Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity isn't just a successor to the original Hyrule Warriors spin-off from Koei Tecmo, the studio behind the Dynasty Warriors series. It's also a prequel to Breath of the Wild and, as such, will be further expanding that game's lore and bringing over several mechanics that fans will be very familiar with.
However, new gameplay from today's Nintendo Treehouse confirmed one minor yet key detail that will make some Breath of the Wild players very happy: the weapons don't break.
In Breath of the Wild, every weapon Link could acquire would degrade through use and eventually break. This even extended to special, powerful weapons players could find from completing certain difficult tasks. The only exception was the legendary Master Sword but, even then, it could only be used so many times before needing to be put away so it could recharge.
The mechanic was very divisive among players, becoming especially unpopular with many to the point where there's an argument for it to be removed completely from Breath of the Wild 2, or at least reworked so that weapons break less easily.
It makes sense for this feature to be excluded from Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, regardless of its popularity. While players could feasibly spend long stretches of Breath of the Wild without getting into fights, combat is the primary focus of Hyrule Warriors and can't really be avoided. Having breakable weapons in a game such as this would've only made it needlessly frustrating.
It also wouldn't fit thematically. In Breath of the Wild, isolation and vulnerability were major themes of the game, so it arguably made sense for players to forever be scrambling for new weapons. Age of Calamity, though, takes place during a war in a time when Hyrule hasn't been completely overrun with monsters and the forces of Calamity Ganon.
For those that hated the weapon degradation in Breath of the Wild, it's absence could be another selling point and maybe a sign that Nintendo will ditch it for the sequel. But it's far too soon to say. Nintendo hasn't discussed the title since its initial reveal at E3 2019 and, when Age of Calamity was announced, series producer Eiji Aonuma could only say that Breath of the Wild 2 is still in development and fans will have to wait a while longer before any proper updates.
Still, so far fans are more than happy with what Age of Calamity is offering. Many are hoping to see more playable characters outside of Link, Zelda, and the Champions be announced, though recently it was confirmed that a young Impa is playable, having appeared in Breath of the Wild as a very old woman.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity will release for Nintendo Switch on November 20th.
