Chained Echoes Reviews

That was an experience. Definitely one of the best games I've ever played. The ending made me tear up...tbh idk how I feel about playing the DLC now lol. I don't know how to feel about it haha. This just excels everywhere in the gameplay department and I don't think the art or the music slack off either. It's incredible to think that this was mostly made by only one person and that they only made it in 7 years and it has this much content like holy!!!! Anyway, this was awesome and unforgettable, I feel very sad it's over.

Overall great story and RPG mechanics. Definitely up there with Sea of Stars and other pixel RPGs

The battle system takes a bit of time to get down and I frown on the drive by tutorials. However, the game is not a grind. You should explore every corner before pushing the story forward though. And then the story THE STORY IS BETTER THAN MOST AAA GAMES!! The director was cooking this one up!

7/10 There's some really great stuff in CHAINED ECHOES. It's an homage to the old school, SNES 16-bit JRPGs, and it nails that aesthetic, but not only that - it innovates. The combat system is engaging (in particular, I really like the Overdrive mechanic, no grinding, not worrying about resource management outside of combat). It has a great vision of what a "nu-old-school JRPG" would look like. Buuuut...there's some not great stuff in here. The Sky Armor combat in particular is...not a great. Luckily it's only about 35% of the game, but everytime it reared its head, I kept wishing I could fight outside the armor. The upgrade mechanic also isn't great. It's expensive, cumbersome (you'll spend a lot of time in menus), and everytime I upgraded, I always regretted it when I picked up a new piece of equipment 20 minutes later. The story is good. It definitely takes some swings that I'm not 100% sure lands, but there's a definite theme the game wants you to take away from it. All in all - I enjoyed my time with.

I've loved the game so much that I'm going to perfect it. For me it started a little bit slow and at first it seemed a bit cheap (the graphic especially but looking back, it's an indie game so it's absolutely justified and understandable) but the more I went ahead the more the story was intriguing. Absolutely worth the €25, I bought it at a discount but I feel that it is worth the full price. If I were to find a problem I would say that the gameplay, especially the combat, was just fine, it did what it promised without any particular high (and sometimes, admittedly, I just wanted to skip it) but the story was absolutely capable of carrying the game for me.

[h1]Where do I even begin?[/h1] [b]The class-1 storytelling?[/b] [b]The thrilling, strategic turn-based combat?[/b] [b]Or just the [i]love[/i] that oozes from every pixel of this world and its characters?[/b] [i]Chained Echoes[/i] was my commute companion for nearly three months. I played it on the train, and even snuck in a few sessions during quiet lunch breaks at the office. I’ll never forget the journey it took me on. From the opening hours, the world and its cast had a grip on me and never let go. Every revelation, plot twist, and character arc pulled me deeper into its emotional maelstrom. [b]And here’s the thing: I’m [i]not[/i] a big JRPG fan.[/b] Most classic titles in the genre tend to lose me with vague storytelling or bloated gameplay loops. But [i]this[/i]? This feels like a [b]condensed, modernized love letter[/b] to the golden age of JRPGs — like someone took everything that worked in games like [i]Chrono Trigger[/i] and [i]Final Fantasy VI[/i], distilled it, and sprinkled in modern pacing and polish. [b]It’s tight, purposeful, and absolutely bursting with charm.[/b] The combat system is engaging and ever-evolving. The story is actually [i]cohesive[/i] — and impactful. And the [b]music[/b]? Already a permanent resident on my Spotify rotation. [hr] [b]What makes it all the more unbelievable?[/b] This game was mostly developed by [u]a single person[/u], with a handful of specialists supporting the project. That level of craftsmanship from such a small team is [b]insane[/b]. [hr] In my opinion, [b]Chained Echoes[/b] deserves a place in the JRPG Hall of Fame — right next to the greats. Yes, it’s [b]that[/b] good. And no, it doesn’t overstay its welcome. [i]If you're even [u]slightly[/u] curious, play it.[/i]

This is something that could have absolutely come out towards the end of the SNES lifecycle. It's simple enough to understand but still has a LOT of depth and intertwining gameplay systems to keep you interested without feeling overwhelmed. It also has the PERFECT amount of secrets and optional stuff. It doesn't overstay its welcome. GREAT PURCHASE.

