LogFAQs > #972492178

wpot posted...

I don't think anyone can graduate from RPG school until they learn to do that. :) Don't break your cool fire sword on that boring common enemy - save it until you've had it for 20 hours and have lost all interest in it!

You know, you can't buy elixirs, so I'd better save this one. Sure, it's the final boss and I'm going to die if I don't use it, but what if I use it and then there's another phase and I really need it then? Or even worse, a post-game superboss? I'd better just take the wipe and up my game for the next attempt so I'll still have it available, just in case.

*Game ends, elixir sits unused in my inventory forever*

wpot posted...

Agreed - it could be good, but it depends how much it can impact and how far you can go with it. Does it largely solve the durability problem or does it just add an extra step along the way to having weapons break regularly? :) I'll reserve judgment.

The gameplay showcase doesn't indicate whether weapons can be un-fused after being fused, nor if you can extend one's durability indefinitely by just repeatedly adding a rock to it, but I'm kind of okay either way. If you can't un-fuse on command and instead just have to wear out or discard fused weapons you don't want anymore, that gives an incentive to keep a spare copy of whatever weapon you're using around for the sake of being able to fuse it with anything cool you come across. Rather than being an annoying maintenance chore, that plays well into the improvised weaponry concept that made the durability mechanic relatively enjoyable in BotW's early game, especially where the buff from the fusion can offset any losses from using a suboptimal weapon so you don't lose as much by not stockpiling the best thing available. If, instead, you can stave off breakage forever by re-fusing with a new everyday item that's readily available, that is still a tedious maintenance task, but "find rock" is substantially less tedious than "kill 47 Savage Lynels" and offers potential for more interesting shenanigans if you find something more fun than a rock.

Of course, saying this, I'm not sure Zelda is the right place for such a mechanic. Historically, it's been a series that very much focuses on finding a singular legendary sword and using that to kill the BBEG. BotW already messed with that core theme in a way that a lot of people didn't enjoy (the Master Sword didn't break, but the recharge mechanic was a pretty contrived way of shoehorning it into the durability system), and while there's certainly plenty of precedent for having other weapons be better (Biggoron's Sword being the one most series fans will think of first), further deviating from the theme by saying "ignore that legendary sword and instead make your own sword-chucks!" is going to rub some people the wrong way. I expect it'll probably be fun and well worth building a game around, but it really doesn't do anything to scratch the Zelda itch.