I think BotW is like the calculus of zelda games: it's something whose greatness can't really be understood in a singular game. Much of why BotW is amazing is how expertly it subverts expectations. Much of the surprise in BotW came from seeing how they DIDN'T do conventional Zelda stuff. it's a game that expects you to understand how games like OoT worked, because it's super interesting to see how BotW works in a completely different way but accomplishes much of the same goals.
BotW is my favorite zelda game, hands down, but I don't think I could have enjoyed it nearly as much had I not been blown away by OoT years prior. I'll give a weird comparison, but back when OoT was released, online it was a major discussion point at the time how it was the first Zelda game without any semblance of the Zelda theme (even Zelda II's overworld theme begins the same way as the original Zelda theme). Lots of people mentioned how they went the entire game expecting it to show up, and were disappointed when it didn't, because that song had become an ingrained tradition in Zelda at that point. The expectation for something resembling it, and lack of said expectations being met, actually was kind of disappointing in OoT. I remember it being such a talking point, that it actually was mentioned in previews for MM that the Zelda theme would be returning.
By contrast, BotW has extremely sparse music. Much of its soundtrack is environmental and subtle. I played BotW for like 60 hours (I found all the memory moments organically, without asking for help, just by lining up the monuments in the photos with the map, which is an *amazing* way to play), and was right smack in the middle of the game. I was riding a horse at night, when out of the blue, the Zelda theme started playing. It's this one:
It blew me away. One of my favorite gaming moments of all time. The precise set of conditions for the theme to play are random enough (ride a horse at midnight) that you can go for so long without finding it. But it fucked with my expectations. Prior to finding it, I thought BotW was just going to be like OoT, not have the theme, since BotW had already shucked off so much of the standard Zelda formula. That subversion of expectations, painted by games prior, made what is otherwise a pretty mellow and short remix of the Zelda theme into something much more significant.
