There's no right or wrong way to play The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, but making a few particular errors can hinder overall enjoyment, and players will be better off avoiding them if they can. Indeed, since the latest entry to the Zelda series is an open-world title just like Breath of the Wild, fans are in fact free to tackle the game's challenges however they please. However, in order to get the most out of the experience, players should take care not to make the most common mistakes in Tears of the Kingdom.
Of course, every player's idea of enjoyment is a deeply personal metric. One fan might wish to simply explore as much of the map as possible, appreciating every nook and cranny, whereas the next might prioritize besting as many enemies as possible across Hyrule. That being said, each player - regardless of playstyle - can still benefit from avoiding some of the most innocent, general gameplay blunders in TOTK.
10 Underestimating Enemy Strength
One of the most noticeable differences between BOTW and TOTK is that of difficulty, with the latter being much more challenging than the former at a base level. In particular, enemies and mobs are far trickier to defeat, since they seemingly have more health and throw harder punches at Link. As such, it's easy to underestimate the strength of enemies (and overestimate Link's abilities) in Tears of the Kingdom, particularly during early-game encounters. Those who played Breath of the Wild previously are in for an especially rude awakening if they grew accustomed to wiping the floor clean in the prequel.
9 Climbing Without Enough Stamina
It can be difficult to decide between upgrading health or stamina in Tears of the Kingdom, but one thing is for certain - attempting to scale a large surface without enough stamina is nothing short of a death sentence. Because Link's stamina is visualized on a circular wheel, a depleted meter can sneak up on players unexpectedly. Fortunately, some armor sets can help Link climb more efficiently, and it's possible to restore stamina through the appropriate elixirs or recipes.
8 Not Skipping Blood Moons
One of the most common Tears of the Kingdom mistakes is not skipping Blood Moons. The cutscenes, which happen every three in-game days, serve to reset Hyrule by respawning any mobs that Link has killed. In the meantime, however, players will be presented with a long, creepy sequence that can ruin immersion by interrupting gameplay. Some may not realize that it's actually possible to skip Blood Moons in Tears of the Kingdom, which may have them unknowingly bogging down their own experience.
7 Ignoring The Depths
An unexpected Blood Moon can startle players, but the dark, dangerous Depths can be even more frightening, which may dissuade some from exploring the area at all. Indeed, it's certainly more relaxing to stay up on the surface of Hyrule, but ignoring the underground caverns altogether is a bad idea. In the long run, not exploring the Depths will stunt a player's progress, since the massive map contains some of the game's most valuable loot. As long as Link takes care not to run out of Brightbloom seeds, he should absolutely give the underworld a whirl from time to time.
6 Hanging Onto Gems
Another one of the most common Tears of the Kingdom mistakes is not selling gems. Hanging onto the precious ores may seem like a logical choice, since they can be used for upgrading armor sets, and they can even be Fused to weapons thanks to Link's new ability. Despite their other purposes, though, gems still get the most value out of simply being sold. They're the easiest way to make Rupees - which can buy Link better armor sets entirely - and because of TOTK's persistent durability system, their potential is wasted when Fused to a weapon.
Diamonds are the only exception, because they can be used to craft the legendary Champion weapons from each region. Still, once players have collected a couple of extra Diamonds, they should continue to sell the rest for an immense profit.
5 Not Collecting Korok Seeds
The number of Korok seeds in Tears of the Kingdom can be off-putting to say the least, and Hestu's final reward for collecting them all is hardly worth the effort. But while players needn't task themselves with obtaining each Korok seed, not bothering to collect any at all is one of the biggest mistakes players can make in TOTK. Appeasing the woodland creatures may be a bit bothersome at times, but it only ever requires a brief puzzle, a quick Ultrahand build, or even just the press of a single button. In exchange, Hestu will increase Link's inventory space - an upgrade of which the value cannot be understated.
4 Forgetting About Ascend
In the newest Zelda game, Link gets to experiment with five new abilities, but one in particular may inadvertently see a bit less use than the rest. Forgetting about Ascend is one of the most common Tears of the Kingdom mistakes, but it's also one of the most consequential, because it can leave players "trapped" in locations that are, in reality, simple to leave. It's unfortunate, but quite easy to waste several minutes looking for a nonexistent and unnecessary physical exit when neglecting to the ever-convenient Ascend ability.
3 Wasting Ingredients While Cooking
Just like in real life, if players aren't careful while cooking in Hyrule, things can quickly go south. In Link's case, the worst case scenario is creating recipes that waste ingredients in TOTK. Since dishes can only take on the property of one ingredient, players can accidentally squander resources by trying to combine ingredients with various types of effects. It can also be tempting to create complex meals, simply on the merit of how tasty they sound - but oftentimes, the input of ingredients isn't worth the lackluster output.
2 Missing Out On Autobuild
While creating Ultrahand builds by magical hand is a fantastic and oftentimes gratifying creative outlet, it can quickly get tiresome, especially if players repeatedly wish to recreate one particular invention. One ability lets Link by the monotony, but since it's part of an optional side quest, some players may miss it entirely. Indeed, not unlocking Autobuild is one of the biggest mistakes in TOTK, since the associated mission, "Camera Work In The Depths," becomes available quite early on in the game.
1 Making Dysfunctional Fuse & Ultrahand Creations
By far the most common mistake in Tears of the Kingdom is creating a faulty Ultrahand build or a bad Fuse combination. The amount of freedom players receive with the two abilities is a double-edged sword; it allows for the invention of all sorts of useful items and vehicles, but it's also a means for absolute chaos and unintentional self-destruction. As Link experiments with Ultrahand and Fuse, he's bound to make a few builds that backfire, leaving him with a death screen and the feeling of having committed one of the most common mistakes in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
