Comments on: Weapon Durability & BotW

By: spoilsoflore

spoilsoflore — Wed, 06 Sep 2017 01:36:55 +0000

In reply to Tabitha.

I’ve recently had it explained to me as being more like a fighting game than an “impossible” game; and, I love fighters, so that seemed more do-able to me. And a “Guilty Gear” streamer I follow claimed his experience w/ “Monster Hunter” felt more relevant than his experience with “Demon Souls,” since both games focus on the complexities of fighting monumental creatures. Not to mention, DS III is possibly a rhythm game ;P I think there’s a gatekeeping “git gud” facet of the Souls community that’s, sadly, just made a lot of us wary and hesitant to give the game a chance.

By: Tabitha

Tabitha — Tue, 05 Sep 2017 20:26:03 +0000

In reply to spoilsoflore.

Thank you for reading and for the comment! And I agree with your point of what weapon durability should do for a game.

If I wasn’t so terrified, I’d play a Dark Souls game someday…

By: spoilsoflore

spoilsoflore — Tue, 05 Sep 2017 06:26:10 +0000

I think the most functional use of weapon durability is to encourage the player to continue upgrading their weapon in the hopes of introducing scale or variety to gameplay. The best weapon upgrades (in conjunction w/ the durability mechanic) drive the player to pursue bigger and better bang sticks to either beat bigger and better enemies or introduce new but comparable mechanics that prevent monotony. The Dark Souls series is a great example, allowing players to conquer bosses in a variety of ways (I won’t quote the magic meme, but… the magic meme); whereas Shadow Warrior 2 got dinged for introducing a multitude of upgrades that changed little in weapon aesthetics and had little impact on core gameplay. Even FFXV’s fishing line durability accompanied scaling in difficulty and drove players to explore new locations. Essentially, weapon durability should EXPAND gameplay rather than merely be a tedious hindrance to quest objectives.

By: Athena | AmbiGaming

Athena | AmbiGaming — Fri, 23 Jun 2017 00:09:46 +0000

I think as long as it doesn’t feel cheap, then it’s fine (unless, like iplayedthegame mentioned, it’s a very powerful, one-use item). I’m thinking of Dragon Age: Origins (because of course I am), and during the final fight, you can use balustrades, but they only work for a short time before they break from overuse. A high enough dexterity stat means you can fix them a few times, but after a while they’re just too broken. Annoying, but fair.

I think it’s also interesting to keep gamers planning their next move, in case something happens. After all, real life swords would sometimes bend in battle, and then what? It seems like BotW does it right (I haven’t played it yet), especially if there isn’t a dearth of things to defend yourself with!

By: Tabitha

Tabitha — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 20:17:55 +0000

In reply to Pop Culture Literary. I can see how weapon durability could add depth to a game's world when it's well thought out. And I did have fun beating baddies with skeletal arms and tools. ;)

By: Pop Culture Literary

Pop Culture Literary — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 19:28:36 +0000

I enjoyed that the weapon durability forced me to remember where specific weapons could be found in the world, as well as convincing me to try out new weapons (even goofy ones like mops and skeletal arms). Without incentive, I most likely would have picked a sword and stuck with it, or run around Hyrule waving magic fire balls into existence. It created a new challenge for me. I either had to be conscious of how much use I put on a weapon, or else be innovative when it broke mid-battle and I didn’t have a good backup.

I’m not sure that real weapons break as quickly as those found in Hyrule, but it was fun to think about the fact that real-world weapons break too. I imagine they would break even faster if used against the tough hides of monsters or banged against ancient mechanical wonders. Thanks for the post!

By: Tabitha

Tabitha — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 15:39:03 +0000

In reply to Geddy. It does work in BotW. Overall there was a nice balance, and I enjoyed finding new weapons.

By: Geddy

Geddy — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 15:36:23 +0000

I found myself enjoying the weapon durability mechanic, personally. I like the idea of “using up” weapons, as it balances the game for me. In a game like BotW, Link doesn’t level up – you, the player, levels up in skill, and your power stays the same. Durability means you can’t become all powerful, otherwise a few solid weapon finds and there would never be the need to explore again!

Just one guy’s thoughts 🙂

By: Tabitha

Tabitha — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 14:54:43 +0000

In reply to iplayedthegame. Someday then. Someday. I've seen a number of top 100 video games of all time lists and Dark Souls is usually placed up there.

By: iplayedthegame

iplayedthegame — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 14:52:57 +0000

In reply to Tabitha. They need a lot of patience, but they're excellent games if you get past the early hurdles.