The Legend of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom Producer Eiji Aonuma Has Beaten The Game 20 Times

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom producer Eiji Aonuma has beaten the new game 20 times, and claimed that he is still discovering new stuff.

In a new interview published by Nintendo (via IGN), Aonuma advised that the game is more fun when you take frequent detours. Aonuma wanted to dissuade players from rushing to the ending, instead taking the time to explore side-paths. He said, “When testing the game, I sometimes needed to rush ahead to clear the story, but later on, as I started to go off on side paths, I realized…it’s a whole different game!”

He emphasized that the fusion abilities are key to this sense of discovery. Aonuma stated, “Even when sticking things together, there are so many different combinations that even I don’t know all of them. I even discovered something new the other day while shooting the gameplay demonstration video.”

Aonuma has a long history with Zelda. He directed Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, The Wind Waker, and Twilight Princess before either supervising or producing the rest of the games in the franchise.

In the GameSpot Tears of the Kingdom review, reviewer Steve Watts gave it a 10/10 and wrote, “This is The Legend of Zelda at its finest, borrowing the best pieces and qualities from across the franchise’s history and creating something new that is emotionally resonant, captivating, and endlessly rewarding.”

You can check out other reviews in the review roundup, catch up on the last game’s story with a recap video, and see how long it will take to beat the expansive open world with our guide. The Breath of the Wild sequel will release on May 12.