is here and throws us once again into the huge open world of Hyrule. HowSaves the adventure with big explanations and lets us just do it. If you feel overwhelmed by the limitless freedom, then we have a handful of useful tips for you to start playing!
By the way: This interactive map shows you everything you need to know:
Last updated on December 24, 2024: We'll introduce you to our tips for Tears of the Kingdom here if you're roaming through Hyrule for the first time.
1. Order - Where should I go first?
After the extensive tutorial on the lost sky island, Tears of the Kingdom releases you to the surface of Hyrule and shortly afterwards in the overarching main quest gives you four important points in the game world to which you should travel in order to help the residents there.
The order is up to you, but the game at least pushes you a littlein the direction of the Orni, the bird creatures in the northwest of the map. And it doesn't hurt to go there first.
Important: Pack warming food, as the Orni area is located in the cold regions of Hyrule. Not only do you experience a pretty cool main mission here, but after completing it you also get an ability that can be extremely helpful when exploring the huge open world and bridging distances. However, this also applies to the other three places.
2. Loot everything, emphasis: EVERYTHING
As in the predecessor, your opponents will drop all sorts of loot when you defeat them. Collect it! All of it! And that's not all: you'll also find various items scattered throughout the game world: ingredients like mushrooms, grasses, chilies, bananas, tomatoes and more - be sure to take that with you too!
Because items are an important cog in the game design in Tears of the Kingdom. You need them, among other things, for cooking, to make dishes that heal you or give you important bonuses such as more attack power. You also need items for synthesis, for example stones, to build a stone hammer. Or thunder flowers, which you can use to turn your arrows into brutal bomb arrows!
3. Use bomb arrows thanks to Thunder Flower!
You can usually find bomb arrows in caves. And you should definitely take them with you, because they have something special.
What’s special about it?If you stick them to your arrows, they transform into brutal bomb arrows. If you shoot at opponents with them, they cause a huge detonation upon impact, which causes enormous damage. Hordes of enemies in particular are no longer a problem.
4. Increases weapon durability with synthesis
, so far so known. But synthesis can help. Thanks to this ability you can combine two items or weapons together. Synthesis not only helps you increase the attack power of weapons, but also extends their durability.
An example: We make a stone club out of sticks and stones. This stone club is now much more robust than the mere stick we previously used as a weapon. Or in other words: we can use it more often in combat!
By the way, it is also possible to fuse two weapons together: You can use two spears to create a "super spear" with a much longer range, which of course also benefits from greater durability than a single spear.
5. "Exploit" extends the life of your weapon
You can even go one step further: If you have a favorite weapon and don't want it to break, you can artificially extend its "life" thanks to synthesis.
Let's say you want to keep a sword permanently and use it in battle. Then use synthesis to stick simple items such as stones, mushrooms or apples to it.
If your “apple sword” or “stone sword” is about to break (the game warns you about this), then simply undo the synthesis in the menu. After you have canceled the synthesis, the item, i.e. the apple or the stone, breaks, but not the sword.
And the crucial side effect: After undoing the synthesis, your sword's durability will be set back to 100%. So you can "trick" the game a little and constantly combine new items with your favorite weapon just before it breaks. You'll never run out of apples, stones, etc. anyway. You can find them everywhere in the game world.
6. Always make sure you have enough dishes in your inventory (so you can heal)
Pot roast? Mmm, delicious! But more importantly, food heals Link. And home-cooked meals restore most hearts. Instead of eating a raw apple or mushroom, throw the appropriate ingredients into the cooking pot and conjure up a dish. Some dishes even have positive status effects; for example, a piece of meat prepared with chili protects Link from the cold for a while.
7. Always have a weapon synthesized with stones in your inventory!
If you combine swords, sticks or branches etc. with stones using synthesis, you will get oneFelsbrockenhammer. Thanks to its increased attack power, it not only proves to be an effective club against enemies, but is also particularly suitable for mining gemstones (e.g. rubies, opals, flints, glowstones) in caves. Many of them can then be sold for good money or rubies.
Look for chunks of ore in caves (identified by their black color). Then hit it with the boulder hammer and it will break. You can then collect the corresponding gemstones/ore. Therefore, make sure you always have enough stones in your inventory so that you can quickly make a boulder hammer.
8. It's ok to only do side quests! (especially shrines whose blessing lights improve hearts and stamina)
Distraction is part of the concept in Tears of the Kingdom. You are not expected to march through the main mission straight away. On the contrary! It can also be enormously fulfilling to let yourself drift and only gradually pursue the numerous side tasks that you spot in the area.
Our special recommendation: The puzzle shrines, i.e. these large egg-shaped stones with a green spiral of light, four of which you have already learned about in the tutorial. Not only do they challenge your gray cells and are a lot of fun due to their varied tasks, but they also reward Link with a blessing when they are completed.
What do I do with blessing lights?Four of these can be exchanged at certain statues for an additional heart container for more energy or an extension of the stamina meter, which then allows the hero to run, climb, glide, etc. longer. So whenever you see one of the shimmering green squiggles in the area: run there, it's worth it in more ways than one!
9. Collect Krog seeds because you can use them to expand your inventory
Krogs are back in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom! As in the predecessor, you should definitely keep an eye out for the little creatures. Krogs often hide in trees, piles of leaves, under rocks, and generally in places that look conspicuous. Sometimes you have to complete small quests or mini-puzzles for the forest spirits.
If you find a Krog, you will receive a Krog Seed as a reward, which you can use to expand your weapon, shield or bow bag.
You can read more about the Krogs and inventory expansion in the detailed GamePro guide:
Are you annoyed by the fact that apples are always displayed first in the quick menu, even though, for example, you would rather use the fire fruit for burning arrows? Then listen up, you can use the Y button to sort the menu according to the items that you have used most often so far!
Here we describe in more detail how it works:
11. Get the Aero Armor and glide through the skies like a pro
Link can glide through the sky using his paraglider, but there's an even cooler option, and it's called "Aero Armor." This is basically a kind of wingsuit that allows Link to bridge longer distances in the air without using a glider and requiring the corresponding stamina. And on top of that, she looks pretty dashing too.
We'll explain how exactly you get the aero armor in this GamePro guide:
12. You can easily walk past the automatic transmission, don't miss it!
During the tutorial, Link learns four skills (Ultrahand, Synthesis, Ceiling Jump, Time Reversal). However, there is a fifth one that is incredibly practical but can be easily overlooked. The so-called Bautomatik saves the most recently built constructions and then reassembles them automatically if desired, without you having to lift a finger.
How do you get the automation?To do this, you have to talk to researcher Josha in the scout post, who gives you a total of two missions that are related to exploring the underground. In the first mission “The People in the Underground” the photo module for your Purah Pad is unlocked.
Once you have completed the mission, talk to Josha again to get another mission. “At the underground temple” you have to find a temple using statues. When you reach this, go to the green symbol and activate it to get the automatic function.
What are your best tips for beginners for Tears of the Kingdom?
