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I've been orienteering a few times this spring. The control points are in the forest for one week, I can b?uy a copy of the map with the control points' locations, and with that, I can go find them when I want (within that week) at my own pace. The next week the points are moved to a different place and the map is different as well. This left me thinking about di?rections, locations, and maps in games.

I admit I haven't played many? open-world games, let alone recent ones, so I might be talking about something that has been a reality for you for years now.

In the games I have played, mapping and placing yourself there has been mostly an automatic process. I see a minimap in the corner of the screen, properly oriented to show where the north is, which way I'm facing, and a point where I am on the map. Even when my character is lost, I know where they are ?on the minimap. It's also pretty common to have an arrow pointing directly where I'm supposed to be going.

How many of us use compass orienta??tions when?? telling where something somewhat nearby is? In real life, I mean.

One of the things I remember from the reviews of Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura (Troika Games/Sierra, 2001) was that the locations of buildings in there were given as street addresses. It wasn't "third house from the north end", but something like Steamvent Street 59 (very unlikely to be an address in that game). That this was made a point in a review was eye-opening. In many tex??t adventures, your movement commands are compass directions �or just one-letter abbreviations of them.

[I didn't feel like playing all the way to a village, but looks like we got compass directions here too. Well, this game looks like a flat plane anyway, so "down" doesn't really mean anything.]

In a sense, when NPCs tell the player directions as compass orientations, they may be addressing the player rather than the player character. To be honest, though, I do not k??now how people gave directions to others in the Middle Ages.

Although, I remember the frustration when I had to find a specific tomb in an area of Vvardenfell in The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind (Bethesda/Ubisoft, 2002). (If you wonder why I mentioned Ubisoft there, they were the publisher in Eur?ope.) The instructions I was given, if I remember correctly, used environmental cues like "over the hill." In none of the playthroughs of that game did I ever find that tomb easily. And, when the goal is to find a needle in a Gaur Plains-sized haystack... I think I can understand the benefit of having pins on the map telling where to go when you're in a bit of a hurry.

But, if you're not? Hav??ing the game refer to the world and have the player navigate by using the set pieces as route ma??rkers would, I believe, bring the world more to the forefront. These don't even need to be massive set pieces -- say, a boulder with carved runes.

This is not to say there haven't been inter??esting implementations of maps in games. Here are a few that I know of.

Miasmata (IonFX, 2012) sounded like an interesting concept, enough for me to look forward to buying it, but I never ended up truly playing it. The survival aspect put me off too much, and today I cannot see the text in the menu options. However, that game had the player actually triangulate landmarks to update their maps. Plus, as something more "realistic," if the player is running down a pile of rocks, they may stumble and fall, and even drop what they were carrying. Of course, if you're stumbling down a pile of rocks, you're likely already running for your life and cannot stay back to collect what you just dropped. (Eurogamer review.)

[Miasmata, very soon after the start of the game. You really, really don't want to be lost in the forest when the sun has set.]

You thought I wouldn't mention the Etrian Odyssey series (Atlus/NIS America/Deep Silver, 2006-2018), did you? Well, you draw your map in it, but I believe you still see where you are on the map, even when you're outside it? I'm not sure if FOEs always move on predetermined routes, but I'm imagining getting lost, running my team into a dead end??, and then FOE blocking the only exit.

I'm not a fan of prefilled quest markers. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo, 2017) allowed me to mark goals on? the world map (and in the world)??, but did that still make it too easy to find the way to those shrines and whatnot when I began moving in the marks' direction?

In terms of games I haven't played -- Control (Remedy/505 Games, 2019) was called out for having a bad map. But... that may have been intentional. In an interview in Helsingin Sanomat (27.8.2019), the director of the game??, Mikael Kasurinen, says (as translated by me):

Getting lost can be fun. In earlier games our? goal has been that the player has to always know what's happening, where ??they're going and why. In one sense this is a good approach, but it reduces the suspense from the experience.

Later, he says:

I think it's fun to go on a walk in a new town: I go where I want to,? I ??may get lost and that's OK. And this way I may find the most interesting things of them all.

The article also states that the player has to read signs, check the map, and find the right route themselves. The article's author even suggests that the director might want the player to get lost in the Oldest Building.

I don't like shooters, so I don't think I'll be playing that game, but I can see Kasurinen's point. Going back to Morrowind, I remember checking the road signs when I was walking from Balmora to Caldera. Later, I installed a mod that added road signs with custo?m textures for each sign in the game, so the player didn't need to use the "tooltip" to see what the sign said. In this sense, having the path signposted isn't a bad thing. While I don't believe games like Control with a third-person camera are particularly immersive, pulling out a map on top of the screen doesn't help, and I'd rather read the signs present in the building than a map that unerringly tells me where I am, wherever I am.

In orienteering, choosing which path to take is important. Whether to go through the bog, follow the easy-to-traverse path??, go around the hill rather than over it. In a similar fashion, it's important to choose a path that doesn't cross the Territorial Rotbart, even if the shortest path to the minimap icon would take you right in front of them.

[Should've turned left at Albuquerque.]

Of course, then you have games like Dead Space (EA Redwood Shores/EA, 2008), where you're shown the full route where to go next. To be fair?, I've seen the easy courses in orienteering that have a clear line going from one control point to another, like Ari??adne's red thread Theseus used in the maze to find his way back. Those just aren't the courses I'd take.

