User Reviews (1 - 11 of 24)

Show these reviews first:

Highest Rated
Lowest Rated Newest
Oldest Most Helpful
Least Helpful

A very fun, old school RPG!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 28 / 28
Date: May 25, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Nowadays, RPGs tend to lead you by the hand, almost as if you're being babysat or something. They lead you on a set path with linear progression, and all of them try to WOW you with flashy graphics and stuff like that. Back in the days of games like Wizardry, there was no such thing as that. You were free to explore the world with little to no guidance and you can take on any missions or quests you wanted. This is the core gameplay element of Etrian Odyssey, a new RPG from the good folks at Atlus that focuses on the good old days, even going as far as making the game have a first person perspective. Can an old school RPG actually be good in this day and age?
There's not much of a story here in Etrian. The only thing you really have to know is that you are a group of guys in a clan who set off to gain riches and recognition. Essentially, you gain recognition by going through quests and missions. So, essentially, the story is really just a minority in this game, which in this case, is fine.
The primarily in Etrian Odyssey is obviously the gameplay. When you first start up, you end up creating your own party. That's right! There is NO set party in Etrian. You chose a name for each character, and you choose the class and what is the character image. There are a total of four character images per class (two male, two female) and there is up to 9 different character classes to choose from, which totals 36 character possibilities. The customization doesn't really end there. As you gain levels, you're able to choose what skills the characters will learn using the skill points you earn. Some skills are necessary to learn other skills, and some of them actually let you do attributes outside of battle, like healing, mining, and the like. So, the possibilities here are almost endless.
During battle, it's a traditional turn based system, of which you select whether to attack, defend, use an item or skill, boost up your stats, or run away from battle altogether. Be forewarned, though, as the enemies in this game are relentless. If you want to have any chance in this game, you have to constantly level up by gaining experience from defeating enemies, learning the right skills, manage your money by selling the items that the enemies drop, and equipping good weapons and armor, this game will give you a good whipping. You also must know when to advance to the next floor of the labyrinth or not. Unless you know you're ready, forget it. You are aloud up to five characters to take out at a time, and you are free to customize your party, but make sure it's a party that is actually good.
You also have to map out your progress. There is no set map at all, and you use the bottom screen to map your progress in the labyrinth. You use it to mark the path, dead ends, treasure, events, and the like. No enemies appear if you're not moving, so you can just stop and map out your progress without worrying about encounters. You can also move and map at the same time, but you run a risk of running into enemies as you map. You can also map during battles as well, since the battles are controlled with the D-pad and buttons. Mapping out your progress helps you out a lot. Plus, since there's no real linear progression, feel free to explore to your heart's content.
Finally, there are the missions and quests you take on. Unlike most RPGs these days, there is no set quest or mission. You actually choose which ones you like to take on when you're in the town. This freedom of choice gives it more legs, and you can actually tackle more than one quest at a time. When you start playing this, you start to wonder why more RPGs these days don't offer this kind of freedom.
Presentation-wise, it's not really that much. The labyrinth itself is done in 3D, and it actually looks pretty lively for a DS game. If you look closely, you can actually see some background effects, like flowers swaying and such. The rest of the graphics are done using 2D artwork with little animation. You view the labyrinth through a first person perspective which actually helps you seeing through the game with your own eyes. In the audio front, the music has a very good charm and also has a bit of a retro flavor, which actually helps it to give off its old school style. There are barely any sound effects, however. There is also no voice over, whatsoever. What's there is appropriate, though, so it does get the job done. To be honest, it's not really trying to get you in with its presentation.
Etrian Odyssey, which must be said, is really not for everyone. RPG gamers who remember the days of Wizardry and other games like it are more likely to get the most out of it. It's also appealing for those who like to be more part of the experience instead of being just a guided character in a story. Everyone else should probably try it first to see if it's your cup of tea. To be honest, I really loved this one, and I suggest you give it a shot.

The best Handheld RPG I have ever played.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 27 / 29
Date: May 27, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Etrian Odyssey is an amazing game... If you like Old School RPG's than stop reading and get this game.(old school= i.e. Wizardry, Bards Tale.)
I actually bought my DS Lite just to play this game and am glad I did.
The depth of the dungeon is staggering for any system and especially so on a hand-held system.
You make your own maps of the dungeon with the styles on the bottom screen and the action happens on the top. I have been playing for about 20 hours and I would estimate I am about half done.
The game is tough, but not in a cheap way.

