Two nations finally achieve peace, marked by a momentous royal wedding. But just as they seal it with a kiss, a group of soldiers sabotage the wedding and kidnap the bride! Follow the story of Lucian, Ingrid, and Soha, as they uncover the secrets of the conspiracy and expose the true villains!
Very Positive
179 Steam reviews
| LANGUAGE | AUDIO | SUBTITLES | INTERFACE |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | — | — | Y |
| French | — | — | Y |
Echoes of Aetheria, developed and published by Dancing Dragon Games, is a deliberate throwback to the era of classic turn-based Japanese RPGs, built with a clear affection for the structure and sensibilities of 16-bit adventures. It embraces a familiar formula—party-based combat, world-spanning conflict, and a steadily unfolding narrative—but attempts to refine that foundation with modern pacing and a stronger emphasis on character interaction. The result is a game that feels immediately recognizable to genre veterans, yet polished enough to remain accessible to newer players.
The story opens with a relatively personal incident that quickly spirals into a broader tale of political tension, war, and shifting alliances between nations. While the overarching narrative leans on familiar tropes, it gains momentum through its cast of characters, each bringing distinct personalities and motivations into the journey. Dialogue plays a significant role in keeping the experience engaging, often injecting humor or emotional weight into otherwise conventional plot developments. Even when the story follows predictable beats, the interactions between party members help maintain a sense of investment, giving the narrative a more human core than its premise might initially suggest.
Combat is structured around a traditional turn-based system, but it introduces small refinements that add a layer of tactical consideration. Abilities operate on cooldowns, and resource management becomes an important factor in determining how aggressively players can approach encounters. This encourages a more thoughtful rhythm in battles, where timing and planning matter more than simply selecting the strongest attack. Early and mid-game encounters benefit from this design, offering a satisfying balance between challenge and accessibility. However, as the game progresses, patterns begin to emerge, and optimal strategies can reduce the need for experimentation, making later battles feel less dynamic than they initially do.
Exploration is a central component of the experience, with dungeons and environments designed to encourage navigation and discovery rather than passive traversal. Puzzles involving switches, pathways, and hidden elements add variety to the journey, while the absence of random encounters helps maintain a smoother pace. This design choice allows players to engage with the world on their own terms, avoiding the frustration of constant interruptions. That said, some areas can feel overly extended, and the limited variety in enemies and environmental design may cause certain sections to feel repetitive, particularly during longer play sessions.
One of the more engaging systems is the crafting mechanic, which provides a degree of customization in character progression. By collecting materials and forging equipment, players can tailor their party’s strengths and experiment with different builds. While not overly complex, this system adds a meaningful layer of strategy that complements the combat mechanics. It breaks up the standard progression loop and gives players a sense of control over how their party evolves, even if the overall impact remains relatively modest.
Visually, the game adheres to a retro-inspired aesthetic that prioritizes clarity over innovation. Character sprites and environments are functional and cohesive, though they rarely stand out in a crowded field of RPG Maker titles. The presentation succeeds in evoking nostalgia, but it does little to distinguish itself beyond that familiarity. The soundtrack, on the other hand, contributes more effectively to the experience, offering a range of compositions that enhance both exploration and combat while reinforcing the game’s tone.
Where Echoes of Aetheria shows its limitations is in its consistency. The pacing of the narrative can feel uneven, with certain developments occurring too quickly to fully resonate. Similarly, while the gameplay systems are solid, they do not evolve significantly over time, leading to a sense that the experience plateaus rather than building toward a more complex or rewarding endgame. These issues do not overshadow the game’s strengths, but they do prevent it from reaching the level of depth and refinement seen in standout entries within the genre.
Ultimately, Echoes of Aetheria is a well-executed homage to classic RPG design, offering a comfortable and engaging experience that prioritizes familiarity and character-driven storytelling. It may not push the boundaries of the genre, but it delivers a steady and enjoyable adventure for those who appreciate its influences. Its charm lies in its sincerity and focus, even if its ambitions occasionally exceed its execution.
Rating: 7/10
Great story and good pacing
Going into this game i expected a pretty basic and short experience, since it is made with rpg maker, but what i got was a pretty nice story, deep battle and crafting system and a fun challenge worth playing it on Hard (except the final boss i was getting rekt). Nothing astounding, but everything is solid enough to make an enjoyable experience, worth the time!
Main problem for me - lack of description of skills. You can lvl up "Fire strike" from lvl1 -> lvl4, but how much better it becomes? Only God knows. Or you have a fire bomb with description "deals less dmg but increases fire damage enemy taken". But how much less and how much increases? No idea.
And how you suppose to beat hard bosses and make cool synergy team if you have no idea what skills do??? Old school jrpg also have such problem, but they usually have wiki / faq where you can find all game mechanics. But for such small game ofc no wiki exists, and still developer decide to hide this essential info.
Tried giving the game a go, from what I experienced it is a decent game mechanically, but the Character dialogue was so off-putting that i could not force myself to keep playing.
I really wanted to like this game. I finished Deadly sins 1 and 2 so i am not new to the Devs game or what alot of others mentioned "old school game". But i do not know how to really like this game. It gives a tons of skills but are they useful or would you be using them in situations? Sometimes you do not even have the time to learn how to actively use those skills let alone "combo" them. Another thing is all characters use the same TP pool so sometimes my character never gotten the chance to use his/her skills as the TP is used by characters during the previous turn. The experience increase is bad sometimes. One or two xp ipoint ncrease? Some bosses can ONE SHOT my highest level of characters..... Healer that also damage her own health?. Why such design? .....Maybe i am just bad at this game but i feel i enjoyed deadly sins more than this game as that game even with lesser skills are more useful and defintely you do not get one shot as often. Alot of QOL things are not there. Unable to see what are the debuffs of enemies besides their HP which there is a skill called weakness but never actually show what are they weak against... Unable to compare stats increase to your current equipped item when crafting or buying gears.. I might change my mind if i continue playing or whether will i want to continue playing. So far not having the so called fun.
Edit.
I finished the game. But i still stand on many of the points i written up but now i change to recommend as this is not a bad game but some design is really not done well. Wiping the floor or my TANK on normal setting with the repeated dungeons and the final boss just do not cut it. I am not sure whether the DEVS knows what is normal setting. The materials needed for the final weapons are ridiculous and hard to farm and i boring to do it. Although i had the pattern for all final weapons but only managed to make one as i do not have the patience to continue grinding the rest.
Hopefully the next game from Dancing Dragon will be more enjoyable. Rate 6 / 10
not good
simple throwback. simple story. for anyone who wants a relaxing 90's rpg experience with all the QOL upgrades.
Vale 100% a pena, o jogo tem uma narrativa envolvente, um combate estratégico que realmente te faz pensar e é recompensador, 10/10
I like this game. I took a very long break from the game and the story is memorable. Even after a long break, I remember what was going on. I wish it were made in Unity, but I imagine a remake would be out of the question. I really like the combat system, it is a simple JRPG thing, but it feels better than the older JRPGs. The fighting itself has cool graphics and reminds me of Breathe of Fire. The World map makes you feel a part of the war/story, and this game is worth picking up if it is in a bundle (I got it in the RPGmaker Bundle on Humble Bundle ages ago) or on sale.
i've played 30 hours so i must have enjoyed it. picking up today and can't get past the non boss enemies in the second mission. no clue, uninstalled.
Nice presentation, fun lore. Loved the grand theft bridal chapter opening and rpg maker style graphics while having way more in depth-battles than that. Just note to turn off the mouse if using a controller as it gets in the way.
[h1]Echoes of Aetheria: Cuando los JRPG Se Encontraron con un Presupuesto de Estudiante[/h1]
[h2]Resumen[/h2]
¿Alguna vez has sentido que, mientras juegas un JRPG, algo falta pero no sabes qué es? ¿Acaso serán los gráficos que te recuerdan a tu vieja consola o la complejidad de una historia que ni los guionistas entienden? ¡Pues bienvenido a Echoes of Aetheria! Un mundo donde la fantasía y el romance se encuentran en un baile de máscaras pixelado, pero algo incómodo, como esos zapatos de fiesta que solo usas porque combinan con la corbata.
[h2]Aspectos importantes e interesantes[/h2]
Si algo hay que aplaudir de Echoes of Aetheria es su valentía. No todos los días ves a desarrolladores intentando revivir la era dorada de los RPG con tanto entusiasmo... y tanto budget de raciones de universitario. Las mecánicas tácticas te hacen pensar más que en tu elección de carrera, y los personajes son tan profundos que podrían competir con cualquier pozo sin fondo. Además, la trama tiene tantos giros que podrías considerarla como una alternativa económica a las clases de Zumba.
[h2]Aspectos por mejorar[/h2]
Vamos, chicos, sé que la nostalgia vende, pero ¿un poco más de cariño en los gráficos no nos vendría mal, verdad? Parece que se usó el mismo pincel para todo. Y ni hablemos de la dificultad... hay momentos en los que parece que el enemigo leyó tu mente (y tu diario) antes del combate. Un poquito más de balance no hacería daño. Ah, y las voces, bueno, digamos que hay más emoción en el GPS de mi carro.
[table]
[tr][th]Aspects[/th][th]Puntaje (0-10)[/th][th]Comentarios[/th][/tr]
[tr][td]Jugabilidad[/td][td]7[/td][td]Divertido pero esperaba no tener que usar tanto el cerebro.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Dificultad / IA[/td][td]6[/td][td]A veces pienso que el juego sabe trucos sucios.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Contenido[/td][td]8[/td][td]Hay suficiente aquí para mantenerte ocupado un buen rato.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Video / Gráficos[/td][td]5[/td][td]Básicos pero cumplidores. Añoranza pixelada.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Historia[/td][td]8[/td][td]Sorprendentemente buena, si puedes seguir el ritmo.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Ambientación[/td][td]7[/td][td]Imaginativo y mágico, aunque a veces es un lío.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Efectos[/td][td]6[/td][td]Efectivos pero nada del otro mundo.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Música[/td][td]7[/td][td]Agradable, pero no esperes ganar Grammy aqui.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Voces[/td][td]4[/td][td]Déjalo en mute y pónle subtítulos mejor.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Diversidad[/td][td]7[/td][td]Variedad en personajes y escenarios.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Total[/td][td][b]65[/b][/td][td]Decente pero hay espacio para mejora.[/td][/tr]
[/table]
[h3]Veredicto Final[/h3]
[b]¡Cómpralo con descuento![/b][/color] Echoes of Aetheria tiene su encanto en un montón de méritos, pero no es perfecto. Espera a que esté en oferta, agarra unas palomitas y disfruta del viaje... just don’t expect too much bling.
