Etrian Odyssey IV is a game I've been wanting to play for quite some time now. In fact, the first time I played its demo was in 2013! I really struggled to play back then, since the whole game is in English and I had only just started learning the language :')
But since then, I have discovered Etrian Odyssey Untold, which became one of my favourite games of all time, and played a bit of Untold 2 (I don't own a copy and I never finished it). I was really wanting to play some more EO lately and since it is the least expensive of the 3DS EO titles (seriously, I am so sad when I look at the prices for EO5 or EOU2 in Europe), I decided to pick it up and see what it had to offer!
For those who may be unfamiliar with the series, EO games are dungeon crawlers with turn based RPG combat. You control a guild of 5 adventurers that you created and your goal is to explore and map a labyrinth, trying to uncover its secrets. The games are narrated almost like "choose-your-own-adventure" books. There are no fancy cutscenes or anything, everything is told via text and you will often get to choose between one or another action (mostly with secrets you find in the labyrinth) resulting either in a good find or in something bad. If you don't like reading, this may be a bit much, but I find it really well writen! Plus, the characters speak in an old english, and as a french it amuse me to find all those french words everywhere hahaha!
Also, these games are knowned for not being very beginner friendly, as you will have to be very careful with every action you take in order to survive the deadly Yggdrasil Labyrinth. A game over means loosing all of your progress, except for map data, and it can happen very quickly if you are not careful enough.
There are 3 main things that I love in Etrian Odyssey:
The map system
I'm very surprised that this feature wasn't copied by any other game, because I find it amazingly clever and immersive! In EO, when exploring a dungeon, you don't get the map from the get go. If you want to know where you are and where you want to go, you will have to draw the map by yourself. So, as you progress through the labyrinth on the 3DS's top screen, you fill in the walls, doors, treasures and secrets you find along the way on the bottom screen. This tool makes exploring really enjoyable, because even if you don't find anything, you will have completed a part of the map that wasn't uncovered before and it is really satisfying to see the map of a floor come to completion. Plus, if you are careful enough with the notes you take on your map, you will be rewarded when side quests will ask you to find specific things in a labyrinth!
The F.O.E.s
EO games feature random encounter battles. But these are not the only encounter you can get in the labyrinth. There are also monsters that you see in the labyrinth, called F.O.E.s (Foedus Obrepit Errabundus, or Field On Enemy in Japan). Every type of F.O.E. have a unique kind of behavior, like running in a circle, standing still until you get in their field of vision and then chasing you, or alerting every other F.O.E.s in the area to hunt you down, etc. These enemies are very strong and you want to avoid fighting them as much as you can. A lot of the puzzles you will have to solve revolve around finding a way to use their behavior to evade them or force them to open a new way. This feature also goes along very well with the map feature, as you will see F.O.E.s on the map in the areas you already explored.
The music ❤
The music in Etrian Odyssey is something I consider very important, since almost all of the narrative of the areas you explore rest on it. Every track you hear in the games perfectly reflect the area you are currently in and there are some amazing tracks! From the happy and uplifted day town theme, the tranquil first labyrinth theme, the energetic battle theme and the menacing F.O.E. theme, you understand almost instantly how you must feel.
The soundtrack is composed by Yuzo Koshiro, who you might have heard of if you like video game music! The music in EO is so good that Atlus released more than 30 albums of rearrangements of the themes of every game in the series. Unfortunately, they are sold only in Japan but you can listen to them on TheFabulousTroup youtube channel! There are many different genres represented, like jazz, classical, orchestral, chiptune, pop, rock, metal, even eurobeat (yes there is an eurobeat arrangement of EO1 first labyrinth and it is amazing), so it is impossible not to find something you like!
Finally, about the EO4 specific aspects:
I liked the airship parts, as it brought some new ways of exploring (small dungeons everywhere, labyrinth with two entrance...) but the ship is too slow! And because the only way to buff your party is to find food on the sky map, you are kind of obligated to cross the sky before entering a dungeon, and it gets a bit tiring. But the 3 levels open map exploration and the F.O.E.s to evade or manipulate is fun!
The dungeon mechanics are great! I really enjoyed that main dungeon are only 3 floors instead of the usual 5, and that there are very small annex dungeons with a specific mechanic for each of them.
The story is good but loses a bit of pace towards the middle. Fortunately, it gets better when you finish the third area and discover the final one, with a new epic battle theme that will boost your motivation! The ending fell a bit flat however.
I can see why some players prefer the main line titles, because you can really create vastly different set of characters, but I prefer the way the Untold games handle the story. And since I don't feel like replaying the same game over and over, I don't mind having set characters.
All in all, I really liked this game. I liked it so much in fact that I decided to go through the post-game bonus dungeon. It was fun (except for that one room in the 2nd floor)! I didn't beat the boss since it wouldn't bring more story and I enjoy exploring way more than strategising. The puzzle to weaken the boss was fun to resolve however!
If you never played an Etrian Odyssey game and are curious to try one out, I would encourage you play one of the Untold games rather than this one (if you can find one at a reasonable price lol). These games are a lot more beginner friendly, you get a second chance before a game over, and there is a story mode with a set party and some animated cutscenes, meaning that you won't have to handle team composition and your characters will be involved in the story!
