Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Already Cleared a Hurdle Link's…

Summary

Echoes of Wisdom will follow Link's Awakening's cute art style but aims to improve movement options for players.
The game draws inspiration from past Zelda titles, blending 2D and 3D elements to create a fresh experience.
To establish the future of 2D Zelda games, Echoes of Wisdom must correct design issues seen in Link's Awakening like limited movement.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is set to carry on the tradition of Link's Awakening on the Nintendo Switch by following a similar cute art style. While the similarities between Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom and Link's Awakening may extend beyond the shared art style, one aspect of Link's Awakening should be avoided by Echoes of Wisdom. Although the Nintendo Switch was capable of it, Link's Awakening was very limited in its movement options for players, a hindrance that Echoes of Wisdom can sidestep as it aims to establish the future of the franchise's 2D entries.

As more is revealed about Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, it's become clear that the game is drawing from a variety of sources from the series' past for inspiration. Not only does it seem to be evolving the top-down 2D formula seen in games like Link's Awakening, but the presence of abilities like Bind and Echo suggests that the game is also pulling from 3D titles like Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom as well. With Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom set to blend the old with the new, it's even more important that the game seems to have shed some lingering design issues of the past like Link's Awakening locked eight-directional movement.

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By Josh Cotts

Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Seems to Feature Full 360-Degree Movement

Link's Awakening Stumbled with its Movement Controls

Staying true to the original Game Boy release, the Link's Awakening remake on Switch uses eight-directional movement rather than an option for full 360-degree movement with the Joy-Con's thumbstick. While this design choice maintains the feel of the original release, it is somewhat jarring to see how limited Link's movement is compared to the beautiful visuals the game boasts. As a side effect of this design choice, Link's walking animations can look clunky as he snaps from direction to direction without any frames in between.

Having eight-directional movement isn't that big of a hang-up on its own, as many other Switch titles have succeeded with this design just fine. However, Link's Awakening doesn't give players the option to use the Joy-Con's D-Pad for movement, forcing the use of the thumbstick to control Link. The range of motion provided by the thumbstick makes it feel like Link should have more directional mobility than he does, and the ability to control his movement with the D-Pad could have at least given the game a more retro feel control-wise.

Echoes of Wisdom Course Correcting Movement Options is Important for the Series' Future

With the way combat in Echoes of Wisdom relies on Zelda creating Echoes of enemies, it may not be as important that the game has 360-degree movement options. But the future of the top-down Zelda games in a post-Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom world hinges on the game feeling mechanically sound. That's why it's important that Echoes of Wisdom improve upon the mistakes of Link's Awakening and couple solid visuals with tight controls.

There will likely be scenarios in Echoes of Wisdom where having full control over the direction Zelda is moving will be imperative, such as when riding across Hyrule on horseback or accurately placing items created by Echoes. As the series gets more experimental with in-game physics, translating them to the top-down 2D space with tight movement options will greatly improve how it feels to play and work through these new puzzles. Based on what has been shown in the trailer, the smoother walk cycle for Zelda suggests, at the very least, the game will feature seamless eight-directional movement, but it is more likely that 360-directional movement has already been achieved and given Echoes of Wisdom a leg up on Link's Awakening.

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