Harder absolutely but "less likely to be reliable"?
If economically viable fusion was "cracked" what would the nature of it's unreliability even be?
If economically viable fusion was "cracked" what would the nature of it's unreliability even be?
The reactor breaks because it's a large device operated at high stresses (power/area, neutron loading). There are many components and joints that can fail.
BTW, this means fusion will be expensive, because getting all those components to be reliable right off the bat becomes expensive. No tiny cracks in the welds means expensive quality control.