The Nintendo Switch has plenty of Zelda games, with at least one game launching each year since its initial release in 2017. Breath of the Wild and Link's Awakening are two of the best. The former is a revolutionary open-world take on the classic adventure series. The latter is a remake of one of the most popular portable Zelda's ever.
Both games have their strengths and as a result, they'll both be suited to different types of players, dependent on what you prefer your Zelda adventures to focus on. This list will present the strengths of each game, as well as comparing the two in order to allow you to decide which game will be better suited to you.
Updated on May 11th, 2022 by Geoffrey Martin: No matter which side of the debate you happen to fall on, both Breath of the Wild and Link's Awakening offer delightfully fun and highly enticing experiences. While they both feel completely different in terms of playability and world design, there's no question that both of these Zelda titles deserve your time and attention. As more and more players dive into each of these games, it's becoming clearer that each one has its respective pros and cons. This list continues to be fleshed out with additional reasons as to why each game succeeds in its own right.
12 Breath Of The Wild: Movement And Traversal
Simply put, Breath of the Wild offers players a much more freeform, fluid, and responsive movement and traversal system. Now, this isn't to say that Link's Awakening doesn't play well, however, Breath of the Wild thrives off of its ability to naturally transport you around the kingdom of Hyrule, whether by foot, horseback, or glider.
Heck, even the ability to freely climb up walls, structures, and cliffs makes it a breeze to get from point A to point B. There is just a high level of fluidity and kinetic energy to the way Breath of the Wild has players move around the massive map. It doesn't matter which transport method you choose, they all feel great to control.
11 Link's Awakening: Better, More Distinct Items
Link's Awakening is a thoroughly more linear and focused affair but always manages to get you to explore off the beaten path. Oftentimes, this game encourages you to explore in order to find specific items needed to progress through the overworld or through dungeons. While Breath of the Wild certainly has plenty of items, many of them feel too simplified or generic.
In the case of Link's Awakening, items such as keys, the hook shot, the boomerang, and even the Mirror Shield all feel truly distinct with many of them necessary for moving forward in the game. Finding a coveted item in Link's Awakening always feels rewarding, like it was worth the incredible effort and skill it took to obtain it.
10 Breath Of The Wild: Content Volume
Breath of the Wild is arguably the most jam-packed Zelda game ever, potentially offering you hundreds of hours of entertainment should you choose to indulge in all the content it has on offer. It also has a DLC pack containing The Master Trials as well as The Champions' Ballad on top of the core game.
This includes a "Master Mode," along with five new main quests which add around 15 extra hours to the original playtime. This, of course, doesn't include replaying the game on Master Mode. Even after you finish Breath of the Wild's main story you can explore Hyrule and keep discovering new locations and quests to complete.
9 Link's Awakening: Dungeons
Breath of the Wild is renowned in many areas, but the general consensus amongst most fans was that the dungeons were a big letdown. This is due to both the volume of them, as well as the lack of originality within them, something which the series has previously been known for.
Link’s Awakening doesn’t have the most ingenious dungeon layouts or puzzles in the series, but they are the more classic design that most fans look forward to in a Zelda game. The overhead dungeon-crawling style and abundance of action give it more of that classic Zelda charm. They all have great bosses too, with unique and interesting boss fights in each and every one.
8 Breath Of The Wild: Exploration
Breath of the Wild's expansive world is made for exploration, you could even consider the Hyrule in the game a character in itself. There is something to do and see around every corner in this rich, dynamic environment, especially because of the movement options Link has available to him via the glider and Revali's Gale.
Every aspect of Breath of the Wild is geared around pushing you to explore its world, from the towering Sheikah Towers which loom above every region of Hyrule, to the open-ended nature of the narrative of the game, which allows you to explore Hyrule however you choose. There are secrets around every corner, you just have to find them.
7 Link's Awakening: Nintendo Cameos
Link’s Awakening is one of the weirdest games in the franchise, featuring a lot of cameos from characters including Yoshi, Chain Chomp and even Kirby. Perhaps in the dream world of Link's Awakening Nintendo's franchises, all exist within one universe? It's certainly interesting to see some classic Mario enemies incorporated into a Zelda game.
The oddest inclusion of all is King Wart from Super Mario Bros. 2 because of how rarely Nintendo recognizes that game at all, so to see him here is bizarre. He teaches Link the 'Frog's Song of Soul' after being paid 300 rupees and is never seen in the game again.
6 Breath Of The Wild: Experimental Gameplay
Breath of the Wild is the most experimental Zelda game in many ways, but most obviously in its gameplay. Link's Runes allow some amazing spectacles to be accomplished if you can master them, with some players being able to launch themselves across the map or take out entire camps of enemies in one quick sequence.
There is also a variety of weapons to use too, with some possessing elemental effects, as well as the arrow types that can be used to electrocute or set enemies on fire. Link's Awakening just can't compare in this regard, with its much more rudimentary gameplay that is more akin to classic Zelda.
5 Link's Awakening: Narrative
Link's Awakening's storytelling is brilliant, with its final twist leading to the most bittersweet conclusion in any Zelda game. The characters you meet are fantastic too, each having their own motivations and dreams, making the world of Koholint Island feel three-dimensional.
Hints are dropped surrounding the true nature of the island throughout the game, but they're subtle enough that you'll likely only piece things together as the game draws to its conclusion. Link's Awakening isn't ambitious with its narrative, but the story it tells is fantastic, and it manages to hit every story beat fantastically well.
4 Breath Of The Wild: Music
Breath of the Wild has a brilliant soundtrack, although you'll probably hardly notice it for the majority of the game. The typical bombastic Zelda themes you'd expect are replaced by more subtle and nuanced sprinkles of melody as you explore Hyrule.
The music picks up dynamically depending on what you're doing, creating an arrangement of over a hundred different tracks, or melodies. It may not be a hummable soundtrack, but it is impressive, to say the least. Just try to take on a Guardian and try to argue the soundtrack isn't fantastic.
3 Link's Awakening: Boss Fights
Link's Awakening has brilliant boss fights, with each and everyone being a great combination of combat and puzzle-solving. Most of them make use of the dungeon item too, with you needing to use said item in order to defeat the boss in various creative ways, you can tell that the developers had a lot of fun creating the bosses of the game and testing how players could defeat them.
The final boss is the best of the lot, featuring six unique phases that see the creature known as 'Nightmare' morph into six different forms, each with unique attacks and movement patterns. There are even cameos from Ganon and Agahnim in this fight too, Nightmare has clearly done its homework on Link's past.
2 Breath Of The Wild: Systemic World
Should you choose to do so, you can fly over Death Mountain in a minecart in Breath of the Wild. This Hyrule is heavily based on a systemic environment that allows you to use real-world logic in order to see in-game actions take place. Setting grass on fire will engulf the whole field in flames, which can then set trees and enemies on fire.
The game encourages experimentation, and you will be rewarded for doing it, no idea is too wild... It really makes this version of Hyrule the most immersive yet and is another way in which Breath of the Wild is incredibly replayable.
1 Link's Awakening: A Guided, Condensed Experience
Breath of the Wild's expansive open-world isn't for everyone, and Link's Awakening delivers the more condensed experience that classic Zelda fans are used to. Objectives are fairly clear, with some small side-quests peppered around the island which you'll naturally pick up as you play through the game's main quest.
It's a much shorter game too, with a completion time of around 8-12 hours depending on how quickly you play through the game's main quest. The 2D Zelda formula is all present here, and it makes for a fantastic alternative to the significantly different Breath of the Wild.