Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom on PC: compare both setup routes
ItsOOGWAY · PC guides & recorded tests
Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom on PC: compare both setup routes
Learn how to play Zelda Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom on PC in this complete Windows setup guide. Includes BOTW with both DLC packs, TOTK installation, recorded performance checks, the folder-error fix, 4K rendering settings and controls.
The key checkpoint: Treat Savage Wind and TotK Recomp as different applications with different inputs, preparation and settings. Choose the route for your own game before following an installer.
Before you start
- Keep each game’s base, update and destination separate.
- Compare actual recorded scenes rather than thumbnail claims.
- Use the version-specific save and setup instructions for each project.
Resources from this video
Links, downloads & documentation
Every original URL from the video description is collected here, including recorded releases, setup discussions and related videos. Use the version-specific notes when following a recorded build.
Watch the complete video
Open this video on YouTube ↗. Screenshots below link to their exact recorded moments.
Walkthrough 01
Two Zelda games on PC
Two huge Zelda adventures, two PC setups, and one question before you spend an evening installing anything. Which build would I actually use? Here is Breath of the Wild on the Great Plateau, and Tears of the Kingdom rendering a four K scene on an RTX forty seventy Super. We'll look at the recorded results first, choose the setup route for each game, and then go through both installations from the download to playing. I have recordings from four builds: the older and newer Savage Wind for Breath of the Wild, plus Ultra Tears and Tot K Recomp for Tears of the Kingdom.
Walkthrough 02
Four recorded builds
The important question isn't which download has the biggest promise. It is what we can actually see working, which settings produced that result, and whether you can follow the setup without repeating my mistakes. Start with Breath of the Wild.
Walkthrough 03
BOTW Alpha 3 vs Alpha 4
This is the older alpha three recording, followed by alpha four in the same opening region. Both recordings get into the world. There isn't an active frame counter here, so I won't turn a smooth-looking clip into an invented benchmark. What makes alpha four the useful choice for this guide is the complete setup we can demonstrate: the updated game, both expansion packs recognised, and the configuration and save tools in one place. In the alpha four settings, sixty frames per second is selected as the target.
That menu value is a setting, rather than a measured average. My choice here is alpha four, with the DLC correctly prepared. In a moment I'll show the folder detail that matters most, because copying the expansion files into the wrong place can leave you with a working base game and missing content. Now Tears of the Kingdom.
Walkthrough 04
TOTK recorded performance
In the older Ultra Tears recording, the title bar reads about twenty eight to thirty frames per second across these sampled moments. In the Tot K Recomp session, the performance panel shows a four K game image and a matching four K scene at one hundred percent scale. You can also see readings such as eighty five, ninety four, eighty seven, and a hundred and three frames per second in the recorded session. These are captured readings in different scenes and settings, not a controlled average or a percentage speed-up.
The Tot K session identifies the forty seventy Super, Ryzen seven fifty eight hundred X, and thirty two gigabytes of memory. And four K here means the game's internal image: the display itself is fourteen forty P. I'll show exactly how to apply that resolution, including the restart that makes the change take effect. That makes Savage Wind alpha four and Tot K Recomp my two routes for this recorded guide.
Walkthrough 05
Which builds this guide installs
There's an important date distinction: alpha four is the current Breath of the Wild release when I'm preparing this video, while both Tears projects have moved forward since these tests. Current release links are below. This footage demonstrates the versions labelled on screen; it doesn't benchmark a newer release we haven't run here. Now let's make the installations easy to follow. First, Breath of the Wild.
Walkthrough 06
BOTW: files and requirements
Have your own Breath of the Wild files ready, with the one point nine point zero update applied, plus both DLC packs at version three point zero. The release ZIP supplies the PC application and its tools. Your own game and expansion data are separate inputs. Putting an unopened game archive beside the launcher isn't the same as preparing those inputs. For this Windows setup, the project lists a sixty four bit CPU with SSE4.2, sixteen gigabytes of memory, and a graphics driver supporting Vulkan 1.3.
Leave enough working space for extraction as well as the installed files. The project lists about twenty gigabytes for the setup itself; your original packages and extra copies need space too. Open the official Savage Wind releases page from the description.
