Product Info

Platform

Switch, Wii U, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC

Publisher

Snowcastle Games

Developer

Snowcastle Games

Series

Earthlock

Genre

Adventure, RPG, Strategy/Tactics

Players

1

File Size (Minimum)

2.06 GB

Release Date (NA)

Sep 1, 2016

Purchase From

eShop

PSN Store

Microsoft Store

Steam

Earthlock harkens back to the classic role-playing games (RPGs) of the 1990s, and old-school RPG fans should take note.

The World of Umbra

Earthlock takes place in the world of Umbra where, thousands of years ago, the planet stopped turning, creating harsh living conditions everywhere. The world itself is uniquely designed from start to finish with detailed landscapes and ruins, making exploring them more interesting even if the pathways are linear. The game does have a world map where you are free to explore, but you can easily get distracted by attempting areas where you can easily get picked off. A word of advice: Save before you enter a new area.

While the game has a fascinating world, the characters and story are a mixed bag. Gnart is one of the more interesting party members, being a humanoid that is a mixture of a warthog and a rabbit. He’s afraid when it comes to battle, but his vast knowledge of the world of Umbra and its past make up for his lack of bravery. On the other hand, the actual human characters feel predictable and lack personality in comparison. Still, they do a good job keeping you entertained with some fun dialogue, which is helpful because the storyline tends to drag in the beginning. You’ll spend over 35 percent of the game curing your uncle of sickness and rescuing him after he gets kidnapped, exploring a couple ruins, and helping future teammates in trouble. Fortunately, things begin to pick up afterward when you come to find out the secrets of Earthlock and strive to prevent history from repeating itself.

Blaster Master

Each character has unique skills across two classes. For example, Amon, a scavenger, uses thief skills and carries a blaster, a gun-like weapon that can shoot elemental ammo such as fire and water. Gnart, a scholar, can use skills to not only heal allies but also to boost allies’ stats. Ive, a soldier, can do elemental damage with the use of a crossbow or with fist-attacks known as “Scout.” While some characters have similar attributes, such as Ive’s crossbow and Amon’s blaster, it’s not a bad thing as both skill sets are important in combat, especially during the tedious boss battles.

All the characters’ skills aren’t available at the start of battle, though. Each character has a set of four abilities per class, and to change the set of skills, you will have to select the “change stance” option. Choosing this will use a character’s turn, however, leaving them vulnerable to enemy attacks, so you’ll want to be strategic about it. That said, if you know what enemy you’ll be facing, you can choose your stance in the game’s menu prior to battle.

Speaking of boss battles, the game’s characters tell you that even if you perish, keep going and try a new battle plan. They aren’t kidding. You can count on being wiped out at least once and will need to rely on studying the enemy’s moves and weaknesses if you want to succeed. Upgrading weapons aren’t available for awhile and you’ll have to rely on tactics and lots of healing if you want to survive. Some battles will occur out of nowhere, so it is extremely important to save and replenish the party’s health.

As for saving, each dungeon has a save point but does not replenish the party’s health like in the older Final Fantasy titles. As a result, to get back to full health, you will either have to use healing items or warp to the island of Plumpet to replenish for free.

After battles, any status effects such as poison are removed and characters that have fallen in battle will be back up for the next one, albeit with only one health point. You will again have to rely on healing items since Gnart’s Regen and Ive’s First Aid healing abilities do not work outside battles.

An Island of Your Own

The small island of Plumpet becomes available rather quickly in the game and it’s essential to success. You can craft new weapons, replenish items, create unique cards for your characters’ stats growth, and take on quests.

Each character on the island has their own setup such as Amon’s weapon crafting and Gnart’s alchemy and planting. You will also unlock the island’s library once Ive is in your party, but its use seems lackluster compared to Gnart and Amon’s island roles. Taika, a beast, doesn’t do much on the island either except dig up items in a limited area on the beach.

Those who have played an earlier version of Earthlock will notice the new addition of side quests, which become available as you progress through the story. In addition to those that reward you with items and equipment, you can also capture specific monsters to make the island more lively. Capturing monsters is plain and simple: accept the quest to find it and defeat it in battle. Don’t think the battle will be easy, though. Plan on stocking up on healing items and adjusting your characters’ stances.

The Growth System – Talents

When leveling up your characters, you’ll also receive talent points (TP). Those who have played Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy XII should be familiar with how Earthlock’s talent points work. Each character has their own board where you can place cards to increase their stats. The more TPs you have, the more you can place on the board. There are also integrated placements that are dedicated for unique abilities, and learning them requires an ability card and at least one card that needs to be placed next to it.

You also have the option to remove cards and replace them with different ones if adjustments need to be made, such as adding more physical attack power over magical ones. It’s an amazing way to customize character stats to fit your preferences.

The Prelude

The game’s soundtrack was composed with inspiration from the Final Fantasy series and other classic RPG titles. While exploring the world of Umbra, most of the scores played have been subtle, smooth, and enjoyable. There aren’t too many upbeat scores, though, so here’s hoping that Earthlock 2 will bring more of them.

A Second Chance

When Earthlock was initially released, it was known as Earthlock: Festival of Magic, and it had a rocky start with frame rate and animation issues, a lack of character backstories, and no side quests, which left the game feeling empty. The team over at Snowcastle rolled up their sleeves and dove back into the game, reworking its structure and adding more content. With the number of improvements made, the subtitle “Festival of Magic” was removed, giving the game new pavement to walk on.

While backtracking to fix a game adds more stress, work, and delays future titles like Earthlock 2, it was all about loyalty to the players and providing them with a satisfying experience. Many companies would not dare to revamp past projects, but the gaming community should applaud Snowcastle for taking a step back and a strong step forward.

Summary

Earthlock’s heavy influence of classic ‘90s RPGs, old-school battle mechanics, and enjoyable character growth system, along with an intriguing world, is enough to bring in and entertain RPG fans, even if the battles are tough. Snowcastle has done an excellent job revamping the world of Umbra and Nintendo Switch players should make sure not to miss out.

Disclaimer: A digital review copy was provided by Snowcastle Games.