Nintendo released the latest Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom trailer this morning, giving off a better look at this new take on the series. The 2D adventure starring the legendary princess includes meeting many series staples but incorporates quite a few 3D elements that the 2D games have not had much of in the past.
The trailer starts by giving us an overview of this iteration of Hyrule. Like many times in the past, Hyrule Castle is the central point of the land. You’ll also be able to see areas and races that commonly appear in these games, like Kakariko Village, Death Mountain, Gorons, Gerudos, and Dekus. The one aspect that truly has us interested is both river and sea Zoras are represented in this game, and the political landscape between the two seems to be in turmoil. It will be interesting to see how Zelda can solve their differences.
3D features making their way into 2D
The recent success of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom has had a clear impact on the Echoes of Wisdom development. Side quests will now be easily tracked in a menu, and you can select fast travel points from your map. Both of these may sound like small, simple inclusions, but usually, 2D Zelda games don’t incorporate those features. Additionally, for the first time in a 2D entry, Zelda will be able to summon a horse to ride around the landscape and change her outfit.
Bind is a new ability that seems similar to Ultrahand from Tears of the Kingdom. If there is a large object that can’t be interacted with by an echo, Zelda can bind to it, and it will follow her movements. She can also use this ability on enemies and echoes to move things where she wants them. If needed, you can reverse the effect so she gets pulled by a moving object.
The new Echoes of Wisdom trailer shows off a lot more of the upcoming game and gets us more excited for its release next month. There is definitely a lot of Breath/Tears influence in its design, giving the player freedom to approach any problem in a variety of creative ways. That may put off some traditional purists, but we can’t help but it looks to be another great adventure.
