The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is one of the most user-friendly Zelda games to date, giving Breath of the Wild a run for its money.
It’s full of useful tools and features, yet it manages to give the player plenty of freedom to explore and figure out puzzles. It’s hard to strike that balance in a game.
One of the most useful tools that you’ll get early on in the game is the Scope. It’s incredibly handy, especially when trying to track down Shrines or treasures, but getting the hang of using it can take a minute.
Here’s a quick guide on how to use the Scope in Tears of the Kingdom.
How to Use Your Scope
The main function of the Scope is to help you navigate the map and keep track of important features like Shrines and dungeons.
To open up your Scope, press the Right Stick down.
Here, you’ll be able to view the game world as if you’re looking at it through a pair of binoculars. Motion controls will automatically be on when you open up the Scope, but it’s possible to change this if you’re not a fan.
You can place down map markers through the Scope simply by aiming at what you want to pin and hitting the A button. Make sure your target is right in the center of the screen.
The colorful squares at the bottom of the screen signify how many map pins you have left.
Once you’ve placed down a map pin via the Scope, it will automatically show up on your mini-map in the right hand corner and on your main map, too.
If you change your mind about where a pin is, open up your main map and select it with the cursor. You can delete it by using the drop-down menu.
It’s also possible to edit Scope markers and free up some of the colorful pins through the same menu.
You can switch the icon to something more relevant, like a skull for a particularly tricky boss or a treasure chest for an item that you want to go back and get.
This will change it from a pin to a stamp, but they’re essentially the same.
The Scope is one of the best ways to make sure that you don’t get too lost when playing Tears of the Kingdom. The open world is vast and beautiful, but it can be quite hard to navigate at times, especially if you’ve not played a Zelda game before.
What to Do Next
If you’re still struggling with the Scope, why not look at turning motion controls off? While motion controls can be fun, they can also be a little annoying in places, especially if you’re trying to game while you’re on the subway to work.
Once you’ve got the hang of setting map pins, start tracking down the Shrines. The Ukouh Shrine and the In-isa Shrine are the best ones to start with if you’ve just started playing the game.
It’s worth cooking up some food before trying to take on any Shrines or bosses, too.
Depending on the recipe you use, you can get some great buffs like a resistance to cold, an added speed bonus, or a stamina boost.
