

While the earlier Super Mario games are linear in structure, Super Mario 64 features sandbox levels, as does Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario Odyssey. Super Mario has experimented with open-ended sandbox video game worlds before. And now it's time for Nintendo to give Super Mario the Breath of the Wild treatment and bring the franchise to an open world.

The gamble paid off, as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild became one of the highest-rated and most influential video games ever made.

Abandoning the more linear structure of previous Zelda games, Breath of the Wild is a massive open world experience, giving players unprecedented freedom for the franchise, while still feeling decidedly like a Zelda game. With The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Nintendo took one of its oldest franchises in a bold new direction.
