In the Kingdom of Hyrule, a mysterious man named Octavo uses a magical lute to put Hyrule's king, as well as Link and Zelda, to sleep, before using the Triforce of Power to turn his Lute into a Golden Lute. The game can also be played co-operatively with a second player on the same Switch unit with each player using one Joy-Con to move. The game features optional modes such as 'fixed-beat mode', which removes the need to play to the music, and permadeath mode, which challenges players to play through the campaign without dying once. Players can activate Sheikah Stones in certain areas, which they can either fast travel to or respawn from following a death. Diamonds, which can be found in dungeons or earned by defeating every enemy in an area, are retained even if the player gets a game over.

Partially carrying over roguelike elements from NecroDancer, the player will lose amassed rupees and temporary items if they lose all of their health.

Throughout the game, the player can find or purchase weapons and equipment, such as shovels for digging through dirt or torches that can reveal the contents of chests, as well as recurring Zelda items such as bows, bombs, and hook shots. Whenever enemies are in an area, the player is required to move and attack in time to the music using the directional buttons, with bonus multipliers and extra rewards available for maintaining the beat. This map remains the same throughout an entire game, but certain dungeons such as those found in temples will be randomly generated every time they are visited.

Players venture across the overworld, composed of predefined regions and map layouts related to Zelda lore such as Hyrule Castle or Death Mountain, but whose relative placement is procedurally generated for each new save file. Players play the majority of the game as either Link or Princess Zelda, with other characters such as NecroDancer protagonist Cadence becoming unlocked by progressing through the game or completing certain quests, each with their own unique abilities. See also: Crypt of the NecroDancer § GameplayĬadence of Hyrule combines the rhythm-based gameplay of Crypt of the NecroDancer with settings, characters, and music from The Legend of Zelda series.

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