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The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom gives Zelda her starring role

Zelda running from a purple void
Nintendo
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This story is part of our Summer Gaming Marathon series.

Nintendo revealed a brand new Zelda title called The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom during the June Nintendo Direct. This is the latest 2D entry in the series following the remake of Link’s Awakening in 2019 and it will be released on September 26 exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.

Instead of another remake of a classic Zelda title, which developer Grezzo is most known for, Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom was revealed as an entirely new entry in the series. Using the same art style as Link’s Awakening, Echoes of Wisdom will finally allow players to go on an adventure playing as Zelda rather than Link.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom – Announcement Trailer – Nintendo Switch

When Link is swept away into a void after freeing Zelda from Ganon, Zelda escapes and must go on her own adventure across Hyrule to save the kingdom from the mysterious voids. Instead of fighting in the traditional 2D Zelda style, Zelda will wield a Tri Rod that has the ability to create echoes of objects, which act as copies. This is used to navigate environments, such as creating tables to climb up cliffs, and in combat by summoning echoes of enemies to fight on your behalf.

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Almost anything can be created as an echo and used together to create unique solutions to puzzles. The goal was to create a game where every player can approach each situation differently and come up with their own solutions, somewhat like how The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom encouraged creativity with its building mechanics.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom will be available on September 26 for Nintendo Switch.

Jesse Lennox
Jesse Lennox has been a writer at Digital Trends for over four years and has no plans of stopping. He covers all things…
After The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, it’s time for Zelda Maker
Key art for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.

We almost had a The Legend of Zelda video game where players could create their own dungeons. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, which launches later this week, lets players obtain "echoes" of items and enemies, which they can explore, fight, and solve puzzles with. A new Ask the Developer interview from Nintendo revealed that this gameplay idea came from the original concept for Echoes of Wisdom: an "edit dungeon" concept where "players could create their own The Legend of Zelda gameplay," according to Grezzo game director Satoshi Terada.

Ultimately, the team went in a different direction after recognizing the potential of the echoes mechanic created for the "edit dungeon" concept. While I'm still quite excited to play Echoes of Wisdom, part of me is disappointed that we aren't getting a The Legend of Zelda dungeon maker game. It's OK that Echoes of Wisdom went in a different direction, but this is an idea Nintendo should certainly return to in the future.
The Zelda dungeon-maker game we didn't get
It's not uncommon for game developers to experiment with different gameplay concepts or ideas early on in development to find what works. Terada explained that in one of these early concepts, "Link could copy and paste various objects, such as doors and candlesticks, to create original dungeons." Later in the Ask the Developer interview, Nintendo director Tomomi Sano said that this "concept involved copying various things during your adventure out on the game field, then bringing them back to create a dungeon in a dedicated place."

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Echoes of Wisdom actually started out as a dungeon editor
Key art for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.

Many released video games look very different from their prototypes, or even just earlier builds, and that was also the case with The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, set to release later this week. In fact, the game originally started out as a dungeon creator and editor.

In a series of interviews published by Nintendo starting Monday, the development team at Grezzo discusses some of the challenges they faced when working on their first original title. They had previously been behind many Zelda remakes, including Ocarina of Time 3D and 2019's Link's Awakening, but this was the first time they were trusted to come up with their own idea. Arguably the biggest was what to do with their first chance.

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The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom: release date, trailers, gameplay, and more
Key art for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.

Every new Zelda game feels like an event, and yet Nintendo managed to keep a new mainline entry hidden almost all the way up until its release. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is not the same size and scale as the 3D entries like Breath of the Wild or Tears of the Kingdom -- it's actually the long-awaited continuation of Zelda's 2D titles. The last game we got in this style was 2019's The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, which was a remake of the 1993 Game Boy title.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom caught the attention of everyone at the June Nintendo Direct where it was announced for many reasons, chief among them being Zelda taking on the starring role instead of Link. The perspective and style might look familiar, but there's a lot to learn about Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom before you jump back into Hyrule.
Release date
Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom will be released on September 26, 2024.
Platforms

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