Through interviews and videos I’ve seen, they spent a lot of time and effort to not have mechanics like a HUD arrow that guided you to the next objective, but rather had those in the landscape of the world simplifying the design, and creating a sense of curiosity. They also took care to put interesting side quests and hidden items along the way so that players felt like they discovered it on their own.
The boss and shrines being able to be completed out of order was a big departure from resent Zelda games proceeding it which were very linear, and they went back to the original Zelda for inspiration. This was controversial at the time, and not something new outside the series, but really forced the design of the open world to be inviting in some areas and terrifying in others.
To be fair. The game was originally designed only for the WiiU and the map would have been open on the handheld screen (map or options or inventory, etc)
That plan changed when the switch was rushed out due to lackluster sales for the WiiU console.
Through interviews and videos I’ve seen, they spent a lot of time and effort to not have mechanics like a HUD arrow that guided you to the next objective, but rather had those in the landscape of the world simplifying the design, and creating a sense of curiosity. They also took care to put interesting side quests and hidden items along the way so that players felt like they discovered it on their own.
The boss and shrines being able to be completed out of order was a big departure from resent Zelda games proceeding it which were very linear, and they went back to the original Zelda for inspiration. This was controversial at the time, and not something new outside the series, but really forced the design of the open world to be inviting in some areas and terrifying in others.
To be fair. The game was originally designed only for the WiiU and the map would have been open on the handheld screen (map or options or inventory, etc)
That plan changed when the switch was rushed out due to lackluster sales for the WiiU console.