Summary
As the most expansive 2D Zelda game to date,Echoes of Wisdomtakes full advantage of its scope to tell plenty of interesting and engaging side stories that are completely optional, and can be skipped entirely.
If you aren’t paying attention, or don’t know where to look, there are narrative threads of Zelda’s adventure that you could miss. Some of these will net you rewards if you follow up on them, and others are just an interesting aspect of the strong world-building of this version of Hyrule. So, out of all the hidden plotlines featured throughout Echoes of Wisdom, which should you seek out and experience yourself?
8Finding The Flying Plant
Plant or Monster?
If you want to trivialise the early-game combat, then one of the best things you can do is make sure to pick up the Peahat Echo when you are exploring the Suthorn region for the first time. As well as helping you make light work of the early enemies in the game, this will also be the key to helping out an old man back in Suthorn Village.
If you remember to return to the humble settlement instead of heading straight for the outer world, you may meet an old man who wants to find a flying plant he once saw to cheer up his ill wife. It turns out this plant was actually a Peahat, and once you show it to him he’ll be horrified that what he thought would be a charming gift for his wife was actually a monster. But no need to worry since she’s already feeling better anyway.
6The Zora Child’s Fate
Swimming Lessons
Exploring Jabul Watersfor the first timeis plenty of fun thanks to the two rivalling Zora settlements with Seesyde Village stuck in the middle, giving the princess plenty of new characters to meet. You’ll likely run into a fearful River Zora who is too afraid to learn how to swim, and you’ll unfortunately only be able to help him if you return later in the story.
If you help his distracted mother by showing her a variety of underwater monster Echoes, she’ll snap out of her state and jump to help her son learn to swim with help from the Zora Scale (a recurring item in Zelda history) and to reward you for helping out her long-struggling son she’ll give you a Zora Scale for the trouble too.
5Bempu and Buzzu’s Rivalry
Sassy Scrubs
One of the most populated areas of Echoes of Wisdom’s incarnation of Hyrule is the Faron Wetlands, giving us a look at a more superficial Deku Scrub society compared to previous appearances of the race in series history.
These attitude-filled Scrubs have plenty of melodramatic problems you may help them out with, but one of the more entertaining is the rivalry and unique friendship between Bempu and Buzzu. To help rekindle their spark and overcome their communication issues, you’ll have to take part in their multi-stage hide-and-seek tournament.
4What Is Snow… Really?
North To South
An incredibly easy storyline to overlook will require returning to Suthorn Village late into the game, and is even harder to miss if you haven’t been to the Hebra Mountains before visiting. You’ll find a young boy who has been told stories of snow by Link (his hometown hero) and he wants to see it, a natural impossibility in his humid hometown of Suthorn.
However, if you’ve already explored certain snowy caves in Hebra, then you’ll have likely picked up the snowball Echo. If you’ve got it, then you can show the curious boy the giant mound of snow and enjoy his reaction to the icy ball.
3Conde’s Brother
Post-Game Reveal
One of the most endearing characters you’ll meet in the later hours of Echoes of Wisdom is Conde, the lone yeti living up in Hebra. The lovable creature takes full advantage of being able to chat to Zelda and Tri, and in your conversation, you’ll learn about his father and brother.
Soon after you’ll find out through some investigation that Conde’s father has unfortunately passed, and it seems that his brother may have fallen to a similar fate when you are forced to fight his clone version later in the area. While you may assume that Conde’s real brother could’ve perished in the Still World, it’s revealed in a brief credits snapshot that his air balloon is returning to Conde up on the mountain.
2From The Heart
Royal Duties
Hyrule Castle Town is one of the most expansive settlements in Echoes of Wisdom, and depending on where you are in the game’s story, there are different side stories available to experience. One that you can only see after completing a couple of prerequisite quests is From The Heart.
This mission will give you a glimpse into the proud relationship between Zelda and her father, the King, and if you manage to save the Zelda-obsessed little girl from the Still World, you’ll be rewarded withthe Customary Attire.
1Dampe’s Experimenting
Mechanical Monsters
A character who’s popped in and out of Zelda history throughout the years is Dampe. Originally a gravedigger in Ocarina of Time, he’s taken on a more crafty role in recent titles, with him featuring heavily in the Link’s Awakening remake to help Link create new dungeons.
But here in Echoes of Wisdom, the mysterious man has taken up the new role of a mechanic, and is looking to help Zelda on her quest with his automatons.This extensive side storywill give you a look into Dampe’s personality as you retrieve rare items and monster Echoes for him from every corner of Hyrule.
