Streaming Personality Dedicates Thirty-Seven Straight Trying to Beat <em>Tears of the Kingdom</em> With Only a One Branch

One could think that after two years since Tears of the Kingdom arrived, enthusiasts would have exhausted novel self-imposed challenges that apply special rules on a playthrough. Yet, while numerous gamers have tried to finish Tears of the Kingdom using just a wooden stick, streamer the streamer holds the record as the individual who aimed to beat the adventure with a one stick—meaning, the very same stick from start to finish.

The streamer is renowned for these kinds of challenge runs, such as the time he played the title using only bombs or the effort where he aimed to defeat the story with no energy. A single stick playthrough, though, seems unfeasible at first glance. There's the game's introduction, which forces the hero to wield the legendary blade. Then, there's the whole durability mechanic, which is especially relevant when working with the most fragile tool in the whole game. Yet if the branch shatters, that's the end. Game over.

So, How?

So, how? The simple explanation is glitches. The complete answer, I kid you not, is alternate dimensions. It turns out, you can tweak the game's save file system to have distinct game sessions that affect one another. So the creator does a “setup” file where he advances standardly, and the actual save, where he's limited. The setup save has him completing the intro and first tutorial island, and this Link gains maximum stamina and hearts. From this point, he triggers a cutscene and halts partway through to tell the software to load an automatic save from the branch-only file. The system gets confused and generates a third game file that combines the states of the first two files.

That causes fresh issues, though. The fused file has a protagonist that never acquired the ability to enter sacred places. Luckily, this is something that the file exploit addresses readily, but pulling it off means relying on an unstable build of the title that refuses to open certain locations. As with everything else, he has a technical solution for it: He begins the game on its early 1.0 build, and then updates the game midway through to make sure it begins working properly.

Bypassing Weapon Wear and Other Hurdles

Interestingly, the introductory version of the hero is coded so that he cannot damage any tools he wields, presumably to avoid a scenario where the user gets trapped at the beginning of the game. But that's additionally how the streamer gets around the wear problem, as the character he transfers between dimensions is the one from the start of the game. It's a smart trick, but not a method that eliminates all possible difficulty. The stick is still a weak item that renders battles tedious. But at that stage, it's all a question of determination and dedication. It further helps that there's a copying exploit that gives him an abundant number of items to boost his attack, or stock up on healing spirits. He additionally makes use of a bug that allows him to clip through the environment. Some would consider these methods grounds to question the legitimacy of the attempt, but in my mind, he's a inventive gamer who is willing to do anything necessary to entertain his viewer. He further implements a penalty of sorts stating that, for every fairy he employs, he'll ban one viewer from his live stream, establishing an motivation to not overly rely on them.

Boss Fights and the Final Showdown

The streamer succeeds to get through several of Tears of the Kingdom's bosses, but the battles appear grueling. The video version of his journey spares the audience endure the entire fights, which is a good thing when some of them take several long hours. A particular boss fight, a powerful foe, requires an astonishing 23 straight. The Ganondorf showdown, which erases Link's health as it progresses, is a notable nail-biter. The indestructible branch is still only a piece of wood. He is unable to necessarily clone items during the battle.

Did he succeed? In a matter of speaking, he manages to overcome the beast form of Ganon. But the software compels the player to use the Master Sword as the last strike, so strictly speaking, it's not quite completely a branch-exclusive playthrough. But where's the challenge in that?

When everything is said and done, PointCrow banned over 1,000 users in his Twitch chat. Rest in peace.