The 15 Most Awesome References in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

From the Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Image from Nintendo Switch version taken by C. Wassenaar and via Nintendo.

13. Visiting Hyrule Castle

Heading into Hyrule Castle is a staple of Zelda; you’ve been able to visit it in games like A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, Twilight Princess, and more. Visually speaking, though, the ruins of Hyrule Castle that we see in Breath of the Wild have a couple different references.

In terms of size, and particularly with the multiple towers and wings, Twilight Princess’ version serves as the most obvious visual reference, down to the double-doored gates that you can push open to enter. However, the Ganon-ruined aspect of the castle of Breath seems more like a nod to the castle of Ocarina. Adult Link, in that game, must ascend to the top to face off with Ganondorf after he’s taken the whole thing over.

Indeed, even the stealth aspects of Hyrule Castle in Breath seem more like a nod to Ocarina, since the younger form of Link had to sneak past guards in order to meet with Princess Zelda. Sounds familiar too, doesn’t it? Just switch out “guards” for “Guardians,” and you effectively have Breath’s mission.

However, this is the first time you can visit Hyrule Castle as a dungeon before you’ve completed the rest of the game. In Ocarina, you’ll need to rescue all six Sages, who will then create a bridge for you to cross the moat of lava; in Twilight, you must have the Fused Shadows as well as the Mirror of Twilight before you can proceed past the barrier.