Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom review: Almost brilliant

After incredible success Link’s Awakening remasterwe have a new one now Zelda plays in the same style, but Echoes of Wisdom is not entirely based on its assumptions.

Apparently set later Link’s Awakeningwe return to Hyrule and Link arrives to save Princess Zelda from Ganon. However, after defeating the giant pig, Link is swallowed by large purple slitbut he manages to free Zelda just before he is consumed.

The long-awaited change takes place, with the player now taking on the role of Zelda herself. Admittedly, it took several decades Zelda games that let you actually control the titular Princess, but at least it happened.

Shortly thereafter, Zelda is imprisoned and falsely accused of creating rifts; it is here that he befriends an otherworldly and utterly adorable creature known as Tri. Previously, Tri and the like repaired these cracks, but something went wrong and Tri needs Zelda’s help to fix it. So Tri bestows upon her Tri Wandwhich allows Zelda to create “echoesobjects he will encounter during his upcoming expedition.

This is the entire premise of the game; you use these echoes to solve problems and navigate the game world. You can also copy monsters, which can then be unleashed on other enemies in a real-time strategy game. The entire setup works as it should, making the game fun and engaging.

However, the big problem is that Zelda, for all her echo-making, isn’t actually able to defend herself from enemies. This can be partially fixed by unlocking limited resources Warrior formwhere Zelda receives Link’s abilities.

The problem is that at the beginning of the game, the resources needed to power this mode are few and far between, and without them you find yourself unable to cope with the various enemies you have to face.

Zelda does make a spinning motion to cut grass and bushes for rupees and hearts, but the actual combat is relegated to this separate form, which has limited use.

To be perfectly clear, I don’t mind playing as Zelda. She is one of the bearers of the Triforce, and part of it is Wisdom, hence the name of the game, but the lack of a primary weapon makes her uncomfortable.

Even after unlocking everything in the game, it still seemed strange that Zelda couldn’t directly attack enemies in her base form.

Of course, you can’t really change the nature of Hyrule and its many threats in such a long series, but not giving Zelda something to defend is just plain wrong.

I kept reaching for what felt like a sword attack, only to fire off various echoes, and it took a long time for it to even partially subside.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been playing these games since I was a kid and my muscle memory is such that I expect something similar to a sword. That said, the problem is that the setting doesn’t compensate for this change, and the Swordfighter form is a poor solution to a real problem the game has.

This may all seem completely damning, but it’s still a good game. That’s definitely it not the biggest The Legend of Zeldagamebut it sure is good.

The dialogues, although numerous, are charming and quite funny at the same time. The art style is still as beautiful as ever and the entire scenery is just great.

Hyrule also has really massive and functional elements Breath of the Wild AND Tears of the Kingdom they also passed. From the slightly open world aspects, from the dungeon selection, to the landmarks you can place on the map, to the fun Smoothie organize something.

Yes, you can buy potions to replenish your health and other ailments, but Cocktails offer so much more in terms of benefits, at a much lower price. Similar to the cooking setup in Breath of the Wild AND Tears of the KingdomCocktails are made from ingredients that are then mixed by suppliers.

Each combination of ingredients produces a different Smoothie, and stocking up is a very good idea at the beginning of the game.

You also have a lot of side quests and they all feel impressive Echoes of Wisdom took the best and most appropriate elements from other, newest ones Zelda games without getting addicted to them.

Now you can also ride horses and although this is not new to regular 3D games in Zelda series, this is a fun new addition to the more traditional approach taken here.

Overall, the game is still a lot of fun, and while in the current climate Zelda could have been treated as a character drinking a pumpkin spice smoothie who wants to talk to the manager, the text and overall tone have been handled much more smoothly.

Zelda’s journey across Hyrule is about uniting the people and ultimately serving them as a compassionate monarch. When Link finally shows up at the end of the game, Zelda also interacts with him in a really nice and funny way.

The only downside to all of this is that Zelda can’t really fight on her own. Something that the final boss fight only exacerbates as you watch Link eviscerate the big bad while you simply spawn echoes to help.

As I said, I really liked it Link’s Awakening remake and I really wanted another one Zelda a game made in this style. It’s just a pity that it doesn’t work as functionally as it should. Yes, the use of echoes is engaging and mostly interesting, but I don’t see how it can’t be connected to combat in a more direct way.

Games like A connection between worlds managed to change the tradition Zelda formula on its head and it still works in terms of combat, so the fact that it doesn’t do that here feels like a missed opportunity.

Generally, Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom it’s a good game, but not great. The Echo setup is certainly cerebral, but the lack of basic combat moves outside of the swordsman form is irritating and becomes even more pronounced towards the end of the game. Let’s hope that the next time Zelda ventures into the wild world of Hyrule, someone will remember to give her a sword.

Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

Platform: Nintendo Switch

Developer: Nintendo, Grezzo

Publisher: Nintendo

Released: September 26, 2024

Price: $59.99

Result: 8/10

Disclosure: I was sent this game for this review, albeit a few weeks after its release. Hence my delay.

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