Our top pick of the week: The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

When Nintendo announced its latest Zelda game back in June, the big news was that — not technically for the first time, but for the first time in a significant release — it stars Zelda rather than Link. Despite having had her name in the series' title from the beginning, Zelda has generally taken a backseat in the games, so the news got many excited to see how a fresh take on things would play out.

Well, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom shipped this week, and it turns out that it's a little more about Link than we expected, but it's still a great game featuring a fresh approach based around creative puzzle solving.

"As much as Echoes of Wisdom brings a real 'this ain't about him' energy to the series, it's still a story just as much about Link as it is about Zelda," wrote Jeff Parkin in Polygon's review. "The context gives a justification (take it or leave it) for Zelda's more passive role.

"But does it work?

"Simply put: It does. It's a fun as hell game. It's challenging and satisfying. And it fits neatly in the established mythos as another incarnation of our beloved hero(es). There's a real sense of accomplishment in conducting a herd of boomerang-wielding Bokoblins as they pepper every enemy with attacks and then conjuring a bridge made of beds to cross an unjumpable gap. Sure, you might not be swinging the sword, but Echoes of Wisdom proves that the pen — or the bed, table, crate, or boulder — can be even mightier."

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The best of the rest

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