Pros:
-You can use any combination of 9 classes in your 5 person party.
-Side quests are interesting and varied.
-The dungeon areas are very different with hundreds monsters and items.
-The story is really interesting
-Freedom in general; to do what you want...
-Great art style

Cons:
-Could be too hard for some people (Challenge is a good thing)

In my 25 years of playing RPG's, Etrian Odyssey is in my top 3 and it's the best one on the DS! Atlus please bring the sequel to the USA...

Engaging in its Simplicity, almost primitive.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 14 / 14
Date: June 01, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This game is exhilarating because it is genuinely hard. You worry when going deeper into the dungeon. It's hard because you have to manage your fighting resources, avoid the minibosses, play tactically against opponents, use money wisely. Experience is hard earned. Diversity is prized. Some people will be turned off that they can't "run and gun" their way to a boss or miniboss and reveal that next cutscene; the pace is slow, and the story is light compared to modern RPGs.

Etrian Odyssey has a simple, primitive game structure. There is the town and there is the dungeon. You can only save in town. There are only 5 NPCs you talk to and only 3 of them do you talk to frequently; the innkeeper (who heals you and saves), the quest giver and the blacksmith.

In the dungeon combat is likened to final fantasy 1-5; Your turn, theirs, then resolve the actions based on character stat speed priority. FF1-5 was 10-15 years ago. The uncertainty of who will act next, do you have the priority to heal him after he gets attacked so I don't overheal, is a throwback to that generation of RPGs. You'll find yourself wondering, could he survive another hit? will the enemy do an aoe or one hit kill someone unless I choose to defend? can I get this kill before he attacks?

Maddening at times, but the diversity of the character skills and the choice of 9 (7 at first) classes means the game can be played differently with a different set of worries. Like when you chose jobs of FF3.

You will die, you will find yourself running for reasons other than not wanting to deal with lvl 1 trash encounter, you will be broke, you will not be able to complete a quest immediately, you will have to traverse a dangerous landscape back to save, but you will enjoy it, all in the name of exploring this beautiful and memorable dungeon.

Simply a Must-Buy for Dungeoneers Everywhere

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 9
Date: July 24, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Quite the compelling dungeon crawl, and the first such game since Bard's Tale (from the days of the Commodore 64) that has managed to hook me with that "just one more task" style of fevered gameplay. The downside is that those who do not or cannot appreciate the gaming embodied by classics like Bard's Tale or Wizardry will find Etrian Odyssey overly nostalgic in tone.

"Grinding" characters through level advancement is largely a natural outgrowth of exploration and rarely a chore forced on the player. As noted elsewhere, the gameworld is quite varied in most dimensions -- monsters, dungeons, items, characters, and quests -- and only rarely does one encounter lulls where new aspects to one or many of these aren't revealed. Tight coupling of game mechanics (reaching a new dungeon level usually unlocks new side quests, returning the spoils of conquest to town similarly unlocks new wares to equip), an air of uncertainty concerning what's around the next corner (hidden requirements for item unlocking, a limit on up-front monster information), and a great deal of choice in party management (branching skill trees for characters, a diversity of rarely overlapping base classes larger than full party size) all combine in a wonderful fashion.

Etrian Odyssey balances freedom of exploration with plot fulfillment in a way that produces a game that is more challenging than usual fare but rarely to the extent where one wants to throw the DS across the room in disgust. Players with a "if it moves, it must be slain" mentality will find themselves hung up in a number of places, as it's a frequent occurrence for difficult monsters to be placed on patrol to encourage side-stepping encounters until one's party is truly up to the challenge.

Graphics are crisp and well executed, and realms are nicely differentiated visibly (and in some cases audibly) from one another. Although a dungeon crawl, level design is at times rather inventive for the genre, introducing mechnics that go beyond "another corridor, another room" layout. By and large, controls are intuitive and contextually sound, with dungeon mapping proving to be more than a sales gimmick. An unexpected touch is that one can actually manipulate the map screen at the same time as they are going about the rounds in town or facing off in battle.

All in all, there's really not much to fault the game for, with the exception of a few detail-oriented issues.

There's at least one side quest that a ridiculous bore for a handheld game (spend five game days on a given dungeon level), but isn't required to complete the game. Mapping works well, though the simplicity of design falls short in a few cases: one level truly requires more icons than allowed by memory constraints and at times it's difficult to fit textual annotations in the space allotted. Item management handles inventory overflow well, but the lack of choice to drop excess when harvesting dungeon resources or looting chests is strangely absent compared to post-battle handling. The ability to refer to item and monster codices while "in dungeon" is also sorely missed, but for the most part can be overcome by those with good memories. Similarly, greater detail for side quests would help casual adventurers a bit, as often relevant information is provided only at the time a quest is accepted and later unavailable through the outstanding quest menu.

