Over this weekend we’ve learned a lot about Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. We’ve learned about returning enemies, locations, Link’s abilities, and Impa’s moveset, as well as several new mechanics. Another recent stream, from Famitsu’s Game Live Japan 2020, has also shown off a great set of new gameplay details as well as more Link, Impa, and even Daruk footage!
Link’s abilities: Cryonis and paragliding
The first block of gameplay footage appears to be take place in Eldin Canyon. During the fight, we see more of Link’s Sheikah Slate abilities, including being able to leap off of a Cryonis block and into a Paraglider slow-fall. Following that, he can then come crashing down with a heavy attack, and it looks just as fun as it is in Breath of the Wild.
The power of Magnesis
We also see him use Magnesis to turn a metal block into a Cuisinart against his enemies. Interestingly, Impa appears to use it to turn metal boxes into a giant sledgehammer. We know every character can use the runes on their Sheikah Slate, but it would appear that how they’re each used differs from hero to hero. I think it’s safe to assume that they will all function similarly to the sub-weapons/items in Hyrule Warriors.
Enemies in this game appear to have a slate rune appear over their head before they charge up a major attack, and summoning that rune stuns them. Even though Link launches a series of bombs, and Daruk only launches a giant one, they should operate similarly in terms of busting enemy weak points and any puzzle implementations. These slate runes are going to be super satisfying, to say the least.
UI curiosities
I’ve noted a curious lack of the Magic Meter in the footage, which was how you pulled off signature hero moves and used fairy powers in the previous Hyrule Warriors. There appears to still be the yellow Special Meter, but that lack of a magic gauge is really interesting to me.
Also, in the pause screen, you can see that Link has a level and some stats, and beneath his tray is a weapon listing, including experience and level. I think we can rule out breakable weapons, but the official Age of Calamity U.S. site infers that you will be able to use these bonus weapons into others, similar to how it was handled in Hyrule Warriors. But having levels and different skins for same-ranked items seems off, so I’m very curious to see what this system is going to look like.
Daruk gameplay: Rolling, Daruk’s Protection, and Boulder Breaker
The final segment was dedicated to Daruk, with an extended gameplay demonstration. First, and perhaps most importantly: he can roll. I know, I know. I’ll let you catch your breath. The roll seems to be some kind of movement option that does minimal damage but it can be charged up and reinforced with Daruk’s Protection for a larger attack. (Would it just be “Protection” at this point?) The Protection also appears to be a powerful guard tool at his disposal, although I’m unclear on its specific use in this game.
Watching the big champion swing that Boulder Breaker around Death Mountain with one hand looks incredibly gratifying, and his combo-enders seem to consist of a lot of rock making and rock breaking. It’s not terribly dissimilar from Darunia in Hyrule Warriors upfront, but it appears the development team has expanded on the capabilities of these techniques for our lovable Goron friend.
Elemental weapons
In previous coverage of the Tokyo Game Show footage, I mentioned that you could pick up a Fire Rod, but as the demonstration ended shortly after Link acquired it, it made it difficult to understand how it worked. After watching this stream, I am certain that the three elemental rods can each be picked up and used as another set of sub-weapons (like the runes) to attack enemies. Elemental weaknesses appear to play some part in all of this, and I imagine they will operate similarly to the way they did in Breath of the Wild. Similarly, they appear to have a limit before they either break or need to recharge, unlike main weapons.
Guardians: Dismemberment, counters
We noted yesterday that Guardians will return in Age of Calamity, and they look to be every bit the special encounter that they were in Breath of the Wild. Similar to their original counterparts, the ones in Age of Calamity seem to suffer from a weakness of dismemberment (I, too, suffer this weakness.) Also, timing a defensive deflect will allow you to stun the big tank, opening it’s guard break meter to be whittled down. I mentioned it before, but this game seems to be taking a lot of queues to feel more like a new Breath of the Wild game than a new Dynasty Warriors spin-off.
Elemental enemies
Among the footage of fighting alongside an army of Gorons, I noticed that certain Moblins had a strange element about them. One such Moblin was empowered by some kind of magic runes. Of course, it was called a Flame Moblin, but that wasn’t something we saw any of in Breath of the Wild. Perhaps Ganon is using his Blight-selves to empower generals in his army.
The full Game Live Japan 2020 stream
You can catch the full stream for yourself below! There’s a lot of good-looking attacks in here. The Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity segment starts at 4:18:27, while the footage starts at 4:32:47.
We’ll continue to cover new gameplay elements, map designs, and of course characters as we lead up closer to that sweet November 20, 2020 release date.
