Echo Isle is a compact homage to The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, recreating its island adventure structure, dungeons, and handheld-era spirit.

Developer Josh Koenig clearly has a special place in his heart for The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening. That affection comes through in almost every screen of Echo Isle, from the chunky pixel art to the island setting, dungeon-driven progression, and moment-to-moment action. It's charming, approachable, and refreshingly free of filler. It's also so small and mechanically light that it never develops an identity beyond the game that inspired it.

The island’s lighthouse, blessed by the gods, has gone dark, and monsters have begun appearing. A mysterious hero named Aster falls from the sky to set things right. His goal is to recover four Echo Stones hidden within four dungeons to restore the light. Dialogue is sparse and mostly exists to point you in the right direction. That simplicity fits the game well; it’s a straightforward setup that keeps the focus on forward momentum. Nothing more is needed.

Exploration follows a familiar Zelda blueprint. You wander a compact overworld, delve into caves and ruins, unlock tools like a bow, bombs, and swimming ability, then use those items to solve light puzzles and reach the next dungeon. The dungeons are cleanly designed and easy to read. Bosses pose almost no challenge, with one notable exception; most feel like they exist because the formula expects them to be there and it’d be conspicuous if they were missing. The entire experience moves with impressive efficiency. I always knew where I was going and what I needed to do. All told, it was over in about an hour.

That same efficiency creates the game's biggest limitation. Link's Awakening and other classic Zelda games thrive on curiosity and discovery. Getting lost and stumbling into secrets are part of the appeal. Echo Isle is too compact to create that feeling. The island is small enough that exploration becomes navigation rather than discovery. Zelda games succeed because of how they generate surprise and delight, and Echo Isle can’t pull that off. Tunic, another game inspired by the same Zelda lineage, understands this better than most: there’s a growing sense of wonder as you dig in.

The nostalgic graphics feel like they came straight out of Link’s Awakening on the Game Boy. It looks and feels small, and that’s part of the intent. Like the gameplay and design, this is another place Echo Isle uses the game it’s emulating as a crutch. I wish it did more to establish its own identity instead of leaning so heavily on nostalgia.

There's something admirable about a developer executing a clear vision without unnecessary bloat. Echo Isle succeeds at exactly what it sets out to do. I just wish it aimed a little higher than just asking, “Do you remember Link’s Awakening?” The foundation is solid, the craftsmanship is evident, and the charm is real. It leaves me wondering what Josh Koenig could create if he spent less energy recreating nostalgia and more energy building on it. The day after finishing the game, Link’s Awakening was fresher in my mind than Echo Isle.

Available on: Steam

Release date: May 20, 2026

Final Verdict:

Recommended