Finally, which games do you know where you can? actually get truly lost?

Zork: Grand Inquisitor ??(Activision, 1997) and its infinite corrido?r do not count.

The post Putting y?our??self on the map: Finding your way through video game worlds appeared first on Destructoid.

Everything old is new again

Even though it's one of the more niche franchises on the market, it's difficult for me to name a series more synonymous with dual-screen gaming than Etrian Odyssey. Starting as an easy-to-overlook, classic RPG on the Nintendo DS, the series has chugged along since 2007 with five main games, two remakes, and a Mystery Dungeon spin-off. It also influenced the creation of the Persona Q sub-serie?s while remaining the premier dungeon-crawli??ng RPG franchise to come out of Japan.

I first latched onto the series with Heroes of Lagaard and have been a fan ever since. Etrian Odyssey Nexus, the final Etrian title for the Nintendo 3DS, is very much made with fans like me in mind. It's a celebration of the series, a victory lap for one of gaming's most dependable products. While it's the perfect entry point for people who've yet to try and scale a Yggdrasil Tree, those who have been with Etrian Odyssey from the start will get the most out of it.

Etrian Odyssey Nexus (Nintendo 3DS)
Developer: Atlus
Publisher: Atlus/Deep Silver
Released: February 5, 2019
MSRP: $39.99

By now, everyone and their dog should know what the Etrian Odyssey franchise is all about. This is classic dungeon crawling focusing on combat, team building, and crafting detailed maps of the various dungeons you conquer. Nexus is no different, and after creating a team of five heroes for my im??pending journey, I'm ushered into an unexplored world as adventurers from all over take part in a veritable gold-rush of unseen riches.

Right away I am enamored by the cavalier spirit of the game's characters. Previous Etrian titles had players exploring a labyrinth with a ready-built society around it. Everyone was already there, you were simply the adventurers arriving to create your own destiny. With Nexus, the game takes place in The Lost Islands of Lemuria, a location littered with small labyrinths that hold the key to a mys?terious, long-lost society. There is no starting city on the ground, so Princess Persephone, one of the key NPCs of the game, brings one with her. The massive flying city of Maginia -- and yes I had to read that name several times before I started pronouncing correctly -- lands near the Yggdrasil and acts as the standard hub-world.

Unlike with past games, everyone here is new, seeing this world for the very first time. However, those who have played Etrian games before will quickly realize they're not seeing many of the labyrinths with fresh eyes. As a "celebration" of the series, Nexus includes several dungeons featuring the same design aesthetics of ones found in past titles. Waterfall Wood, Primitive Jungle, and Lush Woodlands are just some of the returning dungeons, bringing along with them popular enemies, FOEs, and characters from the first four entries in the franchise. There are wholly new labyrinths ready to be mapped either by hand or with the limited auto-map feature; however, I don't particularly believe they represent anything beyond what we've seen before. I'd argue they're certainly a step down from the out-of-this-world designs found in the later floors of the Etrain Odyssey V Yggdrasil.

There is an aura of déjà vu permeating throughout Nexus -- obviously by design -- but because of how long it's been since the first four games in the series released, it doesn't ever feel stale to me. While I'm not entirely on board with some of the dungeon gimmicks, particularly the Giant's Ruins, it's still an incredible rush to clear these labyrinths, floor by floor, barely surviving by the skin of my teeth. I do that a lot early on as I slowly level-up my team, but around dungeon 10 -- this is one long game -- I reach a point where monsters should ?be more afraid of me than I am of them.

How easy or difficult the dungeons are is up to the player. Nexus features four distinct difficulty modes ranging from picnic to heroic. I opted for the third most difficult setting -- for the sake of getting this review done in time -- and created what I realize is a pretty boring team that's able to thrive against most any enemy. I played it safe, but Nexus features 19 different classes ??to choose from, allowing for some rather u??nusual groupings.

18 of those classes return from the previous five titles. The lone new class, Hero, is a well-rounded front-row warrior with an ability called Afterimage. If activated, the Hero will create a mirage of themselves that will repeat the last action the Hero used. It only lasts for a single turn, but the class's strength makes it a dependable leader for my main team which consists of a medic, a gunner, a protector, ?and an arguably over-powered sovereign, who only becomes a more unstoppable killing machine when I unlock the ability to give my team sub-classes.

In combat, Nexus doesn't do anything to rock the boat. It's still the same two row, front-and-back set-up it's always been. After experimenting with Union Skills in Beyond the Myth, Force Boost and Force Break make a welcome return. Fighting your way through the monsters of each labyrinth will build your Force Meter and when it's at 100%, you can activate the Force Boost to temporarily enhance your character or go whole hog with the Force Break, which is either a devastating attack or impenetrable support move that shatters the character's Force Meter until they return to town. Like with everything Etrian does, it??'s a risk/reward mechanic that benefi??ts those who use it to its fullest.

Not rocking the boat is actually a great way to sum up Etrian Odyssey Nexus. Atlus didn't set out to create a ?new, series-defining game with this entry, but rather a recap of the everything that's come before it. Being able to replay my favorite classes from the past is a treat, but it's really that spirit of adventure percolating through the entire package that has me hooked. That excitement, that sense of wonder, is why I gravitated towards the series nearly a decade ago and it's why I'll be there day one when it finally makes the jump to Switch.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: Etrian Odyssey Nexus appeared first on Destructoid.

