It is not a Zelda game at all gameplay-wise, more a simplified mixture of Skyrim and Dark Souls with Zelda characters in a colorful Zelda-Themed world with physics based riddles and lots of freedom.
I hate Dark Souls but after dying over 100 times in BOTW already, maybe I should give it another try. But Zelda is much easier. The combat offers a lot advanced features but mashing the attack button is mostly enough, even in the final area of the game.
Update: 10 hours later, I still did not start the story in the first Village but the first part was wrong. But the Zelda-type gameplay is hidden and spread all over the world.