Test de Edge of Eternity

UPDATE 21.02.2022: PlayStation 4 version test, by Ulaanbator

Warning: Can only detect less than 5000 characters

• Travel the world
• hexagons and load bars
• Armory
• Confections and harvests
• technique and lack of means
• The beginning of a beautiful story ?
• UPDATE 21.02.2022: PlayStation 4 version test, by Ulaanbator
• A human adventure within a large intrigue

A human adventure within a large intrigue

The story takes place on Heryon, a planet a little exotic, during the war. Thirty years ago, an extraterrestrial breed, Archélites, appeared to bring gifts, then demanded things. In front of a refusal started a massacre, then the counterattack. The main protagonists of the game are a brother and a sister, Daryon and Selene. Daryon is a deserter soldier, select a kind of priestess. Together, they go looking for a remedy against corrosion, a poison appeared years ago, while the counter-attack of natives was going to reach a victory.

Although the basic scenario is not a mad originality, it has some good ideas. It also treats quite good ways various topics related to a period of war. In fact, the game does not embarrass long dialogues and narrative passages, the discussions are generally quite short and go to the essential. It is certainly less tap in the eye, but can be also more authentic and pleasant to follow.

A few words about the main playable characters. It is regrettable that they are quite few and arrive enough late (more than 25 hours after the start of the game for the first real member). However, it is also what makes it possible to put more emphasis on Daryon is selene, whose brother and sister relationship is quite written, and touching at various times. The other two humans are also pretty good in their writing, a little original (their gameplay too) and the relationship they have with the main duet is interesting.

Before finishing this narrative part, it is necessary to mention, without spoiler, that the game does not end with a complete end to the intrigues of the beginning of the game. The studio has made the choice to present a world and various important intrigues, which are obviously brought to be resolved in a sequence. It is both a little pity so there are tracks suspended at the end of the game, but also nice to think about future developments and whatsoever to discover this world.

Travel the world

The game areas are divided into two categories. Some are globally more or less wide corridors, others are rather open areas, including the great plain of the game, which is only as large. The first corresponds generally to specific scriptwidth passages and are not intended to dwell on it. The others allow a little exploration, looking for chests with often important content (weapons recipes) and harvest. The balance between the two is good enough: although the world does not have the immensity awaited during the debut of the EA, it is still very appreciable. A small flat on the villages, which are quite small and have only a small number of constructions, even if it is a classic of the genre. It's just a shame, because next to that the two big cities of the game give a good sense of greatness, bringing the impression of going through only a part of something bigger.

Let us mention the fact that there is a beautiful artistic direction and that several passages of the game have good design ideas, sometimes quite original.

During these explorations, there are secondary missions of several types. The first are available on display tables and summarize monster hunting. Fortunately, the studio has had the right idea of ​​limiting the number to two or three in each new game area, sometimes a semi-boss. There are also a little scriptwidth quests, identifiable by an exclamation point above a NPC. Again, nothing extraordinary, but stories that tell small things about this world and how people live there in these troubled times. Some nevertheless have some interesting scenario points.

hexagons and load bars

Let's go to the fights! Let's start by specifying that enemies are visible; These are not random fights. It is possible to take the advantage to start in combat by driving on an enemy to hire it. It's a classic tour by turn: for those who remember the ATB system of the old Fantasy Old, it's a bit. Each speaker, playable or enemy character, has an action bar that loads; Once completed, it is possible to choose what to do. First peculiarity, some actions take a while to be d1. This is valid for physical skills as for magic. And this corresponds to different characteristics. At the end of the loading of the preparation bar, the action is launched on the enemy or on the chosen box. These preparation bars can be interrupted by an attack, then requesting to choose what new action perform. It is necessary to choose your actions well to break an adverse preparation bar or prevent that of a group member being interrupted and therefore place it accordingly.

The second feature of the fighting system is its checkerboard. In fact, these are several hexes that make up the battle area. For body body attacks, one must be on a box adjacent to the target. For magic or attacks on several boxes (such as loads), it is possible to launch them without being nearby. Making a movement taking action, it is necessary to make wise choices, while taking into account the loads of allied action bars and enemies.