Walkthrough 07
BOTW: download and extract
Choose the Windows ZIP under Assets, rather than the source code archive. The build shown here is 0.4.1, alpha four. Alpha four is the current release on the research date shown in the description. If a newer build appears, check its notes first. The project name and official repository link will help you find the right download. Extract the whole ZIP into a normal folder you can write to. Keep the executable, helper folders, and DLL files together.
Running one executable directly from inside the ZIP can leave the application without its supporting files. I recommend choosing a permanent games folder now, so you won't have to move the installation after everything is prepared. The Switch Game Extractor used in this recording is linked in the resources section.
Walkthrough 08
Prepare the game and update
Extract that tool first and read its included instructions. For the base game route, open Extract Switch Game, select your own base package, then supply the matching update when prompted. Keep the original packages intact. We need the extracted game at the supported version, not just the update on its own. Choose a destination with enough free space, then let extraction finish. The base game and its update belong together in this preparation step. Their final output should contain an exefs folder for the executable files, and a romfs folder for the updated game data.
Check the completion message and output directory before opening the launcher. An incomplete extraction won't become complete during recompilation. Now prepare the expansions using the separate Extract Switch DLC option.
Walkthrough 09
Extract both DLC packs
In the file picker, select both of your DLC packages. You can use Control and click to select more than one. This is a separate operation from combining the base game with its update. Keep the output of each DLC together so the installer can identify both packs. Once extraction finishes, open the DLC files output folder. There are two outer folders here, identified by their title numbers. One pack contains most of the expansion data; the other is much smaller.
That size difference is expected in this version. Keep both folders. The small one is still needed for the game to enable the complete expansion content. This is the folder mistake to avoid.
Walkthrough 10
BOTW: correct DLC layout
I initially tried combining the DLC contents with the base game's folders. The corrected layout shown here keeps them separate. The base game has its own romfs folder, and each expansion stays inside its own outer folder beside it. You don't need to repeat my failed move to understand the fix. Compare these four top-level items before going on. At the top level, keep exefs, romfs, and the two DLC title folders. Inside each expansion folder, its data can sit directly there or inside its own romfs subfolder, as the project's instructions describe.
The outer names shown here end in F zero zero one and F zero zero two. Do not move the contents of those containers into the base game's romfs. Open Savage Wind Configuration.
Walkthrough 11
BOTW: select files and build
On the first setup screen, choose the game files folder. Select the parent containing exefs, romfs, and both DLC folders. Don't go inside exefs or select only the base romfs. In my final recording, all four items are visible at the same level. That's the useful checkpoint to compare with your own screen before you confirm. Leave precompile all shaders enabled if you want to prepare them before playing. It adds time to setup, but moves that work out of the first gameplay session.
The colour look is a visual preference. Once your folder and options are correct, choose Set up game files. The application checks the files, copies what it needs, and then builds the game code. Now the progress bar will spend time copying and recompiling.
Walkthrough 12
Recompilation and shader preparation
These are passive waits, so I've accelerated this section. Leave the application running and let the stage change on its own. Reaching a new progress bar doesn't mean setup restarted; checking, copying, game code compilation, and shader preparation are different parts of the same process. After the game code, shader preparation translates the shaders and builds graphics pipelines. This is another wait, and its speed depends on your PC and driver. I haven't sped up any gameplay to make performance look different.
Only these setup progress sections are accelerated. Wait for the ready message rather than closing the application when one percentage reaches a hundred. When preparation finishes, the configuration screen reports that the game files are ready.
Walkthrough 13
BOTW: verify DLC and launch
Before launching, open Game Files and check the downloadable content entry. Here it reads one plus two, version three point zero. That confirms both packs were detected by setup. If your game runs but the DLC isn't available, this is the first place to check. If only one pack is listed, check your extracted DLC output and its folder structure. The official instructions say the game uses the expansion content when it finds both packs.
You don't need to guess from the size of the files or restart your entire setup immediately. Fix the separate DLC folders, then use the DLC installation route documented on the project's game files page. Choose Play and let the first launch finish.
