Tears of the Kingdom community helps Zelda superfan cook up an "ultimate no death run" where dying in either game puts you back at the start of Breath of the Wild

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild screenshot showing Link, a male character with elf-like ears, blond hair, and bright blue eyes
(Image credit: Nintendo)

One courageous Legend of Zelda fan is attempting what may be the most challenging run of both Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom ever - and if he dies once, he has to do it all over again.

In a mind-boggling Reddit post, user "YaBoiNick87" details how he's "going to attempt the Ultimate BOTW/TOTK No Death Run" soon. The challenge run boasts a punishing plethora of rules, including the fact that if he dies in either game, Nick must restart from the beginning of Breath of the Wild. He also can't use Majora's Mask in Nintendo's first game nor can he use more than one Mipha's Grace per boss battle. That's not all - Nick must complete every single shrine and side quest in Breath of the Wild, too.

On top of all this, Nick has to obtain every monster medal from Kilton and find all of Link's captured memories. He's not free from Breath of the Wild's DLC packs, either - his rules lay out that he needs to "Complete Master Sword Trials and Champion's Ballad." As for Tears of the Kingdom, his playthrough will be just as grueling - if not more so. Not only will Nick have to start from the beginning of Breath of the Wild if he dies in its sequel, but he'll also have to essentially 100% the game.

I'm going to attempt the Ultimate BOTW/TOTK No Death Run, except Mipha's Grace, fairies, and Majora's Mask aren't allowed at all. Any other rule suggestions? from r/tearsofthekingdom

In Tears of the Kingdom, Nick's brutal rules decree that he needs to complete and find all coliseums, lightroots, shrines, side adventures, side quests, and temples. He must also get every monster medal possible from the Monster Control Crew, find all the Dragon Tears, collect every Yiga schematic, and gather all Schema Stones. The brave player isn't shying away from fellow fans' suggestions on these rules, either - upon detailing the ones he's setting for himself, Nick asks the Tears of the Kingdom for "other rule suggestions."

Many comments echo a shared sentiment - that starting over from the beginning of Breath of the Wild is "insane." One response tells Nick to "get rid of that, make it so you only have to restart TotK." Another simply reads, "It’s already gonna take you forever as is so, no rule suggestions." My personal favorite sees a commenter "BEGGING" Nick "to make this a YouTube series," prompting Nick himself to later confirm that he is indeed "going to post it as a series on YouTube." I can't wait to watch it - I'm just glad I'm not the bold player going through all of that torture.

As Nintendo moves on from Tears of the Kingdom, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom beats both Doom: The Dark Ages and Gears of War as this summer's most wishlisted game

Anna Koselke
Staff Writer

After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.