Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom: How To Select Hero Mode, The Hardest Difficulty

Fancy a challenge and want to play through Echoes of Wisdom on the hardest difficulty? We're here to tell you how to access Hero Mode in this top-down Legend of Zelda game.

In this guide, we'll tell you how to select Hero Mode in Echoes of Wisdom, what Hero Mode is, and when you can swap to it.

What is Hero Mode in Echoes of Wisdom?

Hero Mode is the Zelda series' version of a hard mode, and it's back for Echoes of Wisdom.

First introduced in Skyward Sword on the Wii in 2011, Hero Mode makes things more difficult by making you take more damage, do less damage, and reduce (or remove) recovery hearts. This varies between games, of course.

How to play Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom in Hero Mode

Playing Echoes of Wisdom in Hero Mode is really easy. All you need to do is enter the main menu, go to the Settings tab, and then scroll down to Difficulty.

Once you've selected Difficulty, you can choose between Normal and Hero Mode.

Can you select Hero Mode right at the start of the game?

You can. Right after the opening cutscene, head into the menu and follow the above steps to swap the game to Hero Mode immediately.

Can you toggle off Hero Mode at any time?

Yes, you can turn off Hero Mode at any point during Echoes of Wisdom.

Alternatively, you can also toggle it on at any point, too. So if you started the game in Normal Move and are finding things a bit too easy, then you can just head to the menu and turn it on. Easy.

How does Hero Mode increase Echoes of Wisdom's difficulty?

In Echoes of Wisdom, Hero Mode follows a pretty similar template to Grezzo's Link's Awakening remake from 2019.

In Hero Mode, you'll take twice as much damage from enemy attacks, hearts won't drop from grass, pots, or enemies, and certain accessories won't function as they do in Normal Mode.

We've also noticed that there's no chance of finding fairies out in the wild, either. You'll only find them at the little pond near Suthorn Village, or at the Great Fairy Fountain in Lake Hylia. Mean!

That's all for this section of our Echoes of Wisdom guide. For more help, hints, or tips, head on over to our Echoes of Wisdom walkthrough hub.