Playing it now, it is the first time I have felt like I was playing a proper Zelda game since Ocarina of Time. Everything about it is perfect for a Zelda game in 2017. The game is gigantic, by the way. FAR bigger than I thought it was going to be, with far more stuff in it.
The Shrines are very Zelda-like, and unlike the last bunch of games, you won't get tired/bored of them. The gameplay is much more solid, and the most creative it has ever been.
Zelda has never been this finely paced, ever. It is also perhaps the most difficult Zelda game since the first one. I have already died more times than I did in every core franchise game on my last replay through (except Zelda 1, which I died a whole bunch of times on). Luckily, it is far less painful in this game when you die, than it is in previous games.
Ocarina's reign as the undisputed top Zelda game is definitely over. This one certainly exceeds it from what I have played so far.
I describe myself as a little dose of toxic masculinity.
