On Sept. 26, Nintendo released their latest installment in the popular “The Legend of Zelda” series, “The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom” for Nintendo Switch. The announcement of a new “Zelda” title was surprising to many, especially with the fairly recent release of award-winning “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” back in May 2023.
The newly released title breaks the traditional conventions of “The Legend of Zelda” series, allowing a “Zelda” game to finally live up to its title — a game where players finally get to play as the game’s titular character, Princess Zelda.
In this epic adventure, the people of Hyrule have been stolen away — falling into strange rifts throughout the kingdom. The legendary swordsman and hero, Link, has also fallen victim to these rifts, leaving the fate of Hyrule in the hands of Princess Zelda.
However, unlike traditional “Zelda” games where players fight as Link with his trusty sword and shield, Zelda has her own way of battling foes and solving puzzles. She teams up with a new companion, Tri, who bestows Zelda with the powerful “Tri Rod.” Using the Tri Rod, players are given the ability to create “echoes” or imitations of things they find along their journey. From old beds to pots — and even monsters — the possibilities for “echoes” are truly endless, allowing players to let their imagination run wild with an infinite number of solutions to any given puzzle or challenge. It creates a new style of gameplay for players, forcing them to rely on their creativity and nontraditional solutions for defeating monsters and traversing the map.
The game reutilizes the art style featured in the 2019 Nintendo Switch remake of “The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening.” The style provides a cute and colorful world to explore. Before the game’s release, I anticipated that the reuse of the style would be a bit disappointing. On the contrary, the game expands upon the world with a new and exciting story, fun side adventures and new places to explore.
One of these new additions is the “Still World.” Throughout the game, Zelda enters rifts and traverses through the world inside them. Within this eerie setting, townspeople are frozen in place, and the stolen land from Hyrule is seen floating around the gloomy area. It is up to Zelda and Tri to adventure through the Still World in order to find ways to close the rifts and save the people of Hyrule before they are lost forever.
Another exciting aspect of the game is the return of traditional dungeons. As much as I enjoyed the divine beasts and open dungeon format seen in “Breath of the Wild” and its sequel “Tears of the Kingdom,” there’s truly nothing that beats exploring a traditional “Zelda” dungeon, progressing through by fighting your way through hordes of enemies, solving challenging puzzles and fighting epic boss battles.
Throughout the game, Zelda must use her wisdom to solve puzzles and explore the vast land of Hyrule. “The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom” provides players with a new and exciting challenge — taking on a new way to play with Zelda stepping into the protagonist role. With over a hundred echoes, tons of side adventures and an epic story, the game is enjoyable for new and long-time “Zelda” fans alike.
“The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom” is currently available on Nintendo Switch.
Rating: 4.5/5 Hearts