This is a great RPG game. It has long hours of game play and replay value. I like this devs games. If you love RPGs this is a good purchase.
I played this game a very long time ago (2019), but I was going through my library looking for games I hadn't got around to reviewing, and this was certainly one. In short, I wholeheartedly recommend it so long as you calibrate your expectations for what it is: a very indie game made in RPG Maker. The interface is a little bit janky, but the storyline is good, the tactical battles are fun, and overall if you like JRPG-style games and can tolerate a little jank it's a very, very good time. I had played "Skyborn", an earlier game by the same developers, before this, and while "Skyborn" is also great I'd say I enjoyed "Echoes of Aetheria" slightly more.
One thing I do have to admit, though, is that unlike with "Skyborn" I never quite finished this game. I was partway through the final dungeon, and then I had to reinstall my operating system, and either there was no cloud saving OR my cloud save got broken somehow, because all my progress got wiped. I didn't enjoy the game quite enough to replay the whole thing just to get up to the final boss again, so I never did. Still, I'd got a couple dozen hours of solid enjoyment out of it before that point, so I'd give it a thumbs-up regardless. Just, uhhh, be cautious if you were hoping to rely on the cloud saves feature.
Thumbs up
Blood lady good!!!
The game isn't bad, but it's simply not good enough to warrant the approximately 17+ hours you'd need to beat it. There isn't anythign that stands out here but crafting and combat system for example are rather subpar. The story so far wasn't anything special either. I really just don't feel like investing more time into this. It doesn't seem to be worth it. Some people compared this game to old school JRPGs but it does not measure up to the best of those games but rather the high amount of mediocre and thus forgotten JRPGs that also didn't do anything to set themselves up.
I want to like this game more than I do but the issues I have outweigh what enjoyment I had. To preface I bought this game after finishing Skyborn. I wasn't a huge fan of it but could see the care behind it and decided to give EOA a chance. I'll be upfront and say I didn't finish the game. Got the the final boss, tried it numerous times and decided to give up. It wasn't worth my sanity and the difficulty spike made the battle unbearable.
Lets start with the things I like; the story is good as is the sprite work. I also really enjoy the battle system, I like how many skills there are and how you can really build your character into something fun(within the parameters given to you of course). And Soha. That's it.
I hate how you can only craft the ultimate weapons once you beat that specific person's solo arena. Personally I was only able to unlock Soha's and Lucian's. The material you need to craft said weapons can only be found in the final dungeon and you have to hope it drops from enemies. I hate the difficulty spikes. I played on normal straight through, fought just about everything I could and opened every chest. I was only getting 1-2 experience by the end and some enemies could still team wipe me if I wasn't careful. On Normal. Hard mode is just a war of attrition so after giving it a shot for a boss battle, I ignored it. The last two dungeon layouts were awful mazes and I hated every moment of trying to explore them. Ingrid gets on my nerves.
While I liked the crafting I hated that you couldn't compare the stats to anything you were wearing. The weapons/armor available in the shops were nothing compared to what you could craft yourself so I never bothered. Stats felt like they meant nothing. For example, Soha's STR & INT were 400+ & 500+ respectively and she still couldn't one shot most enemies in the final two dungeons. It felt like the numbers were just for show. Ingrid and Esk's DEX and AGI were super high so they should theoretically never get hit and also crit very often but they did get hit often(especially Esk) and because they're built like glass canons, the moment that happened it was usually over for them. In many instances Soha would actually end up soloing battles once I got her blood tap + empower combo set up because everyone else would be killed and every time I brought them back to life they would get targeted and killed again.
But the real reason I can't recommend this game is because of the final battle. The first part wasn't that bad for me, beat it on my first try. Second part however had my dying left and right which didn't make any sense, I had the best armor and weapons but she was consistently wiping my team(except Soha of course) in one shot. Once I finally beat that part the third phase tested my patience and I had to call it quits. There was absolutely no reason for me to struggle like that. Im fine with challenging battles but that one felt entirely unfair and down to luck. Luck the attacks would miss, luck that your attacks [i]wouldn't[/i] miss and praying that you wouldn't die the moment you got hit. I had other issues but this review is long enough.
I got the game on sale so I'm more miffed than angry. Maybe you'll have better luck and than I did.
I am a very big fan of RPGmaker games and my bias will greatly effect the review.
I do not usually enjoy steampunk-esque RPGs, but Echoes of Aetheria was a nice change of pace. The story was enjoyable, and I genuinely shed a tear twice while playing. If you enjoy RPGmaker games, then this is the game for you. Fans of John Wizard, Amaranth, and Eridani will have at least 15+ hours of enjoyment.
Pros:
+Different combat from the run-of-the-mill RPGmaker games. However, this combat system can feel overwhelming at first, and extremely repetitive towards mid-end game.
+Interesting and captivating story, emotional, interesting philosophical narratives. [spoiler] Lucian *almost* had it. Down with the monarchy; I am not interested in born-to-lead narratives [/spoiler]
+You can break down old equipment for parts. However, you do not get all of the materials back.
+Worldbuilding is interesting with religion, blood fueds, prejudice/racism between different groups, magic and science, e.t.c.
+Character profiles and pictures are well thought out, and the pictures will change depending on dialogue and health lost in combat.
+Puzzles can be challenging and the maps are interesting to navigate, requiring you to use your brain to break up the pace.
+The music is okay.
Cons:
-Predictable romance, death, ending.
-Cannot revisit some areas for achievements without reloading a save if you accidentally wonder into a plot-related cutscene.
-Cannot skip some cutscenes, causing frustration, espically in the (semi?) final boss battles.
-Grinding-reliant for materials.
-Crafting is a chore.
-No incentive to actually read the lore.
-Graphics are fairly boring.
-You may get lost with map looping and confusing puzzles that have no hints. The game does not have a large dedicated fan base and therefore lacks guides if you become lost/confused.
For an RPGMaker game this is pretty fun. It does have a few flaws. Almost all the dungeons are mazes and that can get pretty tedious - especially near the end where it is maze after maze after maze after maze. I stopped playing and just watched a walkthrough video of the end. Overall, for the type and style of game that it is, it's pretty enjoyable.
i review games on steam after i 100% complete them! check out my reviews to see all the games i have completed!
echoes of aetheria is a rpg developed by dancing dragon games that released in january 2016 for PC. it's their fourth game released on steam, and their most recent until they released their fifth game in 2022. it's a pretty standard affair if you're a fan of old-school RPGs, but the storyline is interesting enough to keep players engaged despite some cliches that will make you roll your eyes. the combat can get repetitive mostly due to the sheer amount of combat encounters you'll find. the art style is bright and colorful, especially when compared to other rpg-maker games. there's still no voice work which is disappointing but the music has a distinct charm and energy to it that makes it fit right in among games with good/great soundtracks.
this is a fun game, definitely not the worst game dancing dragons has made, but i think there was a little too much fluff that makes the experience feel bloated. there are a lot of things that didn't need to be so cookie cutter when it comes to game design or rpg mechanics. there are definitely things to like, like no random encounters, no grinding, strategic combat, and even fun little quirky items that are surprisingly fun to come across. the biggest bright spot that i want to highlight is definitely the characters and how they're written. the devs have shown over their first four games that they have a knack for writing fun and interesting characters that always seem to fit right in to the setting the game they're in takes place.
i have been extremely excited to eventually play symphony of war, their fifth and most recent release on steam, and now i have played all four of their earlier titles i feel confident to go in with an open mind and not be too overhyped. i think they really improved upon their past games so i'm hoping i'll still be pleasantly surprised when i play that for the first time.
as long as you're not expecting some masterpiece rpg, and you realize there are some things here that are simply just less polished, then i definitely recommend grabbing this on sale for extremely cheap and playing this if you have nothing else to play and are looking for a fresh rpg to try. most people will take anywhere from 20-30 hours to complete the main story but going for more of a completionist run like i do will put you closer to 40-50 hours instead, making this easily the biggest of the first four games released by the developer.
Ok...I swore I reviewed this game years ago... but I guess not? Apologies to dev(s), as I binge-played this from the day I got it for over 150 hours, and so I should have left a review earlier. And for any potential buyers reading this -- my playthrough was several years ago. The game may have gone through some improvements since then and it's possibly even better today.
The game is great for anyone who enjoys classic-style, party-based JRPGs. If you THINK you will like the game, you most likely will. This is not your 'usual' retro/16bit-inspired rpg maker game. Both the way the story plays out (reminds a bit of Arc the Lad?) and the battle system are unique. The crafting system was fairly simple, but I had fun with it. Messing around with accessories and stats, trying to min/max my party was something I had a lot of fun doing. If you enjoy grinding and min/maxing -- it's definitely there if you want it. Overall, I obviously liked the game a lot (by my playtime) so I do recommend it!
Echoes of Aetheria é um jogo indie feito no RPG Maler VX Ace.
O jogo utiliza um sistema de batalha original onde a formação do grupo influencia em diversas coisas, como: alcance das magias, chance de esquiva, dano recebido e chance de ser alvo de ataques inimigos. Alguns inimigos possuem uma habilidade que bagunça a sua formação, só que isso não é desfeito quando a batalha acaba, te obrigando a ir no menu de formação e reposicionar os personagens manualmente sempre que isso acontecer, o que incomoda um pouco.
