The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Let's Play to the Ending: Sealing the Rifts with Brawn Rather Than Wisdom

The game begins with Link appearing to rescue the captive Princess Zelda. The player first controls Link and fights an enemy the commentator calls "a blue pig-looking guy who's obviously the villain." The commentator describes the sudden appearance of a second phase as "the climax right from the start," and responds favorably to the gimmicks and music reminiscent of past games.

After the battle, the playable character switches to Princess Zelda. The princess escapes by smashing a crystal, and here the commentator jokes, "As expected, in the end the only thing I can rely on is my own strength," kicking off the commentary's push for brute force. Right after the escape, a mysterious rift spreads and she has to flee. Although the princess survives, rifts begin appearing across the land, and she also loses Link, the strongest hero.

When she returns to the castle, a rift appears in the throne room too, swallowing the King of Hyrule and his aide. The king and the others who return from the rift are acting strangely, and Princess Zelda is thrown into prison on the king's orders.

About to be executed, Princess Zelda meets the fairy Tri in her cell. By borrowing Tri's rod, she becomes able to memorize anything she has seen once and materialize it whenever she likes. The commentator first memorizes a table and breaks out of jail by stacking tables on top of tables. The commentator explains that if you place a base in advance, you can easily build a staircase with just one type of object.

Once outside, it turns out she can also memorize and summon monsters found throughout the land. The commentator releases a freshly learned monster, the Ignizol, into a village field and sets the vegetables spectacularly ablaze. The commentator teases that this is "a clever life hack for farming in land where crops don't grow well" and that "even the hero Link would surely have done the same," but this is of course a joke, not an explanation of how the game is meant to be played.

Guided by Tri, the princess reluctantly enters the "Still World" inside a large rift. There, something in the form of Link—a Fake Link—attacks her. This Fake Link protects itself with a shield, so the commentator first uses Zelda's power to pry the shield away. Next, the commentator summons a Caromadillo learned along the way (described as a creature that rolls in a straight line) and slams it into the enemy. The commentator says the second phase only changes color and the approach is the same. Taking the shield away and firing Caromadillos in rapid succession, the commentator defeats it.

By picking up the sword the Fake Link left behind, Princess Zelda gains the ability to transform for a limited time into a state where she can swing a sword. This mode is used repeatedly in the battles that follow.

At the deepest point of the rift, a boss holding one of Tri's companions captive is waiting. Its weak point is a round core, and the commentator uses Zelda's power to yank the core out, then switches to sword mode to attack. The system lets you swing the sword while consuming a gauge, and repeating the yank-and-slash cycle three times wins the fight. The commentator explains that on the third round, the chance to yank comes right after the enemy slams the ground, and here too says, "Strength is power." Once the boss is defeated, the companion is freed and repairs the rifts in that area.

Next is a region covered in desert. Inside the rift, a Fake Link equipped with a bow appears. Since the bow-wielding Fake Link tries to keep its distance, the commentator summons a ReDead to make it flinch and slashes it from behind in the meantime. In the second phase it multiplies into three, but the approach is the same: make them flinch with ReDeads and cut them down with the sword.

In the boss fight at the deepest point, the commentator shows off a somewhat unusual strategy. At the start, the commentator brings out a bed obtained at the oasis and simply takes a rest. The commentator ignores the boss as it rampages, gets up and attacks when it falls over on its own, and once the attack is done, goes back to the bed for another nap. The commentator throws in some small talk: "Lately I've been going back to sleep after breakfast until right before I have to leave, too."

In the second phase, the boss sends out three tornadoes, which the commentator dodges by walking slowly. The commentator also mentions equipment, noting that the sandals bought at the shop make it easier to walk on sand. Next, the boss charges down from the sky, so the commentator places a sturdy echo at its landing spot to knock it down. Finally, when it burrows underground and pokes its face out, the commentator yanks it out with Zelda's power. About this boss fight, the commentator says, "It's nice that there are lots of different ways to trip it up."

