Chained Echoes review

Swords, magic, and mecha combine in a retro-style role-playing adventure that’s far more than just a tribute to the 16/32-bit era.

90’s role-playing games like Chrono Trigger, Suikoden, and Xenogears established many of the genre’s tenets, constructing foundations that would last for decades. When coupled with toolsets like RPGMaker, these landmark titles have spurred a myriad of indie developers to make their own adventures. But often, the results are excessively referential, neglecting to truly expand on the basic formula.

And that’s why Chained Echoes is such a pleasant surprise. Look closely at solo developer Matthias Linda’s inaugural effort and you’ll probably notice allusions to Terranigma, Final Fantasy VI, and Dragon Quest 4. Certainly, the game’s fusion of high fantasy and steampunk-style mecha feels rooted in late 20th-century archetype. But Echoes is no uninspired imitator, making plenty of distinct design decisions.

Much like Dragon Quest 4, the game’s early hours are spent with different protagonists, eventually leading to an adventuring party comprised of fleshed-out individuals. Wisely, Chained Echoes doesn’t frontload its introduction with a long-winded explanation of geopolitical history. Instead, you’ll gradually learn about Valandis’ trio of persistently warring kingdoms and how aggression has evolved into normalcy for the continent’s population.

But the ubiquity of strife is temporarily halted after an explosion kills thousands. In the aftermath, the cause of the cataclysm is unknown, persuading each faction to sign a peace treaty out of fear of additional bloodshed. But any agreement born from trepidation is inevitably unstable. Unsurprisingly, some view a moment of peacefulness as an idyllic opportunity to catch others off-guard.

The first protagonist you’ll meet is Glenn, who is taken in at a young age by a group of mercenaries willing to work for any kingdom that can produce a paycheck. Growing up alongside a squadron of Sky Armor pilots for hire, there’s an ethical relevance to the group but also a disarming sense of camaraderie.

As the person responsible for the detonation and forced to witness the loss of most of his surrogate family, he’s overcome with guilt and driven by redemption. Undoubtedly, matching Glenn’s pathos would be tough. But the game’s other characters are all rather captivating. There’s a princess named Lenne, who’s repulsed by her brother’s lust for war and sets off with bodyguard Robb to live alongside the proletariat. Sierra is a master thief, who attempts to stay a step ahead of the law. As with many fictional thieves, she discovers a cause more compelling than petty crime.

Remarkably, some of the game’s baddies get the expositional treatment, with Echoes offering some plausible antagonistic motivations. Another upside is that Chained Echoes favors remarkably succinct dialog from its main characters. Unlike some RPGs, you’ll seldom feel like the developer is squandering your time with rambling chatter used to build up a plot point. That said, NPC dialog can be insipid, at least up until a certain point in the game, when they become much more functional. Another minor issue is that optional party members aren’t as fleshed out as their principal peers. Although the disparity is understandable, Echoes could have really shined by providing them with character arcs, too.

With an absorbing storyline and compelling characters, the last part of any successful role-playing game is engrained in an engaging combat system. Here, Chained Echoes shines, balancing weighty decision-making while still keeping the pace of turn-based battles lively. At the heart of the game’s encounters is the overdrive system, which acts like a thermometer in battle. Every action, from basic attacks, skills, or defending influences the gauge, either increasing or lowering the level of the meter.

Ideally, you’ll want to keep the gauge in the yellow-hued midrange. Doing that will increase the amount of damage you dish out while reducing the amount of injury you’ll incur. Naturally, the meter tends to rise during fights and if you let it enter the red-colored territory, you’ll be at an offensive and defensive disadvantage. In execution, the Overdrive system ensures players don’t just spam the same attacks and specials repeatedly. Instead, you’ll occasionally guard, use certain special attacks, and swap out party members- all to maximize your efficiency in battle.

Initially, I worried that the system might stifle decision-making in battle. But Chained Echoes prevents this with a battle system that contains everything from poison, elemental attacks, buffs, and debuffs. Victory typically entails using multiple attributes from your arsenal. Pleasingly, boss battles are suitably thorny. Facing your first elevated enemy, you’ll likely have to revoke its capability for self-healing. Just when battle fatigue sets in, you’ll earn the right to harness Sky Armor, the game’s giant mecha. Beyond dishing out massive amounts of damage, these drastically modify the battle system, forcing you to master new techniques.

Remarkably, Chained Echoes constrains the benefits of grinding. Instead of steadily earning experience for every fight, you’ll gain Grimoire Shards after completing boss battles and after certain story beats. These are used to unlock each party member’s distinctive active and passive skills as well as upgrade their basic stats. While Echoes doesn’t have any random encounters, some foes will respawn. By exploiting this you can bank your SP (or skill) points that can be used to further augment your existing skills. From lowering the cost to use, increasing effectiveness, or even supplementing an associated stat, you’ll want to regularly level up your adventurers’ talents. Like most RPGs, you can also upgrade your equipment, earning a boost from improved weapons, armor, and accessories as well as slotting in crystals. That said, a way to respect your party members would have been welcome, especially during Echo’s midsection.

Elevated by visuals that reflect a rose-colored nostalgia for 16/32-bit RPGs rather than actual capability and a stirring soundtrack courtesy of Eddie Marianukroh, Chained Echoes layers aesthetic brilliance over its consummate storytelling. But best of all it’s a role-playing game that respects yesteryear’s classics rather than just reiterate. Fans of role-playing’s golden era shouldn’t overlook this gem.

Chained Echoes was played on Switch with review code provided by the publisher.