-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
-
We have made minor adjustments to how the search bar works on ResetEra. You can read about the changes here.
After playing Genshin Impact I don't feel like I need to experience BOTW anymore
- Thread starter Iva Demilcol
- Start date
I wish l could l feel the same. Apart from the better (albeit bogged down by gacha) combat, in terms of exploration, puzzles and world/physics interactivity and everything else that makes BoTW great, it 's nothing more than a pale superficial imitation.
The weapon system makes me not want to play BOTW.
Some will say: "But you can leave fights with more weapons than you had before"
Okay... But what if you hate how most weapons play? I'm not going to spend tens of hours using weapons I hate just to get weapons I like, use them for 5 seconds, and then they break.
That's just not fun. At all.
I get what they want players to do. Doesn't mean I can't hate it. Though I get the impression that the weapon durability to some is a flawless system that no one can criticize.
Some will say: "But you can leave fights with more weapons than you had before"
Okay... But what if you hate how most weapons play? I'm not going to spend tens of hours using weapons I hate just to get weapons I like, use them for 5 seconds, and then they break.
That's just not fun. At all.
I get what they want players to do. Doesn't mean I can't hate it. Though I get the impression that the weapon durability to some is a flawless system that no one can criticize.
I do get where you're coming from in regards to a game slipping down your backlog - plenty of games I've bought but haven't had the inclination to play or my motivation for them has slipped due to playing something similar (persona 5 springs to mind - bought on release and yet it still sits there depsite the high praise it receives)
I would say though that BotW is worth a go sooner rather than later. You may like it, you may not related to what you enjoy from Zelda games but it definitely different enough from Genshin Impact that I don't think one 'replaces' the other - like all games just go in with an open-mind and try to ignore the hype if you can.
I would say though that BotW is worth a go sooner rather than later. You may like it, you may not related to what you enjoy from Zelda games but it definitely different enough from Genshin Impact that I don't think one 'replaces' the other - like all games just go in with an open-mind and try to ignore the hype if you can.
Let's not jump to accusations of lying just because you don't understand OP's thought processes on what game to play...
It can absolutely be criticised and isn't flawless, but I do think that there are some people who make sweeping statements about it who might not understand how integral it is to how the game and its world has been designed
Sorry for the post, reading now, it felt offensive. I don't understand people who spend money on a game and go play something else. It's your money, your work you know? Anyway, try the game and forget other people's opinion. What really matters it's your opinion. I really like BoTW, but I do understand people who see many flaws in it.
Breath of the Wild does a lot of things better than Genshin Impact. Exploring in Genshin Impact for the first few hours feels like they captured a lot of the magic of BotW but you quickly realize that there is nothing of interest to find in the world. Literally everything that you find is essentially just a material to feed into the endless grind and once you hit the free to play wall it becomes more of a chore than anything else. The world itself is pretty, the music is nice, etc. but the game does not even come close to BotW when it comes to justifying an open world. The sense of discovery and experimentation is incredible in BotW. It permeates the entire experience. Most of the experimentation in Genshin can be found in the combat system, which is very different from BotW. There's also more story in Genshin, though I definitely fall into the camp that believes the "less is more" approach worked wonders in BotW.
I mean, do what you want but you're missing out on a fantastic game. Genshin is far from a replacement for BotW.
I mean, do what you want but you're missing out on a fantastic game. Genshin is far from a replacement for BotW.
Haha, no, the weapon durability was terrible for me. It made the early game fun as you scrambled for any weapon you could find, but it was a drag on the rest of the game as there were never exciting rewards to find and you couldn't form any attachment to your weaponry. The UI to manage a shit ton of these weapons as they kept breaking was also terrible for flow. Nintendo is usually pretty smart about usability and general design but this aspect was really bad.
It also had this really weird thematic conflict as it pertains to the master sword, as it became your *most* disposable weapon simply because you didn't mind breaking it. It devalued the master sword as it just became my tree chopper.
If you think it's so great and nothing else could ever work let's just wait and see if BOTW2 has the same exact system or if they add in permanent weapons.
Spoiler, they're going to add in permanent weapons.
Should still give it a try imo. Both are different in unique ways, but if you're burnt out from world exploration which plays a important part in both games. Then give botw a try in the future.
