Shark Girl and Earth Boy
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has had a crazy year. It’s already taken home at least one major award for best overall game of 2017, and has been nominated for countless more. While its faults have been laid bare at this point, you can’t really deny that it’s been one of the most talked about and influential releases in the past 10 months or so.
The conversation isn’t over yet — not even after the sun sets on the last planned DLC, The Champions’ Ballad.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch [reviewed], Wii U)
Developer: Nintendo
Publisher:
Nintendo
Released: June 30, 2017
MSRP: $19.99 (part of the season pass, cannot buy individually)
Rather than provide a number of quality of life updates, Champion’s Ballad positions itself as a bonafide story add-on (it’s kind of not, but all will be revealed shortly). You’ll access it all by heading back to the very first shrine you wake up from (or by accepting myriad sidequests to get outfits or a horse-summoning device), which will queue up four new quests on your main map. After it’s all over you get a motorcycle — which your mileage may vary on (ha) depending on how much of the open world you’ve already completed.
This joint is incorporated and listed as a “main campaign” quest, and isn’t found in a separate menu option. You’re immediately granted access to the goofily named “One-Hit Obliterator,” which kills enemies instantly but also allows you to suffer the same fate (hey, it’s just like that one Devil May Cry difficulty). It’s a massive kick to the jaw early. Those four quests involve killing settlements of enemies, and even if an enemy literally breathes on you, you die. Once an individual area is conquered, a shrine pops up.
I’ve seen some chatter about them being tough, but they’re roughly on the level as a few of the high-end difficulty shrines in the main game. I appreciate that Nintendo is still finding cool ways to punish Link and the player even after they’ve exhausted 120 concepts already, even if they could have been pushed a little farther to the limit of what Breath of the Wild is capable of.
If you’re expecting some epic additional showdown with the strengthened spirit of Ganon, or some final bit of closure that instantly teases the next Zelda anime style, this isn’t the DLC you’re looking for. Instead we’ll get to spend a little more time with the Guardians themselves (without any new revelations in the process), while you explore some cool new shrines and a new dungeon, the latter of which is an amalgam of the Divine Beasts you’ve already seen. As someone who loved the idea of the Beasts mixing up the routine dungeon delving formula I can dig it, but those of you who wanted Nintendo to do the same thing they’ve always done won’t magically be swayed by this new one.
I repeat, this is mostly a series of challenges connected through the main map, with the narrative taking a backseat. I can deal with that because that’s just like how the actual campaign operated, but the outright most disappointing thing about it is the retread through a few boss battles (sans one, which is unique) — and the lack of any alteration whatsoever of the final fight with Ganon despite the hint that there might be. If this is truly the last DLC, it would’ve been great to get at least an extra form to tango with.
Despite that, I had a great time taking on the new shrines and the obliteration silliness. Breath of the Wild is still a blast, so even if everything feels familiar, I couldn’t help but take myriad detours and comb through areas I had already been before just to ensure that I didn’t miss something. Keep your expectations in check and you’ll enjoy the ride.
[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]
The Champions' Ballad DLC pack was the second expansion for Zelda Breath of the Wild, and takes place after the events of the main game. In this guide to the Zelda Breath of the Wild Champions' Ballad DLC, we'll be walking you through how to get started with the second DLC expansion for the game.
The Champions' Ballad DLC Pack 2 marks the second and final DLC update for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. To initiate the Champions' Ballad quest, you need to have defeated all four Divine Beasts in the main game, but you don't have to have taken down Calamity Ganon himself. Refer to our guides on each Divine Beast just below, if you've still got them left to complete.
- Divine Beast Vah Ruta Guide
- Divine Beast Vah Medoh Guide
- Divine Beast Vah Rudania Guide
- Divine Beast Vah Naboris Guide
Once you've completed all four Divine Beasts, you'll hear Zelda call to Link, telling him to return to the Shrine of Resurrection on The Great Plateau, to the point at which you first got the Sheikah Slate. This marks the very beginning of the main Champions' Ballad DLC quest, but it it's far from the only activity you can take on in the new DLC Pack 2.
After you've activated the terminal where you were first given the Sheikah Slate, you'll be tasked with taking down four camps of monsters, in order to master a Divine Beast. However there's a catch to this, as although you're given the powerful One-Hit Obliterator weapon, Link's health is reduced to one quarter of a heart, meaning that you'll die if you take a single hit.
Just below, you'll find our comprehensive guides leading on from this point in The Champions' Ballad DLC Pack 2:
- The Champions' Ballad Shrine Quest Walkthrough
- The Champion's Ballad - Champion Urbosa's Song Quest Guide
- The Champions' Ballad Master Cycle Zero Bike Guide
- The Champions' Ballad Ancient Horse Armor Guide
- The Champions' Ballad Royal Guard Armor Guide
- The Champions' Ballad Island Lobster Shirt Guide
- The Champions' Ballad Dark Armor/Phantom Ganon Armor Guide
- The Champions' Ballad Treasure Merchant's Hood Guide
- The Champions' Ballad Treasure Usurper King Guide
How to get the Master Cycle Zero Bike in Breath of the Wild
As you might have noticed in the trailer that announced the release of The Champions' Ballad DLC Pack 2, Link has access to a new motorbike, named the Master Cycle Zero.
For a complete guide on how to get Link his very own motorbike, as well as all the new features of the manic vehicle, head over to our Zelda Master Cycle bike guide.
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Hirun Cryer
Staff Writer
Hirun Cryer is by far the most juvenile member of USgamer. He's so juvenile, that this is his first full-time job in the industry, unlike literally every other person featured on this page. He's written for The Guardian, Paste Magazine, and Kotaku, and he likes waking up when the sun rises and roaming the nearby woods with the bears and the wolves.