If you reach this part of my review, well this is the end haha! I can't make short reviews so thank you for reading the whole thing :')
But since then, I have discovered Etrian Odyssey Untold, which became one of my favourite games of all time, and played a bit of Untold 2 (I don't own a copy and I never finished it). I was really wanting to play some more EO lately and since it is the least expensive of the 3DS EO titles (seriously, I am so sad when I look at the prices for EO5 or EOU2 in Europe), I decided to pick it up and see what it had to offer!
For those who may be unfamiliar with the series, EO games are dungeon crawlers with turn based RPG combat. You control a guild of 5 adventurers that you created and your goal is to explore and map a labyrinth, trying to uncover its secrets. The games are narrated almost like "choose-your-own-adventure" books. There are no fancy cutscenes or anything, everything is told via text and you will often get to choose between one or another action (mostly with secrets you find in the labyrinth) resulting either in a good find or in something bad. If you don't like reading, this may be a bit much, but I find it really well writen! Plus, the characters speak in an old english, and as a french it amuse me to find all those french words everywhere hahaha!
Also, these games are knowned for not being very beginner friendly, as you will have to be very careful with every action you take in order to survive the deadly Yggdrasil Labyrinth. A game over means loosing all of your progress, except for map data, and it can happen very quickly if you are not careful enough.
There are 3 main things that I love in Etrian Odyssey:
The map system
I'm very surprised that this feature wasn't copied by any other game, because I find it amazingly clever and immersive! In EO, when exploring a dungeon, you don't get the map from the get go. If you want to know where you are and where you want to go, you will have to draw the map by yourself. So, as you progress through the labyrinth on the 3DS's top screen, you fill in the walls, doors, treasures and secrets you find along the way on the bottom screen. This tool makes exploring really enjoyable, because even if you don't find anything, you will have completed a part of the map that wasn't uncovered before and it is really satisfying to see the map of a floor come to completion. Plus, if you are careful enough with the notes you take on your map, you will be rewarded when side quests will ask you to find specific things in a labyrinth!
The F.O.E.s
EO games feature random encounter battles. But these are not the only encounter you can get in the labyrinth. There are also monsters that you see in the labyrinth, called F.O.E.s (Foedus Obrepit Errabundus, or Field On Enemy in Japan). Every type of F.O.E. have a unique kind of behavior, like running in a circle, standing still until you get in their field of vision and then chasing you, or alerting every other F.O.E.s in the area to hunt you down, etc. These enemies are very strong and you want to avoid fighting them as much as you can. A lot of the puzzles you will have to solve revolve around finding a way to use their behavior to evade them or force them to open a new way. This feature also goes along very well with the map feature, as you will see F.O.E.s on the map in the areas you already explored.
The music ❤
The music in Etrian Odyssey is something I consider very important, since almost all of the narrative of the areas you explore rest on it. Every track you hear in the games perfectly reflect the area you are currently in and there are some amazing tracks! From the happy and uplifted day town theme, the tranquil first labyrinth theme, the energetic battle theme and the menacing F.O.E. theme, you understand almost instantly how you must feel.
The soundtrack is composed by Yuzo Koshiro, who you might have heard of if you like video game music! The music in EO is so good that Atlus released more than 30 albums of rearrangements of the themes of every game in the series. Unfortunately, they are sold only in Japan but you can listen to them on TheFabulousTroup youtube channel! There are many different genres represented, like jazz, classical, orchestral, chiptune, pop, rock, metal, even eurobeat (yes there is an eurobeat arrangement of EO1 first labyrinth and it is amazing), so it is impossible not to find something you like!
Finally, about the EO4 specific aspects:
I liked the airship parts, as it brought some new ways of exploring (small dungeons everywhere, labyrinth with two entrance...) but the ship is too slow! And because the only way to buff your party is to find food on the sky map, you are kind of obligated to cross the sky before entering a dungeon, and it gets a bit tiring. But the 3 levels open map exploration and the F.O.E.s to evade or manipulate is fun!
The dungeon mechanics are great! I really enjoyed that main dungeon are only 3 floors instead of the usual 5, and that there are very small annex dungeons with a specific mechanic for each of them.
The story is good but loses a bit of pace towards the middle. Fortunately, it gets better when you finish the third area and discover the final one, with a new epic battle theme that will boost your motivation! The ending fell a bit flat however.
I can see why some players prefer the main line titles, because you can really create vastly different set of characters, but I prefer the way the Untold games handle the story. And since I don't feel like replaying the same game over and over, I don't mind having set characters.
All in all, I really liked this game. I liked it so much in fact that I decided to go through the post-game bonus dungeon. It was fun (except for that one room in the 2nd floor)! I didn't beat the boss since it wouldn't bring more story and I enjoy exploring way more than strategising. The puzzle to weaken the boss was fun to resolve however!
If you never played an Etrian Odyssey game and are curious to try one out, I would encourage you play one of the Untold games rather than this one (if you can find one at a reasonable price lol). These games are a lot more beginner friendly, you get a second chance before a game over, and there is a story mode with a set party and some animated cutscenes, meaning that you won't have to handle team composition and your characters will be involved in the story!
If you reach this part of my review, well this is the end haha! I can't make short reviews so thank you for reading the whole thing :')