Just finished Act 1, and this game is FANTASTIC. More or less. Unlike a lot of other SNES-era throwback RPGs it doesn't wallow in nostalgia, is willing to experiment, and also remembers that what made those games work was their earnestness. The combat system seems a little involved at first, but you adjust to it quickly. The story pacing, by modern gaming standards, is breakneck fast and god, how I've missed that. Nothing quite like a story that doesn't waste any time and MOVES FORWARDS. It also rips off a ton of stuff from Final Fantasy XII, and had the sense to steal the better ideas from that game.

Chained Echoes is really one of the BEST RPG that i had played in my so many years of playing RPGs. I had been playing RPGs for 30 plus years so that is how long i had been playing role playing games. This is much much better than alot of AAA titles out there. I can really tell that the DEVs really like this game alot. This is the second game that i unlocked all achievements which can be said how much i love this game and one of the reasons i love it is that all achievements can be done in one playthrough, no need 2nd or 3rd playthroughs to unlock everything. Truly i do not know what is the thing that i do not like it. Zero. None. This game has a unique COMBAT system that i seldom see in other games and the LEVELING system is great so that the later characters that joined your game are of similar level. I really mean similar as those new comers still had to level their skills. The Music is great without me wanted to OFF the music which i did for some games. The Graphics are great for an INDIE title and is beautiful. No BUGs for the entire playthrough? Wow, this is really super rare these days to not encounter bugs. Just having good combat, good music, good graphics and bug free only can earn this title to be a SUPER GOOD GAME. But no, it did not stop there. What this game shines is the STORY. YES, I am truly blessed and amaze by the story in Chained Echoes. Truly wonderful and the ending is one of the BEST that i experience. Besides the main story, there are side quests to pursue, secrets to find and the ultimate BOSS to beat. you can bet that you will have a wonderful time with this GEM. This game is a 10/10. Go pick this one up for all RPG lovers.

[u]I very much enjoyed this game![/u] It doesn't change the formula significantly from other turn-based JRPGs, but if you do enjoy said genre, there's a lot to like. The [b]music[/b] is great, the [b]story[/b] is rather enjoyable (I hated the ending, if you know you know), there's a [b]lot of exploring to do[/b] (which I enjoy greatly but to others might seem a bit grindy), the game [b]always gives you something to do[/b] (in the form of the reward board, which in of itself rewards exploration, and side missions) and the [b]combat[/b] is pretty awesome. You got an active party of 4 characters, each being able to be swapped for another for a [b]combined active total of 8[/b], and then another 4 you can use to spice things up. Lots of [b]variation[/b] in building the characters, with a large range of moves, passives and stat upgrades. [b]Leveling up[/b] is a bit weirder than most games and requires getting used to ([b]Grimoire Shards (GS)[/b] are used to "buy" new skills/passives/stats and are mostly found by killing story bosses and progressing through the chained rewards of the reward board, while [b]Skill Points (SP)[/b] are used to upgrade bought skills, and are naturally gained by fighting), but it does allow you to get almost everything by the end, so don't stress too much and level your characters to fit your playstyle. I would have appreciated if there was some sort of slider that makes combat go faster, but alas, nothing in this life is perfect. I have encountered maybe 1-2 NON-game breaking [b]bugs[/b] in the 90 hours I've played (0 crashes), so the game I feel is pretty well optimized, which is not something you see often nowadays. You can also upgrade your [b]gear[/b] (weapons + armor), but do keep in mind that resources BOUGHT from merchants are finite (thus you need to farm the rest from monsters), so don't spend too much on upgrading low-quality equipment until you get 10 Star weapons and armor (in fairness, different ranks of equipment require different materials, so it won't hurt you that much in the long run). Lastly, while you should get any red crystals veins you find, don't worry about it too much until the latter half of the game, as you get 2 "helpers" that allow you to a) Get an extra crystal per vein and b) choose what types of crystals you get. Best place I have found to farm is the [b]Isle Of Memories[/b], with about 10 veins and no enemies to slow you down. You will find it eventually. A big thank you to mr. Linda for making this game, can't wait for the DLC! Definitely worth it, ESPECIALLY if you find it on a good sale. Oh, also forgot to mention, YOU GET TO FLY AROUND IN 4 MECHSUITS, and have aerial combat with other mechsuits. Pretty great right?!