I have a confession to make: I have never really gotten into the Etrian Odyssey series. Now, that might sound weird coming from a self-professed RPG nut like me, but there is a reason for this. It is not because I think the earlier games in the series are of low quality, but at the end of the day I am a gamer who plays games for story, characters, and immersion. Meanwhile the Etrian Odyssey titles have always subscribed to an ethos of old-school RPG gameplay with a twist and making said gameplay unabashedly its chief and primary focus. This amounted to the first game failing to engage me on a personal level after the first few hours and considering the kind of time and energy investment required for something like an EO titles… Well, it just did not seem like a good fit is all I am saying.

However, having now played through the latest game in the series, Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan, I am happy to report that developer/publisher Atlus has managed to evolve and open up the series formula this time around. While still a combat heavy title to be sure, the Etrian Odyssey series has never been as accessible as this, nor has it abandoned the core aspects of the series it has been built upon.

EOIV’s story is centered on the frontier city of Tharsis which is located at the very edge of known human territory. Far off in the distance from Tharsis lies Yggdrasil, a tree so large it can be seen from anywhere in the city despite being hundreds of miles away. The tree has become a source of obsession for the inhabitants of Tharsis and none more so than the Duke who rules the city. Now, with the invention of airships opening potential paths never before available to humanity, the Duke has drawn adventurers and explorers from the world over all with one overriding goal in mind: to reach the Yggdrasil and at long last uncover all its many secrets. Which is where the player comes in….

If that sounds like a fairly boilerplate setup for an RPG that would be because it is. Honestly, storytelling is one of the areas where EOIV has only managed to marginally improve over its predecessors. There is a narrative in the game to be sure and it is definitely stronger and more important to the overall experience than say in the first Etrian Odyssey. Still, it remains clear that telling a compelling story is not particularly important to the people at Atlus when it comes to Legends of the Titans. For one thing, the small handful of NPCs present in EOIV consist entirely of fairly one-dimensional stock figures, but at least they have some personality which is more than can be said for the player’s created-from-scratch and completely silent party members.

The characters in the game are not exactly memorable.

World building is also not overly important in EOIV. Tharsis is nominally one of the central focal points of the game, but the city fails to ever come to life. The fact that said city only consists of a handful of locations connected by a central menu and that each location has exactly one NPC to interact with does not help in this regards. Overall, I often found myself wishing that Etrian Odyssey IV’s story and world had been given as much attention as its gameplay. This is especially true in light of this being a game developed by Atlus, a company who has proven countless times in the past that it is capable of creating RPGs with both great stories and compelling gameplay. In the end, the story of Etrian Odyssey IV does just enough to give the game some narrative to hang its endless streams of battles on, but it is hard not to feel that it ultimately squanders what could have been a rich and bountiful setup.

In terms of gameplay, Etrian Odyssey IV continues the series-long history of mixing difficult and challenging turn-based RPG battles (all featuring a first-person perspective for that extra old-school touch) with a need for players to map out the areas they explore. Yes, the focus on mapping one’s surroundings remains as prevalent in EOIV as it ever was in past games. Players must use a touch screen to draw the various twists, turns, and major landmarks that they will encounter throughout EOIV’s many environments. To be absolutely clear, creating these maps is anything but optional and players will absolutely need them to make any real progress in the game. You will also have to fill out maps for a larger overworld as well, similar to EOIII’s optional side-mechanic that charged players to take to the sea and map out the oceans surrounding that game’s central city. In Etrian Odyssey IV this aspect of gameplay has become a central and non-optional one, but things have moved from the sea to the air.

Explore the not so friendly skies and whatever you do watch out for tornadoes.

Players will gain access to an airship very early on in their adventure and this is a mechanic that EOIV puts to rather good effect overall. Gone is EOIII’s need for provisions in order to travel outside the central hub and players can now fully explore the landscape (save for some dangers that I will be touching on in a bit) and map it out to their heart’s content. As a part of this mechanic players also no longer explore one singular gigantic dungeon but instead will have to make their way through a myriad of larger dungeons referred to in-game as labyrinths and smaller (mostly optional) areas called caves. This might sound like a small change in theory, but in practice it really does allow the game to more clearly delineate the more challenging main areas from the simpler and more grind-friendly side areas rather nicely.

More than just that though, it helps to give Legends of the Titans that bigger and more epic feel that was often lacking from the series in the past. The feeling of being an explorer on the edge of all that is known is palpable and it is the one area where the game actually manages to create some genuine immersion. The fact that this also allows for some degree of greater visual variety within the different areas of EOIV does not hurt matters either. As unique hooks go, I will give the game credit where credit is due: mapping out new lands and labyrinths can be surprisingly compelling and it really is satisfying to start out with the digital equivalent of blank graph paper only to several hours later have a fully realized map drawn by one’s own hand.

See that big red thing on the map? You really, really want to avoid it.

Beyond making maps the other big gameplay element in Etrian Odyssey IV is battling monsters and oh will players have to battle monsters–lots and lots and lots of monsters. As I have said before, the Etrian Odyssey games have always prided themselves on being the heirs to the old-school JRPG formula and as such this entails a seemingly never ending stream of random encounters. No bones about it: EOIV is a game that fully embraces the idea that players are going to have to grind if they want to survive and one recurring character goes out of his way multiple times to remind players of that. In addition to the army of regular enemies present in EOIV, an extra layer of danger and potential challenge awaits in the form of FOEs. These are extra-sized and extremely powerful enemies that wander freely both the overworld and labyrinths/caves of EOIV and (unlike general enemies) are completely visible to players. FOEs take a step every time players do and if players draw too near to these monsters they will become enraged and start to chase them.

