When amiibo first appeared in 2014, who could have predicted the way that the toys-to-life market boomed, to a point that scalpers held us all to ransom with their horribly selfish ways? Fast forward to 2020 and amiibo rarely gets any mention as the once continuous wave of new models has all but dried up, and so too has demand. As a collector, I want more, but as a responsible adult, I need to pay bills. Having been an avid collector since I first heard about these NFC wonders, I have managed to amass every single one of them. All 193 of them. That includes the coveted gold ones and even the rather delicious cereal box one. Who doesn't want to see their favourite characters immortalised in PVC in a pocket-sized form small enough to take to a friend's house? For the Smash Bros. series especially, it's like space-age Top Trumps in glorious full 3D!

When Nintendo teased The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, I was captivated. The art style and the overall design both hit me square in the feels and gave me a thirst for merch. The initial reveal of the Guardian at E3 in 2014, in particular, was an opportunity to gawp at the octopus-like dexterity of Link's latest foes. The way it moved, the way it holds itself, and the way it loomed over Hyrule's Hero of Time gave it a fully-menacing stature and quickly built an ominous air of fear. As this creature slinks over the fields of lavish grass towards you, it becomes apparent that this is bio-mechanical, and it is as dangerous as it comes! For Nintendo to promise to craft this stunningly designed baddie in amiibo form was to capture metaphorical lightning in a jar, and in 2017 they ultimately released the beast.

Starting with the packaging, this thing is colossal. The big box it comes in serves to frame it, like the piece of art that it is, in a scene of familiarity to those who have indulged in Breath of the Wild. The cardboard flooring of the box is printed to look like a lush grassy area of land with stone cobble paths and bricks scattered, just like in the game, and it serves to create a micro-vignette when viewing from above. The stance the Guardian has been given has been carefully selected to make it appear as gracefully undulating as possible, effortlessly giving the static figurine a sense of movement even before you have torn it out of the box. With its packaging planted firmly in the bin, you can appreciate the weighty nature of this mechanical animal and just how much detail has gone into it. Building upon the subtly Zelda-themed golden NFC-encapsulating base, there is smashed rubble propping up this figure at jaunty angles, lending to the appearance as if the Guardian is so heavy, it has decimated the base on which it sits, or that it is ominously crawling across that debris to get to you.

Once you have this behemoth in your hand you'll realise that it is fully posable, and the possibilities are endless. Embedded within the six foam rubber legs are bendable metal rods that can be moulded and twisted to your every whim. You can flex and shape them any way you like, and strike an infinite number of poses, including but not limited to: the six-armed handstand, six-pointed starfish, and heck, if you really want, you can even mould them in such a way that you could get it to hold your pen on your desk!

If I had to really pick at its overall form, and consider how it could be done any better, then I think I would have perhaps gone for a pearlescent paint approach for its eye and the glowing areas on its body. The head would also be on a pivot too, in my vision of the perfect amiibo, purely to recreate the automaton-style movement of this character. The poseability and versatility of this amiibo also lends itself well to potentially using it for fan-made Zelda movies, as you could easily craft a stunning stop motion sequence with this one; you couldn't say that about any other amiibo figure.

• NSW/Wii U Breath of the Wild
• NSW Links Awakening
• NSW Super Kirby Clash
• NSW Yoshi's Crafted World
• NSW Super Smash Bros Ultimate
• NSW Diablo 3: Eternal Collection
• NSW Super Mario Party
• NSW/Wii U/3DS Captain Toad
• NSW/Wii U/3DS Hyrule Warriors
• NSW Kirby Star Allies
• Wii U Bayonetta 2
• 3DS New Style Boutique 2: Fashion Forward
• 3DS New Style Boutique 3: Styling Star
• NSW Skyrim
• NSW Super Mario Odyssey
• NSW/3DS Fire Emblem Warriors
• NSW/Wii U Pokken Tournament
• 3DS Miitopia
• 3DS Hey Pikmin
• 3DS Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia
• 3DS Team Kirby Clash Deluxe
• 3DS Mario Sports Superstars
• Wii U/3DS Yoshi's Wooley World
• 3DS Animal Crossing New Leaf
• 3DS Teddy Together
• Wii U Mario & Sonic Rio 2016
• 3DS Kirby: Planet Robobot
• Wii U/3DS: Mini Mario & Friends: Amiibo Challenge
• Wii U/3DS Word Puzzles by POWGI
• 3DS Chibi-Robo Zip Lash
• Amiibo Touch & Play Amiibo Classics Highlights
• Wii U Mario Party 10
• 3DS WarioWare Gold

NFC functionality is always a bone of contention with these things, and it's invariably quite rare that an amiibo has such a range of games available to have it used within. However, that functionality is not critical in any way. When the Guardian came out in 2017 alongside BotW, the main purpose was to bolster you with Ancient materials and Gems, and to unlock Guardian Weapons up to ++, Guardian Shields up to ++, Ancient Cores, Ancient Arrows and Rusty Weapons. Truth be told, my favourite one for BotW was none other than the Majora's Mask Link amiibo, due to the fact that it randomly dropped Fierce Deity Apparel which was totally incredible to obtain.

Overall this amiibo is my favourite in terms of creativity and high-quality faithfulness to the reference character. It's not often you get such a stylish piece of merchandise on your desk for such a great RRP. I love the look and feel of this one above all the others, and it always holds pride of place amidst my collection. It is simply one of the most striking, bold, and dynamic official figurines that Nintendo has produced in recent times without looking to other companies to partner with. Those collaborative efforts always looked slightly off, too rigid and lacking in vibrance or solid artistic look.