The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom leaked, allowing players to play the game weeks ahead of its official launch; so is it any good?
While it looked like Nintendo was set to send the Switch off with a sputtering final year of remakes and remasters, the company proved to still have something up its sleeve. Or several things. Metroid Prime 4, Pokemon Legends Z-A, and The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom are a three-piece combo of AAA original games, while other titles like Emio: The Smiling Man and Atelier Yumia are filling in the gaps.
Unfortunately for Nintendo, while 2024 feels like a very different year for the Switch, one thing remains constant; leaks. Alongside numerous partners leaking or officially announcing details on the Nintendo Switch 2, physical cartridges have slipped through the cracks for every major release since 2022. This has frustrated Nintendo and third-party publishers alike, and a Zelda game certainly isn’t immune to this. But what do people who are playing the game have to say about it?
Is The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom good?
Those with early access have heaped praise on The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom.
At the time of writing, the game seemingly hasn’t entered general circulation. Footage of Echoes of Wisdom has appeared on social media, but the leak hasn’t yet spread to the point where the game is being widely pirated. There are still many first-hand accounts of those who played the game, though.
Ahead of the official release, Nintendo offered hands-on testing of the game to a number of notable figures in gaming media. The response was strongly positive, with some even speculating that the game was deserving of 2024 Game of the Year award consideration. The game was credited for offering a mix of both classic gameplay akin to The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and room for creativity, like Breath of the Wild.
There were many questions about whether the Switch would have anything to offer players ahead of its successor’s release. By all accounts, Nintendo may have saved one of its best for last.
Will the new Zelda game be worth getting?
All signs point to The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom being a very good game, though whether it qualifies as “worth getting” will vary.
Nintendo games notoriously never drop in price to the point where they wind up as a bargain option. That means players who are looking to get it will be paying the full $60 for it long after people are wondering when the Switch 2 Pro will come out.
The expectation at this point is that the game will be a critical hit, though its length remains a big question. Breath of the Wild and the Link’s Awakening infamously carry the same price tag; with one being beatable in 10 hours while the other can last hundreds.
Still, nobody seems to deny that it’s set to be a very good game.