A bloody good blobber

The first-person dungeon crawler transformed for me once I was introduced to Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey on the Nintendo DS. Before SMT, my experience was with ruthlessly difficult titles such as Might and Magic and Wizardry, which were incredibly unfriendly starting points to the genre. Speaking of Wizardry, it is an extremely popular series in Japan, so much that the Japanese continued producing g??ames long after the series was dead in the West.

Mary Skelter: Nightmares is thoroughly steeped in the elements of this genre which has been beaten like a dead horse and practically saturates the PS Vita, the platform it was originally ported from. And while it is de??rivative in j??ust about every sense, and familiar to the bone, it does just enough different to set it apart as being somewhat unique.

Mary Skelter: Nightmares (PC, [Reviewed] PS Vita)
Developer: Idea Factory
Publisher: Ghostlight LTD
Released: July 19, 2018
MSRP: $24.99

I want to get the bad parts out of the way -- namely, the story. Look, these games are made for a particular crowd, and I will happily recognize that what may be droll and grating for me will be someone else's wonderful guilty pleasure. If you are an anime fan, and have played and enjoyed titles such as Dungeon Travelers 2, what is on offer here will probably be acceptable to you. Many of these games feel extraordinarily similar in their tropes and stereotypes. While something like Strange Journey and to a lesser extent Stranger of Sword City offered a very off-color, doom-filled aesthetic, separating them from the cutesier titles in the lot, Mary Skelter sort of rides the line right in the middle.

You are Jack, a little boy without a backbone surrounded by far more interesting women characters based on different fairytale stories such as Red Riding Hood and Sleeping Beauty. There is an affection gauge you can build with each one (because of course there is). Part of the plot revolves around a blood and “licking” mechanic...and I feel like I have to say very little else about this, or how when the girls go into “massacre mode,” they are stripped down to nothing in the process. This is? ecchi at its most chef-kissing perfection, if that’s your jam.

It’s somewhat reser?ved in this regard compared to other games, and thankfully, the primary focus is the dungeon crawling because the story is a mediocre and boring mess which primarily exists to introduce the nine hundred little micro-mechanics the game expects you to learn. Dialogue trees go on for way too long and are uninteresting, and the characters equally so. You are trapped in a living jail when the story begins, infested by Marchens, the game's various enemy types.

With your team of aforementioned Blood Maidens, you have to explore this giant prison and destroy different Nightmares, powerful boss monsters who roam freely throughout the mazes and pursue you mercilessly, sometimes even ambushing you while you are already in battle similar to FOEs in Etrian Odyssey, but executed a bit differently. Once locked in battle with these creatures, all you can do is stun them to escape -- they will usually one-shot members of your party otherwise. Once you have completed a dungeon, they can be faced head on and defeated, though even this is a tough prospect; Mary Skelter: Nightmares is no cake walk.

All of the story here is a means to an end, and that end is excellent dungeon crawling. Coupled with the Nightmare mechanic, there are puzzles strewn throughout the interconnected mazes, which are often massive in scale. There may be one or two too many fiddly mechanics, with Jack ser??ving as sort of an untouchable permanent back-row member of your party who is unable to fight. He's resigned to managing the Maidens, defending them and using items to heal them, and making sure their Blood Meter does not fill up or become too corrupt, which can lead to the undesired effect of them going into Massacre Mode. If that happens, they essentially go berserk and do major damage to foes and allies alike, which is sometimes an interesting and risky trump card to play if things? are going south.

The less powerful Blood Skelter mode the ladies can go into if their gauge fills up acts as a sort of limit break, accessing additional skills and causing their attacks to do more damage for a turn, and the ladies can lick one another when they have a partial or nea?rly full meter to bring the meter of their oral fixation back to zero and gain some HP and SP healing and other buff effects. With all this at play, even small battles can feel very engaging. There is always something to manage.

The dungeon crawling is positively addictive. A highly flexible skill point allocation system and a ton of equipment customization through enhancements meant I spent a long time just messing around in menus -- something I am quite fond of in dungeon crawlers, where the characters to me are just custom stat blocks. There is a class system as well, as if there weren’t enough variety in the unique skills of each Maiden. After the first couple of dungeon levels, Mary Skelter: Nightmares distances itself from simpler blobber affairs by evolvin?g into a neat little sa??ndbox of tinkering.

The jail being alive adds yet another element of randomization with certain buffs ava??ilable if you fill up the jail's hunger, lust, and sleep meters (just...don’t worry about it, it all makes sense in context, I’m sure.). This gives the dungeon itself a personality past being another series of mazes, however thinly veiled said themes happen to be.

The game is fairly forgiving in its systems as well. Dungeons are connected to one another allowing for easy movement in between and out of them, and an early ability one of the girls has is to place a portal out of the dungeon for a very small amount of SP. You can freely exit the dungeon using this skill at just about any time, and save just about anywhere, but if you go back you will need to travel through the maze again to return to the point you left. That said, if this sounds repetitive or grindy and that bothers you, you’re better off playing something else. Mary Skelter: Nightmares fully embraces its dungeon-crawling roots, and is unapolog??etic about them, and I loved it.