Walkthrough 14
First launch and DLC menus
On the title screen, you can check the DLC version, and inside the game the expansion information pages show features such as the Travel Medallion and The Champions' Ballad. These are practical checks that the content has been recognised. The recording shows those menus after this installation, then continues into the opening area. Seeing the expansion listed doesn't mean every quest is immediately available on a brand new save. Some content depends on your progress in the game.
Start by confirming that setup detects both packs, then check the title and expansion menus. That separates an installation problem from a quest that hasn't reached its unlock point yet. Before heading out, open the game's Options and choose controls that feel comfortable.
Walkthrough 15
BOTW: controls and picture
You can play with a controller, or with keyboard and mouse. Start with default graphics settings. Adjust resolution, frame rate, and display mode for your screen. A higher frame rate option sets your target. Actual performance depends on your hardware and settings. Make one settings change at a time and test the same area again. That makes it much easier to decide whether a change helped. Here the opening shrine leads out onto the Great Plateau.
This is the first useful playability check: movement, camera control, and a world that you can actually explore. Keep the configuration window out of the way once you've finished setting it up. One last habit will save you trouble later.
Walkthrough 16
BOTW: save backup
Open Configuration, then Settings, then Saves. The built in backup option copies your save folder into a dated backup. You can also open the actual save location from this page. Do that before replacing a build, and keep a copy outside the folder you're updating. That backup is worth making before any future build change. Breath of the Wild is ready. The updated base game is prepared, setup detects both expansion packs, and the backup controls are available for your next update.
Let's take a moment in the world, then move straight into the Tears of the Kingdom setup. Now Tears of the Kingdom.
Walkthrough 17
TOTK: choose the installer
Tot K Recomp prepares a Windows executable from your own supported game files. The recording uses zero point one point one. The project has since released zero point three point four, so use the current official release page and read its supported inputs. The setup approach is still a Windows installer with your game files and a destination, rather than compiling the source yourself. Before you start, check the current project requirements and update your graphics driver.
The current instructions list a sixty four bit Windows PC, a supported processor, and Vulkan 1.3 graphics with the required extension. Leave about thirty six gigabytes free during setup, plus space for your original packages. Keeping an empty destination ready now avoids the installation error we'll fix shortly. Open the official Tot K Recomp releases page from the description. Under Assets, choose the Windows setup ZIP rather than the source code archive. The release page in this recording is the older build used for the performance footage.
For a fresh installation today, choose the current Windows package and check its release notes. Extract the entire package into its own folder. Open the extracted folder and launch Tot K Setup. If Windows displays the unsigned-app warning shown here, check that you're opening the file you downloaded from the project's release page before continuing. Now we're at the setup form.
Walkthrough 18
TOTK: select game inputs
Work through the rows from top to bottom, because the base game and the update are separate selections. In the first row, click Browse and select your own base-game dump. In the second row, choose the supported update for that game. This recording ends up running game version one point four point three. Match your files to the versions accepted by this installer; don't assume any update will work just because its number is newer.
The third row requests your own required key file for processing your game dump. Select that file locally with Browse. The extractor helper linked in the resources section is a separate tool; it is not a replacement for your personal inputs. Keep those private files on your own machine. Once all three rows are filled, check the selected filenames before continuing. Next, choose the game language and the installation folder. Keep the installer folder separate from the new game destination.
This is the point where my first attempt stopped, and the next screen explains why. I originally pointed the installer at the folder containing the setup files.
Walkthrough 19
TOTK: nonempty-folder error and fix
When I pressed Start, it stopped and said the folder wasn't empty and didn't contain an earlier installation. The game files weren't the problem here. The destination was. Click Back, open the folder picker again, and create a new, empty folder for the game. Select that new folder, return to the form, and press Start again. You can see that the same installer now continues successfully. For a fresh setup, using a separate empty destination avoids this mistake.
From here, let the installer work.
Walkthrough 20
TOTK: build and shader preparation
It checks the inputs, prepares the game, translates the code, compiles the executable, and prepares the shaders. Some stages take much longer than others, so a slow-moving progress bar on its own doesn't mean you need to restart everything. I'm speeding up the passive work here. From the successful start to the ready screen, the recorded run took about fourteen minutes and thirty nine seconds. Your hardware and build can take a different amount of time.
