Posted 07 March 2017 - 07:16 PM
I've been enjoying the hell out of BotW since Friday (though I picked up the Wii U version rather than buy an entirely new console just yet). Thinking about an in depth post delving into everything I'm loving about it so far, but for now, let me talk about the weapon durability thing because I've really been warming up to it as I've played.
It starts with the overall design philosophy of the game, Zelda as survivalist sandbox. They clearly built around the idea, from very early on, of being able to pick up pretty much anything and use it as a weapon, certainly enemies' own weapons, but also other stuff that really falls more into the tool category like axes, hammers, torches and giant leaves. And this is certainly a neat idea, it seems like it has a lot of promise for adding diversity to the combat system. But to make that really work mechanically you need a combat loop that encourages you to constantly try new things, and where it actually matters that you can find new but not necessarily better weapons all over the place. Otherwise, the dominant strategy is simply to always pick the weapon with the biggest number and keep using it until you find a bigger one.
Enter weapon durability, a system that essentially turns weapons into consumables by limiting their lifespan. Suddenly the best strategy for a low level encounter isn't always overkill, because that's just wearing down your best weapons for no reason. Maybe you'll switch to a lower tier weapon or try to steal one of theirs. Maybe you use the environment or objects in it to your advantage, or clever application of runes, to take out a camp without wear and tear. Maybe you just sneak, climb, or fly around them because they're scrubs and nothing they have is worth your time. The point is, now you have a reason to experiment, because there's no single strategy that's always optimal.
So mechanically it makes a whole lot of sense to me why durability is there, it increases the motivation and opportunity to play in the world instead of just grind in it. But for quite awhile I still had that sense of attachment to my weapons, the main reason people don't like equipment durability because it feels like any cool item you find in the game has strings attached. There's this paralysis of wanting to use the best stuff you have, particularly for a difficult fight, but at the same time not wanting to because you don't want it to break.
A few things have been helping me to get over this though. First, there was the realization as I got farther along in the game that weapons I thought were top- or at least high-tier stuff are not. That really sweet no-dachi? Wicked looking crescent spear? Those awesome glowy ancient weapons? Nope, better stuff than all of that awaits just carried by normal mooks in some regions. Second was the realization that I'm pretty much constantly out of inventory space for weapons. I still need to find the Korok forest and get my inventory expanded for real, and so pretty much I'm carting around a lot of weapons of similar strength levels, and realized I was only worried about breaking any specific one because it looked pretty.
What really made it click for me was the realization that every weapon -- EVERY weapon, even the ones that seem like unique rewards for shrines or even main quests -- is replaceable. Stuff in chests (outside of monster camp rewards) does not respawn, it's true. Stuff outside of chests though? That respawns every Blood Moon. I just found a flaming greatsword, easily accessible a quick walk from a certain shrine, that spawns stuck in the ground. Earlier I discovered that for the unique weapon I got as a reward for completing one of the main dungeons, there is an NPC who will just make me a new one if it ever breaks. I'm totally confident now that there really is no such thing as a unique weapon in the game, every item can be obtained as much as you want for little or no cost, if you just know where to look for it.
Coming to the understanding that good weapons in BotW are a renewable resource is really freeing. I wasn't frustrated with this in the game before, but I'd been subconsciously applying a hoarder mentality to them because I was worried about making optimal use of a limited resource. They're not limited, there are more weapons in the game than I know what to do with. I'm convinced you can't sell them because it would make it far, far too easy to farm money (more than it already is with mining and cooking).
I still have some quibbles of course. I still wish I had better insight into the durability of any given weapon beyond new/used/damaged, to more effectively plan how long I have it around to use. Though having to adjust on the fly during a fight can actually be a lot of fun, even if you wouldn't choose it. Inventory space starts to feel pretty limited early on, particularly when you want to carry around circumstantial tools. Of course counting by the numbers I've heard, it should be possible to expand each inventory by a whopping 24 slots, so I really just need to make a pilgramige to the forest to deal with that. As an aside, I kind of love how bombs of all things are the one classic Zelda resource you can use with abandon, it really turns the formula on its head.
Even now I feel like I've barely scratched the surface of this game. Though that may not be entirely true, I've definitely made some significant progress in my cartography and shrine hunting. But even the areas I've explored feel like they still hold secrets, I still discover new things when I revisit the plateau even now. I think a new sense of abandon with the weapons I've been hoarding will help make my continued exploration even more enjoyable.
"Zelda Souls: Hyrim"
To lie is to change the truth.
..Ignorance is to be unaware of the truth.
....Incompetence is to be unable to grasp the truth.
......And escape is to run away from the truth.
It is useless to run, since the truth is right next to you.
-Wervyn
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), and fairly comfortable. The docking/removal is as smooth as can be. There are some slight hardware issues I have been hearing about - putting on the Joycon grip wrong makes it almost impossible to take off, and it's a bit tough to detach the Joycons from the screen. The Pro Controller is comfortable as hell and how I play Zeruda.
