Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom's Weapon-Fusing Has Already Inspired Memes

Weapon durability makes a return in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and while the system has its fans and critics, Nintendo is introducing a gameplay mechanic that is shaking up how combat works in the Breath of the Wild sequel.

Link's new Fuse ability allows him to combine common materials to create new weapons on the fly, potentially letting him save his best weapons for tougher boss fights. Don't want to dull your sword by smacking the sharp end of it into a Bokoblin? Then keep its Hylian warranty intact by fusing a stick with a rock to create a hammer and bash the Bokoblin when it invades your personal space.

Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma added that players will be able to experiment with the ability to create all manner of weapons and tools. The possibilities seem nearly endless, especially when you factor in memes. Naturally, fans (and some GameSpot writers) have been having a blast describing the Fuse ability with Simpsons jokes, custom fanart, and occasionally screenshots from other famous cartoons that have been forgotten about over the decades.

If anyone at Google is wondering why there has been a sudden spike in Dave the Barbarian searches, now you know why. Some of the other abilities that Link will be able to wield in Tears of the Kingdom are Ascend, in which he can noclip vertically through solid matter, and Ultrahand, which allows him to create new vehicles that he can use to explore the land while trying to avoid vehicular gobslaughter charges in court.

Tears of the Kingdom will release for Switch on May 12, and preorders are now live. If you don't have a Nintendo console, then you can grab a special edition Switch OLED Model which features intricate designs and launches two weeks before the game.