Mary Skelter: Nightmares therefore treads fun but ultimately familiar water. ??There is something about it which strikes me as different from other titles in the genre, and the amount of tweaking you can do to build a unique party is welcome. It’s a fun, competent RPG with a unique presentation, but I would approach with caution if you absolutely can’t stomach another dungeon crawler.

It kept me engaged and having fun throughout, apart from when I was skipping dialogue trees as quickly as possible to pres?erve my own sanity. It’s a great blobber despite a dull story, and was fun enough to warrant hitting the “skip” button several thousand times in order to get back into the action.

_{[This review is based on a review copy provided by the publisher.]}

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Latest entry will see in the new year with a new name

Atlus has just announced that the latest in the legendary RPG series, Etrian Odyssey, is coming West at the start of 2019. Etrian Odyssey X - renamed Etrian Odyssey Nexus - will arrive on Nintendo 3DS February 5.

This entry in the series - expected to be the last on the 3DS platform - is a "Best of" title, featuring characters, classes and other elements taken from across the entire series. Launching in Japan just last week, hopefully the six-month wait for localisation shouldn'??t be too painful for Western fans.

Etrian Oddyssey Nexus launches on Nintendo 3DS February 5, 2019.

It's time to warm-up those dungeon mapping skills, the next installment of the Etrian Odyssey series is coming to the West! #EtrianNexus is coming on February 5th! Best thing of all, you can pre-order your copy today! #Nintendo3DS //t.co/03C30uwv4e pic.twitter.com/k2dB5lOwxj

— Atlus U.S.A., Inc. (@AtlusUSA) August 15, 2018

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It's time to steal the hearts of 3DS owners

Since its announcement back in August 2017, Nintendo 3DS owners have constantly been asking the same questions: Where is Persona Q2 and why haven't Atlus shown anything? With good reason too, ??as the dungeon exploring spin-off is one of the last major titles on the horizon for the 3DS.

Atlus has finally answered their questions, and will be showing off a brand new TV spot this weekend, during the latest episode of the Persona 5 anime.

ついにニンテンドー3DS用RPG『ペルソナQ2』の最新情報が解禁！明日放送の『P5A』内で新情報たっぷりのTVCMが初公開だ！ペルソナファンは全員見逃すなよ～！

【詳細はこちら】//t.co/0zVzZNSDyl #PQ2 #p5a pic.twitter.com/mnHFyW6wwc

— モルガナ_ペルソナ広報 (@p_kouhou) August 3, 2018

While the tweet promises that the ad will be full of new content, there's no indication of what exactly will be shown. For all we know, it could just be the opening movie that all the modern Persona games share? with one or?? two snippets of gameplay, or it could actually show us what new features are coming this time around. For now, keep your expectations tempered.

Even if the TV spot is lackluster, this reveal could also lead to a new update for the teaser site. The new episode of the Persona 5 anime is sched?uled to air on August 4 at 12:30 AM JST, so we won't have to wait too long for the new details.

Persona Q2 TV spot to run during Persona 5 anime episode [Twitter]

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The sun begins to set on the 3DS

For a niche dungeon crawler franchise Etrian Odyssey has been pretty kind to Atlus, and we've seen five main entries in over a decade, with several remakes and spinoffs to boot. Now Atlus has confirmed the sixth core game -- Etrian Odyssey X (pronounced "Cross").

It's coming to 3DS on August 2 of this year, and Atlus explains that it's not only a "crossover of the entire series" with 19 classes, but it's the "last brand-new Etrian title" for 3DS. What this basically means is that it'll combine several features from older games: a list that entails diffi?culty swapping, character creation, and subclasses.

With Etrian Odyssey X as the last 3DS entry and Yo-Kai Watch 4 confirmed for the Switch (after myriad multi-version releases on 3DS), it's the beginning of a new era for several Japanese studios -- the Switch era. That "last brand new title" wording is key though, as that sets the stage for more remakes as Atlus pivots to Switch (as they already are with Shin Megami Tensei).

The post Etrian Odyssey X (Cross) announced, will be the ‘very last brand-new title’ for 3DS appeared first on Destructoid.

New faces, familiar places

A young child comes up to me at the airport after he notices I am playing my 3DS, waiting for my plane to arrive. Wearing Poké Ball headphones, he asks me if I am playing Pokémon as he reaches into his backpack to pull out his dinged and dirty 2DS. I wasn't and he quickly wanders off when I try to explain to him what Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth is. Kids never want to talk about Etrian Odyssey.

Well, sucks for him because Beyond the Myth just may be the best Etrian game fr??om Atlus. It may also be?? the least creative entry to date.

Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth (Nintendo 3DS)
Developer: Atlus
Publisher: Atlus
Released: October 17, 2017 (NA), TBA (EU)
MSRP: $39.99

The opening moments of Etrian Odyssey V is something I've wanted from the franchise since its inception. The general concept of the series is I create my own team of explorers to take down the many strata of the legendary Yggdrasils. With V, I finally feel like I am creating my own, unique team and not just picking from a? few preset portraits. The customization of hair, skin and eye color, as well as clothing and voice selection, is such a small addition but it makes me absolutely care abou??t creating the characters behind the classes.