Let the checking, translation, executable build, and shader stages finish. The checkpoint is the ready screen with every stage complete. Once that appears, choose Open folder.
Walkthrough 21
TOTK: first launch
Inside the installation directory, launch tot k dot EXE. That's the game executable you'll use for later launches. Keep the rest of the generated folder together with it. And we're in. The opening sequence loads, the audio is working, and we can take control of Link. Now let's turn that successful launch into the sharper, smoother PC experience we came here for. Press F one to open the settings menu.
Walkthrough 22
TOTK: frame rate and controls
F eleven switches fullscreen, and F ten cycles the performance display. Everything we need for the next part is available from inside the game. Start with the Game tab and look at Frame rate limit. This is where you can move beyond the original thirty-frame target and choose the experience you want from your PC. Start at sixty, or choose a higher target if your system has the headroom. Moving the camera and exploring the world feels much more fluid once you're playing at a comfortable higher frame rate.
Keep the clock and high-frame-rate physics options underneath at their intended defaults. Then move over to the Screen tab, where we can bring the image quality up to match. The two picture settings to focus on are Game resolution and three D render scale.
Walkthrough 23
TOTK: apply 4K rendering
For the four K setup shown here, choose thirty-eight forty by twenty-one sixty and set the three D render scale to one hundred percent. Fullscreen then gives you a much cleaner way to enjoy it. There is one easy detail to catch: these picture settings apply after a restart. Once you've chosen them, let the game save, quit, and launch it again. That restart completes the change. If you select a new resolution and the picture seems unchanged, this is the first thing to check.
You don't need to rebuild the installation just to apply these settings. After relaunching, the full performance panel confirms the four K game image and matching scene at one hundred percent. Now we have the result we wanted: a sharper world, smooth movement, and the freedom to tune the experience from the game's own menu. I'm rendering the game at four K here on a fourteen forty P display, so that higher-resolution image is being fitted to my screen.
You can choose the resolution that suits your own display and PC. Take a look across the Great Sky Island and the movement through this scene. Those are the practical results of the settings we just applied. Keep the detailed performance panel available while you tune things, then hide it when you want a clear view. A frame-rate limit is the ceiling you selected, not a promise that every scene will reach that number. If you prefer more performance, you can use a lower game resolution.
If your PC has more room, explore the higher targets. Make one change, restart when the menu asks, and try the same area again. That gives you an easy way to find your own balance between clarity and responsiveness. Now for the controls.
Walkthrough 24
TOTK: keyboard, mouse and controller
I test both keyboard and mouse and a controller here. With the default keyboard bindings, WASD moves Link, the mouse controls the camera, Space jumps, and E interacts. The controls page lets you inspect and change the bindings if something feels unfamiliar. For a controller, check the button-layout option if the prompts and your physical buttons don't line up the way you expect. You can also adjust vibration strength and mouse-camera sensitivity in this menu.
Mouse-camera sensitivity is worth adjusting before you settle into playing. The camera keeps the feel of the game's stick-based controls, so choose a value that makes turning and aiming comfortable for you. Once that's set, you can move between the input methods and use whichever feels better. Both installations are now demonstrated: Breath of the Wild with both DLC packs, and Tears of the Kingdom with the four K image applied after restarting.
Walkthrough 25
Both installations complete
Keep the original extracted data and save backups separate from disposable downloads. For the next update, start with the project's instructions rather than deleting everything and rebuilding from scratch. The release links, supported-version notes, extractor helper, and chapters are in the description, so you can return directly to the step you need.
Walkthrough 26
Results and community
If you're comparing builds, share the exact release, game version, resolution, and the area you tested. That gives the next person something useful to compare instead of a number with no settings behind it. And if you want help with these setups, build testing, or keeping up with the next Zelda PC update, join our Discord through the link below. We're building a community where people can share working steps and help each other get playing.
Enjoy Hyrule, and I'll see you in the next one.
If your result differs
| Situation | Next useful check |
|---|---|
| Mixing the two setup forms | Return to the appropriate project and its exact supported inputs. |
| A resolution change does not apply | Check the settings page’s restart requirement before rebuilding. |
| Looking for a complete-game guarantee | The demonstrations establish recorded scenes and setup checkpoints, not every quest or location. |
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