Echoes of Aetheria

Vale 100% a pena, o jogo tem uma narrativa envolvente, um combate estratégico que realmente te faz pensar e é recompensador, 10/10

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.

A good western classic RPG, made with RPGmaker by a good indie developer in which you have to navigate worlds, fight monsters (can be avoided) and improve the gear and abilities of your protagonists. All the heroes have their own unique abilties and their strenghts and weaknesses. Single playthrough consists of about 20-25 hours. Can be completed twice before it becomes stale. Good entertainment value for around 10-12 EUR. I hope a successor can be made, but probably unlikely to happen in 3-5 years time. Pro's * Despite RGPMaker engine, its a very good game, unlike some slop this engine is notorious known for. * It has a grid system, which places rules on which enemies and allies can be targeted. Also, there a lots of abilties which can manipulate the place and of course, there a plenty of abilities which have varied shapea of target grids. * Game has a decent story, with some setbacks for the protagonists as well. * Creator does prevent the combat gameplay from becoming to repetive by having fast leveling when moving to a different stage. * Good challenging arena, for both the whole group and individual party members. * Runs on both Linux and Windows pc's, nearly flawless. Cons * Lackluster puzzles. If looking for a RPG which has this aspect as well, you are out of luck here. * For a beginner, difficulty can spike hard due to fast introduction of game mechanics, with not that much explaination. ==Alternatives (same universe creator)== * Deadly Sins 2 * Symphony of War (strategy game like Fire Emblem, recommended to check out)

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

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.

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.

not good

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.