After two games of exploring vast seas and sunny skies, Etrian Odyssey V dials it back to the first two entries in the series. Unless there is some mystery Yggdrasil hidden deep in the post-game content, I am back exploring one big tree, taking it floor by floor, stratum by stratum, massive FOE by massive FOE. It is an extremely familiar experience, like seeing something new but swearing it's a rerun. As a fan since Etrian Odyssey II, I am accustomed to the throwback sensibilities of the series but I can never shake that feeling of déjà vu.

There are attempts to make what is old new again. In creating my team with those new customization options, I can choose from four, generic character races each with their own race skills and available classes. (I like what they are going for, but come on, can nobody think of something more creative than elves, humans, hobbits, and people with bunny ears?) Classes are tied to the races for like a minute before I can start reclassing my characters. Doing so drops them down five levels but it's worth it to get all those skills I need to create my own band of Übermensch. When I finally unlock the?? Legendary Titles for my crew, I become an unstoppable? force.

Maybe I get lucky when putting my team together. Going in blind I manage to make a perfectly balanced squad capabl??e of not only massive damage but great protection as well. With my Dragoon, Pugulist, Rover, Necromancer, and Shaman, I am constantly doling out damage and bathing in a kiddie pool of HP nourishment. Even my backup squad consisting of the five other classes can hold their own. Early in my adventure, it is almost too easy. I'm winning too much, to the point where I'm almost getting tired of it. But then I hit the third stratum and realize oh damn, it's?? not that easy and I'm going to get my ass kicked for the next several hours or so.

Battles are as interesting as ever with the addition of Union Skills, replacing Burst Skills from the previous game. When characters hit a 100% union level, they can unleash one of many skills that can either hurt the enemy or help my team. The variety of skills keeps each battle fresh, as do some of the puzzles I have to solve if I actually want to beat any of the bosses that stand in my way. I can't just power my way through Etrian Odyssey V and with the?? diversity in strategies at hand, I am constantly putting my brain to good use. There is nothing I appreciate more than an RPG that really makes me think.

Traversing my way up the mighty tree is a slow burn but even when I only play for a half hour at a time I make real progress. That may be the most substantial change from prior games. No matter how little or how much I play, I always come away with a feeling of accomplishment. Even if all I do is make a little?? progress on the map, which remains as intuitive as before with a whole assortment of icons at my disposal, I never turn off my 3DS in defeat. 

But I do turn it off and I do so often. Beyond the Myth, despite its best efforts, doesn't really grab me as the series has in the past. Perhaps?? it is just a smattering too much of ?"been there, done that." The game is beautiful, the enemies are creative, the battles are challenging, my success is well earned and the jazzy, Kenny G-esque soundtrack grows on me through my hours of map making. That's all well and good, dandy and candy, but at the end of the day, it lacks a dynamic creative spark to keep it from feeling like anything other than a well-trodden enterprise.

I'm torn on Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth. I sincerely believe it could be the best entry in the series, that it has refined the formula to near pe??rfection. But in perfecting what is already there, it makes no strides to?? further advance the series. There are new additions but no new ideas, and after the last two games in the series, I leave this entry not wondering what is next, but if the developers have anything left in them.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

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A 'festival-like' culmination of the series

Director Shigeo Komori has let slip to Famitsu that a new Etrian Odyssey game is in development for the Nintendo 3DS.

Komori confirmed the development of the new title during an interview commemorating the release of Etrian Mystery Dungeon 2 in Japan. He called the new project a "festival-like" culmination of th?e series.

Komori goes on to say that this will be the last title in the series that uses the bottom screen of the Nintendo 3DS to draw the map. While it isn't totally clear what that means for the series, it?'s my hope that it means future installments will be hea??ded to the Switch.

Until a more formal announcement is made, Komori hopes all will enjoy Etrian Mystery Dungeon 2 which launched on 3DS in Japan on August 31.

New 'festive' culminat?ion Etrian Odyss??ey in development for 3DS [Gematsu]

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Much deadlier than it sounds

Atlus is rolling out teasers for new classes that will be appearing in Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth, and the latest is the Botanist, or "scholar of the medical arts" if you want to get real fancy. Don't underestimate people who love plants, though, because not only can the Botanist heal your entire party,?? but they can also wreak havoc on enemies by crippling them with poison, paralysis, blindness, and other fun afflict??ions.

Botanists can choose between two specializations: The Merciful Healer or T?he Graceful Poisoner, depending on whether you want to do more helping or hurting. The trailer shows both healing and poisoning in action.

If you're preparing to climb the Yggdrasil tree, then you might want to pick up the launch edition, which includes a 24-page art book, the soundtrack by longtime Etrian composer Yuzo Koshiro, and an outer b??ox for the game ador??ned with some pretty cute artwork.

Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth is out for 3DS on October 17 in North America at a price of $3?9.99, with a European release to follow on Novem??ber 3.

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Get your grid paper ready

Most of my handheld collection is comprised of RPG's. There is nothing like lounging on the couch or laying in bed and getting lost in an adventure, and one of my favorite franchises on the DS and 3DS is the Etrian Odyssey series, not only for its classic, tough as nails first person dungeon crawling game play, but also for the amazing soundtrack that graces pretty much every Etrian title by Yuzo Koshiro.

Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth is finally on the way, releasing October 17th in North America. Over the past few years we have been graced with a couple of excellent remakes of the first two games, and the so-so Etrian Mystery Dungeon??, so it's great?? to see another canon game come out in the west.

