One could argue that there are almost always elements of a strand game in the Zelda franchise. Hyrule is pretty notorious for being torn asunder and corrupted by Ganon and his evil forces, and Link is pretty good at putting it back together. However, Echoes of Wisdom takes this foundation to a higher level and solidifies it as not only one of the most prominent strand-type games of 2024, but also of the Zelda series.
It begins with the fact that Echoes of Wisdom’s Hyrule is splintered with rifts that steal away people (including Link himself) and replaces them with evil copies of their original selves while they are left to rot out of existence in a bizarre rift world. Such being the case, it falls to Zelda herself to make things right, and thankfully a little sprite called Tri and its power of Echoes are there to help Zelda put the pieces back together.
Being a strand game isn’t just about fixing a broken world, however. It’s also about connecting people and unifying them for a common good in your travels. Zelda doesn’t just solve dungeons and fight Ganon’s forces. She also protects the very city Link came from in his stead, closes rifts that are threatening to swallow up the world, and even solves disputes between various peoples. In perhaps the first game with both the old (river) and new (sea) Zora tribes, she involves herself in their dispute and ends a terrible feud.
Some may say that strand game is a silly category. We say it’s an exemplary example of gaming narratives where players help make the world in which they wander a better place, often bringing the game’s characters together in unity alongside whatever adventures you may encounter. Echoes of Wisdom checks all of those boxes in a way that no other game quite reached this year, and that’s why it’s our Shacknews Best Strand Game of 2024.
Be sure to read over the rest of the Shacknews Awards in our Year of the Games: 2024 feature.
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replyTJ Denzer posted a new article, Shacknews Best Strand Game of 2024 - The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
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Not sure about that howver I do believe that Death Stranding was a whole lot closer to Dark Souls because of its multiplayer similarities. In that context I think Kojima would consider both being strand games. Purity wise I prolluy would nor Zelda nor DS consider strand games.https://www.shacknews.com/chatty#
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One of the things that’s remained consistent as we felt out this award, is that a strand game means fixing a broken environment and connecting its people in a common good. You save people and even mend political relationships in relationships in Echoes of Wisdom also patching up the rifts that have torn Hyrule asunder.
Conversely, a common theme of the FromSoftware games is that the world is broken beyond repair and you’re just wandering through the aftermath picking up or killing off the remains, Elden Ring and Sekiro included. Dark Souls 2’s ending had you repeat the cycle of destruction or abandon it if I recall correctly.
I think Armored Core 6’s ending where you can free the Coral and the Rubicon consciousness hits closest.
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