Minecraft 3: Return of the King Notes & Thumbnail (Patreon)

To add to the conversation; Terraria finds a perfect balance between depth in combat and incentivising progression. You progress through armour and weapons to “get on a boss’s level”, and then in the fight, the depth shines through. If we’re worried about a situation where too many people can skill their way past the need for better armour and weapons, bosses can act as a safety net. So if I can skill my way past most of a woodland mansion, I’m still interested in Diamonds and enchanting books because I know there’s a boss that I’ll barely be able to scratch without them.

A common misconception is that just because something is deep means it isn’t accessible or simple. Depth is something that shines at the highest levels of play, it pretty much creates the highest levels of play. But typical day to day activity isn’t hindered by it. You don’t have to be pulling off 360 no scopes on every zombie. You just can. It’s in the hardest encounters that you should. It’s not like you have to be playing at S tier just to beat DMC.