Streaming Personality Dedicates 37 Straight Attempting to Beat <em>Tears of the Kingdom</em> With Only a One Stick

You might assume that two years post-launch since The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom debuted, enthusiasts would have run out of creative self-imposed challenges that impose unique rules on a playthrough. Yet, although numerous gamers have attempted to finish the game with just a stick, content creator the streamer holds the record as the individual who endeavored to clear the adventure with a one stick—specifically, the exact same stick from start to finish.

PointCrow is renowned for these kinds of difficult playthroughs, like the instance he went through the game using only explosives or the effort where he aimed to defeat the game with zero stamina. A single stick playthrough, though, sounds unfeasible at first glance. There's the opening sequence, which requires the hero to wield the Master Sword. Then, there's the whole durability mechanic, which is especially important when dealing with the weakest tool in the entire game. But if the stick shatters, that's the end. Game over.

The Method Behind the Madness

So, how? The simple explanation is exploits. The complete answer, I kid you not, is alternate dimensions. Apparently, you can tweak the game's save file system to have distinct playthroughs that impact one another. So PointCrow does a “setup” file where he progresses standardly, and the actual file, where he's limited. The preparatory file has him going through the prologue and initial tutorial island, and this character acquires full endurance and health. From this point, he starts a cinematic and pauses midway through to instruct the software to open an automatic save from the branch-only file. The game gets mixed up and generates a new save file that combines the conditions of the first two files.

That creates fresh problems, though. The merged file has a Link that never acquired the capability to enter shrines. Luckily, this is an issue that the save glitch fixes readily, but executing it means relying on an unstable build of the game that fails to open some locations. As with other obstacles, he has a technical workaround for it: He starts the game on its pre-release 1.0 build, and then patches the game partway through to ensure it begins functioning correctly.

Overcoming Durability and Other Hurdles

Curiously, the prologue version of the hero is programmed so that he is unable to break any tools he uses, likely to prevent a scenario where the user gets stuck at the start of the game. But that's also how the streamer gets around the wear problem, as the Link he transfers across universes is the one from the start of the story. It's a smart technique, but not a method that eliminates all potential difficulty. The branch is nonetheless a ineffective weapon that renders battles onerous. But at that stage, it's all a question of grit and dedication. It also helps that there's a duplication glitch that gives him an abundant supply of consumables to boost his attack, or accumulate on healing spirits. He also makes use of a glitch that allows him to phase through the world. Some would find these methods grounds to question the validity of the run, but to my view, he's a resourceful player who is willing to do whatever it takes to entertain his audience. He further implements a penalty of sorts stipulating that, for each fairy he uses, he'll ban one fan from his Twitch chat, establishing an motivation to avoid depend too much on them.

Major Battles and the Final Showdown

PointCrow succeeds to defeat many of the game's main enemies, but the fights appear painful. The video version of his journey spares the audience sit through the entire conflicts, which is a good thing when a few of them take multiple hours. A particular enemy encounter, a powerful foe, requires an astonishing 23 straight. The final villain showdown, which depletes Link's health as it progresses, is a memorable nail-biter. The indestructible branch is after all only a stick. He is unable to necessarily clone objects during the fight.

So, is it possible? Technically, he does defeat the beast form of Ganon. But the software forces the user to wield the legendary weapon as the last attack, so technically, it's not fully a stick-only playthrough. But where's the challenge in that?

When everything is said and done, the streamer removed more than 1,000 people in his Twitch chat. RIP.