Description
Far away in a vast fertile land lies a small town called Etria. Peaceful and serene, Etria became famous when a labyrinth was discovered at the edge of its woods. Those who heard of the labyrinth began to harbor dreams of exploring it. And so many explorers from all over the world flocked to Etria in dream of achieving wealth, fame, and fortune exploring the vast and mysterious labyrinth.
Etrian Odyssey is a first-person RPG which pits you as an eager adventurer ready to face the dangers of the labyrinth. At the beginning of the game you are required to create your own "adventuring guild" by creating various characters out of 9 different classes. You can create as many as you want, but everything costs money, so strategic thinking is a must. As well, you can only take a party of 5 into the labyrinth, so the remaining characters have to stay in town at the guild hall. Battles are done in the traditional turn-based style, and he game contains over 125 monsters that guard the labyrinth and the area around it. Movement is done one step at a time, with players moving in restricted directions (forward, back, left right). Most of the game is focused on exploring deeper and deeper into the labyrinth while still returning to town in order to restock and resupply. During the return trips to town, you can also switch out characters in your party if a special class is needed to pass obstacles in the labyrinth. Also, players are only allowed to save during the return trip to town, making trips to the labyrinth both risky and exciting.
The labyrinth is completely unknown and unexplored, and so one of the important features of the game is the necessity to draw your own maps. The top screen of the DS shows the action, while the bottom screen shows a gridded area. In this area, you have to use the stylus to draw out all of your maps. This means not only marking where the walls and doors are, but having to mark where enemies, treasures, special areas, and staircases are. It is completely up to you how accurately or haphazardly you want to draw your map. However, the only way to get out of the labyrinth is to return to the start, so the gameplay becomes even riskier the further you venture into the dungeon. Managing your map poorly may risk you and party's lives. Map making is a key concept of this game because it emphasizes adventuring into the unknown and finding out what's around the very next corner.
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This entry to the MobyGames database was contributed by
Matt Neuteboom (941) on Jun 30, 2007.
