‘Breath Of The Wild’ DLC Release Date: ‘The Master Trials’ Launches This Summer, Adds Insane Stuff

Breath of the Wild is one of the greatest games ever made, and this summer, it’s going to offer us even more. Nintendo has now officially unveiled the first of two DLC packs for the game. It’s called Breath of the Wild: The Master Trials, and its two biggest new features involve (optionally) making the game even harder for veteran players. But even if you aren’t a diehard Zelda completionist, the new DLC will add a ton of options to increase your enjoyment of the game.

Breath of the Wild: The Master Trials: Hard Mode, Trial of the Sword and So Much More

Floating platforms in 'Breath of the Wild: The Master Trials'
Floating platforms in 'Breath of the Wild: The Master Trials' Nintendo of America

The Master Trials, which will debut this summer, includes both a new Hard Mode and a feature called Trials of the Sword. Unlike Zelda games past, Hard Mode doesn’t sound like it will make it harder to gain health, nor will it simply increase the amount of damage enemies can do directly. Instead, it will increase the average level of enemies by one stage (e.g., Bokoblins that would have been red will be blue instead). And it will include new, higher stages of enemies that are even more difficult. Enemies will also regain health in battle and spot Link more easily. There’s carrots too, not just sticks: Hard Mode will feature enemies on flying, balloon-supoorted platforms that feature rare treasure—but also make it more dangerous to glide around with impunity.

The Trial of the Sword is a new challenge that will sound more familiar to longtime Zelda fans: It’s a gauntlet run, with around 45 rooms filled with enemies to defeat. Link starts the challenge with nothing—no weapons and no armor—but if he can clear the whole challenge, the Master Sword will become even more powerful. It will be a challenge for truly skilled players, but a very exciting and thrilling one.

The first Breath of the Wild DLC will also include several other features, including Hero’s Path Mode, a new feature that tracks where Link has been throughout his adventure—a feature that even works retroactively, so no worries if you’ve already sunk two hundred hours into the game. Other new items, like the Travel Medallion (which creates a temporary fast travel point) and the Korok Mask (which helps find Korok Seeds) will make exploring the world of Breath of the Wild more manageable. The game also features other new equipment inspired by the Zelda games of yore, from Majora’s Mask to Tingle.

Just one of the many amazing new outfits in 'Breath of the Wild: The Master Trials'
Just one of the many amazing new outfits in 'Breath of the Wild: The Master Trials' Nintendo of America

Personally, I’m most excited for the new Tingle outfit. Okay, not really—Hard Mode is very enticing. But all around, Breath of the Wild: The Master Trials sounds like a thrilling addition to an already incredible game. It’s coming out this summer, for an as-yet-undisclosed price. The DLC will be available for both Nintendo Switch and Wii U.

The second DLC, which is due out later this year, will add a whole new dungeon to the game. Think of The Master Trials as a combination of a Hard Mode DLC and a minor content DLC; the other one will be the big one. But even this one sounds pretty big.

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