In the next region visited, a large rift also appears, and a giant fish, Lord Jabu-Jabu, emerges from it and goes on a rampage. At first it doesn't use any special attacks, so the commentator says you just need to get close and keep attacking with the sword, and that the small fish around it can be ignored. The commentator stays glued to the boss and keeps attacking even while it spews something out, then takes a break once the attack ends. Incoming rocks can be knocked away with a spin. The boss takes care of all the minor enemies. Finally, the commentator feeds it a fish to knock it down and finishes it off.

The boss fight at the deepest point of the rift takes place underwater. The squishy part on its back is the weak point, so the commentator knocks it down by slashing with a spin attack, then attacks as usual. In the second phase, the enemy moves to the right, so the commentator gets ahead of it and aims for its back. The commentator explains that the spin attack, when performed by rotating the stick, requires no charging, deals double damage, and is fast, making it an excellent means of attack.

Having sealed the rifts across the land, Princess Zelda finally visits the rift at Hyrule Castle. The boss here is Ganon, but the commentator says it seems a mastermind is lurking at the very end, and that this Ganon is apparently nothing more than an echo itself.

The commentator says it's generally best to dodge attacks to the left, and since Ganon throws his weapon every time he changes attack patterns, the commentator makes use of that. After knocking him down, the commentator lands the usual sword attacks. When flames come flying in large numbers, the commentator blocks them by placing rocks and the like. When the pattern changes again, he also uses fireballs.

Regarding the volleying attack he had also used early on, the commentator says, "Honestly, rather than being made to rack my brain in the name of wisdom, a simple slugfest like this is the best." Mentioning that in past games you could also return projectiles with a bug net, the commentator says it would be nice if this game had little fun extras like that too. In the final stage, no new attacks appear, and his previous moves are unleashed at random. While explaining that you just have to deal with each one, the commentator looks back on it, saying that "since the bosses up to this point had been fairly easy, this boss fight left an impression of being quite meaty."

Just as Zelda tries to head home after defeating Ganon, an entity that looks evil by any measure appears along with the real Link, and the story continues.

After that, new rifts appear in lands associated with the three goddesses. It turns out the enemy is after the "great power" held by the goddesses, a power strong enough to potentially destroy the world, and the princess hurries to get there first.

The first destination is Eldin Volcano. Inside the rift, she encounters a Fake Link for the first time in a while, this time carrying bombs. Since it easily escapes normal attacks, the commentator uses the spin attack here too. Ignoring the bombs and slashing continuously, the commentator defeats it.

The boss at the deepest point is Volvagia. According to the commentator, the enemy's only attack is the projectile it fires at the start, and once you dodge that, you just keep throwing bombs. The commentator says these bombs are extremely powerful. After attacking for a while, the boss moves, so you move as well and wait at the next spot. The boss seems to move clockwise around the stage, and when it takes a while to arrive somewhere, the commentator takes a short break. By repeating "move, bomb, rest," the commentator defeats it.

Having had her strength recognized by the goddess of Eldin, the princess next heads to Faron. At the deepest point here, the series' familiar boss Gohma appears.

Gohma first spits something out, so the commentator lures it to the back. When it scatters insect eggs, the commentator handles them by borrowing Deku Babas. After that, Gohma fires a beam from its eye, so the commentator has the Deku Babas double as decoys, and while Gohma is distracted by them, shoots its eye with the bow to knock it down.

After dodging its charge, the commentator also tries summoning Keese to electrify the three stones attached to its legs. Since this boss can be electrified even while clinging to the wall, the commentator says, "There are lots of ways to knock it down, which looks fun." For the part where it clings to the wall, the commentator plants Deku Babas in advance and lies in wait. Once the egg attack is over, it's a chance to shoot, and finally the commentator attacks as usual to defeat it.

Next, the princess heads to Lanayru, a cold region. Here she fights a mysterious yeti-like boss.