As usual, there will be a nice dense collector's ?edition with a 24 page art book, soundtrack (the major reason to opt in) and a flimsy-ass but generally nice l?ooking outer box.

Be warned; if you have never plunged into an Etrian Odyssey game, they are super difficult. One of the major fea??tures of the series is the ability to draw your own map on grid paper, evoking a super old school feel. Some battles are downright unfair, and the game is primary focused on the grind, but if you're into that, they don't get much ??better than this.

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To Japan at least

A little over 10 years ago, Atlus released one of the defining RPGs for the Nintendo DS with Etrian Odyssey. Overwhelmed by role-playing games on the system, I skipped the series until The Drowned City and realized I had been missing one o??f the best things to come out of Japan in some time.

Two years ago, Atlus crossed Etrian Odyssey with one of my favorite series on the planet, Spike Chunsoft's Mystery Dungeon, creating Etrain Mystery Dungeon. That game, one of my personal favorites for the 3DS, is getting a sequel this s??ummer.

According to Siliconera, the game will include new classes such as monk, alchemist, and pirate. The game will re??tail for 6,480 yen and a 10th-anniversary edition box will be a??vailable for 9,800 yen.

There is no word on a western release yet, but hopefully, Atlus USA will let us know real soon. And if it's not too busy, perhaps clue us into when we'll see Etrian Odyssey V over here too.

Etrian Mystery Dungeon 2 Announced For 3DS, Releases August 31 In Japan [Siliconera]

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And that's okay

[Update: the first trailer is available below.]

Atlus announced Etrian Odyssey V back in 2014, and in the time since then we haven't seen so much as a screenshot of the game. Until today that is. The Shin Megami Tensei studio has unleashed the first stills of the upcoming dungeon crawler and they look.?..

Well, not dram??atically differen??t from previous entries in the series.

The role-playing game seems like a continuation of what we've seen from Etrian Odyssey IV and the Untold games, rather than a bold new spin on the formula. Which is fine, really. This is a series that drapes itself in old-school design, and the development team is keeping its roots in mind with this entry. According to director Shigeo Komori, Atlus aims to give players more freedom and customization this time around while also bringing some challenge back to the party-building system à la the original Etrian Odyssey.

We'll look forward to seeing and hearing about Etrian Odyssey V ahead of its Japanese debut on August 4. As of yet, plans of a western release for the title has not been confirm??ed.

「世界樹の迷宮Ⅴ 長き神話の果て」公式サイト [Atlus, Amazon.co.jp]

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The End of the Long Myth out August 4 in Japan

Etrian Odyssey V: The End of the Long Myth is coming to Japan for 3DS on August 4, according to Famitsu. It's the first main, numbered entry in the series since 2013's Etrian Odyssey IV. No more mystery dungeons for us anymore, thanks. Well, different kinds, at leas?t.

The sequel is set in Arcadia, a neat four-race land (Arslan, Lunaria, Cerian, Brani). Series character designer Yuji Himukai is returning for that role; you'll be able to alter the colors of his work in ??the character designer, as well as give you character some heterochromia. A range of voice actors are offered for the first time, too.

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A worthwhile update

It sounds crazy, but 2008 was a long time ago. That's when Etrian Odyssey II was first released for the Nintendo DS, and seven years later, Atlus has decided to bring it to a new audience with The Fafnir Knight.

While a few of the advancements from later games don't translat??e perfectly, it's still a ??worthwhile dungeon romp, and another great entry in this storied series.

Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold: The Fafnir Knight (3DS)
Developer: Atlus
Publisher: Curve Digital
Release Date: August 4, 2015 (US) / February 12, 2016 (Europe)
MSRP: $49.99 (Atlus tax)

For those unaware, the Untold portion of the moniker denotes the inclusion of an all-new story mode, complete with preset characters and a new narrative. It sounds weird, but any Etrian fan knows that the series started off with dungeon-crawler roots, and thus, allowed players to basically create and customize whoever they wanted --with a loose story binding it all together. Thankfully, The Fafnir Knight includes both gametypes and multiple difficulty options for players ?of all backgroun??ds

If you spring for the new setup, the tale starts off with low-key princess protection duty with your childhood friend Flavio, but quickly evolves into a grand tale of adventure to seek out the city at the bottom of the Yggdrasil Labyrinth. Early into the fray, your hero awakens their true power -- the Fafnir Knight class, capable of transformation. While the story itself isn't as memorable as a lot of recent JRPGs, it's still a fun enough narrative with a cast of likable characters. The dialog in particular isn't riveting stuff, nor is it laugh-out-loud funny; it's serviceable, which is essentially how I feel about Etrian in general.

Dungeon crawling is basically the same as always (now with the enhanced 3D style), and with Fafnir Knight, you'll have the ability to manually map out your findings ??on the bottom screen. Or, if you're feeling a bit more conservative, it can automatically populate. FOEs have returned, which are basically giant superbosses present throughout the game.

Like many JRPG superbosses, they aren't easy to best. You'll generally have to avoid them early on or risk instant death. Since they're visible on the screen, it's easy to see where they're coming from however, and you'll have to either deduce their patterns or use trap items to fool them. It's a nice little diversion, and returning later on to defeat a pes??ky FOE is a great feeling.

