The main reasons being that many of the weapons have uses outside of combat, such as: keeping you warm/cold, allowing you to fish, shield-surfing, raft propulsion, etc.
Or maybe it's like a cake that you cut into eight slices and eat all eight slices it's gone. Because that's how food works. And while you're bummed out that your cake is now gone, the cake decorator shows up out of the blue and asks if you have room in your stomach (inventory) for three more cakes.
You will eventually run into better weapons but there is also the chance you will frequently run into worse, even if it not numbers wise but rather the less interesting weapons such as higher numbered basic weapons.
A lot of the exploration doesn't actually lend well to engaging in combat outside of the player choosing to experiment with the games physics and AI.
The solution is to make loot actually matter, barely anything in a chest is worth a shit, the disposable nature of things just makes it worse.
Exactly, but what loot could you have that actually matters in the game? The world is far too massive to fill with encampments that each give meaningful rewards. that's compounded by the fact that the core of this game is simple. Stats are simple so that limits how many gear sets you could design. There's little room for abilities to be expanded upon. So the solution they came upon was have weapons become durable. I hate it but the alternative would be to completely redesign the core of the game, or make it an RPG.
Again, this doesn't align with reality. It's just factually incorrect.
Also made up. The game will draw the player towards higher areas of terrain and once there, encampments, landmarks, large enemies, islands, and shrines become more visible. Exploration absolutely lends well to engaging in combat. They go hand in hand. It's the game's core design.
So for loot to matter to you, it needs permanence?
Across the board - define that. Also, since you seem to have a strong opinion about the facts of the game, let's hear your pitch for balances and tweaks.
No, that's not the same.
Not for most people, no...it DOES need to last long enough for you to use it to get even better loot....that's how 99+% of loot games (with increasing numbers and/or functionality) works.
They already did a decent job of placing items in good spots, it's just that those items turn out to be disposable and actually more basic than it lets on, that can be changed without entirely redesigning the game.
Visibility is what happens through exploration yes, that is what exploration is. But it doesn't actually pull you towards them effectively, it's more just there if you want to engage with it.
Insert Lanky Kong trombone music
Co-signed. It's all too common for people to label a game design or gameplay element as "poorly designed" when the option is there for them to admit that while it's well-designed, it's not what they were looking for when playing the game.
🤷 kind of the opposite from my perspective. If the first set of royal or lynel weapons you found lasted forever, then 95% of the weapons you found after that would have absolutely zero value.
You're using anecdotal evidence AND attacking the person who didn't even claim it was a vocal minority. I was actually retorting the person who did so because it's a complaint I see often for the game. I used the terminology present in the post in response to another post claiming it was just a "vocal minority" but next time I'll use air quotes to make sure even the lowest of reading comprehension can detect the manner in which I'm speaking.
They realize why it exists, they're just going to complain about it anyways.
I feel like you get new weapons so often that it's hard not to remember what they look like. It's not like once you break a weapon you'll never get that one again.
This is not a fair comparison. It is absolutely objective criticism. The weapon durability system actively dissuaded some folks from exploring the world because what you found there was essentially "ammo" as you put it. And ammo isn't fun and worth exploring for. For me the experience felt hollow. (Not to mention the cumbersome and clunky way to change weapons severely limiting the flow of combat.
I didn't say it was faulty. Its a not fun and irritating mechanic for some people (yes some, as evidenced by the fact you can't have a BotW discussing without it coming up). Its a design choice that we all can debate whether it is successful.
More eloquently put, but this is exactly what I was trying to say.
I'm in the "just something you deal with as part of the game" camp but I'll give the other camp that it's something I had to get used to. All of my "gaming life" kinda taught me to hold onto weapons so you might need to break that habit.
