Finishing a Breath of the Wild journal made me appreciate the game even more
Over the past several months, I've been working on something a little unusual. I replayed Breath of the Wild, but instead of just playing through it, I wrote the entire journey as if Link were documenting his own adventure.
What started as a way to stay connected to the playthrough between busy weeks of work and family life gradually became something much more.
Writing from Link's perspective forced me to slow down. Instead of methodically rushing toward objectives like a task list I'm optimizing for efficiency, I paid attention to the landscape, the ruins, the weather, and the quiet moments between major story beats. I found myself thinking less about "completing a game" and more about what Link would do and how he would experience his travels across Hyrule.
When I finally finished the diary, I realized I'd experienced the game differently. It felt less like I had checked another title off my backlog and more like I had documented a journey that I was fully immersed in.
It also made me appreciate just how much environmental storytelling was packed into Hyrule. There were places I'd walked through before without much thought that suddenly became memorable because I had to find the words to describe them.
I'm curious if anyone else has ever done something similar—not necessarily writing a diary, but finding a way to engage with this game that completely changed how you experienced it.
***Only adding the journal link given the interest. I’m not the best writer but I love how it helps me experience games: https://tallymangaming.com/zelda-botw/