Don't think that a more concise campaign implies that the formula has been dumbed down, as players will still be able to create an initial avatar and customize the classes of story characters. There is a caveat: you'll need to sacrifice five levels to switch classes. Additionally, you can't just call upon the guild to create new characters at will. To further muddy the waters, the Grimoire system seeks to mix things up a bit, as you can now equip party members with items that allow them to tap into additional classes. However, it feels extremely limited in nature, as most of them are a random drop, and it took me hours to find the few specific tomes I really wanted. It's an odd gambit by Atlus even in the confines of the Fafnir story, as the Etrian series has always prided itself on full customiza??tion.

It's a bit easier to forgive once you dig into the new cooking mechanic, which has been expanded in an unprecedented manner. Now, you can customize ingredients and discover new recipes to craft as you cook your way to statistical bonuses for your adventures. Eventually, this diversion works its way more and more into the story. The Duke of the main town allows you to potentially earn a profit from the restaurant as you expand and re-invest in the town. It's a nice little meta-narrative and adds some lightheartedn??ess to the game.

Classic mode is of course, utterly different. It's a less limited tale featuring a mysterious labyrinth, and the experience is more about the journey than a real story. You can register new party members at will, and you're free to choose from over 10 classes at the start. It's very intimidating for non-RPG fans, so I recommend trying out story mode first. And really, that's what's so great about the Untold series -- it allows new players to acclimate without holding their hand too often, an??d still provides a way for hardcore fans to create limitless combinations of parties to their heart's c??ontent.

Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold: The Fafnir Knight is a remake that's perfectly timed and well crafted, despite the fact that the formula isn't quite as fresh as the wholly new Etrian IV (I really miss the more open-ended maps). Now all Atlus needs to do is remaster Etrian III, and it'll have all four core entries ready t??o play on th?e 3DS.

_{[This review is based on a?? retail build of the game provided by the developer.]}

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Expect a review later this July

Unsure on whether or not to pull the trigger on Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold: The Fafnir Knight in August? Atlus ?has you covered with a demo, which will allow you to play the intial portion of the story. As is the routine with Atlus, you can transfer your demo progress into the full game -- this is such an amazing feature.

Expect the demo to debut on July 14, while the game is still set for an August 4 release in the US and February 2016 for Europe. I've actually been playing Untold 2 for a few weeks now, so expect our review at th??e end of the month.

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Courtesy of NIS America

Etrian Mystery Dungeon is coming?? to ?Europe on September 11, NIS America has announced.

Destructoid's reviews baron Chris Carter was enamored with the game when it landed in North America last month, saying "the more [he] played Etrian Mystery Dungeon the more [he] fell in love with it.

"While the learning curve is pretty steep and the rewards are fairly low-end early on, you really do get as much as you put in. It gives existing Mystery fans a lot to stick around for, and serves as a nice entry point for newcomers, so long as you ??are willing to learn."

Check out our full review for the whole rundown on everything Etrian Mystery Dungeon.

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Who's ready to go dungeon crawling?

Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold: The Fafnir Knight is coming to North America this summer, Atlus USA just announced. The Nintendo 3DS role-playing game is a remake of the second entry in the series and includes a new story mode alon????g with various other improvements.

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This is looking great

What do you get when you mix Etrian Odyssey and the Mystery Dungeon series? Etrian Mystery Dungeon of course!

With development handled by dungeon master Spike Chunsoft, the new 3DS game will bring in that classic Etrian ch?arm with Atlus publishing. This video shows the Medic class in all of its glory, and more gamep?lay if you're interested. It's set to drop in March in Japan, and April in the US.

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Atlus goes rogue!

Etrian Mystery Dungeon is he??ading to the Americas in 2015, Atlus USA announced today.

The crossover project is a partnership between the Shin Megami Tensei studio and Spike Chunsoft, makers of strange series like Danganronpa and Conception.

Don't expect this game to be all that bizarre, though. Spike Chunsoft has been making Mystery Dungeon games for years now, collaborating with companies like Nintendo and Square Enix to produce roguelike spin-offs for Pokémon, Dragon Quest, and Final Fantasy. Now you can add Etrian Odyssey to the mix.

Naturally, Etrian Mystery Dungeon will be a little different than your typical Etrian game. It trades the old school first-person view for an isometri??c vantage point, but, like the name implies, there are still plenty of dungeons to get lost in. Atlus is promising a "metric buttload" of exploration.

Look out for it on Nintendo 3DS sometime ne??xt spring.

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Atlus and Spike Chunsoft, together again

Well, it looks like Atlus and Spike Chunsoft are having another baby. The studios announced a new collaborative project today, Etrian Mystery Dungeon.

For those unfamiliar with Mystery Dungeon, it's a series of roguelikes, most of which have been adaptations of prominent RPG franchises like Pokémon, Dragon Quest, and Final Fantasy. That's some pretty good company.

Etrian Odyssey and Mystery Dungeon is coming to Nintendo 3DS in Japan on March 5, 2015. Atlus also announced Etrian Odyssey V today, and is releasing Etrian Odyssey Untold II: The Knight of Fafnir in Japan later this week.

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The Knight of Fafnir returns to Japan this winter

Atlus is crafting a remake of Etrian Odyssey 2, the company revealed today via Famitsu . 

Subtitled The Knight of Fafnir, the dungeon crawler is a follow-up to Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millennium Girl, re-imagining an earlier entry in the series with new story elements, additional gameplay features, and visual enhancements; courtesy of the Etrian Odyssey IV engine. Anime studio Madhouse also makes a return,?? supplying the title with what should be gorgeous cutscenes.

