Video: Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom Channels Breath Of The Wild And Tears Of The Kingdom

This looks amazing, and after what they have showed us, I only want it not to be on the short side.
I know it won't have the +100 hours of content that both BOTW and TOTK did, but hoping it won't only have the ~8h content that Awakening did with this same style.
Just give me something in between because this looks great.

There are definitely shades of the open world Zeldas in this 2D entry. A good thing; the open world games were ambitious, but IMO still lacking. I'm hoping the focus on a smaller slice of world will let those ideas sing.

This looks a lot of fun. Looking forward to it!

I said this in another article but it bears repeating; Echoes might be the first time any 3D Zeldas have had any major influence on the 2D titles in this way before.

This looks like with a more focused approach in puzzles and more actually creative ways to use these summons to break traditional 2d conventions, it’ll be better than Totk when it comes to the creative solutions it allows to more complex puzzles, nice! But well, we’ll wait and see

Great, now I have a variety of reasons to skip this game then

@axelhander My thoughts as well.

@Yoshi3 more reason than one, I call this game the legend of Zelda Minecraft edition 🙄🙄

honestly, this game feels like more like a mixture of the zelda series' entire legacy! So much is making a return and being mixed into this game, and it makes it feel like its a big celebration for zelda's first real outing as the main character. And im here for it, day one!

@JalapenoSpiceLife yes, it does seem like this 2D entry will be a bit more open, but that doesn't mean they're completely redoing the 2D formula. Linearity is still a huge factor in 2D Zelda, and I believe the devs know this and will be sure to match that linear feeling while also giving the player an unprecedented amount of freedom that has never been seen in a top-down Zelda game.

@Yoshi3 i dunno man i wouldnt throw in the towel so soon! i get a vibe from this game that it's meant to bridge the gap between both the new and old formula enjoyers to create an experience that can be enjoyed by both! I think the zelda team understands that the open world zelda isnt loved by everyone and is working to refine what works about both formulas. I think this is a test drive, just like how a link between worlds was. As im sure you know, it experimented with a lot of classic design concepts but experimented heavily with non-linear design, which directly led to breath of the wild, a game defined by its player freedom, something that was just about entirely new for the series (they had toyed with the concept in games prior but not nearly to the same extent). Though i think with the release of totk, they learned that bigger doesnt necessarily mean better and i think the whole ordeal really burned them out on that kind of open-world zelda. Much like how skyward sword burned them out on purely linear zelda, which led to link between worlds and yada yada yada you get the point. We're on the precipice for another zelda formula shake-up, and echoes is the paperwork to prove it. Something that can hopefully make everyone happy, cause it really sucks to see so much negativity around a series that puts out so many legendary games. Or maybe im wrong and the next big 3d zelda game will be the same hyrule but with 100 LAYERS who knows lol

@epicgamner yeah I totally know what you mean, that’s why I’m a bit on the fence to vote with my money this time (I’m interested but need to see it’s more Zelda than BotW and TotK). Buying TotK on day one was a mistake because of what they promised prior to its release, wasted potential, recycling of the whole map and that they Nuts and Bolts-ified my favorite series.
I’m trying not to fall for a second time and buy an entirely different IP with a Zelda skin.

Zelda indeed needs a shake up but to modernize what we have loved about it for 35-40 years…. Not bastardize everything else just to force us an open world down our throats.

I am cautiously optimistic with this one as long as it keeps itself away from BotW and TotK spinoffs

What I’m expecting is an article of “How much DNA from Classic Zelda is in EoW” instead of only appeasing to the BotW and TotK agenda trend, because if this game looks to be around 50/50 I want to hear the other end of the conversation and analysis.
I’ve seen heart pieces (which means a return to roots and side quest rewards) make a comeback and nobody has even mentioned them.

(Wow, they are even reusing the menus style a third time…. What is happening with the Zelda team? Are they really just going to copy/paste things from now on?)

Someone had technically said it already but I'll just say it in my spin. This game has the focused world of the classic Zeldas with the "choose your solution" ability from BOTW and TOTK. It's almost like a proving ground possibly setting up the fully 3D Zelda possibly.

@Yoshi3 I think I've seen you mention in a previous article that you are glad that Pieces of Heart are back. I'm glad for that too; I've always liked the idea of finding and assembling broken fragments of a Heart Container back into one.

Still, mechanically speaking, finding four shrines in BoTW/ToTK, completing their challenges, and getting four Spirit Orbs/Lights of Blessing to exchange for a Heart Container isn't too different from completing various challenges in other games to get four Pieces of Heart for the same outcome. Basically just four of a different item collect.

I'm curious to know, if you want to explain, what entices you to Pieces of Heart more?

Hopefully that didn't come across as argumentative. I just like discussing about what is also one of my favorite series. =)

The Deku race finally returns to a mainline entry in the series after almost 9 years

And the chorus of ''but it's not a Zelda game'' .. begins in 3 .. 2 ..

@SuperBro64 usually some Pieces of Heart were tied to backstories of certain characters that fleshed out the world and made it seem alive. Others were for exploring and using your newly acquired items in a Metroidvania style of progression (something BotW and TotK severely lacked) … some were for completing certain tasks.
The difference here is that
1) The shrines end up bloating the game with tasks that feel derivative, repetitive and sometimes out of place or simple. Many felt like out of a Portal game. Whereas in other Zeldas made you explore the world and just look into the small details. (A crack, a pit, a character behaving strangely)
2) Pieces of Heart felt like an achievement, something rare… while the shrines are over 100 of them and your are just like, sigh… another one.
3) Most of the shrines were tied to crappy quests like bring something from point A to point B while Pieces of Heart, like I said, fleshed something out of the characters in the world. Some were tied to interesting backstories or mini games or records. I don’t remember a single iconic character or quest attached to TotK or BotW … (maybe the mayor quest is the only one similar that comes to mind) while in the previous games you can remember quite a lot of them because they stay with you, they flesh the story.
4) The items! Ohhh the magnificent items. Remember when you saw a Piece of Heart you couldn’t reach or uncover until… you got that amazing feeling of discovering a new item with a different feature that let you access new areas or discover exactly that? A chest or Piece of Heart? That was the Zeldavania magic that has been present since the first game. And it totally was lost with the shrines and the lack of items in exchange for repetitive abilities that you even start with the same ones from the very first second.

