Daily Debate: Would You Like To See Unlockable Combat Moves Reintroduced Into The Zelda Series?

Outside of the Adventure of Link, the Zelda series has always shied away from any sort of experience leveling. Link’s combat progression instead comes from gaining more hearts, procuring new items, and the player’s own increase in familiarity with the game’s controls. A good number of the games offer a Sword Beam or Great Spin Attack as an optional attack bonus, but two Zelda titles delved much deeper into unlockable sword techniques. I am referring to the Hidden Skills from Twilight Princess and The Minish Cap’s Tiger Scrolls. These two systems allowed the player to become stronger by discovering hidden battle options that gave Link more varied tools to use in battle.

Would you like the next Zelda game to include optional abilities or upgrades that Link can discover on his journey? The latest mainline game, Breath of the Wild’s combat is already fast and fresh compared to the duelist nature of previous 3D Zelda games. However, I think the sequel could spice it up by allowing new skills. For example, a combo attack could be added to Link’s Flurry Rush. Once he gets a perfect dodge, Link would have the choice of three different followup attacks. Per each type of enemy, one of these attacks would be more damaging than others. The player would be required, through trial and error, to learn about the different enemies and their weaknesses in order to choose the right option. This sort of mechanic was already experimented with in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. Bosses and Mini-bosses require split-second use of particular runes or wands in order to bring up their Weak Gauge.

What do you think? Are you satisfied with combat as it is now, or should Nintendo add more features to it? Let us know in the comments.

Featured Artwork: ‘Hero’s Shade‘ by Jasqreate and ‘Swiftblade‘ by Eepasketch.