Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s new update removes item duplication glitch

By Tomas Franzese Published May 26, 2023

Two weeks after its release, Nintendo has patched out one of the most helpful exploits in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom: a popular item duplication glitch.

When Tears of the Kingdom launched on May 12, it felt surprisingly polished considering how complex its open world and systems like Fuse and Ultrahand are. That said, it wasn’t entirely free of bugs. Some of these glitches prevented progression, including one that was solved in the Ver. 1.1.1 update, but others were much more helpful, like item duplication. As Digital Trends’ guide on the exploit details, players could duplicate items by fusing materials with arrows and then dropping two identical bows within a short timeframe.

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According to players, Tears of the Kingdom update Ver. 1.1.2, which was released on May 25, removes this item duplication glitch from the game. Interestingly, this specific exploit isn’t detailed in the patch notes, which simply say that “several issues have been addressed to improve the gameplay experience,” among other audio and quest fixes.

Tears of the Kingdom arrow fusion menu — Image used with permission by copyright holder

You can check out the full list of Ver 1.1.2 patch notes below.

Fixed an issue where the sound would play at an extremely high volume in certain conditions.
Fixed an issue in the main quest, Camera Work in the Depth”, where players could not progress beyond a certain point. Downloading the update will allow players to proceed past that point.
Several issues have been addressed to improve the gameplay experience

So, if you want to duplicate items now, you’ll need to refuse update Ver. 1.1.2 or play a physical version of the game that has not been updated. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is available now for Nintendo Switch.

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As a Gaming Staff Writer at Digital Trends, Tomas Franzese reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…

Gaming

After The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, it’s time for Zelda Maker

Key art for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.

We almost had a The Legend of Zelda video game where players could create their own dungeons. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, which launches later this week, lets players obtain "echoes" of items and enemies, which they can explore, fight, and solve puzzles with. A new Ask the Developer interview from Nintendo revealed that this gameplay idea came from the original concept for Echoes of Wisdom: an "edit dungeon" concept where "players could create their own The Legend of Zelda gameplay," according to Grezzo game director Satoshi Terada.

Ultimately, the team went in a different direction after recognizing the potential of the echoes mechanic created for the "edit dungeon" concept. While I'm still quite excited to play Echoes of Wisdom, part of me is disappointed that we aren't getting a The Legend of Zelda dungeon maker game. It's OK that Echoes of Wisdom went in a different direction, but this is an idea Nintendo should certainly return to in the future.
The Zelda dungeon-maker game we didn't get
It's not uncommon for game developers to experiment with different gameplay concepts or ideas early on in development to find what works. Terada explained that in one of these early concepts, "Link could copy and paste various objects, such as doors and candlesticks, to create original dungeons." Later in the Ask the Developer interview, Nintendo director Tomomi Sano said that this "concept involved copying various things during your adventure out on the game field, then bringing them back to create a dungeon in a dedicated place."

Gaming

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom: release date, trailers, gameplay, and more

Key art for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.

Every new Zelda game feels like an event, and yet Nintendo managed to keep a new mainline entry hidden almost all the way up until its release. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is not the same size and scale as the 3D entries like Breath of the Wild or Tears of the Kingdom -- it's actually the long-awaited continuation of Zelda's 2D titles. The last game we got in this style was 2019's The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, which was a remake of the 1993 Game Boy title.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom caught the attention of everyone at the June Nintendo Direct where it was announced for many reasons, chief among them being Zelda taking on the starring role instead of Link. The perspective and style might look familiar, but there's a lot to learn about Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom before you jump back into Hyrule.
Release date
Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom will be released on September 26, 2024.
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Gaming

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom takes the right cues from Tears of the Kingdom

Zelda holds a rock in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.

The only constant in the Legend of Zelda series is change. From its perspective to its art style, Nintendo takes some surprising risks when it comes to one of its most valuable franchises. That often pays off. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, for instance, was a bold open-world reinvention of the classic adventure formula that put an emphasis on flexible gameplay and emergent moments born from creative thinking. That design didn’t just influence its direct sequel, the excellent The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. It’s very much present in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom too.

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