Simon Wilkinson

I had no idea what to expect before diving in. One of the leading characters is rather in your face from the start and my significant other really wasn’t sure about her. I was somewhat taken aback too, but I thought the character would grow on her and I was right. Now we have to stop and ourselves from watching more than 2 episodes at a time!

Comparisons with Breath of the Wild are unavoidable I think, so I will do just that. The combat is more satisfying This is more than just the great sword slash sound, :-), you can dodge as well as parry (in more than one way) and you have many more attacks to call upon. One of my favourites is to catch a giant boulder thrown at you and then to throw it back! The story telling is more elaborate. This isn't a big thing for me but is OK. It will appeal if you like ancient mythology. The sense of progress is less clear than it was with BOTW, which had 4 clear stages (that you actually didn't have to complete), before the final stages. The dungeons can be really difficult and there are plenty of other challenges too. I think you need to have a fair amount on interest in puzzle-solving for this game, although I don't think you need to do them all. Some can become more doable as you get additional skills. Visually, BOTW did have a great look, kind of like a 3D cartoon, but IFR is also great looking too, poss. with more detail, e.g. when you climb things and see them up close. Character customisation I don't tend to look for but playing as a woman is interesting (and gives a Tomb Raider feel). Other characters. BOTW did have plenty of other characters to interact with but even so, could feel bleak at times; with this game there is more ongoing dialogue which helps through long periods of exploring, battling and puzzle-solving. I can see myself playing for many more hours...