but somewhat esoteric mechanics. The short version is: you can kill a LOT of dudes with not a lot of effort.
So what’s the deal? Why play something so obviously shallow, so completely devoid of any real mechanical complexity, and very obviously short on technical and artistic fidelity?
It’s fun! It’s so go***mn fun I could explode!
While the Musou formula has been applied to other properties in the past, the heaping coat of Zelda fanservice and mythology lends itself almost perfectly to the genre. When you combine the series’ larger-than-life archetypal heroes and dastardly villains duking it out amongst the most iconic of Hyrule’s fantasy locales how better to represent that than a bunch of screen-filling button-mashy nonsense?
Like its Musou-infused and inspired compatriots Hyrule Warriors taps directly into your 10-year-old self; sitting in your room playing make believe with your toys, or smashing your dolls and action figures together in the backyard, re-enacting a battle for the survival of the very world.
By the same token the game is not without its flaws. The framerate stutters, the enemy A.I. is largely non-existent, and the two-player implementation is a little flighty; but in the face of such overwhelming enjoyment these flaws become tiny nitpicks in a vast sea of big dumb fun.
Hyrule Warriors is both empowering to less skilled players and rewarding for veterans. It’s frenetic, over-the-top action wrapped in classic Nintendo charm.
Hyrule Warriors: Co-Opinion
- Learning Curve
- Learning Curve
- Player Roles
- Player Roles
- The Game Itself
- The Game Itself
- Does it Co-Op?
- Does it Co-Op?
Summary
Learning Curve
Some of the more intricate boss encounters ask a little more on the part of the player in using the game's mechanics and abilities but it's more or less a giant, incredibly fun game of whack-a-mole.
Player Roles
Hyrule Warriors ends up being an interesting new kind of co-op experience with both players talking and cooperating about the game they're both playing together, but largely playing alone.
The Game Itself
Despite the relative lack of depth and polish and the sort of simplistic approach of the Musou formula, Hyrule Warriors is an impressively complete package.
Does it Co-Op?
Completely.With it's loving homage to one of the most classic gaming franchises of all time and unique local co-op configuration, Hyrule Warriors is both empowering to less skilled players and rewarding for veterans.
