Well, actually you should be able to leave the tutorial area, if you make some stamina food (not even that much needed, repleneshing stamina once should be enough). Same is true for all 'stamina limited' areas. So yes, you can get everywhere from the beginning.

Once you have the ice ability you can also climb down the waterfall, heck you'll probably even survive jumping down it. Yep, just checked, simply jump down in the water below, default stamina is plenty to swim to shore.

Ofcourse without any of the ailities nor the flyer the game becomes a lot more challenging. You will need the abilities and the flyer to complete the divine beasts though. I'm not sure what happens when you go to Ganon without doing the divine beasts first, I think you just get to fight all his versions in sequence, which would get you stuck on 2 of them where magnesis and bombs are required to get past their phase 2. You can always climb back up to the plateau with enough stamina food ofcourse, plus there are plenty shrines that don't need the abilities to complete, which yiu can use to expand your stamina. Nice challenge, jump off the plateau, find a way back. (Actually nvm you can probably teleport back to the resurection shrine)

I was going to say teleport but you beat me to it! 

I'm sure speed runners or challenge seekers will set whatever goal pops into their pretty little heads but let's be real. Most of us died often, even with every advantage possible. Just because we can run to the end doesn't mean we want to!

Nah. I beat it. It had one of my favorite endings ever, at the time. Not sure how you came to conclusion. I hummed that "Had a dream that I could fly" song for years after that.

But, sadly, I didn't really like the game. It was supposed to be a "Final Fantasy killer" but the translation was so bad. I'm pretty sure I still have the memory card with the data. I just don't have a console to play it on....

What are you guys talking about?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvnKghPudyU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baJBYEKf60Y

I already packed my Wii U back up or I'd test it myself, but someone's talking nonsense here.

Damn, way to crush someone's innocent childhood :p
So if I actually make that jump with a new game it just teleports me back up, weak.

Yes, you gotta finish the Plateu first, it works like a tutorial in disguise,  there is a fog that kills you if you try go down, it dissapears when you get the paraglide. But the paraglide is something that you can get in 20mints if you know what you are doing.

I played a couple more hours of Horizon, it doesn't change much. The quest design is quite inflexible. One side quest I had to clear out a sawtooth and 2 watchers before people would talk to me. I turn the sawtooth, he takes out the watchers, battle over you would think. The people just stand there staring at me like I'm stupid or something, can't interact. The sawtooth has to die first before the world can go on.

Climbing remains a mixed bag. It does allow you into some of the dark areas yet at the risk of glitches

At least I'm not stuck, just jumping throug the mountain top.

I did get stuck on a designated climbing path, no more response to any controller input

Glued to the log for no apparent reason, fast travel to get going again.

And it's still blocking my way.

I was at the top arrow, needed to go to the target. Screw the suggested route, I see a perfectly suited path right in front of me, the green one. Can't enter area prevents the way, so I follow the red path along the invisible border over the mountain ridge and get completely stuck on the descent, fast travel again. It turns out I had to go through a gate down there (just beyond where I got stuck) because the game has a scripted event and cutscene lined up a bit ahead on the road. It's bad game design if you ask me. Imo exploration comes before the main story, not do the main story first (to unlock the map) then explore. Plus it sucks at funneling you in the right direction.

Yet on the positive side, it does let you climb the highest peaks :)


Worth the temporary agravation

Now that's an exciting preview of what's up ahead, can't wait to climb that mesa in the distance.

Nope, where is the fun in beating the game (or any game) in 20 minutes anyway. As a challenge in a later playthrough maybe, but not at first. At firs the fun is looking what is behind the next hill.

OK, so this youtuber speaks of some additional restriction in early game. I'll try out on another save.