Anyway, the thing is, shrines are a bit similar, yeah, but they aren’t, they are just a mechanic to “fill out” a huge map. Just there to give you something to do, they run out of ideas after a few, which by then they start to feel mundane. The PoH never did. They were special. Some were simple, some were complex but EVERY SINGLE ONE was UNIQUE.

I would gladly exchange a hundred shrines so they could focus on real temples and put Pieces of Heart… instead of just dividing their ideas and creativity into these basic puzzles times 100 to fill out your “hearts meter” in mundane mini “temples”.
Also, not trying to be argumentative with you either, I like a good analysis and discussion.

@Yoshi3 Thanks for the reply! You raise some great points there about how special it can feel to discover new Heart Pieces. One Piece of Heart I always really enjoy getting is the one in The Wind Waker where you need to bid for it. That auctioning minigame stands out to me as one of the series' most interesting minigames.

For me, while I can't currently speak for Tears of the Kingdom because I haven't gotten around to playing it yet, I enjoyed Breath of the Wild enough that there were some shrine quests I found quite memorable, like the one for surviving as a castaway on Eventide Island, the one for saving the malice-infested dragon Naydra on Mount Lanayru, and the one hidden within the pitch-black Thyphlo Ruins.

And as for the shrines themselves, beyond the simpler ones that had just one quick challenge, there were some that also really stood out to me. I particularly loved the electricity-based puzzles in the shrines around Gerudo Desert, but the best shrine in my view was the one called Trial of Power near Hryule Field's tower. That one wasn't just one simple puzzle but felt like a complete mini-dungeon, with a cohesive theme of knocking open giant doors in various ways. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sk0-0mUpHE) More of the shrines should have been like that.

I have pre purchased the game some days ago but I was always on the verge of canceling. I have played Links Awakening for like 30 minutes total (another 2D). But this latest trailer convinced me to keep it.

BoTW is one of the top 3 games of all times for me (and I’m an older gamer who started with games like home made pong in late 80ties) and very recently I have changed my opinion about Tears of Kingdom as well. I can play these games seemingly forever (around 1300 hours spent on BoTW speaks for itself). So the similarities in this 2D entry are very welcome.

Why are people happy about Zelda games looking more and more alike? We never needed a ‘2D TotK’, we need a classic Zelda experience without the stupid gimmicks that interrupt gameplay flow.

And there goes all interest I initially had.

Yeah, pass. Too bad.

@PinderSchloss "we need a classic Zelda experience without the stupid gimmicks that interrupt gameplay flow"

...but, that's basically every Zelda game in existence pre BOTW/TOTK.

Ironically, the removal of the "gimmick abilities" and specific items that are found within dungeons actually do the reverse and allow the gameplay to "flow" without interruption nowadays.

I'm not saying don't go back to the classic formula, but I think Nintendo have hit the proverbial brick wall with this experience now (that other Zelda clones do much better).

It's likely why they are evolving the series into something new whilst retaining the same Zelda essence. Not going to be everyone's cup of tea though.

@PinderSchloss This comment invites the question of why people want the "formula" from A Link to the Past to keep coming back. It makes every game feel like the same experience with a different artstyle. I'm glad they broke free of the "formula" in the open world Switch games and I kind of hope they don't ever go back. The "formula" was starting to feel tired and stale after Skyward Sword.

@Debo626 at least all those games had something different going on ... items, maps, characters, temples, themes, artstyle to make them feel fresh.

Ahem... BOTW and TOTK are pretty much the same game but one with vehicles..... woopeedoo

@SuperBro64 yeah I agree that the Eventide shrine was really fun when I got there initially ... but sadly there's only 2 or 3 examples like those. When there are hundreds of samey temples the experience gets diluted.
I rather have a smaller game with attention to detail than having a huge experience that feels samey all the time.
And I agree the auction Piece of Heart was really fun.

Also... feed me bad guys!!

@Yoshi3 Don't get me wrong; I love the old games too. A Link to the Past is one of my favorite games of all time. I just feel glad the series moved on from that formula and I'm excited about what comes next. There's no reason to think a future Zelda game couldn't successfully combine a more story-driven game with an open-world concept. The restrictive nature of the linear, forced-sequential dungeons and item progression was not my favorite aspect of older Zelda and I feel BotW and TotK both proved that the developers can incorporate creative concepts into the series without reusing old formats over and over. Feel free to disagree; I disagree entirely with your statement that BotW and TotK are the same game but one with vehicles. That is at least a demonstrably reductionist position that ignores a lot of imagination and creativity that went into TotK.

@Debo626 I do want them to expand on the formula, but not everything has to be crafting and menu’s.

A Link Between Worlds was great because it had the wall merging that opened a lot of gameplay possibilities and it wasn’t as linear as previous 2D Zelda’s. That was an awesome way to invigorate stale ideas.
This feels very much like they’re forcing gimmicks to make it ‘different’, just for the sake of being different.
I’ll just get sooo frustrated with a Zelda game that is basically always passive.

Going to give it a fair chance (2nd hand) because it’s still a Zelda game, but I really wish they’d show me something more exciting than a female character conjuring up ‘help’ for everything.