Ranking the Zelda clones on Nintendo Switch

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A delightful surprise with the Nintendo Switch has been the variety of Zelda clones on the system (the Zelda clones are essentially Zelda like Switch games). The Legend of Zelda is my favorite game series, so I’m eager to jump into any Zelda clone that hits the platform, and the ones release so far are all very different from one another:

Luckily, I’ve had the opportunity to review each of these games for Switch Era. I’ll be ranking the Zelda clones on Nintendo Switch based on the following categories:

Art Style.

Soundtrack.

Story.

Characters.

Overworld Design.

Dungeon Design.

Items.

Puzzle Solving.

Boss Battles.

Most Standard.

Most Creative.

Highest Reviewed.

World to the West

Art Style

Based on Eastern European adventure comics, World to the West has a beautiful art style with vibrant colors that pop out. I would love to see a remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening with this visual style.

Elliot Quest

Soundtrack

The melody that plays in the first area of Elliot Quest felt like it was right out of the Lost Woods in A Link to the Past. The soundtrack that Michael Chait put together is incredible; each tune starts off like something you’d expect from a 2D Zelda title, and then subtly transforms into something wholly its own.

World to the West

Story

World to the West follows the interweaving story of four separate protagonists as they uncover a dark prophecy and try to defeat a villain that has wronged each of them. Overall, the writing in World to the West is meant to be more charming and quirky than dark and serious.

Ittle Dew 2

Characters

Ittle Dew 2+ is fully aware of how silly it is, and this works to the game’s benefit. A lot of Ittle and Tippsie’s back and forth breaks the fourth wall and pokes fun at video game tropes. Upon entering a fire dungeon — it’s a Zelda-clone, remember — Tippsie noted, in a snarky tone, that the dungeon would probably switch to an ice theme halfway through. It did.

World to the West

Overworld Design

While the overworld in World to the West is fairly large, only certain portions of it are available to explore in any given chapter. That’s because each of the four characters have their own special abilities they can use to overcome obstacles; the puzzle solving in World to the West is about how to get from point A to point B instead of pushing blocks or defeating all the enemies in an area to open a door.

Elliot Quest

Dungeon Design

Elliot Quest is a Zelda II clone and although none of them are as excessively large as the palaces in Zelda II, they do offer loads of clever puzzles that the Nintendo classic didn’t even attempt. The dungeons in Elliot Quest have all the item usage and backtracking that Zelda is known for, and few Zelda clones bother to replicate.

Ittle Dew 2

Items

Ittle Dew 2 makes great use of your inventory, which ranges from a ring that can freeze blocks to push over spikes or a wand that can push blocks from a distance. I discovered that you can hit blocks diagonally with the wand after being stuck on a puzzle in the final dungeon for half an hour. That changed everything.

Ittle Dew 2

Puzzle Solving

The puzzles in Ittle Dew 2+ are hard as hell. They’re completely block pushing and switch hitting puzzles, and that would be a letdown if they weren’t so clever. The final dungeon alone has some of the hardest and most rewarding block puzzles that I’ve ever seen in a top-down game, and every puzzle makes great use of Ittle’s inventory.

Elliot Quest

Boss Battles

The bosses in Elliot Quest are fantastic. There are 16 in total, but the best ones are at the end of the dungeons. These boss battles are a culmination of everything you learned in the dungeon: all the puzzles you solved and all the enemies you fought taught you how to take on the dungeon’s boss.

Blossom Tales

Most Standard

Fans of Zelda will surely love Blossom Tales: The Sleeping King. Even if Zelda isn’t your favorite series, there’s enough charm and smart puzzles here to make Blossom Tales a must-buy on Nintendo Switch.

World to the West

Most Creative

World to the West makes use of its four charming characters to provide a unique Zelda-like experience that twists, turns, and interweaves like no game I’ve played before. The mechanic used to switch between characters is a little tedious, but that doesn’t hold back this joyful adventure.

Elliot Quest

Highest Reviewed

We awarded Elliot Quest a perfect 10 because its a beautiful ode to Zelda II that transcends the Nintendo classic. It’s one of the best games available on Nintendo Switch — and it’s only $9.99 USD.

What are your rankings? Let us know in the comments below!