8 Amazing Games With Terrible Mechanics

5. Weapon Durability - The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild

Hellblade Senua's Sacrifice
Nintendo

Grab yourself a drink and get comfy, because it's time to break open that discourse once again. 

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is a gosh-darn masterpiece just about any way you slice it - an ingenious reinvention of the series’ much-loved formula that promotes player freedom above all else.

Well, almost.

Without question the game's most polarising mechanic is the inclusion of strict weapon degradation.  While breakable weapons aren't an inherently awful idea, the sheer brevity with which the average weapon lasts before splitting in twain quickly makes weapon management feel like a busy-work chore which takes away from the thrill of exploration.

This is made worse by both the lack of ability to repair your weapons and the game's relatively high degree of combat challenge.  In a game that's so note-perfect in so many key areas, weapon durability is a tediously "game-y" fly in the ointment - a low-effort attempt to nudge players into switching up their combat strategy.

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Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.