Zelda: Wisdom Echoed Reaches Peak Engagement

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom has achieved a remarkable feat, topping the most wishlisted games of the summer showcase season. This new Zelda title has outpaced major competitors like Doom: The Dark Ages, Assassin's Creed Shadows, and even fellow Nintendo heavyweight, Metroid Prime 4.

The recent Nintendo Direct generated immense excitement among Zelda fans. While the Switch 2 was absent, the Direct unveiled highly anticipated titles such as Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, and the surprise addition of a Zelda-centric game. For years, Zelda fans have clamored for a main-series game featuring a playable Zelda, a request seemingly ignored by Nintendo until now. The upcoming Switch title fulfills this long-held desire, sparking considerable enthusiasm.

GamesIndustry.Biz reports that Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom surpassed all other significant summer 2024 reveals on the IGN Playlist, a game tracking service. Data from May 30th to June 23rd, focusing solely on showcase reveals, places Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom at the coveted #1 spot, followed by Doom: The Dark Ages and Astro Bot. Gears of War: E-Day and Perfect Dark round out the top five.

Top Wishlisted Games (May 30 – June 23, via IGN Playlist):

1. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (Nintendo)
2. Doom: The Dark Ages (Bethesda)
3. Astro Bot (Sony)
4. Gears of War: E-Day (Xbox)
5. Perfect Dark (Xbox)
6. Mario & Luigi: Brothership (Nintendo)
7. Assassin's Creed Shadows (Ubisoft)
8. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Kepler Interactive)
9. Fable (Xbox)
10. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (Nintendo)
11. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (Activision Blizzard)
12. Dragon Age: The Veilguard (EA)
13. South of Midnight (Xbox)
14. Lego Horizon Adventures (Sony)
15. Life is Strange: Double Exposure (Square Enix)
16. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (Bethesda)
17. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater (Konami)
18. Star Wars Outlaws (Ubisoft)
19. Super Mario Party Jamboree (Nintendo)
20. Mixtape (Annapurna Interactive)
21. Black Myth: Wukong (Game Science)
22. Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake (Square Enix)
23. Dragon Quest 1&2 HD-2D Remake (Square Enix)
24. Donkey Kong Country Returns HD (Nintendo)
25. Avowed (Xbox)

While this wishlist ranking doesn't guarantee commercial success, it strongly suggests significant player anticipation. Beyond spin-offs like Hyrule Warriors, Zelda has historically had limited playable roles, often relegated to damsel-in-distress scenarios. Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom offered increased involvement, but still fell short of fulfilling fans' desire to play as the princess saving Hyrule.

Whether Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom will meet these high expectations remains to be seen. However, its rapid ascent to the top of the wishlist, surpassing remasters like Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater and new entries in established franchises like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Dragon Age: The Veilguard, speaks volumes about the anticipation surrounding this title. The coming months will reveal how well these games perform against this pre-release wishlist dominance.