The Legend Of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom may be the earliest series of events players have seen. This game includes events only mentioned in prologues of other games, and characters that set the stage for events fans are more than familiar with. This will be the first mainline game that features Zelda as the lead protagonist, a small move implying that audiences may finally be seeing the titular legend in The Legend of Zelda. But there is ample evidence outside that these are the events that started it all.
The events in Echoes of Wisdom certainly set the stage for events in other games, such as the origins of the Triforce. While there have been multiple theories over when Echoes of Wisdom takes place in the overall Zelda timeline, the evidence that this is actually one of the earliest events in the timeline is overwhelming, suggesting it takes place before Skyward Sword. This game could potentially, and likely, contain the original events in the series.
Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Is Likely Earliest Game In Series
Echoes Of Wisdom Takes Place Before Skyward Sword
As Screen Rant‘s Chris Teuton asserts in his Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom review, this game may be the legend referred to in the title “Legend of Zelda.” After all, this game includes multiple origin stories for events mentioned in other games, as well as it has missing items because they simply don’t exist yet.
One of the main catalysts behind this theory is that there is no Master Sword, or Link’s main weapon after the events in Skyward Sword. In Echoes of Wisdom, his sword is simply referred to as the Sword of Might, indicating that the events in Skyward Sword have not taken place yet and setting this game in the past.
This theory is also heavily implied at the beginning of Skyward Sword during the prologue. The prologue tells of events that happened long before the events of Skyward Sword, with these events mirroring the exact plot of Echoes of Wisdom. The prologue to that game begins:
One dark, fateful day, the earth cracked wide and malevolent forces rushed forth from the fissure. They mounted a brutal assault upon the surface people, driving the land into deep despair… They burnt forests to ash, choked the lands sweet springs, and murdered without hesitation.
This perfectly describes the rifts that occur in Echoes of Wisdom, the exact forces that take Link away and leave Zelda to single-handedly save the day.
Echoes of Wisdom Is The Story From Skyward Sword’s Prologue
The Biggest Clue To Echoes Of Wisdom’s Timeline Placement
The prologue goes on to mention how these rifts were looking for the Triforce, or the ultimate power, capable of granting any wish of that who held the power. This again mirrors the exact conflict of Echoes of Wisdom. The Triforce also is never referred to as the Triforce in this game – something players have only ever heard about in stories in the other Zelda games. Instead, it is simply a “great power” that Tri and her people must protect, and that the villain Null (who has connections to Demise) wants to possess.
The events of Null trying to steal the great power only for it to shatter is again a past event referred to in other games, but never seen before. Null also has ties to Demise, as they mention “sealing him back up” in a way that is similar to dealing with Demise in later games. Though it is not just the presence of this villain that solidifies the theory Echoes of Wisdom is one of the first series of events in the games: evil Zoras are also present.
Echoes Of Wisdom Could Be The Exact ‘Legend’ in Legend of Zelda
Good & Evil Zora Hint At The Timeline Placement
Another indication this is one of the earliest Zelda games is the presence of both good and evil Zoras, indicating that Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is taking place before other games in the series. The presence of both Zoras indicates that the state of Hyrule is in slight disarray.
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This is also further emphasized by the fact that some citizens do not even know who the Princess is, meaning that the kingdom is hardly at it’s strongest like in Ocarina of Time. Because everything feels so uncertain, and with the presence of both Good and Evil Zora, the timeline would indicate the events on Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom come far before any of the other games mentioned.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom has been placed all over the map when it comes to where it fits into the timeline; but with the evidence above, it is heavily implied to be one of the earliest – if not the earliest – in the franchise. There are Evil Zoras, a missing Master Sword, and the plot plays out exactly like the prologue from Skyward Sword.
Source: Nintendo/YouTube
