The Legend of Zelda series is one of the most established in the gaming sphere, spanning multiple decades, a self-contained mythology, and plenty of titles on each Nintendo system. With the release ofEchoes of Wisdom, out of all the other titles in the series, it has drawn the most comparisons to the 2019 remake of Link’s Awakening.
The most obvious reason for this is the style that they both share, but they are also the two most recent 2D Zelda titles as well. In spite of their similarities, the two games feature many significant differences that make them radically unique experiences to play through, so which title is a better game?
5Story - Link’s Awakening
Despite being a faithful remake of a game that is now over 30 years old and from a time when gaming storylines were much less valued, the simple tale of Link’s Awakening is still enjoyable to play through.
Following the hero of Hyrule as he washes up on the dreamy Koholint Island, Link has to work out a way to wake up the mythical Wind Fish, all while learning about the strange inhabitants of the island. It’s nothing too deep, but it’s still impactful with a couple of twists to keep you on your toes.
Story In Echoes Of Wisdom
Although it is a wholly modern 2D Zelda title,Echoes of Wisdom doesn’t really take full advantageof modern storytelling methods in gaming, instead relegating the over-arching narrative to the back burner.
While the story has strong foundations, and we learn new details about the formation of Hyrule, the main story is incredibly predictable and is easy to lose interest in after the mid-way point. One-off characters and some side quests are instead where the storytelling potential of Echoes of Wisdom occasionally shines through.
4Puzzles - Echoes Of Wisdom
Echoes of Wisdom completely cracks open the typical Zelda gameplay formula by centering almost all puzzles around the titular Echo system, letting the princess summon from an ever-growing catalogue of items and enemies.
This means that almost every puzzle has multiple solutions, and the game at its best moments feels like an incredibly refined and fluid puzzle platformer.
Puzzles In Link’s Awakening
In spite of its modern coat of paint, Link’s Awakening is still built on Game Boy foundations, and with that are its original limitations. That doesn’t mean that the puzzles in Link’s Awakening aren’t interesting, but they are more limited in their scope thanks to the original hardware.
However, thanks to these limitations, the developers were clearly smart in building Link’s Awakening to be a tight and well-paced adventure with puzzles that fit with the pick-up-and-play style made popular by the Game Boy.
3Items - Link’s Awakening
A (now slightly outdated) tradition of Zelda games is the focus on acquiring new items to progress to different areas, and one of the best titles in the series history to take advantage of this is Link’s Awakening. This is again thanks to the more limited scope of the game, making it easy to mentally track where you can reach new areas when unlocking a new item.
The items in Link’s Awakening are a little more basic than some of the flashier gear in modern Zelda titles, with most of them dedicated to basic movements like running, jumping, and swimming. However, every time you get a new item in Link’s Awakening, it feels like a treat.
Items In Echoes Of Wisdom
Similarly to Zelda games of its more modern era, Echoes of Wisdom ditches the series tradition, instead focusing on a core mechanic instead of drip-feeding new items. You’ll unlock new items by copying them using the Echo ability instead of at set intervals in dungeons.
These items are less flashy, tending to be standard structures you can use in an intelligent way (fitting Zelda’s Triforce of Wisdom allegiance). Thanks to the massive selection and the fact that some of them aren’t that helpful, it’s less exciting than getting a new item in Link’s Awakening, instead serving to build on the game’s central mechanic.
2Combat - Echoes Of Wisdom
Perhaps controversially, Echoes of Wisdom has some of the best combat in 2D Zelda history, thanks to how much it switches up the formula. Instead of simply attacking with a sword and whatever secondary item you have equipped, Zelda can choose from a host of former enemies to aid in combat, while using her object Echoes to traverse the battlefield. Zelda can also use the Sword of Might whenever she wants to join her Echoes personally as well.
Combat gets even more interesting when you start using Dampe’s automatons, giving Zelda even more to do during fights and adding another layer of depth. With all the options available, this is one of the more involved methods of combat once you get comfortable using all of Zelda’s tools.
Combat In Link’s Awakening
Compared to Echoes of Wisdom, it feels a little unfair to bring up combat in Link’s Awakening, since it is truly some of the most simple 2D Zelda combat, and that can be attributed largely to the age of the original Link’s Awakening.
It’s still refined and fun for the most part, but it doesn’t really matter too much, since combat is by no means the primary focus in Link’s Awakening, with most of the attention placed on puzzle solving with enemies sometimes being thrown in to shake things up.
1Winner - Echoes Of Wisdom
If you’re looking for a deeper experience to play through, then Echoes of Wisdom takes the win thanks to all of the modern features it takes full advantage of. With a deep core mechanic in Echoes, aspects like puzzle-solving and combat can thrive, and theworld has a massive scopewith plenty of collectibles and side quests to keep you busy.
However, Link’s Awakening is well worth revisiting, still holding up incredibly well for a game faithfully based on a Game Boy title. The smaller scale makes it a refreshing Zelda entry with a charming story and interesting dungeons.
