Breath of the Wild: Durability

There are many ways in which Breath of the Wild represents a significant departure from what you might call the ‘Zelda formula’. And I can understand why fans who may be looking for the more familiar and ‘traditional’ structure of a Zelda title, may be a little disappointed by BotW.

One of the key changes, and perhaps the most controversial, is item durability. The durability system of BotW has proven to be one of its most discussed and divisive aspects. I was going to cover this in my upcoming review, but I’d like to cover the topic with a little more depth.

In Breath of the Wild, weapons break and shields shatter. As far as I’m aware, only one weapon in the game – the Master Sword – cannot break. I can understand why some may not like this new system, but as far as I’m concerned, from a design perspective, it’s mechanically sound.

During the ‘early’ game as you explore the initial tutorial area and surrounding zones, many of the weapons you’ll discover will either be simple wooden clubs and spears, or rusty ancient blades that break easily and frequently. And this can prove, at least in the beginning, to be rather frustrating.

But these early stages form an important learning process in terms of combat design. It forces the player to test each of the core weapon types and become familiar with each in range, damage and power attack. It also encourages players to cycle through their weapons during combat, seamlessly switching their weapon and attack type to strike swiftly and decisively.

It also teaches the player the importance of using the right weapon for the right job. A very obvious example would be the difference between attempting to cut a tree with a sword rather than an axe – the sword will rapidly break whereas the axe will not. This lesson doesn’t simply apply to the environment, but more importantly to enemy types.

As you progress through the game you’ll soon discover stronger weapons, some of which carry an elemental charge. And particular enemy types also adhere to an elemental aspect. Once again, it’s all about the right weapon for the right job – a ‘frost’ blade is more effective against an enemy charged by fire, for example.

Yes, it all seems rather obvious, doesn’t it? But it’s important to understand that this also ties into the durability system – if you’re using a weapon which isn’t particularly effective to your task, it will break far more rapidly than one which is. There’s no ‘uniform’ durability to items. There’s no durability ‘meter’. It’s a system based entirely around the ground breaking notion of ‘common sense’.

What I’m trying to say is – if your weapons are continually breaking, even during the later stages of the game, then you’re probably doing it wrong. There is a logical system in place. The game, like so many of its systems, doesn’t overly explain it. It forces you to experiment and figure it out on your own.

And honestly, once you complete a couple of the main ‘dungeons’ and have a strong grasp of the combat mechanics (including how to effectively use your runes and the environment to your advantage) weapon durability really does cease to be an issue.

I’m approaching the end of the game as I write this, and I’m actually discarding far more weapons than I’m breaking, simply due to limited inventory space. It’s rare that my weapons break at this stage of the game, in part because they’re far stronger than early game weapons (as you’d expect) but also because I now understand how to utilise them to their strongest potential.

Could the durability mechanic be tweaked for the early stages of the game? I think there’s an argument to be made for that, and I certainly felt that way whilst playing. But looking back now, I realise how important those early stages were in teaching me how to manage my weapons, how best to prepare for each fight, and how to use each weapon most effectively.

Like I said, I can understand why some players may not like this system – and that’s fine. But to me, that doesn’t mean the system is bad or broken. To me, the durability mechanic works as intended within the context of the combat system and the open world they designed. Whether you think such a system is appropriate for a Zelda game is another discussion entirely. I just think it’s important to understand how the system works and more importantly that it does work.