The Nintendo ??3DS role-playing game will launch in?? Japan this winter.

『新・世界樹の迷宮2ファフニールの騎士』発表！動画配信＆開発者インタビュー先行公開 [Famitsu]

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Meaty mash up

It's a good day when I can just sit and write several articles about Persona. The last bit of the lengthy interview with Katsura Hashino, following talk on Persona 5, Persona 4: Dancing All Night, and Persona 4: The Ultimax Ultra Suplex Hold, centered on the chibi P3/P4 mash up Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth.

After starting on collaborative works Dancing All Night and Persona 4 Arena with outside developers, the team thought "doing one within the company itself would be neat in a sort of oblique way," Hashino explains. "We'd like to hope that by bringing Persona and Etrian Odyssey together, the ensuing chemistry between the two series will?? result in something that fans find to be really immersive." A fitting union to celebrate Atlus' 25t??h anniversary. ;

Hashino also said that, "if you play both the Persona 3 and Persona 4 characters' respective storie?s to completion, it'll be like playing two whole RPGs altogether." Sounds hefty as heck. I'm sure Dale will be up for it.

And here’s the complete and ?final version of the interview [Pepsiman Tumblr]

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NIS America likely to publish Atlus RPG in Europe

Perpetually angry European Atlus fans needn't worry too much about Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millennim Girl. The Nintendo 3DS dungeon crawler has b?een processed ??by the USK, Germany's software ratings board, indicating an impending European release. 

The charming portable role-playing game launched earlier this month in North America, but has yet to be confirmed for PAL territories at this time.?? 

According to the listing, NIS America will be handling distribution duties in the region. The publisher has recently acted as an intermediate for Atlus in Europe with titles like Dragon's Crown and Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers. 

&Uu?ml;berraschung: Etr?ian Odyssey Untold von USK getestet [JPGames]

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And weaklings apparently need to get out of his face

Atlus is unleashing a salvo of character introductions for Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millennium Girl. An alchemist by the name of Arthur Charles is the first character to take center stage, showcasing an abrasive personality alongside an array o??f elemental abilities.

A demo for the forthcoming role-playing gam??e will emerge on the Nintendo eShop come September 16, progress from which will transfer to the full game when it materializes on October 1 for Nintendo 3DS.

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Code of Princess, Etrian Odyssey IV, and Soul Hackers are discounted until August 31

Good news, cheapskates! Atlus is keeping the Nintendo love train going by dropping ten bucks off select 3DS eShop titles until August 31. This is in addition to other deal running through the end of the month, in which you'll earn $30 eShop credit deal for registering both Shin Megami Tensei IV and Fire Emblem: Awakening.

You can hit up the eShop now and purchase Code of Princess for $19.99, Etrian Odyssey IV for $29.99, or Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers for $29.99. Again, this discount only applies ??to the digital versions of these games, but savings are savings.

I still want to pick up Code of Princess at some point, though I'm now debating whether I should jump on this deal or wait for another sale of the physica??l? release. What say the peanut gallery?

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Atlus schedules portable role-player for release this fall

Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millennium Girl is making its way to North America on October 1, Atlus has announced. A remake of the first game in the series, Untold combines classic gameplay with all-new story sequences, dungeons,?? and cutscenes courtesy of animation studio Madhouse.

The additions have been made with the role-playing franchise's widening appeal in mind. Etrian Odyssey IV released just a few short mont??hs ago and is already the best-selling title in the series to date. Untold looks to follow up that recent success by catering to veterans and newcomers ali?ke.

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So Kawaii!

Atlus has dropped the opening movie for Etrian Odyssey: Millennium Girl. A remake of the first entry in the dungeon crawling series, Millennium Girl combines classic gamplay with added story?? elements and cutscenes courtesy of acclaimed anime studio Madhouse. 

The Nintendo 3DS exc??lusive role-playing game is slated to hit shelves on June 27 in Japan.

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Another trashcan dance?

We're still gathering details on what to expect from Etrian Odyssey 3DS remake Millenium Girl. So far we know it'll look something like Etrian Odyssey IV, and that it'll have great music.

And now, thanks to a new Famitsu reveal, we know that its animated scenes will be created by anime studio Madhouse. Those that know their anime know tha??t this is fantastic news.

I love Madhouse and expect great things, but knowing their history with Atlus makes me even more hopeful. If you'll remember, Madhouse did the Persona 4 Golden "Trashcan Dance" opening. We would have never had that amazing contest without the Atlus/Madhouse team-up, mind you.

I'm already dancing to the possibilities.

[via AllGamesBeta]

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Official site plays new music

If you've been tracking the Atlus remake Etrian Odyssey: Millenium Girl like I have, you might be interested to know that the official site has updated to include game music from series composer Yuzo Koshiro. This might not be the most notable update, but the music ?is pretty enough that I thought it was worth sharing. 

This is a song with live instruments, featuring lush stri?ngs and piano on melody. It's not yet clear if Atlus and Koshiro plan to go this route for the rest of th?e game, but that would be great!

Some complained about the ultra-pretty and laid back score of Etrian Odyssey IV, but I loved it. Beautiful stuff. So, if you disliked EOIV's score, you won't like this piece either.

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