I do share those feelings though, I play Genshin daily and it did kill some motivation to do any type of exploring when I play a different game.
I do share those feelings though, I play Genshin daily and it did kill some motivation to do any type of exploring when I play a different game.
Weapon switching was cumbersome and could definitely do with improvement.
However, whether they have a different system in BotW2 is neither here nor there on the quality of the original if the game itself has even a slightly different design philosophy. Plus BotW *does* have permanent repairable weapons, one from each major city and the master sword.
No OP. No. Genshin is fun and very well made, but no. That's a huge disservice right there.
And probably a crime.
And probably a crime.
The repairable weapons required you to get materials and turn in a quest each time. It wasn't worth doing.
The master sword became my tree chopper because I didn't worry about breaking it. The weapon durability system made the master sword, strangely, seem less powerful and important.
This idea that you have to shuffle dozens of weapons that'll break in one fight each in order for this game to work is bizarre. No other game requires this cumbersome awful system and it's never explained why BOTW needs it.
I remember the first time I killed a centaur dude. He dropped a cool unique looking sword. It was gone in two fights. It's a buzz kill.
You quoted me, but cropped away the part where I said it's fine not to like it, and then told me you don't like it
I mean, ok? lol
If they add permanent weapons in BOTW2 it won't be in isolation, it will be to compliment other new/expanded systems
You are 100% right about the UI though, that was actually quite poor, and made using the system less than perfect
You explicitly said no one who disagrees with you understands game design and I was responding to that bone headed statement.
Don't let the "oh this game is so good, I can never enjoy another game ever again" crowd get in your way. Play the game, see for yourself how good it is (ie. not so good that you can never love again), and then feel smugly superior to them for believing such hyperbolic nonsense.
I mean, actually you can probably just skip to feeling smugly superior anyway, since that is so ridiculous. But I recommend my method.
And for the record, BotW shot straight to being my #1 all-time favorite, and I've been gaming for 40+ years. Nevertheless, I immensely enjoyed the next game I played (Horizon Zero Dawn).
Lol OP. The thing that sucks is that it sounds like you've already made your mind up. Which means if you ever try BOTW, you'll be going in with a ton of bias that will likely color your experience and ruin the whole thing for you. Honestly, you should just go clean your room instead.
It's great. One time I got stuck behind a wall of ice after I had traveled too far down a ravine and couldn't climb back up. I had learned that fire arrows melt ice, but I was all out. So I decided to bundle up and create a fire with some flint and was astonished after sleeping next to it that the wall of ice was gone. Moments like this are why I love BOTW. The game keeps surprising me even to this day.
It's great. One time I got stuck behind a wall of ice after I had traveled too far down a ravine and couldn't climb back up. I had learned that fire arrows melt ice, but I was all out. So I decided to bundle up and create a fire with some flint and was astonished after sleeping next to it that the wall of ice was gone. Moments like this are why I love BOTW. The game keeps surprising me even to this day.
Last edited:
Okay, so don't play it then? It's just a game, if you don't feel like it don't. Tbh sounds like you didn't really have the intention to play it long before Genshin came out and with that many preconceived ideas about the game I highly doubt you'd enjoy it even if you eventually forced yourself to try it.
It just requires a different mindset. It's a comparison that's been used a lot that it almost sounds cliche now but I found that if you approach weapons more as ammunition as you would in a shooter it becomes much easier to deal with - sometimes you get a super weapon that only has 5/6 shots with no refills, otherwise you're just finding more ammo for your loadout. As you said, the UI for changing weapons needs a massive overhaul to allow you to remain in the flow of combat
As for why BotW needs breakable weapons, other people have explained it a lot better in more depth both around the internet and in some posts here throughout the year but for me it's all about the design philosophy. The game wants you to go out and explore the world and have a reason to do so - a new powerful weapon could be anywhere. If you already have the most powerful weapon in the game, some people have no motivation to explore or try out other types of weapon.
It's still 100% fine for this to not work for you, but the open world in-game would be far less engaging and interesting without something new and potentially powerful sitting around the corner rather than just collectables that don't have any gameplay impact. I'm not saying it can't be improved upon as there are numerous changes I'd like to see made but I don't think you have to throw the baby out with the bath water.
What exactly is your thread trying to accomplish?
