This is going to be a unique Realm of Memories article for me, because this one is about something that happened to me fairly recently — sometime last week, as a matter of fact. With the Tears of the Kingdom release date nearing, I decided to go for 100% completion in Breath of the Wild before the sequel comes out so I could refamiliarize myself with the controls and current lore.
I’ll be honest, when I pulled up the interactive map that shows the locations of all the Korok Seeds and other various collectibles, my heart sunk a little from how overwhelming it seemed. But honestly, when I decided to just keep to my own pace and collect things as I moved along, I started having a good time revisiting the game. A lot of things have happened throughout my adventure, but this moment stuck out the most to me.
So, I was exploring near the Eldin Mountains, gathering seeds and chests and other random objects, and in the middle of a raid on an enemy camp, I noticed a shooting star falling from the sky. I knew from experience how incredibly rare and valuable Star Fragments are, so I dropped everything and started pursuing it. Thankfully, with it being nighttime, I was able to slip on my Sheikah Armor to get the night-time speed bonus; I ate a speed-boosting meal for good measure and then immediately sprinted after it. I wasn’t sure how long it would stay there, nor did I know if it would disappear when the sun came up, so I rushed over there as fast as I could.
Unfortunately, there were a few snags along the way. On the flight over there, I accidentally drifted too close to the Great Hyrule Forest, which boots you back to the last solid ground you were standing on. That was panic-inducing on its own, but then a Blood Moon appeared, and I really became scared. I was worried that a Blood Moon spawning was going to deactivate the Star Fragment, but thankfully that doesn’t happen with a Blood Moon, so I was still on track for getting the fragment.
At last, I reached the mountainside where the Star Fragment crashed. I felt confident, thinking that I just had to go over there and grab it. I approached it, the mass of light formed the actual fragment, …and it begins to roll away. At this point, I was so engrossed in getting the Star Fragment that I’m pretty sure I started to have a mental breakdown. I ran as fast as the game would allow me to go, screaming at the top of my lungs and mashing the pickup button, but I just couldn’t make it in time. The stupid thing fell into the water, lost for good. All of that effort, all of that rushing and panicking, for absolutely no payoff.
Immense frustration doesn’t even begin to describe how that felt. I sat there for about 10 minutes, trying to contemplate what had just happened to me. It didn’t even make sense: The thing didn’t roll away when it hit the side of the mountain, so why did it decide to do so when I approached it?! I don’t know if some divine force is manipulating things from far away, but if that’s the case, it has a pretty twisted sense of humor.
(By the way, if you want to see all of this for yourself, check it out here: https://twitter.com/a1judgej/status/1623518666246737921)
