Cadence of Hyrule First Impressions

What do you get when an indie studio creates a game with Legend of Zelda characters, places, items, and enemies? You may get a game like Cadence of Hyrule — Crypt of the NecroDancer Featuring The Legend of Zelda! On the surface, it looks like a Legend of Zelda game. But you don’t even have to dig deep to see that its actually a rhythm game set within the Legend of Zelda universe. It shouldn’t work. And yet…

Cadence of Hyrule – Crypt of the NecroDancer Featuring The Legend of Zelda isn’t the first Zelda game to be created by a non-Nintendo studio. Back in the Gameboy days, Nintendo let Capcom create some. Minish Cap for the Gameboy Advance is a game that could easily be on any top 20 Zelda game list. So its not like Nintendo has never trusted an outside studio with the Zelda franchise before…

But did we ever think an indie studio would create a Zelda related game? I can’t say that I ever saw Cadence of Hyrule coming. Also I admit when I first saw it, I didn’t think much of the game. It looked too different from the regular Zelda games.

Then, Cadence of Hyrule was shown off during Nintendo’s last day of Treehouse Live. I was blown away. The graphics looked stunning and the gameplay looked fun. I really wanted to play it!

Next thing I know, GamesReviews.com’s editor-in-chief Adam Roffel sends me a review code for the game. Its like he read my mind (or maybe just my twitter feed). I was so excited to play this game.

As it turns out, I had a right to be excited. Cadence of Hyrule lives up to its Treehouse Live demo.

First of all, Cadence has a wonderful 2D sprite look to it. You would swear that Nintendo created this game. The characters, enviorments, and enemies are extremely polished. This is a beautiful looking game. And it looks like a Zelda game, mostly.

The great thing about Cadence of Hyrule is that it looks like a Legend of Zelda game while also having its own unique take on that universe. Things look almost normal but the addition of new items, areas, and humor make Cadence its own game.

Cadence of Hyrule brings a lot of humor to the Zelda universe. It never takes itself too seriously. Its characters seem to realize that this isn’t exactly Nintendo’s Hyrule.

Of course, the biggest difference between Cadence and a normal Zelda experiance is its gameplay.

Cadence of Hyrule is a rhythm game. The player must keep to the beat while either avoiding enemies or taking them head on. Link and/or Zelda automatically attack when you get close to an enemy. Though the player has extra weapons that they can use that’ll help our heroes out! Everything from a bomb to a shovel make an appearance.

The gameplay in Cadence can be pretty hard. Keeping a beat while fighting or avoiding is tricky, especially if you’re not a big rhythm game fan. Thankfully, there is a ‘fixed beat’ mode where you don’t have to worry about missing a beat. I’ve been playing Cadence on this fixed beat mode and its easier/more fun for me.

Oh and you can’t mention that Cadence is a rhythm game without also mentioning its music. I love the music in this game! Zelda music has been remixed with some very good orignal music too. You will want to have your Switch or TV’s sound all the way up with this game!

Overall, I’m impressed by how detailed Cadence of Hyrule is. There’s so much to see, find, and do in this game. Cadence is not just a simple rhythm game: Zelda, rhythm, and rouge lite combine to create a very unique experience.

I will have a review of Cadence of Hyrule here at GamesReviews.com early next week. Meanwhile, I’m going back to Hyrule. Link and Zelda need my help keeping the beat alive.