Breath of the Wild’s Cut Content Explained

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home January 17, 2025 70 Views 11 Min Read
Breath of the Wild’s Cut Content Explained



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Summary

  • Numerous areas, objects, and graphics were cut from Breath of the Wild but can still be found through glitches.
  • Unused graphics, text, and music, such as alternate Master Sword images and abandoned in-game text, were discovered.
  • Dozens of items, from the broken Master Sword to over 200 unused items, were originally planned for the game but never made the final cut.

As video games go through development, plenty of their features are often designed and then later removed for one reason or another, whether it be to reduce a game’s size or simply as a reflection of a change in the game’s direction. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is one of those games that either experienced plenty of cuts or made it to the full release with some content still intact but entirely unused. Fortunately, Breath of the Wild ended up being an incredible experience in the end, even to the point of winning Game of the Year.

Given how massive Zelda: Breath of the Wild is, it’s understandable why it would be unable to get through the development process unscathed. Games like this usually begin with a much larger scope than they end up with, even if they do still end up being an incredibly sizable experience. Included in Breath of the Wild‘s cut and unused content are several areas and objects, graphics, items, text, music, and other oddities, most of which still have an unknown purpose.

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Everything Cut From Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Several Areas and Objects Were Never Utilized in Breath of the Wild

Sometimes, certain elements of a game aren’t necessarily cut and instead find their way into the final release but are never utilized. Such is the case for certain objects and areas in Breath of the Wild, all of which players can still find if they’re able to glitch through the map. For starters, beyond the bounds of the Deku Tree’s interior in the Korok Forest are some unused flowers inside what appears to be a partially-modeled room. Something else beyond the boundaries of the map can be found in Breath of the Wild‘s Test of Strength shrines, where a giant room lays beneath the floor of said shrines.

At the top of Hyrule Castle in Breath of the Wild is yet another hidden area, this one locked behind a door that is never opened during the game. The pit that Master Kohga falls into during Link’s battle with him at the Yiga clan hideout also has a fully-modeled and textured bottom to it. In Breath of the Wild‘s second DLC pack, The Champion’s Ballad, there are a multitude of unused rooms and content outside the boundaries of the Major Test of Strength shrine, including a giant empty chamber beneath the floor, two large areas filled with water near the start and end zones of the shrine, and another empty space underneath the floor with openings to access them.

Sometimes, certain elements of a game aren’t necessarily cut and instead find their way into the final release but are never utilized.

Furthermore, it seems that Mount Agaat in Breath of the Wild may have once been an area that players were able to visit, as the mountain is not only fully modeled but also has various plateaus and explorable areas resting behind it. This also applies to the cliffs to the west of Rito Village, which have been modeled in a way that allows players to explore them. Areas like this normally have invisible walls to block them off, but, for some reason, players are able to access this one.

Some Graphics Went Unused in Breath of the Wild

There are also several graphics that went unused in Breath of the Wild, which can be found in the game’s internal files. First up is a picture of Link doing a pose in front of Zelda at the Great Plateau, just outside the Shrine of Resurrection. This particular image seems to be pulled from one of Link’s memories and shows Link wearing the Hero of the Wild outfit, though the outfit is a bit different here than it turned out to be in the final game.

Speaking of Zelda’s memories, two thumbnails depicting the Master Sword went unused for the Memories tab in the Adventures Log.

While players can fill out the Hyrule Compendium by taking their own pictures in Breath of the Wild, they can also purchase some from Symin in the Hateno Tech Lab. However, several images originally planned to be sold by Symin went unused, each of which depicts Chuchus, fish, mushrooms, Epona, an iron chest, a Korok, and a Guardian Sentry.

Dozens of Items Were Cut From Breath of the Wild Ahead of Release

Among Breath of the Wild‘s cut content are dozens of items as well. The broken Master Sword, as seen in Link’s memories in Breath of the Wild, was apparently once an equippable weapon that could deal just as much damage as the whole Master Sword, although it wouldn’t make a sound when pulled from Link’s sheath. There was also initially an ice cream meal that acted as an elixir, as well as several cooking recipes that were removed, including Stir-Fried Mixed Mushrooms, Decoction, Strong Decoction, Thai Rice, and Salmon Rice.

Additionally, although Brightcap Mushrooms appear in Tears of the Kingdom, they do not in Breath of the Wild. However, they were originally designed to appear in Breath of the Wild, meaning they were around years before the release of Tears of the Kingdom. Finally, over 200 items were created for Breath of the Wild but deleted ahead of its release, which include various cooking ingredients, ore, fruit, plant, and mushrooms.

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Various Text and Music Were Also Removed From Breath of the Wild

Curiously, within Breath of the Wild‘s music files is the staff roll soundtrack from Skyward Sword, but it ultimately went unused for some reason. There is also some unused text, with “The Master Sword has returned to the forest” being one of them. It’s possible that the Master Sword could at one time be dropped but would respawn later on in Korok Forest. There also seems to have been a demo build for Breath of the Wild at one point, as the text “In this demo version, you can’t advance any farther” was never used. Furthermore, originally, if players attempted to purchase an additional Heart Container or Stamina Vessel when Link was already at his maximum, they would get the text, “You already overflow with life force and stamina. Increasing your power any further may destroy you.”

There are also countless lines of dialogue from a shopkeeper that were never translated for Breath of the Wild‘s English version.

Other Miscellaneous Content and Oddities Were Cut From the Game

Last but not least are various miscellaneous oddities and other content that were cut from Breath of the Wild ahead of its launch. Firstly, there are three chests that Breath of the Wild‘s Sheikah Sensor+ will detect in the game, but they are unobtainable. These chests include one in Hateno Village which awards a Purple Rupee, one in Aris Beach which awards an Opal, and a third in Rassla Lake which awards a Royal Shield. Interestingly, a solitary Shock Arrow is located beyond the invisible barrier in the sky above the Southern Oasis, and there’s also another One-Hit Obliterator that falls continuously near Vah Ruta.

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