He Died Before Beating Zelda. She’s Finishing What He Started

Tucked away inside a cardboard box alongside forgotten garments and eclectic trinkets sat Peyton’s Nintendo Switch. Resting next to a pair of pink-and-green Joy-Cons was his save file for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, left untouched just five days before his passing. For three long years, Chrissy found herself utterly unable to gaze upon it.

Their story began in a college lecture hall. When the professor instructed everyone to introduce themselves by sharing their name and favorite film, Peyton chose an obscure Japanese biographical drama. Intrigued by such a pretentious choice, Chrissy turned around to investigate—and instantly thought he was charming. She quickly devised an excuse to strike up a friendship, and within a fortnight, they were dating. Their friends remarked that it felt less like the start of a new relationship and more like an inevitable reunion.

Peyton gradually introduced Chrissy to a world of new hobbies, she shared in an email to Polygon. As a former theme park ride operator, he maintained an immaculate spreadsheet detailing every roller coaster he had ever experienced. He was also an avid gamer. While Chrissy was well-versed in orchestrating elaborate soap operas in The Sims 4—a pastime since her middle school days—she had never considered herself a traditional gamer. Peyton, however, recognized that she simply hadn’t found the right experiences yet. Shortly after they became a couple, he coaxed her into tending virtual crops in Stardew Valley and running errands for local villagers in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

They shared countless virtual adventures together while occasionally pursuing separate ones. Even in single-player titles like Tears of the Kingdom, they approached the gameplay as a unified team. Peyton excelled at traversing Hyrule and dispatching monsters, whereas Chrissy possessed a sharp instinct for intricate puzzles. Whenever Peyton found himself stumped trying to rescue a stray Korok, Chrissy would offer a gentle nudge in the right direction. Other times, she simply enjoyed watching him decipher shrines independently, feeling as though she had front-row seats to a brilliant mind in motion.

Following Peyton’s passing, Chrissy was left surrounded by the digital footprints of his passions. She attempted to revisit these virtual worlds on her own terms—returning to RollerCoaster Tycoon, a franchise she had cherished since childhood. Yet, it proved impossible to untangle the theme park simulation from the bittersweet weight of his memory. Everywhere she looked, poignant reminders of a stolen future stared back at her.

“When he died so young, it felt like our lives weren’t complete… there was still more to accomplish, outside of our relationship,” she reflected.

When Chrissy finally summoned the courage to boot up Animal Crossing once more, she stumbled upon a lingering piece of correspondence from Peyton:

Dear chrissy,

bazingabazingabazingabazingabazi

ngabazingabazingabazingabazinga

From peyt

It was utterly ridiculous, Chrissy admitted to Polygon, “but it made me cry because I could hear him say it and laugh to himself before pressing send.”

Though it was sheer nonsense, it served as tangible “proof that he existed,” she noted.

Years passed with those memories largely untouched. It wasn’t until Chrissy relocated across the country that she found herself sorting through Peyton’s belongings once more. At 22, she had been entirely unequipped to process the magnitude of her grief. Now 25 and pursuing a degree in law, her perspective had shifted. Instead of avoiding Peyton’s digital legacy, she began to view it as an opportunity for connection. By the spring of 2026, Chrissy embarked on her very own save file.

“I want to see what he saw,” she explained, “solve the puzzles he did, and experience whatever joy he found within this world.”

Her ultimate objective was to complete Peyton’s unfinished playthrough, though she knew Tears of the Kingdom was a formidable challenge. To prepare herself for whatever obstacles he left behind, she wanted to build up her own mastery first. Since then, Chrissy has traversed Sky Island, Goron City, and Gerudo Town. She has clashed with Colgera and Sludge, navigated local elections in Gerudo Town, faced reprimands in Kakariko Village, and plunged bravely into the Depths.

Whenever she encountered a difficult stretch, Chrissy would wonder how Peyton would handle it. She was certain that areas causing her immense frustration would have been effortless for him, given his combat proficiency. While she routinely fled from Lynels and pored over countless walkthrough guides to inch forward, she couldn’t help but yearn for his guidance.

“I wish he were here to help me, or at least cheer me on,” she admits. “I loathe the battles and wish I could just hand him my controller so he could clear them for me.”

Ironically, despite undermining her own capabilities, Chrissy has now ventured further than Peyton ever did. She has mapped more territory and vanquished more bosses. Though she is technically equipped to challenge Ganondorf, she prefers to take her time. Before confronting the endgame, she plans to conquer The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild first, hoping to enrich her understanding of the narrative and deepen her connection to a universe her beloved partner held so dear.

“I think playing his save is not just a way for me to remember a small piece of him, but also a symbolic way of moving forward… finishing his game would be like closing another chapter of our lives. Something to look back on as an accomplishment that both of us contributed to.”

Chrissy knows the journey will likely demand hundreds of hours, but the time investment holds no deterrent. After all, it represents the devotion she would have gladly poured into their relationship had fate allowed it.

“Zelda waited years for Link to find her,” Chrissy reflected.

No weapons, stick only, Hyrule parallel universes: This playthrough of Tears of the Kingdom defies expectations

Source: Polygon