Assim como nos demais jogos da Dancing Dragon Games, o jogo tem um notável salto de dificuldade nos últimos três chefes pra incentivar as sidequests, mas aqui é um pouco mais complicado já que você precisa tanto completar as batalhas de arena individuais para conseguir a receita das "Ultimate Weapons", quanto farmar metais raros como "Adamantite" e "Aetherium" (que só podem ser encontrados numa dungeon opcional no fim do jogo) para montar as armas e ter uma chance contra os chefes finais.
O jogo é mais linear que a maioria e o mapa-mundi é no estilo "point-and-click". Ainda sim, é possível abortar a missão atual através do menu se precisar grindar. No geral, as dungeon tem tamanhos ideais, não sendo nem muito longas nem muito curtas; a unica parte que incomoda é um certo labirinto com efeito de loop. As dungeons também possuem puzzles, sempre no esquema de "procurar alavancas coloridas para abrir passagem" também presente na duologia "Deadly Sin" e em "Skyborn". A história é boa, mas também nota-se uma similaridade nela com a narrativa dos anteriores, em especial com a do "Deadly Sin 2".
Apesar dos problemas menores, Echoes of Aetheria é um jogo de RPG Maker muito bem feito. Recomendo.
Al principio bien pero llegado cierto punto aparece una batalla imposible. Literalmente. No puedes farmear y hacer power leveling, el jefe es tan duro que tus ataques le hacen cosquillas mientras los ladrones te meten double kick que te quitan media vida y te stunean. Aunque vayas primero por estos para evitarlo son 2 y no hay tiempo, los tiradores mientras hacen mucho daño también. Al final he desinstalado el juego. Una cosa es que la dificultad sea grande para que suponnga un reto, otra es que no puedas ni jugar.
I have played their other games and loved them. This one did not turn out as well as I hoped. Luckily, I got it on sale. Almost died on the second boss fight (at least I think it was a boss fight). The maps are too big and it's way too easy to get lost and not be able to find your way back. They really need directions for this game. If you have lots of time, You might enjoy this game. As I currently don't, I did not. Such a shame, too. This company showed so much potential.
I played this a long time ago and now I tried my 2nd playthrough.
But I am a little undecided about the game mechanics:
This is a steam punk scenario...only that there is not much steam punk it plays more like any other RPG around.
The strict partition in chapters..you play one battlefield than can talk/rest with your party at the HQ and it's up to the next battlefield.
The excessive use of switch searching in each scenario.
There are some interesting points: like forging weapons or augment them...only it takes much too long to find the items needed and if you do it...well you already found better equipment.
Using a tactical grid is interesting..but at the end you'll use the same pattern in most fights.
I'll play a little more so my final score my change ??
Good rpg. Not so much exploring at world map is what I missed at this game.
But game generaly speeking game is ok.
Only game not to take the dpad of my third party controller. Pretty messed up about controllers anyway. Apart from that don't care enough to restart my system every time just to get the right controller to work. Everyone else can do that, but you.
i'm having issues with some of the story points and i know rpg's treat bullets and sword hits the same but when you have a d'day like scenario where troops are invading in full plate i just want to roll my eyes. the sad part is they DO have an airforce but left them out of the fight do to "forest"? i'm not even sure the military is the best place to hide since i'm wanted and my guy is the high generals son but ofc no one recognise me because i have a helmet on. games like final fantasy keep the tech just jankie enough as to not be much more useful than magic or like in tactics ogre where guns are a new thing (i also like how in TO everyone can use a gun but it's used as a club if your not a gunner).
there's also tones of QOL stuff that just gets annoying: enemies only show hp when getting attacked, you can't compare states in shops, no minimap, and if you die in battle you get less xp. the xp may sound normal until you relies there is a set number of fights and if someone dies a lot or during a boos fight you can kiss a levels or two goodby and going back to levels enemies only give 1-3xp per fight. the issue with the QOL stuff is the game is bland and these little things make you wonder why you're not playing something better.
i like the breath of fire battle layout so i'll keep playing but i know i'm not going to finish this game.
I did play this game for a bit because I had nothing better to do but ultimately I stopped somewhere in the middle and quickly forgot about it. This game is not terrible but it is also not good. It feels extremely mediocre in every aspect. Nothing really stood out. Not the story, not the graphics, not the gameplay. Everything was just at a point where you say it's ok but there is nothing really to keep you going. I don't wanna hate on this game since Im sure the developers put a lot of energy into it but I cannot recommend it. Very forgettable game.
Good older type RPG. And works nicely on steam deck (may have run through proton; issues with linux binary).
Très bon petit RPG vraiment pas chère. La traduction française n'est pas super bien fait car elle dépasse les box de dialogue mais on peut facilement deviner le mot manquant donc c'est ok. Je voulais jouer sur mon SteamDeck mais je n'arrive pas a mettre le jeu en français et je n'ai eu aucune réponse sur le discord... Si quelqu'un peut m'aider je suis preneur !
Great storytelling by a committed developer I enjoy the mature themes and excellent writing.
Well worth your time.
If you liked the recent hit Symphony of war, give this a chance. Aetheria is set in the same world, but with a different era. It's a prequel.
i'd argue that both games compliment each other.
What i will remember about Aetheria is its people and the amount of effort that was put on to detail's of the areas to make em stand out.
The Aetheria crisis story arc gave me flashbacks of Fou-Lu from Breath of Fire IV. That another other good things wass enough for me to write down an recommend for Aetheria.
I was inspired to check this game out after playing Dancing Dragon's most recent title, "Symphony of War".
While it's not anywhere nearly as good as SOW, it's still a pretty solid RPG that is well worth the price. It's basically just like SOW except you command a traditional 5-man RPG party instead of an army. The combat is good, the story is servicable, and I especially was impressed with how complex the dungeons were. In contrast to a game like say, Octopath Traveler, where all the dungeons are just straight paths with a corner or two for treasure, this one actually has big sprawling massive caverns that really make you work to find all the best loot. Even better, the enemy encounters are limited, so you don't have to fight random enemies every few seconds trying to find where to go.
The game also has a pretty good crafting system, though the menu information is frustratingly limited. The game doesn't show you if what you are creating is superior to what you already have, so you can sometimes have to do a lot of saving and reloading, which is thankfully quick.
The dialogue is amusingly modern for its setting, it actually gave me a laugh or two. There was this one character who kept calling one of my party members "prom queen", which led me to wonder if this medieval fantasy kingdom actually has proms. What a shame we never got to see those.
However, I do have to say the game's big weakness is that absurd technology mix-up. It isn't just a medieval fantasy with some steam-punk elements like SOW. EOA's universe has essentially Star Wars level technology, so it really doesn't make sense to have the population living in medieval cities or fighting with swords and bows. This aspect made it really hard to take the game or the plot seriously.
Plus the last boss has an insane difficulty spike. I cleared nearly the whole game on hard up to then, only to run into a final boss that one-shots all my party members with every hit. This still happened even on normal, so I just gave up and played on easy to be able to see the ending.
Overall though I'd say this is a good enjoyable game though. Certainly worth checking out if you are looking for something else to hold you over till SOW gets a sequel or update. And a good way to show your support for the company that gave us the excellent SOW to begin with.
The UI is extremely awkward and poorly designed, and wild spikes in difficulty even in the first two chapters.
Mediocre game on all accounts. Combat is average and many mechanics rarely useful, ie. I you learn about stagger early in the game and then I never used it until final combat. . Writing is very weak, story and characters are not well written at all and it had little emotional weight. On normal the combat is no challenge at all. Then suddenly final duo of bosses is incredible spike in difficulty and after many failed attempts that were not even close, I had to leave and grind much better equipment and several new levels. I one-shot the boss right before them so this was quite surprise to me.
???
Great game with interesting story, great gameplay and challenging fights that never gets boring.
Que prazer foi jogar esse jogo!
* história gostosa de acompanhar e inclusive com temas filosóficos como o questionamento da justificação do poder político e a convivencia de povos de culturas diferentes.
* os combates são o ponto forte desse rpg de turno, pois é necessário muita estrategia e planejamento para escolher habilidades passivas que estejam de acordo com o potencial de cada personagem e ajudem na eficácia das habilidades ativas. O TP tambem é um conceito que embora não seja inédito é muito bom e te exige mais estratégia ainda sobre quais personagem devem usar abilidade primeiro.
* sobre o sistema de crafiting... é tremendamente fácil, mas os recursos antes do fim do jogo são parcos. Então foi necessário muito planejamento. Foram horas perdidas, mas muito prazeirosas, planejando que personagens receberiam equipamento novo e que tipo de equipamento (levando em conta as habilidades ativas e passivas).
Me diverti com a história e usei muito a cabeça (sem me desgastar).
obs.: a última vez que me diverti tanto com um rpg desse tipo foi com o Final Fantasy 3 (6 no Japão) que joguei na década de 90 no saudoso super nintendo.
Alright, now that I've played around with Echoes of Aetheria for a little while, I think I can safely say I can give my impressions on it.
Simply put...it's not what I was expecting, and that's not exactly a good thing in this case.
While I do like the slight tactical feel to the battle system, when a basic enemy that's like 10 levels below you is two-shotting people 10 levels above it, something is wrong. When you literally cannot equip any armor on any of your characters because it's too heavy for them, and yet the highest equipment you can give them at the time is nowhere near enough to beat enemies at their own level, something is wrong. When all your attacks with the strongest weapons in the game at that level are doing peanuts damage against even weaker enemies, something is wrong.
Why are none of my abilities doing what they should be doing? Why are none of the upgrades I give to said abilities actually doing anything? Why are 90% of the skills all five of the characters have essentially useless? Why does my healer literally have to kill herself halfway in order to heal one person? Hell, why do so many of her special attacks DAMAGE HER? Why is my level 33 character (who the game handed to me on a silver platter, I might add, while everyone else was at level 15), who has the most health, defense, strength, and magical power in the game so far, dying to level 15 opponents on normal difficulty?
