Since its big reveal during the Nintendo Direct in July 2025, The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales was relentlessly compared to The Legend of Zelda. Of course, there are far worse things to compare it to, and seeing how Square Enix and Team Asano's iconic HD-2D presentation has moved away from the turn-based RPG format it's been associated with since release Octopath Traveler 2018 is a much needed breath of fresh air. That helps too The Adventures of Elliot Producer Naofumi Matsushita was already quite open about the team's expectations for these comparisons, even saying that they were “really honored by these parallels” in a May 2026 interview with RPGFan.
However, as painful as it is to admit, The Legend of Zelda it wasn't always perfect during its 40-year lifespan. Sure, it's considered one of the most beloved video game franchises of all time, and Nintendo clearly owes its own success to it. But for every ten great things can be found The Legend of Zeldathere are almost always one or two not-so-great things, and now The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales it had already found a way around one of the franchise's most frustrating habits before it could define adventure for the wrong reasons.
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The Legend of Zelda has a companion problem
The Legend of ZeldaThe relationship with the supporting characters has been somewhat uneasy for decades. While not every entry in the series has given Link a companion, if they have, the character is meant to assist with tasks such as solving puzzles and helping players remember – or figure out for the first time – what to do next. IN Zelda games where missing one crucial detail can turn valuable game time into aimless wandering can be really good.
Who is that character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
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Navi Ocarina of Time is the most problematic
The problem, however, is when these characters start to feel more like a tutorial system with a face than an actual companion. Ocarina of Time's Navi is easily one of the most famous examples, mainly because the “Hey! Listen!” quickly became the poster child for how not to design companions for video games. Navi's purpose made sense in 1998 – and it made a lot more sense then because many players simply didn't know any better – but she was still remembered for her arrogant, interruptive leadership in the long run.
Skyward Sword's Fi was somehow worse than Navi
Heavenly Sword's Fi pushed the issue even further with a fresh take on what it meant to be a companion in Zelda universe. Navi may have been infamous for interrupting players at every turn, but Fi was more like a glorified babysitter, telling players how to solve puzzles, where to go and how to get there, how items work, and then every other basic reminder imaginable. When a Zelda companion basically tells the players what to do before they've had enough space to think about the problem, the satisfaction that would normally come from discovering things is naturally greatly diminished.
Fortunately, Skyward Sword HD they took player feedback seriously, making Fi's help less intrusive. Among the quality-of-life changes noted by Nintendo for the game is “Optional assistance from Fi”, with Fi appearing only in cutscenes or when needed, while otherwise being manually summoned for advice or guidance. The remaster also added faster dialogue, skippable cutscenes, simplified item explanations, and less intrusive tutorial dialogue, all of which alleviated the original game's handheld problem.
Princess Twilight's Midna was Zelda's companion
Midna from Princess Twilight she could be thrown in there as well, though it will ultimately complicate her role Zelda's pattern featuring too helpful companions. She still guides Link through the world and the story, and still fits the role of companion, but her primary purpose is character driven. She has her own character, a distinct personality, and a real place in the narrative, so rather than being an automated hint machine, she's more like someone who's actually going on a journey with Link.
This is a difference worth noting because it shows what it is that effectively changes a Zelda companion — and any video game companion, for that matter — into a problem. In most cases, players are willing to accept guidance from a character when they feel that character has a significant place in the story, rather than being a mere sidekick. When this companion starts interrupting the adventure too often, explaining things the player already understands, or spoiling the discovery reward, it's a frustrating annoyance.
Other Zelda partners include Tatl z The Major's MaskThe King of Red Lions z The Wind WakerEzlo z Mini capTarget from Phantom HourglassLinebeck from Phantom Hourglassand Three z Echoes of wisdom.
And that's everyone's problem Zelda– like a game like The Adventures of Elliot he risks his inheritance by giving the hero a talkative clue. A companion can add a lot to the adventure and can even be used as a tool for the main character's growth, but it can also quickly become the most distracting part of the game if its leadership is too prominent. ZeldaThe best companions 's show how much a helper can add to the overall experience, while the most infamous ones show how easily help can become unwanted hand holding.
Elliot's adventure solved Zelda's companion problem before he became one
When his demo came out and players started getting their hands on it The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales first, Zelda the comparison increased tenfold when they noticed that Elliot's fairy companion Faie was almost as chatty as someone like Navi or Fi. Naturally, it didn't take long for this to become a bit of an issue, with Square Enix and Team Asano receiving waves of negative feedback regarding the companion's dialogue frequency. For a game that was already standing ZeldaShadow, a fairy tale companion who talks too much, was almost destined to invite one of the least flattering comparisons possible.
Guess the emoji games.
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However, The Adventures of Elliot he already did what the classics did Zelda eventually he had to learn it later. After players said that Faie talked too much, the Asano team added an option in the game's Settings menu to reduce her dialogue frequency from “Talkative” to “Reticent”, offering direct control over how often she talks. surprisingly The Adventures of Elliot is not the first game from Square Enix to implement a muzzle for a chatty companion Forspoken's Cuff found himself in a similar situation in 2023.
It is likely that some players who have already spent some time with the game are not yet aware of the patch implemented by the Asano team, as some reviews for The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales they still described Faie as too talkative. Fortunately, however, there is a workaround if anyone finds Elliot's fairytale companion to be too much. At least if The Adventures of Elliot will continue to invite Zelda comparing and then solving one of the ZeldaA great place to start is the companions most frustrating problems before they become one of his own.
- Released
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June 18, 2026
- ESRB
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Teen violence/fantasy, mild language, alcohol use
