Zelda meets Crypt of the Necrodancer in Cadence of Hyrule

The Legend of Zelda series is known for its spin-offs, but I don’t think anyone expected this. Brace Yourself Games’  Crypt of the Necrodancer is crossing over with Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda franchise to create the upcoming Cadence of Hyrule. It will combine the rhythm rogue-like gameplay of Crypt of the Necrodancer with enemies, locations and music from the Zelda series.

Crypt of the Necrodancer, originally released in 2015, was a rogue-like dungeon-crawler where you played as Cadence, a woman whose heart is stolen by the Necrodancer. In order to stay alive and retrieve her heart, she needs to keep dancing in time to the beat. Gameplay took on elements of rhythm games, where the player is encouraged to move in time with the beat of the music.

In Cadence of Hyrule, Cadence has emerged from the Crypt and somehow found herself in Hyrule. This time however, she has help, and is teaming up with Link and Zelda. Link uses a variety of items and abilities from the Legend of Zelda franchise, such as the spin attack and his bow and arrow. Zelda also has access to weapons, but also a variety of magical attacks, like her appearance in Hyrule Warriors.

Cadence of Hyrule will feature 25 remixed tracks from previous Zelda titles, and an art style more reminiscent of the classic top-down Zeldas than the retro-inspired pixellated art style of Crypt of the Necrodancer. Similar to Necrodancer, Cadence of Hyrule will feature a randomly generated overworld and dungeon environments.

Crypt of the Necrodancer was initially released on PC in 2015, but has since been ported to consoles and mobile devices. Its most recent port was to the Nintendo Switch last year. Understandably, considering this is a Nintendo co-production, Cadence of Hyrule will be a Nintendo Switch exclusive.

Cadence of Hyrule will release later this year.