I can't even see the enemies' stats in-game, I can't see what any of my own status effects do, and the turn system sometimes just has a mind of its own and switches around who goes first. This is NOT how you do an RPG battle system. You should AT LEAST be able to see the enemies' health bars somehow, either through targeting them or just normally.
And that's just the battle system, the story isn't getting much better to compensate. The characters are so flat it's actually incredible, and the dialogue is cringe-inducing. The plot is too fast-paced in the beginning and barely gives any time for the characters to breathe, and when it eventually does, it leaves the player unsatisfied with how little character growth is happening. And that's pretty much all I can say about it, because there really isn't that much else TO say. I've seen stories like it before, and yet those other ones at least tried to make it fun and adventurous. This one...doesn't. It's just there.
Finally, there's the rest of the gameplay: forging, exploring, and missions. Simply put, the dungeons barely have any real exploration in them (just searching for buttons to unlock some doors, and a key to unlock a chest...how riveting), and the treasures you do find are almost never worth it. The missions are bare-bones and extremely linear, there's no side-quests, there's no looking around, there's no world-building, there's not even any real exploration, you're just sent from one mission to the next without any overworld stuff. That's...lame.
And then the forging...where do I even begin? It's unintuitive, for starters. There's no guide, there's no tutorials, the game just throws it at you and says "go wild". Okay, but can I at least know the basics? Nope, not even that; okay. So I start forging, but the game doesn't even tell you what you're going to get when you forge something (all it gives is "???" on every stat for the equipment you're making), so you have no idea if you're going to waste some of your materials when you make it.
Sooooo yeah, not satisfied with this game at all. I was having fun at first, but the longer I played, the worse these problems got. I'm no longer having fun, and the moment that happens in a game is the moment I drop it.
So unbalanced it is not even funny. I`ve played most missions on hard because I read you get better loot and more xp for doing so. And of course, achievements.
So, some enemies would close to roll over, while others would one-shot your most defensive character, or worse, your whole party. However, in the end I would make it through with some strategy changes and a bit of luck.
Then comes final dungeon and I slowly and painstakingly make it 2/3 to the last boss when I get obliterated, and no matter what I do I can`t get past it. No choice but to loose several hours, reload and make better gear.
At this point I`m so tired of this game I want to make it "easy" on myself, by choosing normal difficulty in addition to the new gear I made with all my saved up resources.
Okay try again, the final dungeon is mostly a breeze, and then I make it to the final boss.... just to get obliterated. On the FIRST out of three stages... Several tries later and a big portion of luck gets me to the next stage just to be so utterly crushed I just feel like giving up everything.
This game stopped being funny ages ago, I was just playing through because I`m kinda stubborn when it comes to finishing games. Now I might just quit. Of course,
I know I haven`t got the best of the best gear, because that requires hours and hours of running around on the ♥♥♥♥♥♥ repetable maps that are formed like mazes you have to memorize to get through. In addition to dodging enemies that come running at you, because fighting them can be quite hard, and then you get 1 or 0 xp pr combat.
This grinding, and crafting trial and error shouldn`t be a requirement to beat NORMAL difficulty. Thank you Dancing Dragon for killing all kind of enjoyment this game might ever have had.
This game offers the complete RPG experience which many games including AAA titles fail to achieve. I fault this game for nothing.
My favourite aspect of the game is having 5 characters who can fill the roles of DPS/TANK/SUPPORT all equally.(notice i said support instead of healer and you will see why when you play the game)
All my characters switched their roles in all 3 types during the course of my adventure it was awesome to have that much creative freedom to do so. There is even an arena to put your builds to the test!
Very fun, even if unbalanced for some parts.
5.5/10
A solid and dedicated RPG overall, but makes me in pain sometimes.
props:
+ Skills with great amounts of variety, which is enjoyable.
+ The story is well enough as a JRPG.
+ Smart resting places designs.
cons.
- Unfriendly crafting system. You would better save every time before you craft.
- Exhausting mazes, especially in late-game.
- Exhausting mob battles, especially in late-game.
--
這款遊戲似乎還沒有中文評論，因此用中文稍微詳評。
簡單結論：因為是用心的獨立RPG，我仍給個好評。但遊戲的負面體驗部分也很明顯。
遊戲最亮眼處是角色技能，每位角色有二十多種技能可以自由升級、配置，再加上十多種可選擇的被動技，與主動技相互搭配，讓每位角色都有很多元的戰術可塑性。且最佛心的是它的技能點可以隨時重新配置，若一套戰術用不順手，甚至只是心血來潮想換打法，隨時可以重新配置技能，不用任何代價。拜豐富的技能戰術所賜，這遊戲至少在前中期的戰鬥十分有趣。
裝備系統也有其特色。雖然初期較枯燥，但隨著遊戲進展，素材種類變得多元，會發現裝備鍛造有許多可挖掘的變化，與鑲嵌系統配合，也讓整備更添樂趣。然而鍛造的成果無法預覽，時常導致做出的裝備不如預期，只好倒回去讀取檔案重做，或是認賠浪費素材，是對使用者較不貼心的設計。
整個遊戲最難受的部分則是迷宮——這位作者前幾款作品的迷宮都挺有趣，充滿冒險感的迷宮規模與恰到好處的機關謎題，走起來十分舒適——但到了這一款，作者好像暴走了一樣(或許太執著超越自己的前作)，各種刻意叫玩家繞路的機關、邏輯複雜的岔路、巨大到讓人放棄記憶的地圖規模。再加上小怪群常常一次7~10隻撲上來，迷宮都走很累了，加上打怪更疲乏。但我還是乖乖把每一隻小怪都清掉了，因為迷宮大到難認，清掉小怪姑且可以當個路標……
通常玩RPG走迷宮都會努力把每一條路都搜遍，因為不想錯過寶箱。這款還是第一次就算明顯看到有沒開的寶箱我也不想去找的，因為累了。前面提到戰鬥多元性的樂趣，遊戲後期在疲乏的迷宮中也逐漸麻木了。
總結來說，如果玩家有興趣嘗試這個團隊的RPG作品，比起這款我更推薦上上款作品Deadly Sin 2，這款的優點Deadly Sin 2也都具備，只是稍樸素單純一些。不過Deadly Sin 2是傳統地雷式遇怪，可能有人比較不喜歡。小品向的Skyborn也是個選擇，雖然較無法見識這位作者的全力。至於這款EoA，以同團隊的作品而言我只會擺在第三順位吧，請抱持面對刁難的覺悟再嘗試(?)
最後附帶一提：這位作者的文學底子可能很不錯，英文用字比較深奧，也常常穿插俗諺俚語，閱讀起來比一般英文遊戲更困難些。不過劇情偏向王道，就算幾句話沒看懂也還是知道發生了什麼，因此就算英文苦手，可能也不用太擔心。
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This game is one of my favorites! :)
Great item complexity, crafting, different ways to build characters, and great overall difficulty!
Idiotic final boss that you cannot beat on hard unless you grind like hell first. Oh, you didn't think such a stupid fight would show up at the very end? Too bad, you have to go back and lose hours of progress because the final dungeon leading to it was a boring slog of a maze where enemies fights were just frustrating nuisances as they didn't offer any resistance and barely give any xp. A stark contrast to the final fight.
Didn't finish and suggest no one even begins playing this. Bitter disappointment.
I really wanted to like this RPG, and for a while I did. I'm not big on Strategy, but despite the combat system leaning pretty heavily in that direction, it did a lot of things that I like, the biggest one being that everyone gets experience based on winning the battle, rather than how many actions they performed, so nobody gets left behind. You also heal up fully after each battle, so resource management isn't as big of a concern, which is great, considering that you can't grind. The visuals are spectacular - you'd never know this was made in RPG Maker by looking at the battle graphics - and the music is pretty good. Even the writing is top-notch; the plot is interesting, and almost all of the characters are instantly likable, even one of the main antagonists.
Then, I got just so far and there was this STUPID high difficulty spike. Like, some battles I'd win, and some I'd get totally creamed even though the encounter should've been only half the threat, and it all seemed to come down to luck. I'd crafted the best equipment I could by that point, had my skills leveled up pretty high, had my experience as high as possible (again, you can't grind), and I'd learned the battle system pretty well. This is also in a dungeon that took me something like 2 hours to go through before with much easier encounters, so that was my breaking point. Had the developers gotten the balance right, this could've been an absolute classic.
Solides RPG aus dem Maker Baukasten. Wer Open World erwartet wird leider enttäuscht. Alle "Welt"-Screenshots sind aus Zwischensequenzen. Vielmehr tippt man auf einer Karte immer das nächste Dungeon an. Diese sind anfangs schlauchig, später eher Maze-mäßig. Die Rätsel sind fordernd, aber nicht nervend. Am meisten gefallen hat mir, dass das Spiel defakto keinen Grind hat. Allerdings könnten die Bosse schwierig werden wenn man die nicht respawnenden Gegner zu oft dodged.
A fantastic modern take on a classic JRPG turn-based game! I highly recommend it for Final Fantasy lovers and anyone who is into the classic RPG game style.
Firstly, I love the tall sprites and beautiful tile sets used for this game. This game really utilized RPG maker well but also, it's been made so professionally that you wouldn't even think it's really an RPG Maker game. Firstly, the story is great but what's even better are the awesome and well-developed characters, they are all very likeable. The story can get a little confusing along the way but I guess that's just me wanting to get through this game as this game is VERY long. At least for me it was.
The battle system is incredible, I love the grid-based system it uses to allow you to position your characters strategically for battle. I also love the skill points system for the characters and while for the most part, I found the battles and even bosses pretty easy, it gets EXTREMELY hard by the end of the game so just make sure you grind your characters up until level 75-80 on normal mode if you wish to defeat the final boss because I tried so many times before level 70 but I had to grind my characters up to level 80 just to defeat them (by then the final boss was actually pretty easy). It was a huge struggle and frustration that I had to make lots of time for grinding though.