On the whole, the game engine and plotting is relatively bug-free, with only a couple non-essential side quests suffering from the occasional hiccup in execution. In all cases where this was the case, it appeared to relate to a timing issue where events were triggered prematurely (presumably out of order) but never in a way that prevented successful completion.

Minus these small gripes, this is one of the few titles for the Nintendo DS (along with Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords) that CRPGers simply must experience for themselves. Really, it's that good at what it aims to achieve as a game.

Atlus Again, Doing What It Does Best

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: June 13, 2007
Author: Amazon User

A classic RPG set in the first person mode (like Counterstrike or any other FPS). Atlus owns the DS in uniqueness.

I'll admit, I don't get stuck to a particular game for a very long period of time, mainly because I don't have the time to devote to it. While the same goes for Etrian Odyssey, I could tell immediately that this was a well made game, probably the most intricately designed game for the DS.

The same day I walked into EB Games to buy Naruto (which I later decided against and bought Izuna instead), I picked up Etrian Odyssey, simply because I had never heard of it. I love doing that, but it's disappointed me very many times.

Fortunately, Etrian Odyssey did not. RPG fans, this game has it all: good storyline, good character development, slow and deliberate character building through the classic EXP system, a very intricately designed dungeon system, mages, warriors, bards, rogues, archers... It's got it all.

While I haven't ventured far enough to discover any personal dislikes for the game or any cons to the overall value of the game, it's definitely not for everybody. In the same way some people prefer Crazy Taxi over a Final Fantasy game, Etrian will find a distinct fan base, but I have to highly stress that it will most likely not disappoint.

$29.99 like most other Atlus releases, it's worth every penny to those that are interested in a fresh new DS RPG that's new on the shelves.

BEST GAME EVAR

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 27
Date: June 26, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind;

F O E! F O E!

Grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind;

F O E! F O E!

Grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind, grind,

etc.

Great little RPG

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: June 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I found Etrian Odyssey kind of easy actually except in certain spots where you run into like a traffic jam of enemies and you have to keep re-entering the dungeon to build up exp to pass those bottlenecks. The mapping is a cool feature, very interseting, with the GUI seeming like it's lifted straight from Trauma Center. It's fun exploring the labyrinths as each level is uniquely laid out (none of it is random as might be expected from people who grew up on Fargoal or Diablo). It has nice art and music, but not much animation or strategy. It's a throwback to old-style RPGs of the 80s and they hired Yuzo Koshiro to do the music in an FM-style like the PC-88 -- it sounds good, although the tracks are more subtle than flooring and they grow on you. The controls also work well. The only gripe I could think of with the controls was that you had to exit a menu to go into another menu when buying things in order to compare prices and see if you already had the item, whereas in games like Castlevania it immediately does the comparing for you. The dungeon art was the single best aspect about this game, in my opinion. The different textures scale well and are effectively moody and mysterious. Monster art is also good. The rest of the art was kind of anime-ish, which sucks, but it's drawn well. Overall I had a lot of fun playing this one and will probably play it again sometime with a more unusual roster.

Only one complaint

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: August 26, 2007
Author: Amazon User

The other reviewers have done a much better job of reviewing this game than I can. I received it on Monday and I have to say that I only put it down to eat, sleep and work. I'm not a gamer, per se, I don't buy the newest games and gaming systems, so I'd like to enter my review in that vein.

If you're not a gamer, like me, you might find this game a little hard. My one and only complaint is that while the booklet that comes with the game does an excellent job in explaining the game screens, it doesn't do a very good job explaining the different character classes and weapons. I've often purchased a weapon just to discover none of my characters can use it! Very frustrating! Plus, I would like a in game help tool. But, that's just me.

It's very challenging and fun to play. I look forward to the next one and I'm not done with this one.

One more thing, the best part of this game has to be that you play it on the DS, so I don't have to leave it behind and I can play while on lunch.

Because I like this game so much, I will be trying Odin Sphere

A Roguelike on my DS? YES!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: September 06, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Etrian Odyssey hearkens back to the old days of online computer video games, a simple RPG-style dungeon crawler with enough difficulty and content to keep you interested for as long as you choose.

Old School Goodness

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: November 01, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This is an old school rpgamer's dream come true. The battles are reminiscent of Dragon Warrior, and exploration is handled through a first person view like Eye of the Beholder. Players can make their party from scratch by selecting several different character classes. The classes all fill their own niche and are all useful in their own way. The story is lacking, but this game is a lot of fun even without a deep story. The game is driven through simple exploration of the dungeon. Not as pretty and fancy as many newer rpg's, but a very fun game not to be overlooked.

Review Page: 1 2 3 Next 

Actions