Generally, FOEs wander limited pre-set areas and learning their patterns is vital to survive, especially since upon first entering an area the local FOEs can usually wipe out the party in less than three turns. This is also just one more reason why good mapping is so important. It is also worth noting that if sucked into a random battle near an enraged FOE, said FOE will keep moving for every turn of combat that passes. Random encounters are not present in the overworld, but FOEs are and they are a constant potential threat waiting to blindside unwary players. Luckily, FOEs will also show up on maps and players can use this to their advantage to stay out of the way of these major threats. Keep in mind that some areas will actually require players to lure FOEs to set locations or even use them to help solve environmental puzzles (one early example in the first area of the game revolves around giant bears that are capable of clearing massive logs that would otherwise bar player progress).

This angry fellow is one of the first and least over-the-top FOEs awaiting in the game.

Of course, eventually players will need to take on certain FOEs in order to proceed and this is where the game’s extremely thoughtful class and leveling system comes into play. There are ten classes available in EOIV (though initially only seven are unlocked) and players can have up to twenty-five potential party members in reserve. Only five of these characters can be in the party at a time and figuring out which grouping of classes will best suit a player’s personal play style is vital. Classes each have a wide variety of abilities that allow them to take on multiple roles (for example, the Medic class can heal, but with the right equipment and abilities this class can also pack a mean punch as well) and really let players further tailor how they deal with enemies. A deep, multi-tiered ability tree awaits each class and individual abilities can usually be further enhanced for stronger or additional effects. Of course players only get one skill point to spend per level on acquiring/enhancing abilities so careful planning of how a character develops is important. One other key point is that players can harvest resources from both fallen foes and the environment, which can then be sold to the shop to unlock new weapons, items, and armor. It is a good system that keeps equipment upgrades to a regular pace while also giving players the funds they need and it just further highlights why grinding is such a big part of this game.

A number of factors can help mitigate this aspect for those without the patience or time to endlessly battle the same foes. For one thing, EOIV has an optional casual mode which makes enemies easier, hands out more experience for victories, and lowers the prices/resource needs for goods in the store. There will still be the need for some grinding even in this mode, but it lessens the burden dramatically and turns what could easily be an 80+ hour game into a far more manageable 40 to 50 hour experience. Another way the game tries to alleviate the boredom that comes with grinding is the aforementioned cave side-areas. These areas tend to have their own unique elements and of course they require full mapping as well and along with a steady of stream of side-quests (which in addition to funds or goods also hand out experience upon successful completion) this does help break up some of the monotony. At the end of the day there is no getting around the fact that EOIV is a game with a fairly narrow and limited focus. Those looking for mini-games or other gameplay elements beyond exploring, mapping, and fighting will be sorely disappointed.

The class system is near perfectly balanced & tinkering with the different options & abilities can be good motivation for leveling.

Visually, Etrian Odyssey IV is not a game that is pushing the 3DS’s capabilities by any measure. I will not go so far as to call it a glorified DS game and there are some noted improvements (especially in terms of the smoothness of animations for such actions as walking), but it is still not exactly the prettiest game on the system. The game does boast nice monsters designs though (the character designs on the other hand are likely to be far more of an acquired taste) and a good variety at that. There are some palette swaps of course, but far less than many similar games have employed in the past. The game features zero voice acting, but at least the soundtrack takes full advantage of the jump to 3DS by featuring fully orchestrated pieces in place of the MIDI tracks used in all previous titles. As for the actual compositions themselves, for the most part they are a good mix of tunes that nicely compliment the tone and emotion that a given area or sequence might be going for.

For what it is and wants to be, Etrian Odyssey IV is a very good game. Having not played EOII or III I cannot say if is the best title in the series, but I certainly believe it is the most accessible by far. Just keep in mind that even with that said, this remains a series that is the definition of niche thanks to it being completely and unapologetically committed to its old-school RPG approach. That means grinding, exploring dungeons, drawing maps, and tricky boss battles ad nauseam. There is literally almost nothing else to the game beyond this and those who look for diversity of experience or grow bored with endless repetition can safely assume that this is unlikely to be the game for them.

Yet I cannot find it in myself to rate this game as ‘For Fans Only.’ As I have already said several times, there has been some real effort made to help open EOIV up in comparison to past titles and make it more approachable to a wider audience. Between the casual mode and the brilliant demo (which lets players reach level 10 and explore the full tutorial cave, the first overworld area, and the first floor of the first labyrinth AND also allows players to transfer progress made to the full game itself) at the very least I feel that I can recommend that any 3DS owner with even the slightest interest in RPGs download said demo and give EOIV a fair shot. Chances are most people will quickly be able to determine if this is the game for them and reaching the end of the demo requires at most an hour or two of investment.

You start out very weak which makes gaining enough strength to take down mass foes with ease very gratifying.

Is Etrian Odyssey IV the best game I have played this year? No, and indeed it is not even the best RPG I have encountered so far in 2013. I seriously doubt it will be able to make even the bottom slot of my top five RPG games for the year once December has rolled around. However, it might just make the top 10 and considering my utter lack of interest in past entries in the series that is not too shabby. Thanks to expert craft in terms of combat and class design combined with the unique element of map making, Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titans is ultimately a game that transcends its old-school RPG roots to produce something special. This may not be a game for everyone, but to those who can overlook the game’s flaws and embrace its strengths what awaits is an adventure that will both excite and entertain.

A copy of the game was provided for review purposes by the publisher and the reviewer spent around 40 hours playing the game. The title is 3DS exclusive.

Also, feel free to follow the reviewer on Twitter @bigred_13 please if you feel so inclined.

Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan Review

By Shaun K.

Does this latest entry in the Etrian Odyssey series measure up or has it gone off the map for good?