Other cons include that some of the puzzles in this game are a bit too hard and you often will find yourself getting lost. I wish there was an option from at least one of the characters to flee a battle in case you come across a monster in your path. By the end of the game, there was an exceptionally hard puzzle that took me a few days to figure out. It was really frustrating but overall, I do like puzzles but just make them a little easier and not like a maze.
I like the crafting system in this. Overall, it was done well but the problem with it was that it doesn't tell you whether what you crafted will benefit any of the characters so I often got frustrated after finding out that certain equipment that was crafted was NOT increasing any of the character's stats that it's intended for meaning that I just wasted materials to craft that item...so it can be a bit frustrating too with the crafting system as it's like a guessing game even though I do like that it's a feature especially if done right.
Sadly, I had to grind like CRAZY towards the end just to defeat the final boss so just be aware of that, a lot of preparation and time is needed for the ending part of the game... Apart from that, this has been a very enjoyable gameplay and I really liked the ending too. Amazing characters, battle system and soundtrack!
good story
This is a really cool RPG, another proof that good games can come out of RPG Maker.
Fantastic Jrpg reminiscent of old games. Very nice characters, a great arena and very enjoable fighting system. The crafting is also very rewarding and powerful I might add. Highly recomended and airship are always a plus in my book xD
Типичная история спасения всего мира от [strike]НЁХ[/strike] древних рептилоидов. Линейная и местами эпичная.
[h1]Abstract[/h1]
A typical story of saving the world from ancient Evil. Linear and a bit epic. Works perfect on Ubuntu 18.04. Notebook with Intel® HD Graphics 4400 is enough.
[h1]RPG Maker[/h1]
Как и в другом произведении авторов [url=https://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198084019881/recommended/278460]Skyborn[/url], тут есть летающие корабли, картинка 4x3 и видок как у игр на RPG Maker, но есть большие уровни-лабиринты и боёвка весьма не стандартная.
[h1]История[/h1]
Довольно линейная. После прохождения уровня вам дают место для отдыха и новый уровень для прохождения. Ну и выдают порцию очередных напастей, заговоров и головной боли. Тут есть «кинематографические вставки» на движке RPG Maker (sic!), которые не всегда можно быстро промотать — [i]вас предупредили![/i]
P.S. Если вы жаждете качественных текстов и вас не пугает RPG Maker, то настоятельно рекомендую [url=https://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198084019881/recommended/1212400/]Heroines of Swords & Spells[/url].
[h1]Боёвка[/h1]
Внезапно тактика. Есть площадка 3x5 по которой можно расставить бойцов. Бойцы покрепче ставятся в первую линию, слабые телом в третью. После боя бойцы автоматически восстанавливают, так что «лечилки» нужны только во время боя.
Бойцы и их развитие предопределены. Каждый имеет свой уникальный, постепенно открываемый набор активных и пассивных навыков, которые можно выбирать и усиливать в любое время, резко изменяя стиль боя.
Качество одёжки и оружие имеет значение, так что придётся постоянно искать компоненты для крафта и соответственно крафтить.
[i]Совет:[/i] основной DD — это человек-пантера Эскандер. Поэтому, всё лучшее — ему. Обязательно следует пройти его линейку боёв на Арене и сделать ему супер катану, а иначе у вас будут гарантированные проблемы даже на нормальном уровне сложности при разборке с Главгадом, который по сути имеет три стадии, то есть убивать придётся трижды без роздыха, причём быстро. Иными словами: облизывайте Эскандера, поднимайте его из нокаута, лечите его, а он пусть уходит в тень и бьёт супостата сзади раз за разом.
[h1]🐧 GNU/Linux[/h1]
Порт отработал без нареканий. Спас мир от древнего обиженного на весь мир и по идее всесильного Зла в основном с помощью множественных ударов в спину в среде Ubuntu 18.04 на ноутбуке со встроенной видеокарточкой Intel® HD Graphics 4400.
[h1]Обзор входит в список [url=https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1103944566]Игры, Linux, Steam, обзоры.[/url][/h1]
Fun throwback rpg with a good story!
It's ok!!!
This a really solid JRPG! Fun tactical turn-based combat, great characters, and interesting locations. Not much in the way of player choice, but the linear story is enjoyable and filled with political intrigue and shifting alliances.
Just don't, because:
-Boring and frustrating labyrinth maps (with no minimap)
-No explanation of stats (700 int spellcaster hits 2000dmg with spells where swordsman with 300str hits 12000)
-Enemy level scaling is so bad and hard you can't grind low level for loot/exp. They always beat you
-No side quests
-No choices in storyline
So disappointed after spending 53 hours on this game
JPRGs are my favourite genre and this is one of the best without doubt. It's in the same ballpark as Chrono Trigger and FF6. Recommended.
starts out well enough, but then the furries get involved and I couldn't continue.
https://youtu.be/g1jobUoAPu8
A refreshing amount of care for quality of life, strong lighthearted writing, and well paced combat makes for a solid RPG structure.
good ol' fashion RPG
[h1] 游戏介绍[/h1]
《Echoes of Aetheria》是一款由Dancing Dragon Games制作，Degica发行的独立角色扮演类游戏。游戏讲述了俩个国家以一场重大的皇家婚礼的方式来实现和平，但在正要完成婚礼的时刻，士兵们发生了政变，并掳走了公主，于是游戏也就从此展开，玩家们将追随主人公Lucian, Ingrid, Soha来一起探索这其中的阴谋。
[h1] 游戏的体验 [/h1]
游戏的画面给我的感觉十分的简洁，而且颜色的运用恰到好处，就刚开始的婚礼现场都让我感到了十足的气氛感，然后剧情的展示十分的流畅，但故事比较曲折，却也因此能给我们带来通过自己努力冒险的成果，通过NPC的行动与对话我们则可以很好的了解到其中故事的发展，音乐的渲染也让游戏有着一定的节奏，并且使得游玩时气氛更佳。游戏的战斗采用回合制的方式，不同的角色有着不同攻击方式，看情况使用技能与平A即可，偶尔使用道具来进行道具来进行回复，基本上战斗我觉得不是很难，冒险的途中还会给我们提供宝箱来让我们进行收集，使得我们的道具会变得更加的丰富，武器方面则是可以制作，使用合适的材料便可以提升武器的属性（属性的提升我个人觉得比较高）。
[h1] 游戏总结 [/h1]
总体而言，这是一款比较不错的角色扮演游戏，可玩性还算不错，主要推荐给喜欢角色扮演类游戏的玩家。
评分：7/10
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I really enjoyed Skyborn, but this game feels like it has a bit of a second system effect.
To explain:
In software dev a person may build their first system. Because they're unsure with themselves, they'll be conservative. Not building anything too fancy, too large, or too complex. It will be successful.
When they build their second, they'll have more confidence and will be less conservative. The result will be a system with tons of problems if it works at all. This is an effect that's been recognized in the software industry for the last 30-40 years.
This game feels that way to me.
I'm sure the story is swell, but the fact that I would have to flip back and forth between my inventory and the shop (or crafting window) JUST to compare them is wholly and completely asinine. Not to mention the byzantine levels that feel like the developer is pitting themselves against you. Or making the player complete levels twice in order to get everything because the layout will physically change after the first run through.
These are all seem like fine ideas on paper, but miss the point of games, which is to be enjoyable and fun.
Echoes of Aetheria is one of the better JRPG-inspired RPGMaker games out there right now, and I think the best that Dancing Dragon has to offer, though most of their other games are also quite fun.
The lore and environment is leaps and bounds larger than any other RPGMaker game that I have played, and I have played a fair few of them on offer here on Steam. That said, it's not so massive that it overextends its reach or scope, which is aided by a central plot line. Overall the plot has it's share of predictable and cliched moments, but has a few shocking moments and twists, again not commonly seen out of the RPGMaker scene.
The music is especially a welcome surprised. I have listened to and played a fair share of multi-million dollar RPG projects with much inferior soundtracks to this game, and I don't think I could pay it a higher compliment than that. Anyone out there looking to hire talent, give Phil Hamilton a job. Though I guess that would be quite a blow to Dancing Dragon Games so... at least something to think about.
The battle and crafting system is a huge step up from Skyborn and other similar games, as well. The grid based battle system offers a small level of strategy that is not often found in turn-based RPGs regardless of scale, and I greatly appreciate it. That said, I do feel like you quickly become overburdened with new skills at a rapid rate due to how fast you level. You'll end up learning 95% of all of your skills before you are halfway through the game, and then finally by the end of the game you will hopefully have a good grasp of what works and doesn't with your play style, but some better pacing would have went a long way to making that better. The crafting system, while not really any more complex than in Skyborn, does offer more variety. It's also not always so clear cut what is the "best" of any equipment either because not always does the "newest" and "shiniest" equipment make the best equipment. You are encouraged to play around a little, albeit very little, but still very much appreciated.
All that said, the game isn't without it's faults either. While not as grevious as other similar styled games, the use of labyrinthian design in RPGMaker games really needs to stop. I have chastised games for it in the past, and I will do so here, too. Labyrinths are nothing more than useless padding to inflate game time, no one likes them, and they only serve to possibly detract people away from the experience. Granted most of the mazes aren't overly complex in this game and you are usually rewarded with treasure for your troubles, but it can become a burden to navigate to a certain destination when you can't remember how to get from Point A to Point B.
All in all, Echoes of Aetheria ranks very highly on my list as one of the best RPGMaker RPG games available to date. That's not say it doesn't have it's faults which continue to plague this sub-genre of RPGs, but said faults are far less glaring here than in most of it's contemporaries. Game is definitely worth picking up if you are at all interested in playing RPGMaker games, and even if you are a person who is on the fence about trying one, this is a great game to break into.