In the first phase, the commentator summons a Fire Wizzrobe, hits its cold head with flames to break its helmet, and then attacks with bombs. In the second phase, the commentator summons an Ice Wizzrobe and hits it with ice this time. In the final phase, the enemy switches elements partway through, so the commentator switches the summoned Wizzrobe accordingly and finishes it off with bombs.

Recognized by the three goddesses, the princess obtains the proof needed to gain the power. However, the mastermind seeking the great power appears and steals the form of Princess Zelda, who had obtained the proof. The princess escapes the predicament with Tri's power and sets out again to stop the enemy.

Arriving at the forest where the great power is said to slumber, the princess defeats a Lynel in preparation for the final battle. The Lynel appears later as an ally in the final boss fight.

At the deepest point, a fake Princess Zelda lies in wait, and Link is trapped in a crystal. The commentator explains that the fake Zelda can be defeated by knocking her down with the sword. However, since the fake Zelda summons monsters, the commentator also brings out monsters as escorts. The one used here is a level 3 Lizalfos, which the commentator introduces as a versatile echo that handles ground, underwater, and anti-air combat, and which also shines in the final boss fight.

Knocking the fake Zelda down three times in total wins the fight. However, the commentator admits that attacking enemies in the air is surprisingly difficult and that they actually whiff quite a lot, adding that locking on might make it easier to hit. After the fight, the enemy escapes, but Princess Zelda rescues Link. The sword she had been using is returned to Link, and from then on the two fight together. Chasing the enemy, they reach the deepest point and leap into a great hole.

The final boss fight is a lengthy battle divided into three parts, fought by the trio of Zelda, Link, and the Lynel. The commentator says they'd really like to charge in and slash personally, but since the sword was returned to Link, they reluctantly take on a defensive role.

In the first phase, the commentator exploits openings in the enemy's attacks by pulling it with Zelda's power and leaving the attacking to the allies. Even when it attacks from the walls, the allies attack while Zelda is pulling. The commentator says summoned echoes attack right away, which makes them excellent. Since the main body leaves an opening after attacking as many times as it has arms, the commentator explains that counting the attacks gives peace of mind. If it has three arms, it attacks three times.

In the second phase, Zelda is separated from Link and the fight moves underwater. The commentator uses the Lizalfos, which is strong underwater. The trick is locking onto the main body: once locked on, keep it that way, and if you keep summoning Lizalfos, they'll attack one after another. Because they track their target closely, the commentator says they'll leap over to attack even if summoned a little far away. Continuing to attack while avoiding whirlpools brings the second phase to an end.

In the final phase, Zelda regroups with Link. The number of arms has increased to six, but the basics are the same as in the first phase. Because this boss recreates the attacks of nostalgic bosses, the commentator urges viewers to whittle down its arms "while remembering how much you struggled back then."

When the fight shifts to a battle against minor enemies partway through, the commentator uses echoes that are handy for group battles. The commentator introduces an echo that shoots off fireworks, which takes a bit of preparation to activate but livens things up with flashy effects. The Moblin has an excellent shield for defense and draws enemy attacks so the princess isn't targeted. After the minor enemy battle, the commentator goes back to destroying the main body's arms. At this stage Ganon launches attacks, but the commentator explains that running counterclockwise around the outer edge is safe.

In the second minor enemy battle, the commentator summons an echo with a good balance of attack power and durability as well as a wide attack range. Since that's enough offense, the commentator cheers on the allies while watching their own footing. When Ganon appears again, the commentator dodges by running around the outer edge as usual, and leaves the final arm to Link and the Lynel. Finally, mashing the A button to attack the main body, the commentator defeats the final boss.

During the ending, the commentator watches silently until the staff credits finish. The story concludes with peace restored to Hyrule thanks to the efforts of Princess Zelda, Link, and the others.

In closing impressions, the commentator notes that this was the first new Zelda series title in a while, praises the high degree of freedom in combining echoes and the ingenuity packed into even the smallest details, and says it was an adventure full of fun from start to finish. The commentator wraps up by saying that since even a single boss fight offers many ways to win, it would be fun to watch how other people play too.