It’s been almost forty years since Link first threw on his green tunic and ventured into Hyrule, saving a seemingly eternally imperilled princess. With The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, Nintendo finally gives Princess Zelda the starring role she deserves.
And let’s be honest, it’s about time, the series bears her name after all. As someone who can barely save themselves from minor inconveniences, never mind a kingdom, I felt uniquely qualified to see if Zelda fares better than Link at saving the world.
Set a few years after the events of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, the story opens with Hyrule enjoying a rare stretch of peace. Naturally, this lasts about five minutes before a mysterious phenomenon causes dimensional rifts, threatening the stability of reality itself. You play as Zelda herself, wielding the new ‘Tri-Rod’, a magical staff that creates echoes, spectral duplicates of enemies and objects that aid in puzzle-solving and combat.
Initially, the whole ‘create echoes’ mechanic felt suspiciously gimmicky, like it was designed primarily to justify Zelda’s sudden shift to protagonist. Yet, after a few hours in, I grudgingly admitted it’s actually brilliant. Crafting duplicates of platforms or enemies to navigate tricky puzzles or turn battles in your favour feels genuinely innovative, bringing a fresh layer of tactical creativity I didn’t know I needed until I spent half an hour trying to duplicate explosive barrels to blow myself up (unintentionally, of course).
Zelda’s approach feels agile and thoughtful, a refreshing contrast to Link’s brute-force method of dealing with Bokoblins and Lizalfos. The echo mechanic enhances this further, allowing for spectacular set pieces that had me feeling far more talented than my standard panicked button-mashing would suggest.
Visually, Echoes of Wisdom returns to the colourful charm reminiscent of Link’s Awakening, a game that on Gameboy, a younger me couldn’t even escape the opening village. The entire game feels like it’s set within beautiful, vivid, and occasionally too cute for its own good world – which it is. It’s not here to push your consoles boundaries of course, that’s not how Nintendo rolls.
Puzzles have always been the lifeblood of Zelda games, as anyone who gamed in the days of Ocarina of Time and cried about the Water Temple will know, and here they remain exceptionally clever. The ability to create echoes of objects and enemies adds new layers to familiar mechanics, even if it occasionally made me feel as if my IQ had dropped about fifty points between puzzle rooms.
Characters remain a strong point as ever, with old faces and new companions alike bringing charm and depth to the story. Zelda herself is wonderfully realised, offering genuine character development beyond the traditional damsel in distress trope. Her relationships with NPCs carry emotional weight, reminding me how effectively Nintendo crafts stories without needing melodrama or overly serious tones.
As you’d expect from Nintendo, the technical polish is impeccable. Load times are swift, and glitches are practically non-existent, the problems are solely between player and controller in my case. Musically, the soundtrack is predictably gorgeous, weaving classic themes into new melodies that I’ve caught myself humming without thinking.
However, no game is perfect (except possibly Ocarina of Time, depending on your nostalgia level). The menu system to select and manage your echoes can feel cumbersome mid-combat, like trying to eat 100 apples and a wheel of cheese in Skyrim, resulting in occasional frantic scrolling while a Moblin politely waits to smash you into pixels. It never completely derails the experience, but it’s frustrating enough to be worth mentioning.
Overall, Echoes of Wisdom is a superb addition to the Zelda franchise. It balances innovation and tradition expertly, finally giving Princess Zelda the centre stage she deserves, and delivers another reminder of why Nintendo’s flagship series remains so beloved after all these years. It may not reinvent the wheel, but it certainly ensures the wheel is spinning smoothly and enjoyably, without wobbling off into oblivion.
If, like me, you’re a fan of the series (or just fond of repeatedly blowing yourself up with magical echoes), this is a must-play. Just don’t hold it against the game when your carefully orchestrated puzzle solutions inevitably go awry. It’s probably just user error – at least that’s what I’ve had to admit.
Author: Tom, Cardiff Store
