The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

[Raid]

I can't view his review at the moment because of the DDoS, but I imagine his points will include the shoddy inventory system and fact that you can eat your way through most encounters, the general lack of story and the inconsistent framerate.

It's certainly not a perfect game, it's just up to you how much it matters. To be DDoS'd because you're voicing an unpopular opinion is absurd.

[DjchunKfunK]

I think it's more than just the fact it is an unpopular opinion, it's also that it is Jim Sterling.

EDIT: Also he made a name for himself at Destructoid by taking contrarian positions so that is always going to mean his reviews carry a certain amount of baggage, unfairly or not.

[Quietman]

If anyone wants to read it to see what the fuss is about I found it on the web archive: https://web.archive.org/web/20170313014 ... ld-review/

[Mantis]

Seems perfectly fair to me. He says it's a really good game but held back by a few poor mechanics. He's completely right about things like weapon durability, it is never done in a way that is anything other than a pain in the arse which adds no extra enjoyment to the experience.

[DjchunKfunK]

Disagree on durability you are constantly getting new weapons all the time so the fact that they break quickly isn't a major issue, but I can understand if you don't like it. I don't think it is inherently a bad mechanic though.

I spent over an hour on Eventide Island lastnight and died when I tried to get the last orb. Think I might have to come back when I have some better weapons/more health.

[Raid]

You're not doing the cheaty "drop weapons before activating the quest" thing are you?

More health will help, obviously, but I managed to do it with only six hearts. You need to cook some foods that increase your heart count, all of which can be found on the island.

[DjchunKfunK]

No I'm not. I have just the four hearts.

[Mantis]

Disagree on durability you are constantly getting new weapons all the time so the fact that they break quickly isn't a major issue, but I can understand if you don't like it. I don't think it is inherently a bad mechanic though.

Can you honestly say though that it made the game more fun? I highly doubt it.

Weapon durability mechanics are just a devs way of avoiding having to put proper weapon balance or interesting designs in that would make you actually want to swap things around. It artificially lengthens the game by adding in an extra layer of pointless inventory management too. I don't see why Zelda should get a free pass for that, especially if it's quite a prevalent feature.

[Raid]

I genuinely don't think the weapon durability detracts from the game. I would normally agree with your stance (I remember it practically ruined System Shock 2 until you patched it out), but Zelda does have a couple of things that improve the situation. Firstly the ability to throw every single melee weapon as a missile (which does double damage if the weapon breaks on impact), and secondly the sheer number of weapons on offer. You never really need to worry about replacements, as they'll be lying all over.

What *does* detract from the game is the inventory management; why couldn't they have put in a selection wheel that covers more of the screen? A linear selector that covers a third of the available space is just a massive waste. You need a "drop weapon" button on the selector too rather than having to go into your inventory screen, or equipping the weapon before throwing it.

[Wrathbone]

Only played 90 mins so far and I already love it. It meets the hype and more. Even better, I can play it on my lunch break! In the last hour I played hide and seek with some scary watchtowers and annoyed some bees by stealing their honey, then beat an enemy to death with his friend's arm. Did I mention I love this game?

My very early take on the weapon degradation is that it's not problematic but it'd be nice if they lasted a bit longer.

[DjchunKfunK]

Weapon durability mechanics are just a devs way of avoiding having to put proper weapon balance or interesting designs in that would make you actually want to swap things around. It artificially lengthens the game by adding in an extra layer of pointless inventory management too. I don't see why Zelda should get a free pass for that, especially if it's quite a prevalent feature.

Zelda isn't getting a free pass. The weapon durability means that you approach combat in a different way to how you would normally in a Zelda game. You scope out the area and see whether there are other ways of taking out the enemies other than just running in and hitting everything, and because of how it is designed there usually are. You can still steam in and bash everyone to death, but the durability makes you think a bit more and consequently for me the combat remains interesting a lot longer than it normally would in a game like this.

They make swapping weapons really easy as you just hit the dpad and the game pauses whilst you select the next one. I do agree though that picking up and dropping weapons is too cumbersome.

I respect that you don't like weapon durability and ultimately we have differing opinions on whether it is a good thing or not, but I don't think it is automatically a sign of lazy design.

[Mantis]

Perhaps not, but it isn't nitpicking to raise it as an issue as part of a review either.

I'm just defending Sterling's stance that's all. It's ridiculous that he could put forward some well considered criticisms, rate the game quite highly anyway and still be abused and DDOSd for it.

[DjchunKfunK]

Yeah I don't think anyone here is saying he's wrong to write what he did and the DDOS is stupid.

[Raid]

Oh yeah, it's a valid criticism and worth pointing out, but it sounds worse than it plays.

[DjchunKfunK]

Did my first Divine Beast yesterday, it was quite enjoyable. Still really enjoying my time exploring the world and just wandering off in random directions.