Review: Yuga and Ravio in Hyrule Warriors

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The last confirmed DLC pack for both Hyrule Warriors and Hyrule Warriors: Legends, the A Link Between Worlds pack, was released on Halloween. I have been personally looking forward to Ravio and Yuga’s addition to the series, because this hack-and-slash spinoff is one I’ve come to love. This review covers Ravio and Yuga’s gameplay in the Wii U version of Hyrule Warriors, and not the extra content that Hyrule Warriors: Legends receives.

I wrote an article back in April regarding my predictions for this series’ DLC characters. This included Marin, Linebeck, Ravio, and Yuga, so I’m proud to say my prediction was very close. Though the Dynasty Warriors series is not one I am particularly interested in, Hyrule Warriors is a game I’ve come to wholeheartedly enjoy, being roughly 95% done with fully completing it.

I am currently trying to conquer the 3rd (and 4th, if there is one) Giant Battle in Cucco’s Fury from the Challenge Mode. Aside from that, I’ve managed to earn all heart containers, badges, skulltulas, and weapons. All games on the Adventure Mode maps, including DLC, are completed with A’s on each game; I’ve completed all Challenge Mode games with an A rank, including Ganon’s Fury, and I’ve finished Legend Mode on all difficulties. It’s been an extremely lengthy but rewarding process that I’m excited to say is coming to an end. Keep an eye out for my “100% completed Hyrule Warriors” article in the near future. With that, I leveled up Ravio and Yuga thanks to the rupee glitch and Training Dojo, as I have done with all of my characters aside from Zant, before I tested their moves out.

Hyrule Warriors Yuga

Yuga with his “Frame of Sealing” weapon in the Faron Woods map of Hyrule Warriors.

Yuga is the main antagonist in A Link Between Worlds, an evil sorcerer who uses his powerful magic to transfer people into paintings, as seen in the game. In Hyrule Warriors, his combos include both picture frames and lightning to knock around enemies and fight his way through crowds. I appreciate the incorporation of Ganon’s trident in both his fourth combo and his special attack because, if you played A Link Between Worlds, you know that Yuga’s ultimate goal was to resurrect beast Ganon and take control of both Hyrule and Lorule.

I honestly expected his official weapon to be his rainbow, paintbrush-like wand, but to my surprise, it is the picture frame. I suppose it makes sense not to alter the style of the signature weapon he is ultimately using and deem the frame as the weapon, but it was a surprise to me regardless. I was also looking forward to seeing Yuga’s fusion with Ganon included in his combos, possibly in his last combo or at the end of his focus spirit. Despite this, his mystical combos and maniacal laughter definitely make gameplay enjoyable. Out of all characters with a lightning element weapon, Yuga will definitely be my go-to guy now. That character was previously Ganondorf with his trident weapon.

Hyrule Warriors Ravio

Ravio with his “White Bunny Hammer” weapon in the Faron Woods map of Hyrule Warriors.

Ravio, though a little obnoxious in his original game, is a charming character in the Hyrule Warriors realm, and his “rental hammer” weapon possesses the dark element. His moves, as I suspected they would back in February, incorporate many of his weapons he lends Link in A Link Between Worlds. These include the hammer, ice rod, tornado rod, bow and arrow, and bombs.

I was expecting him to use each of his items as combos but, to my surprise, he incorporates many items into all of his combos, aside from his second one where he rolls a giant bomb around. His fourth combo is my favorite, as it is so entertainingly intricate. Ravio pulls out his hammer and hits a bomb with it, tossing it forward as it explodes, then pulls out the tornado rod to pull enemies into the air, and finally uses the ice rod to freeze enemies before he hits them. In my opinion, that is probably the most creative combo in the game. I’m unfortunately disappointed that Sheerow, his bird buddy from A Link Between Worlds, was not included somehow. On a separate note, if you look at Ravio in the Gallery (because I’m not sure where he does this in gameplay), he dabs. My brother, boyfriend and I got a kick out of that.

Yuga displaying all of the sages trapped in paintings during his closing cutscene.

Yuga displaying all of the sages, who are trapped in paintings, during his closing cutscene.

I was worried that Yuga’s moves would not be very colorful, despite being a very bright and vibrant character, but I was not disappointed. Both his ending cutscene and combos are extremely colorful and look especially cool playing in a map with a darker color scheme, like the Palace of Twilight or Hyrule Field post-Ganon’s revival. I honestly don’t have any complaints regarding his character in this game. However, my biggest disappointment is how you don’t get to see Ravio’s face under his bunny hood. With A Link Between Worlds being out for roughly three years now, you’d think that anything spoiler-related would not be avoided and that fans would look forward to seeing the Hyrule Warriors rendition of his real character. I know members of the community are also disappointed with this, because you’d think they would at least reveal his face in the cutscenes. I’m not sure if you fight him in the A Link Between Worlds Adventure Mode on the 3DS, but if his face is revealed in his entrance cutscene, I would be surprised. Aside from that, both of these characters are entertaining to play.

Hyrule Warriors Ravio

Ravio, exhibiting his quirky and witty personality, in his closing cutscene.

Ravio and Yuga are both new characters to the Zelda series and I think that’s partially why the Hyrule Warriors community is hesitant to having them join the gang. I had personally hoped that the series would create DLC for Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons, because who wouldn’t want to play as Nayru and Din? (Sorry again, Farore!) I wish they created DLC maps for more of the 8-bit, handheld games, because Marin’s rendition in Hyrule Warriors was a dream come true for Link’s Awakening fans. I admit that I’m biased as the Oracle games were the first I beat, but seeing them come to life in such a new, refreshing series is too cool.

Hopefully this will not be the end of Hyrule Warriors DLC. I absolutely love seeing all of these Zelda characters in one game, through both the story mode and extra game modes. Perhaps fans will receive a second Hyrule Warriors game for the Nintendo Switch, or a port including new playable characters. Either way, I welcome a new game to the series with open arms.

Link in Hyrule Warriors

I’m hoping to see this awesome Link again in a Nintendo Switch version of Hyrule Warriors.

You can get Ravio, Yuga, the A Link Between Worlds Adventure Mode map, and fifteen new My Fairy costumes for $6.99 on the 3DS e-shop. On the Wii U version, you can download Ravio and Yuga (without the extras) for $4.99. You can find more details on the official Hyrule Warriors DLC page.

What are your thoughts on Ravio and Yuga in Hyrule Warriors and Hyrule Warriors: Legends? What playable characters were you wanting to see in the series, but did not receive? Let us know in the comments below!

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About Author

Hannah is a 20-year-old college student, avid Nintendo fan, and video game enthusiast. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Education at the University of North Florida. She fell in love with the Legend of Zelda series when her aunt introduced both her and her brother to the Nintendo 64 and Ocarina of Time. She has been hooked on the series since.