As Nintendo fans hold their breath for the imminent release of The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, it's worth taking a look at how the game is shaping up to compare to its predecessors. Of course, the biggest departure from series convention is the fact that Link will not be the star of Echoes of Wisdom, making room for the titular Princess Zelda to take the reins and carve out her own exciting adventure. But the game may have more in common with older releases than one might initially assume.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, though sometimes overlooked in the era of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, has a special place in the hearts of many players. The GameCube title took on a considerably darker tone than what came before it, striving more for photorealism than any game in the Zelda franchise while presenting a story defined by bleakness and strife. The narrative centers on the Twilight Realm, a parallel dimension encroaching on the sunny, vibrant land of Hyrule, turning its citizens into ghostly shells of their former selves, lost and grasping in the dark, waiting to be saved. Its decidedly terrifying tone is something that not even the literally apocalyptic Breath of the Wild managed to recapture, but perhaps Echoes of Wisdom will.
Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Has Already Cleared a Huge Hurdle Link's Awakening on Switch Missed
While visually similar, Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom appears to already be making improvements to Link's Awakening in one important gameplay area.
Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom's Premise Seems Oddly Similar to Twilight Princess'
In Twilight Princess, the Twilight Realm has overtaken large swaths of the Hyrulian landscape, trapping its inhabitants. Link must venture into these overtaken realms with the help of Midna, a mysterious imp-like creature, and purge the lands of this blight. These consumed regions contain some of Twilight Princess' most terrifying enemies, whose creepiness is elevated by an eerie and foreboding tone. The similarities between the Twilight Realms and their pure Hyrulian counterparts make for an unsettling and uncanny atmosphere, punctuated by clever art design and discomfiting music.
It's not hard to see the parallels between this concept and the world of Echoes of Wisdom. In the recent Into the Still World, a Journey Continued trailer for Echoes of Wisdom, audiences got a better look at the game's dark, interdimensional rifts which trap Hyrule's citizens, including Link and the king, and the similarities between Echoes and Twilight Princess become all the more apparent.
Zelda needs the help of Tri, her own mysterious and otherworldly companion, to gain entry into this alternate landscape, which is characterized by improbable topography formed by the geography of the Hyrulian overworld. It would appear that these zones contain some of the game's greatest threats and most head-scratching puzzles, making for another obvious Twilight Princess connection. For anyone still lamenting the absence of Twilight Princess on the Switch, Echoes of Wisdom could either sharpen or subdue these cravings.
Even the music played in the Still World trailer, with its droning undertones and synthetic stings, is reminiscent of Twilight Princess' soundtrack.
How Echoes of Wisdom May Differentiate Itself from Twilight Princess
While Echoes of Wisdom may be invoking some Twilight Princess energy through the implementation of the Still World, it should go without saying that the game won't be "Twilight Princess 2.0." Like with everything in Echoes of Wisdom, putting Zelda at the forefront will likely have significant narrative and gameplay ramifications which will set it apart from other games in the series, including Twilight Princess. More specifically, the level design of the Still World looks far more dramatic and transformative than the Twilight Realm in Twilight Princess, which has much more in common with its purified counterpart. Still, it's an interesting link to the past (no pun intended), and just another reason to be excited about Echoes of Wisdom.
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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
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