Finally, there are room elements that can affect the combat area. There are, for example, care crystals here and there during exploration. Trigger a nearby fight makes the crystal treat each turn on those present on his hex. Conversely, environmental elements can inflict damage. There are also usable structures, such as weapons, on certain occasions. An interesting idea, a little original, but outside the scripted passages (which thus have weapons) is relatively anecdotal. But that's where, which is nice.

Armory

The equipment is divided into two parts: clothes and weapons. Accessories, hats, armor and others are present, with each time associated features. Classic but effective. It is a pity that there are no more diversity, but it does work and finally avoids through the abundance of unnecessary equipment. The other party concerns weapons. Each includes, in addition to its basic characteristics, a tree with various crystal locations, specific colors, and has a location also a small feature bonus. Thus, you have to fill in a crystal location with one of the same color, knowing that that each corresponds to the active skills and bonuses of characteristics that are common to all the crystals. Starting a branch blocks others, knowing that these do not have the same sequence of colors. This is a major aspect of the gameplay because it takes a balance between the desired feature bonuses and the desired capabilities. A beautiful idea, a little nuanced by the abundance of recovered crystals, but it is a difficult equilibrium (if there were too little crystals, it would have been frustrating because of the limited possibilities) and the result is pretty good.

Confections and harvests

Part of what is ready is buyable to the merchants except weapons. However, it is more interesting to manufacture them. This requires a certain investment in harvest time. Especially there are a little rare components or even limited to world segments. In normal mode, it does not seem to be important, but it is not to doubt it in higher difficulties. Note that it is possible to harvest from its mount, which is nice. For weapons, on the other hand, it is quite important, even in normal, to create them yourself, because the game gives little during the scenario. Also mention a kind of arms evolution tree and some choices in the characteristics, but especially for those of Daryon and Selene. In any case, it's far from anecdotal and it's a nice choice of design.

technique and lack of means

Finally, a little technique. Clearly, if the game is not ugly, it is far from the graphics of current AAA, even those of some AA. With a pretty realistic graphic style, the game takes full turn to the current standard comparisons. However, this remains fairly correct; For a small production, it's even good enough. However, it should be noted that there are various small problems of collisions, clothes, textures, etc. In addition, the limited means felt in the diversity of monsters, quite low, and many relatively similar NPCs. Nothing serious, let's say it, but we should not expect a big technical level.

We must also talk about the absence, or almost, of choice to do during the adventure. This is where the studio has probably hit the reality of things, between the complexity of creating a flexible adventure and the means necessary to achieve it. In the same vein, the open world promised is not so much, but still a little, and the studio has probably died with the investment that it represents to create a gigantic world. Similarly, the story is truncated (even if there is a partial end), because can be too ambitious in relation to costs.

The beginning of a beautiful story ?

Finally, what about this Japanese Simili RPG, by French, who was promising? It's hard to say... The game suffers from an undeniable lack of means. In the communication of the game, it is written that "what is missing from Edge of Eternity in terms of budget is offset by its honesty, passion and heart". And... it's a little true, in fact. Behind a dull facade hides a game that sweats the love of JRPG, while correcting some errors of the genre. The quest for this main duo is both touching, sad, funny and more; She also has some great moments. All in a writing far from being extraordinary, but flying at various times by its accuracy. All accompanied by beautiful musical sheet music, with the participation of Yasunori Mitsuda. There is a lot of work to get closer to the designers of Xenoblade Chronicles 1, but there is something. It's not a big game, but at least a good game. For JRPG lovers, it seems a game to advise; If not now, it's at least a game to place in his wish list to do it in a few days.

The studio unveiled a roadmap for additions, some important, and a suite seems in the boxes in view of the end of this game.

It is hoped that this first jet will have enough success to give the studio the means to continue on this beautiful little momentum.

_Test made on PC by Zekkangel from a version provided by the publisher.