The truth about BotW is that it isn't a traditional Zelda game, they took the basic concept from the first Zelda game back in 1986, and made a modern sequel. You haven't played anything like it, the hype might make you think you know anything about this game, but until you have spent some time with it, you don't really understand that it is essentially your own experience through Hyrule. It's not about being a Zelda game, or about being a 10/10, it's about having your own unique adventure.
Play the game or never play the game, but you haven't experienced it, because you picked up a fp2 game that styles itself like BotW.
If you just enjoy the "weapons are ammo" angle for any reason, that's fine, I won't claim you don't understand game design or anything, but the idea that the only way to have a rewarding world to explore is if low value ammo is littered everywhere (and at the expense of actual loot being anywhere) is wrong and it's disproved by... many other games! Ammo isn't fun loot to find.
I felt the same way OP, except i felt I didn't have to go back to Botw (having already purchased it and only played 3 hours of it) after playing Genshin Impact and Immortal Phoenix rising.
Both these games set out and execute all the things I felt I was missing in Botw
Both these games set out and execute all the things I felt I was missing in Botw
I hear you.
I don't like being told to play something (aka hype has the opposite effect on me).
Everyone who did the Trails of the Sword will understand how the weapon breaking complements all gameplay mechanics in BOTW.
They force you to not just run into a horde of enemies and slay them down. Sometimes you wanna sneak around them, distract them and then get their weapons.
You have to think about resources, which weapon is best and how you can use your surroundings like weather, environment or exploding barrells to maximize your damge while not overusing your weapons.
And sometimes it is best to not even bother with fighting them and go take a different route and even find something cool along the way.
That's how you make great game design, that complements each other, by sometimes forcing the player to think or interact in a certain way without them
noticing it really.
They force you to not just run into a horde of enemies and slay them down. Sometimes you wanna sneak around them, distract them and then get their weapons.
You have to think about resources, which weapon is best and how you can use your surroundings like weather, environment or exploding barrells to maximize your damge while not overusing your weapons.
And sometimes it is best to not even bother with fighting them and go take a different route and even find something cool along the way.
That's how you make great game design, that complements each other, by sometimes forcing the player to think or interact in a certain way without them
noticing it really.
I genuinely do not understand Era's fascination with "I don't want to play/don't enjoy popular game. Change my mind" threads.
Look, I get you don't like the system but there's no need to be condescending about people disagree with you ("I won't claim you don't understand game design, but...").
Weapons and ammo are obviously not exactly the same thing and it's why i said to treat it more like ammo, not the same as ammo. It's all about changing on the fly - sometimes you'll find something more rare and powerful as a reward for exploration to use and that's great, and other times you use what you have on hand. And then there's the completely valid option of not actually going into combat until you're sure you have something powerful enough to use.
Last edited:
And then you reach endgame. And then you're forced to farm Oceanid/Devalin drops. And then it becomes grueling!
It doesn't help that you are also forced to farm and grind. Why? Because the World Level increases as your experience goes up. And as the World Level increases, enemies become increasingly like damage sponges, unless you grind and start Ascending your characters like mad and use up all your Resin.
Also Ascension Trials can go to hell. They're stupid and repeatative. They're merely a marathon that tests if your team has a good DPSer in it. And that's what sucks about Genshin at times: In the end, only minmaxers win and every other method of tackling a problem becomes invalidated.
Genshin impact is more an MMORPG. For being a free (to play) one and the amount of content it offers, it's great! As a Breath of the Wild replacement? In your dreams.
This x 100. Just getting from point A to point B feels like an adventure to me. Figuring out how to get there and taking detours when plans don't work. Gathering food for a meal before nightfall and finding a place to set up camp. Never knowing who or what you'll run into along the way.
All this back and forth over weapon durability saddens me because I never once thought about it in the game, and it never once bothered me. You get so many weapons, and many of them are OP always. Flame sword about to break? Fun while it lasted! Chuck that thing right into a bokoblin's face and switch to the next.
I even learned you could just hurl unwanted weapons and manage your inventory from the quick selection HUD and never even touch the pause screen.
Just don't play it right now OP.
They have a similar skin and there are a lot of inspirations, almost direct copies in some elements within Genshin but they are ultimately very different still. Which game you like more will probably vary depending on person. I think BoTW overall plays a bit better but some of the scenery and locations in Genshin blow BoTW out of the water for me.
