The Legend Of Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom Review: A Long Awaited Journey From Damsel To Destined Hero

Nintendo had quite the task of following up two critically acclaimed releases in The Legend of Zelda series, Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. While initial development on a new Zelda game found the Japanese publisher in a conundrum with Link's weaponry conflicting with its central mechanic, the Echoes, Zelda now takes the spotlight in her first solo adventure in Echoes of Wisdom.

With the princess a natural fit for this new game mechanic within the context of its long-standing lore, Zelda sets off traversing across Hyrule to rescue the kingdom from a potential catastrophe. But how does her first official (and canonical) solo campaign fare against the backdrop of doom and despair without the assistance of one green tunic-clad hero?

Link Up with Princess Zelda in a New Mainline Adventure

Echoes of Wisdom features an original story where our royal heroine finds herself at the center of a dark, mysterious force threatening the kingdom. But she won't be embarking on this adventure alone, as a peculiar and whimsical companion named Tri grants Zelda the Tri Rod and the ability to create clones or duplicates of items and creatures she discovers along the way called Echoes.

This magical ability helps her solve puzzles, explore the multiple regions within the kingdom, and seal off rifts before they consume all of Hyrule. Unfortunately, Zelda's father, his royal companions, and Link himself find themselves trapped within these rifts, leaving all the power and responsibilities to the Hylian princess to free her family, friends, fellow Hylians, and the kingdom itself from a doomed fate.

Being yet another entry in The Legend of Zelda series, as expected, there is a bevy of gameplay mechanics that bring a unique sense of charm to Zelda's solo adventure. The first and most important of them all is clearly stated in the game's title, Echoes, which resembles catching monsters in Pokémon based on how Echoes are acquired in-game.

Echoes are essentially cloned items and creatures, ranging from inanimate objects like beds, trampolines, and pots to traps like Tornando and Water Blocks and enemies like the Deku Babas, Zols, and the Moblins. Zelda can summon these Echoes using the Tri Rod she receives from Tri during the prologue quest.

And boy, does the game feature a plethora of Echoes (127 as of writing) for Zelda to find and copy, whether it's from completing a quest, clearing a dungeon, or exploring the regions within Hyrule. I had fun predominantly using the Beds, the Flying Tile, the Trampoline, the Chompfin, the Sea Urchin, and the Darknut Echoes.

Each Echo has its unique capabilities and utility as some fare better in certain situations... Except for the bed, which is arguably the most versatile of the Echoes. It can be used to bridge platforms and gaps, as a flying object when attached to a Wind Cannon, or for taking naps anywhere.

Echoes are integral to the game as they help Zelda navigate the open-world environment or maneuver around dungeons and solve puzzles, and acquiring them is straightforward by finding a highlighted item in the open world or during quests, copying it, and defeating monsters to gain their Echo when dropped. While Echoes take centerstage in Echoes of Wisdom, there is one returning feature from previous Zelda titles.

In Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, players encountered hazardous temperatures when exploring the Gerudo Desert and the Hebra region. This feature is present in Echoes of Wisdom as Zelda, too, can be severely impacted by the temperatures; however, it's only really felt in one region: the Hebra Mountains.

It's not explained why it isn't introduced in the Gerudo Desert, but Zelda can be seen sweating while idling in this location, which is a fun detail. However, venture slightly northeast of Hyrule Castle to the Hebra Mountains to really feel the effects of the icy-cold status effect, which can be negated using either a Smoothie or a Potion.

More specifically, any variation of the Warm Smoothies (standard, Mixed, or Roctato), the Golden Piping-Hot Smoothie, or the Warming or Piping-Hot Potions for Zelda to be Chill or Ice-Proof for some time and can make exploration a little easier. It's a nice touch by the developer to bring this little detail to Echoes of Wisdom; although not as consequential as in the previous releases, it's a nice nod to these games and the unique features that influenced exploration.

Smoothies are this game's version of Elixirs and Potions, which we know from past games. While Link will whip out a Cooking Pot to prepare dishes and other important consumables in Breath of the Wild, Zelda must locate one of seven Smoothie Shops throughout Hyrule, one per region, and speak to the Business Scrub managing the shop to craft a Smoothie using two ingredients, costing ten Rupees per Smoothie.

I didn't heavily rely on Smoothies and Potions until reaching the Jabul Waters and Seesyde Village locations where Zelda does some swimming and diving. They are handy for boss battles and exploration, mainly when situations arise, like underwater exploration and the Hebra Mountains. Also, to complement the Smoothies and Potions that Zelda can craft and consume, she can don a few outfits and accessories that enhance Heart recovery, like the Silk Pajamas, or the Dancing Outfit, which increases Zelda's spin radius.

