Summary
- Zelda franchise has had lots of remasters but few full-on remakes like The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening.
- The art style of Link's Awakening influenced The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, creating a world of toys aesthetic.
- Echoes of Wisdom brings back top-down perspective and 2D segments, nodding to past Zelda games and pleasing fans.
There have not been a lot of full-on remakes in the Zelda franchise. There’s been a ton of remasters though including The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is a special case then when it was remade in 2019.
It is significant that a remake like The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening would influence a new game like The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom. While it may not seem like the two share a lot initially, there are quite a few nods to The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening in the trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom so far. Let’s go through the biggest ideas.
6 The Art Style
In A World Of Toys
The remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening was such a treat thanks to the art style. It was like players were in a world of toys as characters had a plastic sheen to them. This was hot on the heels of Amiibo being a big thing for Nintendo, so the idea of toys was certainly on their mind.
While The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is not a direct sequel to that game, it does borrow the remake’s unique art style. Hopefully, Nintendo will surprise fans by releasing an Amiibo of Zelda alongside the game’s release to further tie into the idea of playing with toys. Also, it would be great for Nintendo to green-light more franchises in this art style from Mario to Metroid.
5 A New Game From The Top-Down Perspective
It’s Been A While
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening was in 2019, so that is technically the last time the Zelda franchise went top-down. That was a remake though so for some fans that doesn’t count. The last true release was almost a decade ago via 2015’s The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes.
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In that game, players could assume the role of one of three Links who would work together to solve puzzles. Multiplayer was definitely the focus for this Zelda spinoff which turned out well. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is more in line with the mainline franchise even though it is smaller in scale and stars Zelda instead of Link. Either way, getting a new top-down entry is going to make a lot of fans happy.
4 Returning Enemies
From Crows To Moblins
Tons of classic enemies have appeared throughout the series since The Legend of Zelda was released in Japan in 1986. The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening put a fun spin on some of these enemies and some are even exclusive to the game. It seems like The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is borrowing a few of them based on the first trailer.
At one point Zelda can be shown luring Crows to their doom via a piece of meat. Various Moblins are running around the overworld. Underwater, players can see Piranhas and Sea Urchins waiting to harm Zelda. What the The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom trailer doesn’t show are enemies from the Mario series like Goombas or Chain Chomps. Those examples were present in The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, so it would be fun to have more Mario cameos like those examples or Koopa Troopas.
3 That “Tada” Moment
Even Boxes Can Be Wondrous
It would be weird to release a Zelda game without the triumphant jingle that happens whenever players open a chest or receive an item. Even a few of the Zelda games chime in with the music when finding dropped materials from enemies like Rupees. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword was a big offender of that which was mostly fixed in the remaster.
So, Zelda getting that “tada” moment in the trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom several times shouldn’t be that surprising. It’s still funny to see that chime happen when Zelda grabs an Echo for a normal table or box. These are the opposite types of items that should fill Zelda with glee. It will be fun to see how many Echoes will appear in the final game as the producer, Eiji Aonuma, even says in the trailer that he doesn’t know.
2 Going Into 2D
Few Zelda Games Have Done It
The Zelda series has had an interesting history with the 2D perspective. At first, it was a big part of it. Zelda II: The Adventure of Link was mostly in 2D with the overworld being the only top-down portion. In The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, some of the smaller dungeons had 2D segments.
By those examples, it is easy to see at one point Nintendo cared about 2D a lot in the Zelda franchise. Then it went away until The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds which sort of had 2D segments when Link turned into a painting. This is all to say that it is exciting to see a new game decades later with 2D segments via The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom. In the trailer, Zelda can be seen in 2D underwater and climbing around a spider-filled cavern.
1 Link’s Design
How Much Will He Be In It?
There are a lot of things that tie The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom spiritually to The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening. From the aforementioned art style to the 2D segments which could be seen as homages. Link’s design is the only thing that feels like a direct nod to the remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening.
Link changes his appearance throughout the Zelda series. He usually wears green, but his duds are slightly altered every time. It keeps Link and the Zelda franchise feeling fresh. Seeing Link designed the same in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom as The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening is a treat though. Is there a relevant reason why? Only time can tell.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
- Released
- September 26, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- E10+ For Everyone 10+
- Developer(s)
- Nintendo, Grezzo
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
- Franchise
- The Legend of Zelda
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
