It’s hard to overstate how much of an influential gameThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wildis. Nintendo’s open world take on the franchise introduced so many fresh ideas with its gameplay and world design that, four years later,games continue to emulateBreath of the Wildwhile trying to bring their own unique twists. Such is the case withElements, an upcoming game from Apogee Entertainment and developer WreckIt Games.
Described as a “vibrant, go-anywhere adventure,”Elementsis easy to compare toBreath of the Wildat first glance. The gameplay trailer released this week covers a lot of similar ground as it shows sibling protagonists Nyah and Beckett exploring bright, verdant forests that wouldn’t look out of place inBreath of the Wild’s Hyrule. This also includes the now-familiar climbing and gliding traversal mechanics seen in otherBreath of the Wild-inspired titles likeGenshin ImpactandImmortals Fenyx Rising.
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ButElementsmight stand apart from the competition thanks to a handful offeatures not seen inBreath of the Wild. For starters, unlike most open world games,Elementswill feature co-op, allowing players to explore vast forests, snow-covered mountains, underwater domains, and more with friends. The game’s Steam page specifically states that the co-op is local split-screen, however, so it’s possible that players won’t be able to do so online.
Apogee and WreckIt Games also state that players will have more to look forward to. On top of challenging puzzles scattered throughout the fantasy world of Elemythia, there will be plenty of resources to gather to craft gear and earn upgrades, as well as a variety of monsters that can be fought through multiple means, including swordplay and magic-wielding. Additionally,Elementswill allow players to construct their own custom homesteads, akin to games likeValheim, where they can store gear, farm, and take a break from their adventure. Homesteads will also serve as fast-travel points for getting around Elemythia more easily.
Elementslooks like it could find its own niche in the crowded open world market. That being said, theBreath of the Wildinfluence is still impossible to ignore. This is driven home even further by the fact that Nyah will bevoiced by Patricia Summersett, the voice actress for Princess Zelda inBreath of the Wild, who was featured in another video released recently to hype the game.
While the marketing forElementshas already begun, it’s going to be quite a while more before it debuts. Right now the game is slated to release in the fourth quarter of 2022, and that’s assuming no delays occur. It will likely be facing some stiff competition when it launches too, as the highly-anticipatedsequel toBreath of the Wildis also coming out next year. It’ll be interesting to see howElementsfares against the followup to the game it takes inspiration from.
Elementsis slated to launch in Q4 2022 for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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