Possibly the most valuable mechanic in-game is the Bind mechanic, where Zelda can bind herself to an inanimate object and follow it or her movements. It resembles the Ultrahand mechanic in Tears of the Kingdom, but what makes the Bind mechanic so unique is that she can use it with a summoned Echo or latch onto enemies and throw them off cliffs or into the waters.

However, All is Not Well Within Hyrule…

There is everything to love and enjoy in Echoes of Wisdom, but a few things boggled my mind ever so slightly during my review. The first is the Echoes system, which Zelda utilizes throughout the game, for which there is an abundance.

Depending on the situation, there's an Echo that best suits the purpose, so there's no wrong Echo to use, technically. However, while the Echoes can be sorted using the built-in filters provided, the UI can still be a nuisance to deal with, and painstakingly scrolling for an Echo to use is tedious and painstaking, especially when it's not frequently used.

Having the option to select a few Echoes that remain locked to a Hotbar or slot would've been a welcome fix to avoid endless cycling through an Echo or incorrectly selecting one and having to search again. It does hamper the game's immersion, especially when clearing the various dungeons littered across Hyrule, as it can leave Zelda vulnerable to attacks when incorrectly choosing an Echo that isn't well-suited for the situation or intended to eliminate enemies and monsters.

Related to the Echoes system, there’s a hard cap in place with Tri's power, which may prevent players from spawning too many Echoes at a time or using a higher-cost Echo. While this may be a slight hindrance during the early sections of the game, upgrading Tri's level will mitigate this, which is done by solving the Rifts as part of the main quests.

Echoes have their highlights, but also some lowlights. Zelda's exploration skills, for example, can be quite a bane, especially when wanting to progress faster. Her movement speed feels too similar to her spinning speed, and while her swimming speed and jumping capability can be enhanced with Zora's Flippers and Frog Ring, there isn't an accessory, outfit, Smoothie, or Potion that enhances her walking speed. It ultimately left me using the Fast Travel system to Warp to specific points when walking wasn't quite cutting it.

Finally Getting Some Quiet Time to Ponder on Hyrule Castle Grounds

There are complaints from a specific demographic of gamers that they can't play as Link, and it's simple: it's not Link's adventures but Princess Zelda's. We’ve waited years to play as Zelda in her own game, and Echoes of Wisdom is a befitting game for the Royal Highness.

Relying primarily on what Zelda is known to be capable of doing, and within the context of the game's lore of being the fabled priestess, her magic and sorcery abilities take centerstage as one would expect. Sure, her combat abilities vastly differ from Link's, but once she acquires the Sword and Bow of Might, Zelda too possesses similar sword-wielding abilities, invalidating the misinformed statements that Zelda doesn't have any weapons or can't wield a sword.

That said, Echoes of Wisdom is one of the largest classic-style adventure games in The Legend of Zelda series purely on content, spanning main quests, side quests, dungeons, and in-game activities to complete across Hyrule. While the game can take anywhere between 15 hours to just over 30 hours to complete, based on players' preferences and pacing, those hours disappear with every passing moment the more I progress with the story or lose myself in the charming land of Hyrule.

Despite some accessibility issues with the UI, the Echoes that Zelda collects throughout the story provide much variety to the game's combat systems and allow players to strategize more effectively when engaging in battle against enemies, monsters, and bosses. This variety in her combat abilities, the Echoes, the Sword, and Bow of Might, does make Princess Zelda stand out and differentiate herself from Link, letting her have a distinctive identity that "echoes" throughout the story.

Hyrule's map may not be as large as more recent Zelda releases, but it's still manages to condense such an expanded world into a 3D top-down adventure. The attention to detail is outstanding, and one can notice this when moving from one region to another like the scorching hot desert area of the Gerudo Desert to the sub-tropical environments of the Faron Wetlands and the cool and calming life near the coast of Seesyde Village.

The Fast Travel system is extremely helpful and certainly helps with many gameplay aspects, from warping to points nearest to quest objectives, unlocking new regions, or for exploration aspects like collecting more Echoes, farming Rupees, or evading a fight you're not ready for. Especially with what I've seen in recent The Legend of Zelda releases, the developers have made unique and creative options for progressing forward in-game, from choosing which region to explore after escaping Hyrule Castle to which rifts to seal off after closing the central rift at the castle.

Quests and puzzle solving are engaging, intuitive and extremely rewarding as they can aid Zelda in her pursuit of saving Hyrule and Link. A delightful addition to the acclaimed franchise, Echoes of Wisdom is a beautiful adventure that serves as a reminder of why the series is as well-beloved and celebrated.