Honestly, it’s been years since Link first stepped out of that cave and looked over the Great Plateau. You remember that view? The sheer scale of it? When critics first started putting a rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild, it felt like the entire gaming industry just collectively held its breath. People weren't just giving it a thumbs up. They were treating it like some kind of digital second coming. Even now, in 2026, with Tears of the Kingdom and various imitators having had their run, the original 2017 masterpiece occupies this weird, untouchable space in the cultural zeitgeist.
It’s a 10. It’s a 97 on Metacritic. It’s "The Greatest of All Time."
But why?
If you look at the raw data, the rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild is almost suspiciously high. On OpenCritic, it sits with a "Mighty" badge, supported by a near-unanimous recommendation from hundreds of reviewers. But numbers are boring. They don't tell you about the time you spent forty minutes trying to figure out how to cross a river, only to realize you could just chop down a tree and walk across it. They don't capture the frustration of your favorite sword shattering into blue glass right when a Lynel is about to charge you.
The rating isn't just about polish. It’s about how the game made us feel.
The Critics Were Right (Mostly)
When the reviews first dropped, names like Peer Schneider from IGN and Jose Otero were basically shouting from the rooftops. They gave it a perfect 10/10. Polygon gave it a 10. Gamespot gave it a 10. It was a sweep. The consensus focused on "emergent gameplay," which is just a fancy way of saying "the game lets you be a chaotic genius."
The physics engine is the real star. Fire creates updrafts. Metal attracts lightning. Rain makes surfaces slippery. This systemic depth is why the rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild stayed so high while other open-world games from that era—looking at you, Horizon Zero Dawn—started to feel a bit "samey" by comparison. Nintendo didn't give you a checklist of towers to climb (well, they did, but they didn't feel like chores). They gave you a chemistry set.
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However, if you dig into the user reviews on sites like Metacritic, the story gets a bit messier. While the critic score is a 97, the user score usually hovers around an 8.7. Why the gap? Well, "weapon durability" is a phrase that can start a bar fight in some circles. Some players felt that having their gear break every five minutes was a design flaw, not a feature. Others hated the lack of traditional, sprawling dungeons that defined the series for decades.
Breaking Down the ESRB and PEGI Ratings
If you're a parent looking at the rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild, you’re looking at an E10+ from the ESRB or a PEGI 12. This isn't your toddler's Zelda. It’s got "Fantasy Violence" and "Mild Suggestive Themes." Basically, Link gets hit with swords, and there’s a Great Fairy who is... extremely enthusiastic about upgrading your clothes.
It's safe for kids, but it’s difficult.
The game doesn't hold your hand. You can walk straight to the final boss within ten minutes of starting and get absolutely obliterated. That difficulty spike actually influenced the high rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild among veteran gamers. It respected the player’s intelligence. It didn't put up invisible walls. If you can see it, you can go there. That was the promise, and Nintendo actually kept it.
Performance and the "Switch Tax"
Let's be real for a second. The technical rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild has always been its Achilles' heel. On the original Nintendo Switch hardware, the game frequently drops below 30 frames per second, especially in the Korok Forest. It’s a stuttery mess in some areas. In 2017, we forgave it because the art style—that gorgeous, Ghibli-inspired cel-shading—carried the weight.
In 2026, looking back, the technical flaws are more obvious. If you're playing on original hardware, you'll see jagged edges and pop-in. Yet, the game’s core "fun factor" is so high that most people just ignore the frame drops. It’s a testament to the design that a game running at 720p/900p can still be considered a visual masterpiece.
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The "Perfect" Score Controversy
Is it actually a 10/10? Honestly, maybe not if you’re a stickler for story. The plot is mostly told through flashbacks. You’re finding "Memories" scattered across the map. If you don't go looking for them, you might finish the game feeling like nothing really happened. Zelda is trapped, Ganon is a big cloud of purple hate, and you’re just some guy with a paraglider.
The rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild often ignores the fact that the English voice acting was a bit polarizing (some people found Zelda’s British accent a bit much) and the boss fights inside the Divine Beasts were remarkably similar. All the "Blights" looked sort of the same. Compared to the iconic bosses of Ocarina of Time or Twilight Princess, they were a bit of a letdown.
But then you find a dragon flying over Lake Hylia.
You weren't prompted to find it. No quest marker told you it was there. You just saw a massive, glowing spirit in the sky and realized the world was much bigger than you thought. That’s the "X-factor." That’s why the rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild stays at the top of the charts. It captures a sense of wonder that most AAA games trade for "cinematic experiences."
Comparison to Modern Standards
How does the rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild hold up against newer titles like Elden Ring?
- Elden Ring took the "go anywhere" philosophy and added brutal combat and cryptic lore.
- Tears of the Kingdom took the same map and added a literal construction simulator.
- Genshin Impact took the art style and the climbing and turned it into a massive live-service machine.
Even with these "upgrades," Breath of the Wild feels cleaner. It’s more meditative. There’s a certain loneliness to it that is actually quite beautiful. Most critics argue that while Tears of the Kingdom is the better "game," Breath of the Wild might be the better "experience." It’s tighter. It’s less cluttered.
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What to Know Before You Buy
If you're looking at the rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild and wondering if it's worth the $60 (or $40 on sale) all these years later:
- Don't rush. The game is designed to be lived in. If you try to "beat" it, you'll miss the point.
- Learn to cook. The cooking system is where the real power-ups are. Don't ignore those mushrooms.
- Accept the break. Your weapons will break. It’s okay. There are always more. Use them like ammunition, not like precious heirlooms.
- Explore the edges. Some of the best content—like Eventide Island—is tucked away in corners you have no "reason" to visit.
The rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild isn't a lie, but it is subjective. If you need a heavy story and unbreakable gear, you might actually hate it. And that’s fine. But for the millions who fell in love with it, the game represents a shift in how we think about digital spaces.
It stopped being about where the developer wanted you to go and started being about where you wanted to go. That’s a 10/10 idea, regardless of the frame rate.
Taking Action in Hyrule
To get the most out of your time with the game, stop looking at the map. Seriously. Go into the settings and turn on "Pro HUD." It removes the mini-map and all the extra clutter from the screen. Suddenly, you aren't following a dot; you're looking at the horizon. You're looking for landmarks. You're actually exploring.
Once you’ve cleared the four Divine Beasts, don't just run to Hyrule Castle. Go find the Master Sword in the Lost Woods, but don't look up a guide on how to get through the mist. Figure it out. The reward in this game isn't the item you get; it’s the fact that you were smart enough to find it. That is the true legacy of the rating for Zelda Breath of the Wild. It trusts you.