Globalement, Echoes of Aetheria est un très bon RPG, ci-dessous un résumé des plus et des moins selon moi :
Les + :
- Les graphismes pour ce type de jeu
- Le système de combat avec les grilles pour déplacer vos personnages / viser pour les attaques / soints
- La durée de vie
- Cinq personnages avec les styles de jeux différents et complémentaires
- La variété des pouvoirs et des compétences
- La possibilité de spécialiser les personnages
- L'arène de combat avec le parcours en groupe et les parcours individuels
- On se prend au jeu à adapter les compétences et spécialisations en fonction des ennemis
- La prise en compte des éléments notamment feu/glace/foudre/étherium qui ont une vrai incidence en fonction des faiblesses des ennemis
Les - :
- La traduction en français n'est pas 100% complète (pas très grave)
- Les descriptions des pouvoirs et autres dépassent souvent du cadre ce qui empêche de voir la totalité (plus grave)
- Les durées de cast / recover après une attaque / nombre de TP utilisé... ne sont pas précisés lors du choix des compétences
- La carte du monde façon vieux papier n'est pas très immersive, pourquoi ne pas avoir utilisé celle qui est présente dans certaines cut scènes ?
- Le système de craft pas très intuitif
- On ne trouve pratiquement jamais d'armes de valeur sur les monstres / boss : La majorité passe par le craft
- L'histoire aurait pu être mieux amenée
- Le parcours est complètement linéaire (aucune liberté d'agir sur l'histoire)
Je recommande dans tous les cas, cela reste un bon jeu old school façon console 16 bits
The game was really entertaining. I liked it a lot. But for every thing that I liked, there was a thing I disliked.
So, I think Pro/Con type of review will explain it better.
Pros:
[*]Game is 20-40h long.
[*]Story is mature, writing is good. Characters are well-developed, their interactions always felt fun to read.
[*]Combat is very well made. It is the usual turn-based but with quite a few changes, such as "Turn order" UI, formation settings, skills that can be changed levelled/unvelevelled at anytime, and crafting, which is crucial for your team to be well equipped.
[*]No random encounters. Some encounters can be outrun if you do not want to fight.
Cons:
[*]Scaling in this game is somewhat off. Your teammembers will often be one-shot, therefore making it pretty much required to have "constructs" to take damage for you instead, or staggering the enemies. Ofcourse mass reviving is an option, but it does get pretty tiring...
[*]This game is [b]obsessed[/b] with it's crafting system. Unless you [i]always[/i] craft new gear the moment you get yourself enough of the crafting materials - you're going to have a bad time. Especially if you're playing on hard. A bit of grinding may be needed to get some of the top tier armor/weapons.
[*]Map design. Sometimes it's pretty great, sometimes it's mazes built on top of mazes to interconnect with mazes via maze. The map designer seemed to adore the maze-like structure of the maps, which I find to be pretty boring and dull. While graphically these still look good, playing them wasn't fun, and very well repetitive. Especially when you're trying to 100% the game, finding every chest and all that...
[*]Combat may feel repetitive sometime. But, well, that's nothing unusual for RPG-maker games.
In conclusion:
If you're okay with it's flaws, you'll get a very enjoyable RPG-maker experience, the story about team of fighters that are not putting up with the ♥♥♥♥ that is going on in their countries. [spoiler]That is at first, at least...[/spoiler]
Normally don't give much intention to games made with RPGMaker but the price was right (80% off) and it had a very high approval rating.
Really enjoying the ride so far - when the gameplay is good, the graphic quality ceases to be an issue. Enjoying all aspects of the game - story, humour, combat and crafting.
In retrospect, would have been happy to pay full price.
Quite cool, would recommend.
k bye
A fun rpg.
This game is a lot like window shopping. You can see nice items thru that window, but you can't get to them.
This game is like that. You can see cool thing you can do, but you can't access them. Nothing is explained or shown to you. For example, you can craft but its not explained or shown to you. You can level up, but you're not told or shown how to place your new skill points, if indeed you get any. Sometimes you do, sometimes you don't. You get a hot bar but nothing tells you how to put stuff in it. No tutorial, no manual, no explanations. You figure stuff out thru trial and error-mostly error. Plus, this must have been ported over from a console game, which I don't care for. Not my kind of game.
Overall a good game and relatively cheap. Better quality than a lot of RPG Maker games - a decent length, has an engaging story that flows well, is pretty balanced difficulty wise.
However it does have a few technical problems - the controls have frozen up on me and otherwise been awkward, there are some interesting misspellings, once or twice it failed to load. Most annoyingly of all, it makes some very bad design choices near the end.
[spoiler] a difficult penultimate boss, mercifully with an autosave after it, followed by an also tough two-stage final boss who triggers a bad ending if you fall to them. meaning you have to sit through partially unskippable dialogue again. and fight the first form AGAIN. also it starts getting creepy and breaking the fourth wall and did I mention I'm already unnerved by bad endings and its really hard to avoid one triggered by losing a tough fight and this isn't supposed to be a horror game? [/spoiler]
It is a well done game. However, I was disappointed with the two main starting characters who are similar to the Skyborn characters. I didn't really care for the combat system. I know it is more strategic than Skyborn's combat but it just didn't interest me. Make sure you buy/craft weapons and armor. I had to redo a stage because the boss fight was too difficult with my equipment. In general I found the boss fights much more difficult than the regular battles. I switched to easy and still didn't defeat the final battle. I'm sure I could craft the items and optimize my skills to defeat the final battle but I just don't find that enough fun. (I know it might seem negative but I did enjoy the game.)
Been on the lookout for an old school SNES or Genesis style RPG lately (there's only so many times you can replay Chrono Trigger, Breath Of Fire, etc.) and went with this one after looking through a whoooooooooole lot of options. It hits all the right notes, and has a strong FF6 vibe with the combination of magic and tech.
Adding a grid to the traditional turn based combat allows for some strategy, and each character has multiple skills to choose from and swap out depending on the enemies in the current area. Fire blades aren't much help against desert creatures for instance, while Soha's ability to influence humans is incredibly helpful when storming a castle and fighting an army.
As to be expected from this sort of game, there are a few silly and cheesy lines in the dialog, but there's a darker edge to some of the character interactions and story beats. This is one of the few indie RPG Maker style games where all the plotting factions and groups with varying goals seem to gel together into a cohesive world that makes sense and draws you in to learn more as you go.
Between the robust crafting system missing from most original SNES RPGs and the ability to choose difficulty options in each dungeon, Echoes of Aetheria does a lot right and not much wrong.
This is an enjoyable JRPG. If it was released 20-25 years ago during the 16/32 bit era, it would have been a highly successful RPG.
Pros:
The best part about this game is the combat which is downright fun and interesting. I love how you can switch out abilities without penalty to try something new and how formation of your party actually matters. Each character is loaded with different skills and you have access to almost all of them halfway through the game. Also, if you do get smoked by an enemy, you can replay the battle without losing your progress which is a great touch.
I really enjoyed the gameplay and puzzles that you experience at every level. Although, some of them don't really make practical sense, I mean why is there a bunch of switches and buttons in a cave, but I thought they were a nice addition and fun to work through. There is tons of loot so exploration was also a blast. I would have enjoyed a world screen, it is absent here, but there is great detail in the environments and you can replay some levels.
One of the best aspects of Echoes is the characters. They are written really well and unlike most games where you only care for maybe one or two characters, I found myself caring for my entire party. Each character is vastly different and we are given the proper time to explore their backstory and development.
Cons:
There is no comparison of stats for equipment when shopping, crafting, or even when equipping your gear. I found this to be extremely annoying. I would craft an item, then have to go into the character menu to equip it and see how it would change my stats. If the item wasn't up to par, I would then just reload the game and re-craft the item which was hopefully better. You also can't preview stats of the item you are crafting which is irritating. The same works for when you are buying gear at the shop in that there is no comparison between the item you are buying and what's equipped. Speaking of the shop, there really isn't much that you need to buy other than crafting materials. All the gear that you craft will be better than what you can buy. This is common in RPG's, but normally it's towards the end of the game, but here it is right from beginning. The stat comparison feature must not be available with RPG maker, although I'm not sure why because it was common in this era of games, but the lack of this feature is the worst part of this game. It is tedious and irritating.
Although the main characters are written beautifully and fully explored, everyone else in the story is kind of bland especially the villains. The main story itself was nothing original and kind of a bore. I don't think it was delivered badly, I just didn't find the content exciting or moving.
Lastly, I felt that the game scaled too high at the end. I played on normal throughout, and didn't grind levels, made some decent/powerful gear here and there, and when I got to the final boss I was completely obliterated. On my second attempt, I massively upgraded my gear, still not to the point where I have everyone decked out with dragon scale, but had a good array of equipment, and was still getting crushed. I felt that there was a large gap between the entire game and the final boss.
Overall this is a fun and well made JRPG. If you are a fan of the genre it is certainly worth checking out and you will get many hours of enjoyment.
The name is generic RPG 101, but the game itself is good. The nuts and bolts of it were new and interesting to me, and I had a fun time.
Me ha encantado este juego. Personalmente los juegos de esta compañia me molan, sus personajes y mecanicas. Espero que sigan así.
Historia un 7
Musica un 9
Personajes un 9
Graficos un 7
Mucho merito teniendo en cuenta las herramientas con las que ha sido creado
As much as I would like it I cannot reccomend it, the story is great however the balance is not there, it seems it was never event tested and just rushed out to cash in, nothing compared with Skyborn.
I am playing on Easy due of time constraint and it went from actual easy to random Dark Soul mode depending on the encounter or boss, that is a joke as clearly no one bothered to test it fully. Some encounter you get one shot killed nearly the whole party in easy mode in normal exploration, how? did anyone actually bother to play it at all? If you read through the reviews other people pointed that out and of course it was never really fixed. That is a game breaking for me or anyone that has a life besides playing games as if you want an easy challenge you get a totally random from actual super easy, challenging but easy or frustrating at the same level selected which is ridiculous.
