While fans look ahead to the next The Legend of Zelda game, past games like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom could be the last time players experience game-defining mechanics like Ultrahand or Echoes. Over the years and throughout the series' history, The Legend of Zelda has seen a wide range of special mechanics unique to each game. However, this has also set a sad but understandable precedent where each game's exclusive mechanic or feature is promptly retired ahead of the next Zelda adventure.
Though this tradition of starting each game from scratch and following Zelda's cyclical timeline has helped keep the series' gameplay fresh and inventive, it has meant that various standout mechanics have been left behind despite their popularity among players. Features like The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess with Link's wolf form or The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword's exploration of the Wii's motion controls have so far remained exclusive to past games, even despite the creative potential they could still have. Now the same could happen to Zelda's most recent features, Ultrahand and Echoes, as the series moves on to its next game.
Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, Tears of the Kingdom Might Set One Aspect of Hyrule in Stone
After Echoes of Wisdom and Tears of the Kingdom, one mechanic from recent Legend of Zelda games looks like it may be here to stay.
Remembering Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom's Ultrahand and Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom's Echoes
As the direct sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, there was a high standard to meet regarding fans' expectations, but Tears of the Kingdom's new Ultrahand ability spearheaded the necessary effort that made the game so memorable. Combined with the game's all-new Zonai technology and components, Tears of the Kingdom quickly gained notoriety thanks to the variety of player-made solutions and contraptions created using the Ultrahand mechanic. But unlike its predecessor, with no plans for Tears of the Kingdom DLC or another sequel, the Ultrahand mechanic appears to have been retired.
Continuing after Tears of the Kingdom meant that Echoes of Wisdom also faced a high bar, but its reprised toy-like designs of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening remake and the switch in protagonist helped give the game its own identity. What further set the game apart was its Echoes mechanic, allowing players to summon objects and creatures in order to defeat enemies and solve puzzles. But while Echoes of Wisdom's Echoes offered the same freedom as Ultrahand for players, it seems the mechanic is unlikely to return in a future game anytime soon alongside Princess Zelda as a protagonist.
Exploring One-off Special Features From Past Zelda Games
Despite the disappointment some fans might have from leaving Tears of the Kingdom's Ultrahand or Echoes of Wisdom's Echoes behind, this has become an expected standard for the Zelda series given how many other features have been and gone. The list below outlines just a few examples where key mechanics and features with great creative potential appeared in only one or two games before being ultimately retired.
- Twilight Princess' Wolf Link
- Skyward Sword's motion controls
- Wind Waker's and Phantom Hourglass' sailing
- Spirit Tracks' train traversal
- Majora's Mask's mask transformations
- A Link Between Worlds' wall-merge ability
Though some mechanics have varied throughout the series, such as time travel's recurrence in Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, Tears of the Kingdom, and more, the Zelda series seems to keep its central features exclusive to just one or two games.
Moving On From Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom's Ultrahand and Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom's Echoes
Between Nintendo breaking from Tears of the Kingdom's future and moving on from Echoes of Wisdom, the next Zelda game is likely going to follow the series' trend and start over with its gameplay. With the possibility of Nintendo's next Switch 2 console on the horizon, the next Zelda game will likely try to add its own twist to the formula much like Tears of the Kingdom and Echoes of Wisdom did. But whatever this next new gimmick will be, it seems that, as usual, fans of past features will have to accept that the likes of Echoes or Ultrahand might never return in future Zelda games.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 85 /100 Critics Rec: 93%
- Released
- September 26, 2024
- ESRB
- E10+ For Everyone 10+
- Developer(s)
- Nintendo, Grezzo
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
- Engine
- Havok
- Franchise
- The Legend of Zelda
WHERE TO PLAY
Save Hyrule—this time with the wisdom of Princess Zelda!
The people of Hyrule are being stolen away by strange rifts—and with a certain swordsman among the missing, it’s up to Princess Zelda to save her kingdom in the latest adventure in The Legend of Zelda™ series!
Team up with the ethereal creature Tri and use the Tri Rod to create “echoes,” which are imitations of things you find in the environment—then recreate those echoes whenever you like to solve puzzles and defeat enemies. Use echoes like water blocks to reach new heights, make bridges out of old beds, throw rocks at foes, or find your own combination of echoes to do things your way. You can even make echoes of monsters to fight at your side in combat!
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
- How Long To Beat
- 20 Hours
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
