The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening Early Thoughts

During the length E3 2019 Nintendo Direct and the 30 minute demo presentation during Nintendo Treehouse Live, there was a lot of new information dumped onto fans about the upcoming release of The Legend of Zelda: Links Awakening. For many Nintendo Switch owners, this game may feel like a brand new experience, and for many others, getting to revisit this classic game with a brand new overlay is truly exciting. And early impressions are incredibly positive.

First and foremost, you cannot look past the clay art style being used here. It looks phenomenal, with each house and area looking like it’s own little diorama that you get to manipulate. From the character models to the incredibly detail inside the various houses, Nintendo has knocked it out of the park with this release. In the demo itself, when inside a house, Nintendo representative Audrey Drake even noted cut up fruit on a cutting board, in the corner of the house. What phenomenal detail!

There are also new things coming to Link’s Awakening, particularly the Chamber Dungeon and the introduction of Dampe. Dampe, although not originally from this island, makes and appearance here as the guide to dungeon creation. It’s Mario Maker, but for Zelda. It doesn’t look like we are getting the same level of detail – which is OK as it is not a stand alone title – but there is enough here to create interesting dungeons for you and your friends to beat.

What’s more, beating Chamber Dungeons gives you bonuses that you can use in game, such as rupees and other items. How do you earn more rooms for your dungeon? Simply beat the main games various dungeons! Nintendo’s goal with the Chamber Dungeon was making it incredibly accessible – so easy to create – but rewarding when complete. According to the development team, they wanted fans to feel like they were creating puzzles, more so than dungeons. And from the videos so far, it looks like it works well!

Nintendo also showed off a beautiful new clay Link amiibo, which looks fantastic. I’m not really big into buying amiibo anymore, but this is one I definitely want to own! The amiibo will add a plus effect to the chamber dungeon, bringing in Shadow Link, who will chase you throughout your dungeon as you explore. Defeat him, and you will earn a lot of rupees! More plus effects will be announced soon!

There will be a lot more details coming for The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, ahead of its September 20th, 2019 release date!