WOW! Who saw this day coming? A Nintendo property in an indie game. Is Cadence of Hyrule the start to a new era of teamwork between Nintendo and indies? We certainly hope so! Cadence of Hyrule takes the rhythm-based action of Crypt of the Necrodancer and adds a heap of Zelda to it. At Nindie Nexus, we were all delighted to see the initial announcement and I am happy to say Cadence of Hyrule delivers on the promise.

It feels like a pipe dream but this crossover is very real and I have loved playing it. So much so, this review is ready only a day after I started and well finished… Exploring Hyrule whilst music pounds through your veins has never been more fun, or interesting! Cadence of Hyrule really took me by surprise in just how ‘Nintendo’ like it feels for a game developed outside of the tight inner circle. You know how everyone and their mums talk about that Ninty polish? Cadence has it in barrels. Anyway, let’s get riiiight into the review!

So, Hyrule has suddenly turned into one giant disco, and your job is to foxtrot your way along a world-saving quest. Octavo has imprisoned the princess’ father and you must defeat four champions to bring peace to the kingdom. Simple and easy, no need for in-depth plots here. Why? Cadence is all about music! One of my favourite parts of Zelda is the music, I have a playlist of themes and tunes from the series constantly playing whilst I work! Cadence of Hyrule takes classic Zelda songs and remixes it to suit this rhythm-based world, and it feels fantastic! I found myself humming some of the tracks throughout the day even when I put the game itself down. A real testament to the quality of the music to be found in Cadence.

Cadence of Hyrule has an incredibly well-made soundtrack. Catchy too!

The tutorial is simple and easily gets you up to speed if you haven’t played the predecessor, a mistake if you haven’t though! Cadence is a simple game to control, no problems here. The difficulty comes in how you enact your attacks and movements, the enacting of these is easy to handle. What do you do then, I hear you all ask! Let’s break down the gameplay I reply!

As I said, Hyrule turns into a giant Zelda themed disco, and you must move to the beat! Only when enemies are on screen though, complete a tile and you can hop to your heart’s content. There isn’t even an attack button, attacking activates once you are adjacent to enemies and you move towards them to trigger it. There are loads of classic Zelda enemies too! Bokoblins, Gibdo, Lynels, Lizalfos and many more are present and have unique movements and health. At times gameplay is chess-like in that you must plan out attacks and movements in order to maximise attacks and prioritise your own health. Even cuccos are here!

Hands in the air like you just don’t care? If you see this get ready for an attack!

Everything is rendered in a gorgeous and incredibly vibrant 16-bit style. Cadence is a delight to the eyes, this version of Hyrule is simply stunning. From the beaches to the forests, its environments are just bloody lovely to look at. I am a fan of The Minish Cap, and Cadence had me evoking memories of playing this classic Zelda title years ago just through its visuals. If I had to describe them in one phrase? Lovely jubbly.

Something which I consider one of the most intelligent choices in Cadence of Hyrule is the ‘death’ shop which you enter each time you die in a run. You use the diamonds you acquire from killing enemies in order to buy gear and equipment to use on your next run, like a shovel for example! You can also find gear by killing enemies, but objects have durability meters so even on one run you will cycle through various rings and shovel types. Overall, despite being a roguelike, it is incredibly kind to players. You will lose rupees when you die, but your diamonds and unlocked gear stay with you even after you die. Some may be turned off by this, but to be honest, the challenge in Cadence comes in other areas. As someone who enjoys rogue games, I think it was the right choice.

Each playthrough gives you a brand new Hyrule to explore!

The difficulty is also helped by the ability to use Sheikah stones to teleport around the map. This is particular was something I used a lot. It really feels like Cadence is happy to give you a helping hand, and provide some shortcuts to ensuring you have an incredibly fun experience in the Hyrule it created. For me, it nearly perfects the difficulty curve, for both new and experienced players. It may slightly lean on the easy side, but it is still going to provide a good challenge, especially in some of the later dungeons, where the challenge really ramps up!

It isn’t going to take you 100 hours to complete, but Cadence will offer you a hell of a lot of replayability. Not least because you can play as both Zelda and Link from the start, each character having unique mechanics and actions which make playing with them almost like playing a brand new game. Each Hyrule is also randomly generated, as well as its dungeons, and there are an extensive number of options you can mess around with to alter the experience in numerous ways. Trust me, if you enjoy your first time through, there are a lot of ways for you to come back and play it all again!

Whilst moving to the beat is fun, the option is there to opt out. Great job guys!

One last thing that is worth mentioning in regards to this is the ‘Fixed-Beat mode’, which enables you to turn off the locked movement. Rather than enemies moving on the beat, they only move when you do. This completely changes the experience, but I preferred it this way, and I am sure many others will. I enjoyed making the game more top-down Zelda-like essentially. The fact that such an option is implemented is a testament to how well crafted this product is. Some have baulked at the price, but for me, it is 100% worth it.

Cadence of Hyrule marks a memorable day for indie gaming. And by God has it done this community proud. If you had told me this was a Nintendo developed game, I would not have batted an eyelid. That is perhaps the best compliment I can give Cadence. Brace Yourself Games, you should be proud of taking an incredible concept and pulling off a Zelda game. Which if I am honest will be considered one of my favourite in the series. Did I say that when this was announced it became one of my most hyped 2019 releases? Well, it delivered folks, it really bloody did. That is all from me today. I have an appointment with my Switch to attend.

Well, where do we go from here! Nintendo IPs in indie games?! I can’t offer you another game like that, but I think Vectronom is another rhythm game which might take your fancy! If you want to continue the conversation, join our community Discord! We’re always around. We also have a YouTube channel for some additional content. If we do good stuff here, consider supporting our endeavors via Patreon or Ko-fi. Until next time!