TotK Post-Game: Can You Keep Playing After Ganondorf?

Yes, you can keep playing. Tears of the Kingdom does not save after the ending. When the credits finish you are back on your last save from before the final battle, with everything you had, and that save now carries a star. The world on it is the one from before the fight, so Ganondorf is still down there and you can beat him again whenever you like.

What happens after you beat Ganondorf?

Question	Answer
Is the save overwritten?	No. You return to your last save from before the final battle
What marks a finished game?	A star on the save file
What is new on that save?	A completion percentage on the map screen
Does the world change?	No. It is the world from before the fight, and the final battle can be repeated
New Game Plus, harder mode, DLC?	None

Because nothing is lost and nothing is locked afterwards, there is no reason to put the ending off. Use your best food and weapons in the fight: you get them all back with the save. The fight itself is on the Ganondorf page.

The main quest Destroy Ganondorf marked Complete, with the Light Dragon flying over Hyrule — Destroy Ganondorf is marked Complete as the ending begins. After the credits you are back on the save from before this fight.

What do you unlock after the ending?

Two things, both on the save with the star:

The star next to the save file, which only shows that this file has seen the ending.
A completion percentage on the map screen. It rises as you find what is left on the map, and it is the number players chase for a “100%” file.

A corner of the map screen showing 100.00/100% above the clock and the temperature — The completion percentage on the map screen, here at 100.00/100%. It only appears on a save that has seen the ending.

No new area, quest, weapon or difficulty opens up. Tears of the Kingdom has no New Game Plus and no DLC: producer Eiji Aonuma said in 2023 that no additional content was planned, and none has been released.

How do you see the extra scene after the credits?

Finish every other main quest before the final battle. That means the four regional temples, the fifth sage, the Master Sword and all the Dragon’s Tears. Defeat Ganondorf with all of them done and one more scene plays after the credits. If you beat him without them, you can still go back, finish the quests and fight him again. The quests are listed on the main quest order page, and the tears on the Dragon’s Tears page.

What is there to do after beating the game?

Everything below was open before the ending too. The list runs from the things that make Link stronger to the long collections.

What to do	How much there is	Page
Finish the shrines	152	All shrine locations
Light the Depths	120 Lightroots	Lightroots
Upgrade your armor	4 Great Fairies	Great Fairies, upgrade materials
Strengthen the sages	20 Sage’s Wills	Sage’s Wills
Extend your battery	Up to 48 Energy Wells	Battery upgrades
Clear the quest log	60 side adventures, 139 side quests, 31 shrine quests	Side adventures, side quests, shrine quests
Hunt the big monsters	69 Hinox, 34 Lynels, 14 Gleeoks and more	Hinox, Lynels, Gleeoks
Find the Koroks	900 spots, 1,000 seeds	Korok seeds
Explore caves and wells	147 caves, 58 wells, 147 Bubbul Gems	Caves, wells, Bubbul Gems
Dig up the Depths treasure	31 Old Maps	Old Maps
Collect every armor piece	135 pieces	All armor

A Korok appearing on a grassy hill after its puzzle is solved — Koroks are the longest collection left after the ending: 900 spots across the surface and the sky.

Beating every monster of one kind earns a medal: all 69 Hinox, for example, give the Hinox Monster Medal. A Blood Moon brings defeated monsters back, so the fights themselves never run out.

The Adventure Log listing Shrine Quests as Complete: 31/31 — The Adventure Log counts each kind of quest. Here all 31 shrine quests are done.

To see what you are missing in one place, tick things off on the interactive map.

FAQ

Can you keep playing Tears of the Kingdom after beating Ganondorf?

Yes. After the credits you return to your last save from before the final battle. Everything you had is still there, the save gets a star, and you can go on with shrines, quests and collectibles.

Does Tears of the Kingdom save after the ending?

No. The game does not record a world where Ganondorf is gone. It only marks the save you made before the fight with a star, so the final battle can be fought again.

What do you unlock after beating Ganondorf?

A star on the save file and a completion percentage on the map screen. No new area, quest, item or harder mode opens up.

Does Tears of the Kingdom have a New Game Plus or DLC?

No. There is no New Game Plus and no DLC was released. The Nintendo Switch 2 Edition adds a second save slot, so you can start over without deleting your finished save.

How do you see the extra scene after the credits?

Finish every other main quest, the Dragon's Tears and the fifth sage included, before you defeat Ganondorf. An extra scene then plays after the credits.

TotK Post-Game: Can You Keep Playing After Ganondorf?

What happens after you beat Ganondorf?

What do you unlock after the ending?

How do you see the extra scene after the credits?

What is there to do after beating the game?

FAQ

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