It is hard to compare combat for example, while one is strictly an action, the other is an RPG through and through.
If you don't feel like playing BoTW that is fine. But I suggest you stop comparing it to Genshin so much because they excel in different areas and it is all too easy to focus on the parts one does better which distracts from the game you play next's strengths.
They have a similar skin and there are a lot of inspirations, almost direct copies in some elements within Genshin but they are ultimately very different still. Which game you like more will probably vary depending on person. I think BoTW overall plays a bit better but some of the scenery and locations in Genshin blow BoTW out of the water for me.
It is hard to compare combat for example, while one is strictly an action, the other is an RPG through and through.
If you don't feel like playing BoTW that is fine. But I suggest you stop comparing it to Genshin so much because they excel in different areas and it is all too easy to focus on the parts one does better which distracts from the game you play next's strengths.
BOTW is my very high on my list of favorite games of all time, alongside Suikoden II and Chrono Trigger, and how it deals with weapon durability was my only issue with the game.
Weapons breaking and having durability wasn't the issue, it's the fact they were TOO fragile and felt like they were made of glass.
The reward in getting rare weapon should be the challenge in obtaining it from a difficult trial or prize from a tough enemy, having that same rare weapon break after three to four swings makes the efforting obtaining it feel ultimately pointless and lessen the overall achievement in getting the weapon in the first place.
in BOTW you pick up all of this stuff. Gems, Monster Parts, Food Ingredients, Flowers, etc...a lot of these things goes into crafting recipes, some even used to upgrade your armor at the Fairy Fountains.
Why not take a page out of A Link to the Past, let you drop your Sword into the Fairy Fountain and they can offer you the chance to repair or add a special effect to your weapon AT A COST.
The fact that some the Combat related shrines in BOTW gave you a new weapon which everything felt like it was super fragile felt like a waste of time. Breaking 10 Swords against a Lynel seems pointless. There is no reward that outweighs the risk. You lose FAR more than you actually gain. Let me repair or fix my shit. Create a Goron Blacksmith if you must for BOTW 2. I don't want weapons that feel like they are made from paper mache.
The durability mechanic was fine, but the lack of being able to reinforce or repair the durability of gear when there is obvious upgrade path to your armor just seemed like it was never any reason to engage in combat because of the risk being more than the actual reward.
You make it sound like people aren't hyping up GI all the time.
This is a dumb attitude in general though. I can understand something overly hype leading to a bit of confusion or disappointment in a game once you finally play it, provided you actually want to play it, but having others' feelings determine what you do or do not play is 🤷♂️
I said that "or they're not really able to see how it feeds into the design of the rest of the game"
There isn't anything wrong with not understanding game design anyway. I'm by no means an expert, but when the arguments against it are all personal (I don't like it) or rely on changing other elements of the game (make the combat better and it won't matter) or are based around adding other elements which would undermine the thesis of the game (adding repair shops, which would add tons of pointless backtracking) then yeah, maybe people haven't considered that it's in the game for a reason, and that reason is part of why the game is so well regarded as it compliments the other design choices Nintendo made
That's not a controversial statement, and like I've said a million times, it's fine to not like it anyway. It's even fine not to like the game at all, but "I don't like X" is not the same as "X is bad"
Video game discourse would be a lot better in general if people understood that last point without taking everything as a personal attack
Does it? I picked it up at Wal-Mart on clearance last year for the novelty. It was like $20.
Very different games though and I don't think one game precludes the other. Exploration is the best aspect on Genshin and to me BoTW is miles ahead on that front.
Disclaimer that BoTW is my favorite game of all time, so I think everyone should play it and then play some more.
Disclaimer that BoTW is my favorite game of all time, so I think everyone should play it and then play some more.
This thread is weird, just kind of reads like somebody is annoyed people really like BOTW
Still one of the best games ive ever played. Only had a look at Genshin for a couple hours and didn't really feel the two games were very similar beyond a surface level
Still one of the best games ive ever played. Only had a look at Genshin for a couple hours and didn't really feel the two games were very similar beyond a surface level
The fact that weapons are expendable is meant to encourage experimentation. Discovery and experimentation are the two things that BotW does best. You're encouraged to try different weapons and use them in unorthodox ways. If weapons didn't break, a vast majority of people would have never stepped outside of their comfort zone. It's by design. Maybe they were a bit aggressive in their attempt to get players to experiment but it was a deliberate choice. If you adjust your mindset, it can be quite liberating to figuratively and literally let go of your weapons. The weapons, like most of the "loot" in BotW, are meant to be used. They have so many systems in place that you would never interact with if you just stuck with the same couple of swords throughout the entire game.
