Twitch Star Dedicates 37 Hours Trying to Conquer <em>The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom</em> With Only a One Stick

One could think that after two years since Tears of the Kingdom debuted, enthusiasts would have exhausted creative self-imposed challenges that impose unique restrictions on a playthrough. However, while many players have tried to complete the game with only a wooden stick, streamer PointCrow stands out as the player who aimed to beat the game with a single branch—meaning, the very same one from start to finish.

The streamer is renowned for these kinds of challenge runs, like the time he went through the title solely with bombs or the attempt where he aimed to defeat the game with zero stamina. A single stick playthrough, however, seems impossible at first glance. There's the game's introduction, which requires Link to use the Master Sword. Additionally, there's the whole durability mechanic, which is particularly relevant when dealing with the most fragile tool in the entire game. But if the branch 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 parallel universes. Apparently, you can tweak the game's save file system to have separate game sessions that affect one another. So the creator creates a “setup” save where he progresses standardly, and the real file, where he's restricted. The setup save has him completing the intro and initial starting area, and this Link gains maximum endurance and health. From here, he triggers a cinematic and pauses midway through to instruct the game to open an automatic save from the stick file. The system gets confused and generates a third game file that combines the conditions of the original two.

This creates new problems, though. The merged file has a Link that did not acquired the ability to enter sacred places. Luckily, this is an issue that the file exploit addresses easily, but pulling it off means relying on an buggy build of the game that refuses to load certain locations. As with everything else, he has a clever workaround for it: He begins the game on its pre-release 1.0 build, and then updates the game midway through to ensure it starts working properly.

Overcoming Weapon Wear and Additional Challenges

Interestingly, the prologue version of the hero is programmed so that he is unable to break any tools he wields, presumably to avoid a situation where the player gets stuck at the beginning of the game. But that's additionally how the streamer bypasses the wear problem, as the Link he pulls across dimensions is the one from the start of the story. It's a smart trick, but not one that eliminates all potential difficulty. The stick is nonetheless a ineffective weapon that makes battles tedious. But at that stage, it's all a question of grit and perseverance. It also helps that there's a duplication glitch that gives him an abundant number of items 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 reason to question the validity of the run, but in my mind, he's a resourceful gamer who is willing to do whatever it takes to engage his viewer. He also uses a penalty of kinds stating that, for each fairy he uses, he'll remove one fan from his live stream, creating an incentive to avoid overly rely on them.

Major Battles and the Last Showdown

The streamer manages to defeat several of the game's bosses, but the fights appear grueling. The YouTube version of his quest spares the audience sit through the whole fights, which is a good thing when a few of them last several hours. One enemy encounter, Queen Gibdo, requires an astonishing 23 straight. The Ganondorf battle, which depletes Link's hearts as it unfolds, is a notable tense moment. The indestructible stick is still just a stick. He can't always duplicate objects during the fight.

So, is it possible? Technically, PointCrow manages to defeat the beast form of Ganon. But the software forces the player to use the legendary weapon as the final strike, so technically, it's not completely a stick-only playthrough. But where's the challenge in that?

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