The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Review
No Link, No Problem
Even with it being on its last legs, the Nintendo Switch still has a few tricks up its sleeve. It was only a little over a year ago that we thought we were getting the system's swan song with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. Switch launched with a big Zelda game, and it made sense that it would also conclude with a big Zelda game. In a way, I suppose that is still the case. However, you can always trust Nintendo to zig when you think its going to zag. Rather than wrap up the franchises' run on the console with that highly anticipated sequel, they instead had a whole other game to deliver with The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.
Borrowing the style of the remake of Link's Awakening, Echoes of Wisdom focuses not on the green tunic-sporting Link, but rather the titular princess. Having been captured by Ganon, Zelda is rescued once again by Link. However, amid the saving, Link is swallowed up by a mysterious rift, and Zelda is only able to barely get away from getting sucked up as well. These rifts have been popping up across Hyrule, and no one seems to have a logical explanation as to why. The rifts have also taken the King of Hyrule and his advisors, which leads to Zelda being unfairly accused of causing this trouble by sinister clones of the royals that have popped up. While in jail, Zelda is confronted by Tri, a fairy with the ability to close these rifts for good. One prison break and acquisition of Tri Rod later, Zelda is off to save her father, Link and the rest of Hyrule from this unknown threat.
On the basis of this being a Zelda-starring adventure alone makes Echoes of Wisdom a unique direction for the series. We haven't really seen that outside of the cursed Philips CD-I games. The change in protagonist doesn't exactly result in a wildly improved narrative though. I don't come to the Zelda franchise for the storytelling, and nothing here has changed that. Much like Link, Zelda isn't carrying on conversations with anyone. And while there are some fun moments to be found, such as the musical feud between chiefs Kushara and Dradd, I usually just wanted to fast forward through the cutscenes to get back to the action.
Lacking the sword proficiency of Link, Zelda might seem at a disadvantage when it comes to saving the kingdom. However, the Tri Rod has a wealth of power that rivals the skills of even the greatest warriors. This tool lets Zelda create echoes of almost every enemy she defeats, as well as a bountiful number of objects. These enemy echoes will then fight for Zelda upon being summoned. The different summons come in a variety of sizes and abilities, and you'll often switch between them depending on what enemies you are currently facing. A Darknut may be ideal for taking out close-range enemies, but those who attack from a distance are better served by spawning a Spear Moblin. There are almost 100 different enemy echoes to find, so there's plenty to experiment with.
Over the course of the story, you do eventually unlock options to augment the combat. The first is the ability to transform into Swordfighter mode, which is essentially Link mode. You can attack enemies using a sword or bow and arrow as if it were a traditional game in the series. However, this runs on a meter that drains fairly quickly, so you don't want to abuse it unless necessary. The other is the automaton system that lets Zelda deploy different kinds of robots for help. You can unlock them by completing a totally optional side-quest. While they offer a power boost from your normal echoes, they aren't as easily spawnable as them. If they break during battle, you'll need to use hard to find Monster Stones to fix them. Neither of these mechanics are a substitute for the regular combat system though. They are compliments to it.
It may be difficult at first to adjust to this combat system where you rarely attack directly, but I found it enjoyable almost right off the bat. I loved being able to spawn a gaggle of creatures and letting them do my bidding. There's no cool-down meter on spawning either, so if I need to adjust position or type, I can do so immediately. The only limit on your spawning is the power level of Tri, which is indicated by the triangles that make up the creature's tail. You start with only three, but as you clear dungeons, you'll upgrade Tri's power level and unlock more. Upgrading will also reduce the number of triangles necessary to spawn different echoes. Regardless of the amount of power you have, though, there is a ton of creativity to be found with the combat system.
The use of echoes significantly changes up the exploration and platforming of the title as well. While not as wild as Tears of the Kingdom, the game gives players the tools to “break” it in different ways. Zelda can spawn objects such as wooden crates, beds and pockets of water to navigate her way through both the physical world and the still realms of the rifts. You could create a makeshift bridge via bed or jump onto a tree using a trampoline on top of a box. There are numerous ways to solve the challenges you come across, and there aren't any wrong ways to complete them. As long as you have the space and triangles, you can accomplish it.
The one other skill Tri provides is the ability to latch onto specific objects and echoes. When you first acquire the skill, you'll get a demonstration of how it can move large objects out of your way. However, it has uses in both platforming and combat. You can use it to grab onto a spawned flying tile to cross a large chasm. Or you can grab and hold down a pesky enemy so that your echoes can gang up on it. Most of this isn't explained or shown to you, either. You discover these different uses by experimenting with all of Tri's tools. One downside to the echo system is that navigating and selecting them is a bit of a pain. When you pull up your echo inventory, it comes up as one long horizontal chain. This means you may need to scroll through all your echoes just to find the specific one. There are options for organizing the list based on frequency or type, but the scrolling issue carries over regardless. It's a clunky system in a game that otherwise feels rather smooth.
As mentioned, Echoes of Wisdom uses the same figurine art style the remake of Link's Awakening used. While it wouldn't work for every Zelda adventure, I think the style matches the tone of this game perfectly. The character models are well animated, and expressive when need be. Zelda may not be the most vocal of characters, but her mannerisms help sell the story. The world isn't as big as something like Tears of the Kingdom, but the different biomes look and feel differently from one another. The surreal dream-like look of the Still World stands in stark contrast to the colorful and quaint Kingdom of Hyrule, and is well presented through an isometric 3D fixed camera angle.
It's probably not a surprise to say that the title does have some performance issues. We're at the end of the rope with the Nintendo Switch at this point, and while Nintendo is great at maximizing the dated hardware's tech, it's not perfect. There is a good number of frame-rate issues to be found as you explore the world. It typically tended to be an issue when there were either too many enemies on-screen, or a combination of enemies and destructible foliage. It's not as bad as some of the performance issues seen in past Zelda titles, specifically Tears of the Kingdom and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. But considering the smaller scale of this adventure, you would hope there wouldn't be any issues. There were also a handful of times where Zelda got stuck in a spot due to a spawned object. The good thing is that I could just remove said object, but this would then scuttle whatever plan I was working on. I never came across anything that truly broke the game, but these issues just reminded me of how old the system is at this point.
If Tears of the Kingdom felt too overwhelming in its size, then The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom just might be right up your alley. It features a similar elastic and creative gameplay style that begs of you to think outside of the box, but in a more densely packed world. With a campaign length of just around 30 hours, and a cheaper price point at $60, there's plenty of value to be found here. Figuring out what objects to use and how to combine them makes every dungeon a fresh and fun experience. And while the combat system might seem convoluted at first, you'll learn to pick up on how it works easily enough. I missed the traditional hack and slash combat at some points, but I also loved swarming my foes with ReDeads, Keeses and Guays. There are some minor shortcomings, specifically the menu used to pick an echo and the frame-rate issues - but I still walked way from the game extremely satisfied. It may not have been the closing Zelda adventure many expected for the Switch, but it's an appropriate one. A fun explosion of creativity from a generation of Nintendo games that constantly shifted expectations.