3D Zelda: How often do you use the shield in combat?

[Snow Queen]

So after playing Wind Waker, I found myself a tad disappointed with how little use the shields had in combat. You had the Forsaken Fortress where you needed it to steal the enemy's weapons, but even that wasn't necessary since, like, there were always jars nearby that had Deku Sticks. So essentially it was useless. In Twilight Princess it had more use because of the Shield Bash and Helm Splitter, but those moves were only really practical against certain enemies. I always find just strafing the enemy works much better than blocking since their attacks don't have auto-tracking or anything. So, do you ever bother to use the shield in the 3D Zelda games?

 

[Spiritual Mask Salesman]

Nope, I don't I get away with not using it all the time by just backflipping.

 

[snakeoiltanker]

I dont know, I have always used the shield a lot. I mean, no you dont really have too, but i guess it comes down to the player and their style. The shield could really benefit from a counter move after being hit. That may help draw more attention to shield use.

 

[mαrkαsscoρ]

i found that spin attacks were the quickest and best ways to beat enemies
so thats a no on shield...as well as all of link's other moves

 

[Doc]

Yeah, I never used the shield in WW unless I was trying to be very careful. Mostly because it wasn't needed. I much prefer the TP method where locking on and shield are the same button.

 

[DarkLink7]

All. The. Time. I'd die so much if I didn't have it. So yeah

 

[Farore's Chosen]

Sometimes I do. depends on the enemy. I use it in TP more often then any other because of flame arrow shooting bokoblins and because I've never quite gotten the hang of dead man's volley

 

[misskitten]

I think I used the shield more in OoT than in later Zelda games, but I haven't thought about it much.

 

[Musicfan]

All I do is jump out of the way except when the shild is requiered to be used.

 

[mαrkαsscoρ]

Sometimes I do. depends on the enemy. I use it in TP more often then any other because of flame arrow shooting bokoblins and because I've never quite gotten the hang of dead man's volley

also can be solved w/ a spin attack.....i think

 

[Azure Sage]

I usually just avoid getting one altogether if it's possible. If it's required to get a shield in order to start the game, then I typically purposefully lose it at the earliest opportunity. It's more fun to play without a shield for me. Sometimes I carry one for aesthetics purposes, but I hardly use them in Zelda games. I think Fantasy Life is the only game I've played where I really could not get by without using a shield.

 

[Mellow Ezlo]

I use my shield fairly often, though I find that it's become rather obsolete in recent titles. In Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, the shield was really useful for temporarily stunning enemies, since their attacks hit the shield and their defences go down. As the later games start coming, though, I find the shield gets less and less use. It was pretty cool in SS though, since you actually have to physically thrust the shield in order to properly block attacks or it gets damaged, which I thought was genius, and after mastering the Shield bash, I used it a lot. The shield is also extremely useful when trying to get the heart piece in Orca's house in The Wind Waker.

 

[Badjacoon]

I just pulled out Soul Caliber 2 last night for the first time in a while and was using links shield a lot!!!
Other than that game, only use it to deflect deku nuts!

 

[A Link In Time]

If there's one thing I liked about Skyward Sword it's that the shield was quite useful. I found myself using it quite a bit, especially during the Ghirahim battles.

I also use my shield quite a bit in Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and Twilight Princess. And not just for reflecting Deku Nuts or Twinrova attacks. It's my preferred defensive tool.

 

[Iridescence]

Shield is useless in majority of Zelda games. They had to create enemies that can only be defeated by only using the shield. That's how useless it is.