Also some mechanic area really abused, party split control in some form the worst are teleports and witches (like large arcade buttons style ones) and endless maze udnerground filled with the aforementioned totally random encounter, literally just had the party one shot killed as a whole at easy level... really?
There are very few games I have not finished even if I did not like, probably a couple, however I felt like unistalling this game, will watch the end on youtube and never play it again....
It is a real shame as Skyborn was as fun (storywise) and well balanced.... this one really seems just a rushed work with repeated mechanics , horrible and untested fights and some said some recicled sprites from Skyborn which for me is fine as it was nice and also triple A games recycle a lot of 3D Models and no one says anything so that is not a negative for me.
If you haven't played Skyborn go play that... if you have do not play this game.....
Found something similar with Arafell, it seems that some of these RPGMAKER games want to be too many hours ending up not as polished, just stick with 8-9 hours but make a polished title, for the price of these games that is still a great value.
Shame...
Great rpgmaker, it does have several flaws, the first is full screen mode, you get black borders, 2nd is the in game music randomly goes away, but the biggest problem like alot of jrpg's out there is the final bosses, the game level goes through the roof, ou will find your self having to go bk and grind, grind grind, to get up to a level you can take them on, i do wish game makers would not do this, its takes away from the game, would i still recommend it, well yes up to the final boss, the grind needs sorting out. ps: also be pre-paired when going bk to re-grind in the re-try areas you could find ur self getting one hit kills against you
This game is a great little rpg with compelling characters and a gripping story....
That being said it suffers from the biggest flaw of early 90's RPG that this game is inspired by, and that's the late game difficulty spike that drivers up your hours played because you have to grind your self into oblivion to get the best gear to stand a chance against the final boss.
3/5 would recommend up until the end
What a fun little game this was!
Definitely worth a purchase. The story is compelling the characters have depth and the overall theme is magnificent if you are into this genre.
I had fun in the first chapters and I will play it till the end!
great game
I was not expecting this game to be as good as it was, and I ended up really enjoying it. For an RPG Maker game, the mechanics are surprisingly deep, the characters are multidimensional, and I didn't guess the ending from the outset like one sometimes can with these sort of games. I was sometimes frustrated by the complexity of the maps--there isn't any way to see what's beyond your current screen space--and a few of the character spec options were confusingly described. However, the strategy elements and enemy diversity are still interesting enough to keep me engaged, and the puzzles/challenge maps are a refreshing touch.
I got this game on sale, but I would recommend it at full price. I'm still working my way through the endgame ([spoiler] as I'm still getting my butt handed to me by ascended Soha[/spoiler]), and I anticipate more hours of fun to come.
A well made , fun game ! Addendum : Ok after playing this for over 34 hours I have to say this is really well balanced and the storyline is interesting and the gameplay is very good , this game is better than many games that are much more expensive . A hidden gem !
Echoes Of Aetheria is a independent steampunk fantasy R.P.G. adventure game developed by Dancing Dragon Games and published by Degica. You take on the role of Lucian, a soldier in the army of Sandraka who is attending the wedding of his brother to the princess of the neighboring kingdom of Sayunaa. During the ceremony, a vicious assault takes place and in the melee the Sayunaan bride is kidnapped and wisked away through the city to parts unknown. Skilled with a blade and fleet of feet, Lucian immediately gives chase to the kidnappers and attempts to retrieve the bride to be at all costs. This series of unfortunate events sets Lucian on an epic quest across the realm as war breaks out and allegiances are tested whilst a new nation is created. Prepare for an adventure filled with conflict, betrayal, love and redemption in this powerful story-rich RPGMaker title.
[h1]GAMEPLAY[/h1]
This game uses the classic R.P.G. formula so your character earns skill points as tasks are completed and battles are fought and won. These skill points can then be applied to upgrade the potency of a number of abilities that your party gains as they venture about. The choice of what abilities to use from a long extensive list is completely up to you and your particular playstyle. The combat is turn-based and initiates when your group and a enemy or enemies come into contact with one another. The battles in this game are strategic and alot of fun while also remaining quite challenging in the process. You definitely rely on your party as a whole to use their unique individual abilities and skills in unison in order to come out victorious especially against the more powerful adversaries that you will face over the course of the story.
Speaking of story, this is where the game truly makes the most impact in my opinion. Echoes of Aetheria is such a deep narrative driven game that immediately grabs you from the start and maintains a stranglehold on your emotions while this magnificent drama plays out. Humor, romance, conflict, betrayal and loss are just some of the many aspects of this intriguing fantasy adventure. The title also encourages exploration as there are a number of hidden items such as collectibles, crafting materials and other useful things that can only be found if you take some time to wander around and look for them. As far as crafting goes, the crafting system in this title is robust allowing you to create many different types of weapons and armor for your group some of them quite powerful if you have the appropriate materials. All in all, despite being a RPGMaker game, this title provides a good amount of gameplay for the enthusiast R.P.G. fan in my opinion.
[h1]VISUALS[/h1]
As a RPGMaker title I found this game to be quite impressive graphically. The artwork on the main characters during dialogue is superb with very impressive fantasy inspired hand drawn images that noticeably change facial expressions as they speak. Equally of note are the fantastic visuals for the battle sequences of which you will fight many during the course of the game. The sprites feature bright beautiful colors, wonderful animation as well as impressive sound effects. The battlefields are also excellent as are the many varied locations that you visit throughout the kingdom of Aetheria. Bustling cities, vast deserts, lush forested regions, steam punk inspired airships, there are just so many different locations to wander as your journey progresses. The developers used the RPGMaker assets to their full advantage and the production value of this game really shows that effort. In my opinion, this is one of the best if not "THE" best RPGMaker title available on Steam as far as visual presentation is concerned.
[h1]SOUND[/h1]
Boasting a wonderful orchestral soundtrack Echoes Of Aetheria presents a terrific musical score with tracks appropriate for combat, exploration and emotionally tense moments in the narrative. Also of note are the sound effects that are equally well done which when combined with the music create an excellent aural presentation for the game.
[h1]CONCLUSION[/h1]
Dancing Dragon Games continues to impress me with yet another wonderful addition to their amazing stable of high quality fantasy games. I absolutely loved "Skyborn" and I think this title actually outshines that amazing game. The intriguing storyline, addictive turn-based combat and highly memorable cast of endearing characters make for a gaming experience that should not be missed for a true fan of the roleplaying game genre. This title is an excellent example that great R.P.G.'s can come from highly talented independent developers with smaller budgets and don't have to be dubbed as a "AAA" title from some globe domineering developer and world-wide game publishing company. I had just as much fun playing this title as I did with other more popular well-known and highly budgeted roleplaying games which I won't mention in this review. With that said, replayability is adequate especially if you want to procure all the achievements.
The only downside in the gameplay is that you may get lost on some of the maps as you try to backtrack or make sure you explore every area before leaving or moving the story forward which can be frustrating for someone who doesn't want to spend the extra time walking around in circles. As far as options go, there are the aforementioned Steam Achievements to hunt down and Steam Trading Cards to collect. Also, there's a soundtrack filled with a brilliantly composed musical score and the Echoes Of Aetheria strategy guide for people who want to find all the secrets in the game. In conclusion, with a deep story, wonderful R.P.G. mechanics, fantastic visuals and fun combat, Echoes Of Aetheria is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED to fantasy, roleplaying and story-rich gamers!
RPG Maker games have a bad reputation.
Most people hear that a game was made in RPG Maker and dismiss it out of hand. To those people, I would suggest this game before any other.
Echoes of Aetheria is a game with a rich story, with rich writing, set in a rich world. I fell in love with the characters, and I could easily see myself picking it up again just to experience them all over again.
You can upgrade and enhance your equipment and skills both, with each character having several different ways to be played. I love customizability in games, and this really scratches that itch. The actual combat is different from the usual style, with a grid formation for characters that I found different, but excellent.
All in all, if you like RPGs, then pick up this game. It does everything right.
Played it a bit, as long as you don't play on hard you'll have fun in the final boss.
It got a crafting system! <3
Actual time spent on game (not open in background): ~20 hours. Game received in humble bundle -- not sure if that counts as "free" but I certainly didn't pay full price.
Echoes of Aetheria is a very good game that excites me about the developer's future endeavors. Its storyline is multifaceted, with a number of emotionally significant scenes. Its combat is interesting and provides many ways to approach most problems. The game is quite long for an indie JRPG and has a good arc from beginning to conclusion. Overall, it captured the feel of the great JRPGs on the SNES in the late 90s -- a rare characteristic, especially given that many of those games themselves no longer measure up to 20-year-old memories of them.
On the flip side, the game's writing definitely suffers as it goes on, as if the earlier parts received more editing passes. Some of the characters ' stories get lost amidst the main plot, and there are sometimes flat-out typos or immersion-breaking references to real-life history that feel very out of context. The biggest issue is the final section of the game -- the player is punished for missing earlier treasure chests, forced to do a bunch of tedious side-mission combat/grinding, and railroaded down a narrow set of builds -- yes, others are still possible, but everyone who finishes the game ends up with approximately the same approach. The difficulty of the final battle(s) is an enormous spike, even with significant preparation. The ending is also a letdown, degrading some of the story's most memorable moments and providing little final development of the world or its denizens. None of these gripes, however, ruin the game -- nor my excitement about Dancing Dragon's future.
Nice
First of all, let me say that I bought this game because I enjoyed Skyborn and saw it was the latest game by the same developer. Skyborn was quite good, and after seeing some screenshots of the battle system, combined with fact that generally developers get better with experience, I went in expecting this one was gong to be awesome.
