Daily Debate: Should Zelda Introduce EXP and Skill Trees?

With Breath of the Wild came the birth of many new features to the Zelda universe – armor sets with specific bonuses, a more nuanced combat system and *shudder* weapon breakage. Gone were the linear ways of old, replaced with a giant, sprawling map we could explore any which way we chose along any axis, with little pockets of the dungeon experience we knew and loved littered among its many peaks and valleys. Combat carried a much heavier focus, with giant bosses milling about, fearsome Lynels on the prowl and enemy camps waiting to be plundered.

But for a game with such a heavy focus on combat, I felt there was no joy, no reward, no point to it at all. Sure you’ve got Tests of Strength at various shrines, and pulling off a flurry rush felt good, but why battle and waste weaponry? A reward beyond materials would’ve been great, perhaps in some form of cumulative EXP. Now I know that’s sacrilegious to say, A Zelda game with EXP really doesn’t feel like a Zelda game, but Breath of the Wild felt so far removed from the Zelda we already knew that I feel it could’ve worked. Perhaps Heart Containers would be earned over time through combat, perhaps the reward from these battles could be poured into skill trees, like bowmanship, defensive runes or foraging skills.

But what do you think? Is this moving too far away from the core of the franchise? Would these additions homogenise the series? Or do you think these additions in another open world Zelda title would fit? Let us know in the comments below!