I do think that they can improve upon this design, by the way. Weapon's could degrade a bit slower. Switching between weapons could be more streamlined. A repair system that utilizes materials collected in the open world would fit perfectly into the gameplay loop. But I just don't understand why this weapon degradation is such a problem for so many people. The game is FILLED with stuff to discover and experiment with and yet people seem so reluctant to use their weapons as another means to do so.
BOTW is a pretty good game which I liked when it release, but after the past years I am bit soured on it. It did some new and great things, but the more I think about it there were a lot of things I dislike.
Climbing is worse in BOTW, combat and things to do are worse in BOTW. There isn't even a lot of story, but what is there is pretty good. But also the worst dungeons in the history of Zelda imo.
Genshin has better climbing (fuck rain the rain in BOTW) and gliding, way better combat and lots of things to do that feel a bit more meaningful unlike BOTW.
Soundtracks? Both are on par imo. BOTW has some awesome pieces and Genshin too.
Story? I don't care for both of them. What is there for BOTW is just there and nothing special and Genshin is just boring.
But they are still pretty different, because BOTW gives you tools to do some cool things where as Genshin doesn't, but Genshin gives you more meaningful stuff to do.
If you have the time give BOTW a try and do some shrines to see if you like it.
I liked exploring in BOTW when it released that I was the first person worldwide that uploaded the secret ending, but in the end exploring things was pretty much useless in the end. Collect poop, collect cool weapons that break in the future, collect shrines and some armor here and there, but that's it and except for the armors and mastersword you don't really need anything.
Climbing is worse in BOTW, combat and things to do are worse in BOTW. There isn't even a lot of story, but what is there is pretty good. But also the worst dungeons in the history of Zelda imo.
Genshin has better climbing (fuck rain the rain in BOTW) and gliding, way better combat and lots of things to do that feel a bit more meaningful unlike BOTW.
Soundtracks? Both are on par imo. BOTW has some awesome pieces and Genshin too.
Story? I don't care for both of them. What is there for BOTW is just there and nothing special and Genshin is just boring.
But they are still pretty different, because BOTW gives you tools to do some cool things where as Genshin doesn't, but Genshin gives you more meaningful stuff to do.
If you have the time give BOTW a try and do some shrines to see if you like it.
I liked exploring in BOTW when it released that I was the first person worldwide that uploaded the secret ending, but in the end exploring things was pretty much useless in the end. Collect poop, collect cool weapons that break in the future, collect shrines and some armor here and there, but that's it and except for the armors and mastersword you don't really need anything.
Once again for the people in the back.
If the weapons don't break, you don't need to find more, if you're not searching for more, you're not exploring (as much), if you're not exploring you don't stumble across those random moments in the wild that make the world unique...
...and then the game kind of loses its main point.
Came into the thread expecting some gushing description of how Genshin is fantastic but it seems like a list of annoyances about Genshin and OP being grumpy that people like and talk about BOTW but, hey, at least Genshin was free (even though they already own an unopened copy of BOTW).
What?
Play what you enjoy, OP! But if 'just exploring the map and wandering around' is what you like about Genshin then, yeah, I'm gonna be one of those 'hyperbolic' fans who say that you should at least consider trying your existing copy of BOTW. It's the exact reason why that game is loved by so many.
But if just the fact that other people like it makes you annoyed then I guess just sell it and play the (also very popular) F2P one instead? Not every game is for everyone.
What?
Play what you enjoy, OP! But if 'just exploring the map and wandering around' is what you like about Genshin then, yeah, I'm gonna be one of those 'hyperbolic' fans who say that you should at least consider trying your existing copy of BOTW. It's the exact reason why that game is loved by so many.
But if just the fact that other people like it makes you annoyed then I guess just sell it and play the (also very popular) F2P one instead? Not every game is for everyone.
