Edge of Eternity (Early Access) – Review
Our Rating: 6/10
Midgard Studios is a small French firm based in the south of the country. Edge of Eternity Kickstarter campaign was successful, and the game was then drastically altered. Instead of the previous three continents, the world map became one giant continent. All of the characters have been completely revamped, and new chapters are released every few months. So, let’s get started with our game review!
Game Overview
The Archelites, a race of hyper-advanced aliens, were our allies in Heryon. They taught us some technology to aid in the advancement of humanity’s way of life. We fought back against the Archelites who wanted to take our crystals. Eventually, a war starts.
Two siblings will attempt to stop alien aggressors from destroying their world through a magical decay known as “corrosion.” Corrosion is a debilitating and violent disease that makes you insane and kills you swiftly.
Selene is a priestess and Daryon is an ex-soldier. They’ll have to assist their mother in overcoming the corrosion while also attempting to save the world of Heryon.
Gameplay
The gameplay in Edge of Eternity is tactical role-playing. Battles are fought on a grid-like system. Enemies, including your allies, will spawn on them at random.
After a battle, hp and mp will fully recover. In addition, equipped items are automatically restocked. This mechanism assists you in concentrating more on energy management.
Battleground
Some enemies are faster than others. Those who are faster will rip through your ranks and get to the squishier members first. It’s similar to the old Final Fantasy games’ front and back row mechanics. You must manage your ability to aggro enemies while also killing them quickly enough.
Anything done with a physical attack is instantaneous, whereas magic requires some time to build up. Attacks can have elements attached to them, such as a 2-hit ice attack for Daryon, your main attacker. Ysoris is the only tanky character you get early on. He has the ability to taunt others into attacking him. However, his actual damage output is low.
The Good, The Bad, and Overall Experience
Strolling around certain parts of Edge of Eternity town is a pleasure in and of itself. Beautiful views can be found in the open world. From any vantage point, the world appears to be beautiful. A beautiful view of the lighthouse can be had from the large open area in the center. You can find a beautiful beach with a lush forest. Each area has its own unique landmarks, and you’ll never tire of seeing them.
Beautiful Scenery
They are, on the whole, stunning. From top to bottom, the world is awe-inspiring. The scenery is simply incredible. It’s incredible to see distant cities or Archelite spaceships when the weather is clear. When you’re out in the wilderness, the game looks its best.
The town layouts are adequate but not as impressive as the landscapes. Some of the structures have doors that are blank. The towns become lifeless and flat as a result of being unable to enter anything.
Soundtrack
The music in Edge of Eternity is absolutely hypnotic. And, while the music needs to change in a few places to affect the emotions, there is nothing faulty with the music itself. For an early access game, those flaws are understandable. The music is superior to that of many AAA titles, and you may find yourself with the main battle theme hooked in your head for days!
Character Updates
The updated design of the main characters is quite better. Daryon’s recent model cleanup, as well as his change from the Kickstarter, make him a little more pleasing to look at.
Selene looks like a white mage but deals offensive magic and heal, like a red mage. She’s the only designated magic user as of now, and she’s as squishy as a mage should be. Ysoris appears to be a brawler, but the more time you spend with him, the more you realize he’s a misinterpreted protagonist. That personality fits his wandering, gruff appearance.
They don’t do much with Myrna, a rogue mystic. Fallon, on the other hand, is just passing through. We don’t know if she’s an airship pilot because we haven’t seen her ship or crew.
Animation and Voice Acting
Some visuals are acceptable, but the idle animations during the cinematics are terrible. The arms are folded and the head is turned away. It’s obnoxious and unappealing. It just appears to be sloppy. The same can be said for lip-syncing. The model’s facial bones and lip-syncing do not move in the way that faces should when speaking. The eyes appear to be lifeless as well.
While many of the cast members are excellent, others are truly terrible. Selene’s voice actress is unable to emote to save her life, as evidenced by her speech. Selene’s character development could have reached new heights at one point, but falls flat.
However, to the developer’s credit, each character is quirky in their own unique way. Even if everyone disagrees on what to do, the interactions between everyone while they’re discussing a plan are commendable. They’ll still quarrel and argue, though!
Boring Side Quests
One issue we encountered with this game was its lore. Main quests are either given out by random NPCs or found on a job board. Because the quest journal is essentially useless, there is no way to know where you are or what to do in a quest.
Side quests are mediocre and, to be honest, boring. If you don’t grab every resource node along the way, completing quests could take a long time. Other side quests require you to kill certain area bosses who are relatively easy to kill. You’ll be able to take on these without a full party if you place them correctly. So, if you wait until you have a few more members, they’ll be a piece of cake.
Camera Problems, Bugs, and Glitches
Since the last Edge of Eternity update, some issues have yet to be resolved. Because your character glitches and bounces up and down, you may need to exit an important cutscene. Eventually, the game will crash.
When you first enter battle, the gameplay grid will be perplexing. You can choose which way you want to face, but it’s a little wonky, and depending on where the camera is placed, you might not know which way you’re facing. The video quality is poor. In battle, there is no way to switch to an action-oriented camera or even to an overhead view.
If you don’t move the camera to a particular place before speaking with an NPC, it will get stuck in strange positions When you use ultimates, the camera will hover in an odd spot and slowly descend.
Final Thoughts
Edge of Eternity has a lot of promise. It evokes memories of old JRPGs, and fans of the genre will be enthralled. The scenery almost makes up for the fact that the characters resemble early 360 models. The interface is simple to learn for new players. You’ll want to listen to the soundtrack even if you’re not playing the game!
Most nit-pickers will probably find this game unsatisfying in its current state. It is, however, a work in progress, as we all know. So we’re hoping for a more polished game when it finally comes out. However, we suggest that you hold off on purchasing the game until the full version is released.
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