And in a sense it's pretty good, however there's a small handful of things that bother me so much that I just can't really recommend it to people in its current state:
1) Skyborn had some really weird map designs with excessive amounts of nonsensical waterfalls, illogical floating land chunks, bizarre bridge/dock networks hovering above parallaxing backgrounds that felt so out of place they actually broke my immersion in the game world at times. I was hoping this wouldn't be a thing in this game as well, but already into the first forest, there it is again.
2) This is the big one. Equipment management is utterly atrocious. Crafting is a shot in the dark or consult-the-guide experience just like it was in Skyborn, however this game actually took things a step backward and also made shops LESS informative than they were in Skyborn. There is no (apparent) way to see if a given piece of equipment in a shop is better or worse than what a character is using without going back, manually viewing their equipment in the menu, then returning to the shop to check the new item's stats. In Skyborn, shops at least showed an up/down comparison of the item's HP against similar items worn by the party, but that's gone in this game.
2.5) Similarly, the items-possessed counter in shops doesn't count equipped items, so if your only Steel Helm is equipped on someone, the "Possessed" counter in the shop will show that you have 0 Steel Helms. I ended up buying something someone was already using because of this. Good thing I saved first.
Otherwise, it's a good game. Some of the better points include:
1) Just like in Skyborn, the story is pretty well-told.
2) The characters and the plot are interesting enuogh that I'd like to know what happens to each of them.
3) The battle system is a straight upgrade over Skyborn's semi-basic front view, as it introduces a nice tactical grid and targeting mechanics that make character and enemy positions important. Each character feels unique and useful in combat, although the healer (currently) feels a little underwhelming, but maybe that changes later.
Overall, it's game I want to like, but previously-mentioned issue--the lack of transparency in equipment management--is why I just can't give this game a positive review at the moment and am tempted to just walk away from the game without finishing it. Hopefully it was just an oversight and will change at some point, but until then, maybe try it if it's on sale, otherwise wishlist it, wait, and see.
Absolutely love the puzzles and story line!
Echoes of Aetheria is by far the best RPG Maker game I've ever played. If not for the classic walking screen, I wouldn't know this was made in RPG Maker. It is an extraordinary game with many good points:
[list]
[*]Amazing and fun story (a lot of stuff I didn't see coming). A vast lore is presented to you and in a very detailed and narrative way.
[*]Characters with interesting and different personalities. Most of the time they are unique, and not the cliché types. You can feel certain depth in the characters.
[*]Beautiful and unique battle system. This is probably the greatest feature in this game, I enjoyed this immensily. I was shocked to see this kind of mechanics in a RPG Maker game.
[*]Build flexibility. Another great characteristic that allows the player to choose how he wants to play each character. This brings identity to the game.
[*]Nice crafting system, and many others.
[*]There is a vast number of different enemies and bosses with different abilities and mechanics.
[/list]
But no game is flawless, and as I progressed through the game I started disliking somestuff:
[list]
[*]Underexplanation & Strategy guide: This is what I disliked the most. Lots of things are underexplained in the game. And I don't mean lore, I mean information about battle mechanics, what does this do and stuff like this. And conveniently there is a strategy guide for sale? This just seems like a very low and dirty cashgrab. I just hope future Dancing Dragon's games don't repeat this.
[*]Scaling of the enemies: Well, I played most of the game on hard and this was interesting because it kept the game not casually easy. But when I reached the last bosses (which receive a very strong boost in the Hard mode), I noticed I had to go back to grinding. In that moment scaling became just extremely boring. Fights started lasting way too long for too little reward. Maybe enemies should have a scaling limit.
[*]Rewards in Easy/Hard mode: This is related to the last item. As I was trying to farm gear for my team for the last bosses. I realized that Hard mode battles were taking way too long and rarely giving good rewards. So I switched to easy, and to my surprise the loot got extremely better and more common, and obviously the fights got way faster. So I don't see the point in this, easy was more rewarding than hard.
[*] Gear stats view: The only time you are going to see the quality of your gear in numbers is when you craft it. After this, you have to do the math in your character screen to see exactly your gear stats. And I don't need to say this is a very efficient way of wasting your time.
[*]Some minor bugs.
[/list]
Even though I wrote a lot more about the cons than about the pros, this is a great game. It is just that things I didn't like were very specific and easier to describe. If you like RPG's, buy this. You will enjoy Echoes of Aetheria.
No cloudsync, lost all progress. Sure, I didn't have many hours on but that's because of no cloudSync. I can only play on 1 machine and not on my other (at least the same game). Please add cloud sync
+
i love the character design, combat system and world building.
graphism is impressive for such simplist engine.
-
i just hate the map layout, seems like random tiles put together.
This game is honestly better than Final Fantasy IV.
This game is downright epic. I’ve been searching for an oldschool RPG and this totally hit the spot. From the story to the characters to the gameplay, everything about this game is just awesome. The banter between characters is hilarious and endearing, and their personalities really made me care about them as a group. Some of the map layouts near the end are mind-boggling in ther complexity, and though they were a nightmare to navigate at times, the artwork was always beautiful. The soundtrack is incredible, especially the main battle theme, I will never tire of hearing it. There is tons of customization with skills and upgrades, an addicting crafting system, and truly challenging fights that will force you to rethink your entire strategy. I just got finished beating the final boss on hard mode, and without spoiling anything, it was absolutely brutal. I had to reconfigure my entire team’s skill set in order to find the right combination to win, but it was definitely worth the struggle.
I honestly can't believe this was made with RPGMaker. It goes above and beyond the usual JRPG in almost every way. If you’re into games like Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger, do yourself a favor and buy this game. You won’t regret it.
Shorter review in english:
Pro:
+ A complex story about power and how it may corrupt even the best of intentions. Very enganging and well-paced!
+ Complex characters, who fit their narrative.
+ Beautiful sprites of enemies and characters alike.
+ The combat is easy to learn, but gets more challenging over the time.
+ All 33 skill of every character feel different!
+ Replayvalue through interesting achievements, different skills and higher difficulty. Note: If you are a beginner, FIGHT ON EASY. There's really no shame in starting on this one. The last boss especially is still hard enough.
+ A diverse and interesting soundtrack.
Contra:
- Some spelling errors, especially towards the end. I would like to see this fixed!
9/10
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Longer review in german:
Echoes of Aetheria von Dancing Dragon Games (Link: http://www.dancingdragongames.com ) ist einer dieser kaufbaren Titel, ein Spiel das sich mit seinem Pixel-Look an Japanische Rollenspiele (kurz JRPG) wie Final Fantasy IV-VI oder Nintendos Fire Emblem anlehnt. Das bedeutet, dass eine Gruppe schillernder Charaktere ein spannendes Abenteuer erlebt und lernt was wahre Loyalität bedeutet und das Krieg meistens doof ist … sagen die Leute, die den größten Teil ihrer Zeit damit verbringen Monster und Bösewichte mit Schwerter und Magie in Grund und Boden zu stampfen. Zumindest reflektieren sie an einer Stelle über die Widersprüchlichkeit ihrer eigenen Weltsicht.
Echoes of Aetherias Geschichte ist gut. Richtig, richtig gut. Natürlich erfinden die Entwickler das Rad nicht neu, im Gegenteil, eigentlich benutzen sie die Formel jedes JRPG seit Final Fantasy IV: böse Nation überzieht Welt mit Krieg, gute Nation kämpft gegen die Bösen und im Hintergrund gibt es eine dritte Partei, bei der alle Fäden zusammenlaufen. Ist das Schlimm? Natürlich nicht, den Echoes baut seine Handlung um dieses bekannte Gerüst auf und spinnt eine komplexe Geschichte um das Thema Macht und wie nicht nur die Gierigen sie missbrauchen können. Das spiegelt sich auch in den Charakteren wieder, die sich damit arrangieren müssen, dass auch sie Einfluß und militärische Stärke benötigen, um die Welt vor der Zerstörung zu retten. Das gibt ihnen eine gewisse Komplexität, die mich immer zum weiterspielen antrieb. Ich wollte wissen wie es ausging und kann mit Überzeugung sagen, dass die Geschichte von Echoes of Aetheria eine der Wenigen ist, an denen ich nichts auszusetzen habe … und wenn doch, fällt es nichts weiter ins Gewicht. Das ist einfach ein schönes Garn, das auch über sehr gutes Gameplay verfügt.
Das dreht sich meistens um Rundenkämpfe, die ein gewisses Maß an Taktik von mir abverlangen. Anstatt nur die beste Rüstung und das schärfste Schwert zu kaufen, geht es vor allem darum die richtigen Skills einzusetzen, von denen jeder Charakter 33 besitzt. Die richtige Kombination aus Heilzaubern und Attacken führt zum Sieg, aber Vorsicht, selbst der flächendeckende Feuerzauber kann zum Fluch werden. Besonders zum Schluss hin, sollte man einfache Monster nicht unterschätzen. Die Balance stimmt, einzig die Endkämpfe sind wirklich extrem schwer, selbst auf dem mittleren von drei Schwierigkeitsgraden. Ich denke, es ist keine Schande, für den letzten Kampf auf leicht zu schalten, da sich nur der Schaden den die Endgegner einstecken können ändert und sie immer noch gut austeilen.
Die Musik des Spiels lädt zum mitsummen ein. Mein Highlight sind jedoch die Modelle der Gegner in den Kämpfen, die kreativ und beeindruckend aussehen. Der Rest des Spiels wird mit Standard-Modellen des RPG-Makers dargestellt. Wer sich also nicht an einem bunten Pixel-Look stört und Spiele dieser Art gespielt hat, wird auch weiterhin seine Freude daran haben. Mein einziger Kritikpunkt, sind plötzlich auftauchende Rechtschreib- und Grammatikfehler, die mir im letzten Viertel des Spiels auffiellen und mich ein bisschen aus der Handlung reißen. Ich hoffe, dass Dancing Dragon Games die Fehler selbst zwei Jahre später ausmerzt. Echoes of Aetheria hätte es verdient perfekt zu sein. Auf seine Art ist es das schon.
9/10
