Zelda Botw 1.6.0 Update
For the dedicated Breath of the Wild speedrunning and glitch-hunting community, updates are often a source of anxiety. Historically, Nintendo has patched out major sequence breaks (such as the "Bullet Time Bounce" or various memory leaks).
The good news for players: Version 1.6.0 did not patch any major movement tech or speedrunning glitches.
Because this update focused primarily on licensing for the Game Trials, it did not alter the game's physics engine or memory allocation methods. Consequently, the speedrunning community did not need to segregate a new "1.6.0" category, and most players saw no discernible difference in gameplay mechanics. zelda botw 1.6.0 update
The most impactful change for collectors was the removal of an exploit involving the Super Smash Bros. series Amiibo (specifically Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf). Previously, scanning an Amiibo, reloading a save, and scanning again allowed players to bypass the daily limit. Version 1.6.0 hardened the Amiibo cache memory, making it much harder to "time travel" farm for the Twilight Bow or Epona without fully closing the game.
| Scenario | Recommendation | |----------|----------------| | You play on Switch OLED | ✅ Yes — better color accuracy | | You use Bluetooth headphones | ✅ Yes — reduced audio lag | | You’re a glitch speedrunner | ⚠️ Optional — but 1.6.0 doesn’t break major tricks | | You’re on Cemu emulator | ✅ Yes — but grab the latest Cemu version first | | You want max mod compatibility | ❌ Stay on 1.5.0 — some older mods target that version | For the dedicated Breath of the Wild speedrunning
One of the most complex glitches in BotW history was "Apparatus Storage," which allowed players to store momentum from shrines. This was used to perform a "Firestorm"—a hurricane-force wind blast that could launch enemies into space. Ver 1.6.0 introduced a sanity check on Link’s velocity vector. If the game detects a speed value exceeding what is physically possible via normal physics (like using a Magnesis cannon), it caps the velocity. While you can still do "Wind Bombs" (a separate exploit), the apocalyptic Firestorm is gone.
The 1.6.0 update added several new armor sets to the game, which are obtained either through the DLC or by completing specific tasks: Because this update focused primarily on licensing for
Interestingly, the Wii U version of Breath of the Wild also received a 1.6.0 update. However, on Wii U, it only added the Tears of the Kingdom save recognition. The glitch patches (Apparatus Storage) remain active because the Wii U’s PowerPC architecture couldn't run the new velocity checks without performance hits. This makes the Wii U version the last "wild west" version for glitchers.
To understand 1.6.0, we must look back at the timeline. The last major content drop for Breath of the Wild was The Champions' Ballad DLC in late 2017. Following that, updates focused on:
For two years, the game sat at Version 1.5.0. Many assumed development was complete. Then, in November 2019, Nintendo dropped Version 1.6.0 out of the blue. It arrived with patch notes so cryptic they became legendary in the community:
That was it. No mention of specific bugs, no new features. In Nintendo's typical style, they gave nothing away. But the modding and speedrunning communities immediately began reverse-engineering the 19MB download.
