Nintendo made the official Explorer’s Guide for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild free for everyone. This unexpected freebie arrives shortly after the acclaimed game’s sixth anniversary and mere weeks ahead of the highly anticipated release of Tears of the Kingdom that Nintendo insists will be worth its higher price tag.

The Breath of the Wild Explorer’s Edition launched alongside the vanilla version of the renowned action adventure in March 2017. This limited-edition release included an Explorer’s Guide booklet, as well as a physical map of Hyrule. It retailed at $60, same as the included base game, effectively offering the map and guide book free of charge. A review of the product’s Amazon listing history reveals The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Explorer’s Edition went out of stock almost immediately, returning only for a brief period in 2019.

Nevertheless, the official guide book for the game isn’t in danger of being lost to history, with Nintendo just publishing the Breath of the Wild Explorer’s Guide on zelda.com. The digital version of the 44-page booklet is available as a PDF file, which—combined with the high-resolution nature of its contents—makes it perfectly suited to printing for anyone who still prefers their guides in a physical format. For clarity, the Explorer’s Guide is an abridged, newbie-friendly version of the game’s Complete Official Guide, which is still available as a hardcover from select retailers at around $30, depending on the seller. The expanded edition of that guide contains detailed Breath of the Wild progression stats and many other interesting tidbits about the game.

The Explorer’s Guide still offers plenty of information, including advice on how to kill Guardians in Breath of the Wild, tips and tricks for hunting and foraging, and an in-depth explanation of “cool moves” such as backflips, among other things. It also contains a helpful and accessible introduction to The Legend of Zelda franchise, including an overview of its main actors and a concise explanation of how the series’ overarching narrative has evolved over the years.

While it’s plausible that Tears of the Kingdom will have an official guide book as well, Nintendo has yet to reveal anything of the sort. The recently announced Tears of the Kingdom Collector’s Edition does come with a physical book, but one dedicated to artwork instead of in-game secrets and strategic advice.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is available now on Switch and Wii U.

Source: Zelda.com