Perhaps one of the game’s biggest failings is its price - at US$29.99, you can twice buy Mount & Blade, which does everything Aethereus does but in a much more polished way.
All though the game is clearly unfinished, it is still in development, with them pushing out tons of new content almost weekly, it is hard to ignore that the game is getting better. If your a fan of fantasy action RPGs and you have a few mates to play it with, then this game might interest you! I certainly had a blast.
Now, as always, lets start with some of the games negative features.
The game does have a few bugs, but nothing that you can't look past, knowing they will most likely be fixed in the next patch. Legends of Aethereus unfortunately has a few boring quests, at the beginning of the game, that can often feel repetitive. One of the largest problems people have with this game is its lack of story, so if your looking for an in-depth story line with plot twists and character development, then this isn't the game for you.
But, if your looking for epic combat and interesting areas to explore then this game might be what your looking for! As you probably guessed, time for the positive side of things!
Even after all of those problems Legends of Aethereus makes up for all of its faults, mainly through its epic customization features. No, you won't see character development in terms of story, but the character menu has a really enjoyable leveling up system where you can develop and upgrade your character's powers, abilities and skills. The game's crafting system also offers a ton of customization options, for example:
>Your making a sword
>You get to pick the Handle the Blade and the guard from a long list of different sword parts
>Not only that, but you can create each part out of different materials, and of course, the more expensive the material, the better the weapon (Although sometimes it better to go for style over power).
And that was only one example, there are many other types of weapons you can make, including:
>Great Swords
>Short Swords
>Maces
>Axes
>Crossbows
>Pistols
>And Rifles
Don't even get me started on the armor pieces...
The game also features a large enemy variation, making new encounters with new enemies happen a lot, therefore creating a more interesting game play experience.
Already half way through the review and haven't even touched on combat yet. I'm not going to go into too much depth, but lets just say that the combat is pretty darn good. There are lots of different play styles for each weapon, meaning that the game is not fully experienced until you've created a character on all of the classes. If you want you check out what the combat actually looks like, go check out my review on my youtube channel (/watch?v=qAAhuzq8cP4). The funny thing about the review is that I don't cover all of the game, yet its 45 minutes long!
The reason I give Legends of Aethereus a 10/10 here on meta-critic, yet only an 8/10 on my channel, is because of the disgusting amount of people who come on here and trash a perfectly good game with 0/10 scores, I used my 10/10 to counter their thoughtless comments.
One of them even went as far as to say "The devs obviously put no work in to rushing out this bad game. They lied about features that are not in the game, they lied about how it would look with fake screenshots". That is completely incorrect. The devs worked there asses off, and continue to do so. They didn't lie about anything, either you miss read it, its in there and you just haven't found it yet! And come on! Fake screenshots?! No. Its probably concept art that your think of. JESUS!
Anyway, I'm rambling. I say its good. Don't believe me? Well go check out some videos on youtube.
This is my first time test and this game have some nice idea and potentials. I see some dissapointing and good advantage in this game but long time could be boring a bit but this game begin it's carrier with a low budget so not so bad game. If they given enough feedback then this game can improve in mechanic and story.
All in all, Legends of Aethereus was a frustrating game to play; it failed to really innovate anything besides a crafting system – which is like buying a car because the cup holders are really big…. Kind of missing the point.
Aethereus isn't about the story, the graphics, or the music; it's about gameplay. I won't fault Aethereus for not being something other than what it tries to be, but with questing this anonymous and combat this dysfunctional, I can't recommend it to anyone.
Legends of Aethereus is flawed, but not to the point of being offensive or terrible. While the setting is interesting, the weak combat and poor level design make it hard to recommend. You can experience everything the game has to offer in a couple of hours, and for an RPG that's never a good thing.
A fun action orientated game with rpg elements mixed in to create something unique and fun. The crafting system is fun and you can create some great armor. I will freely admit this game does have bugs but what game doesn't? The devs are active on their forums and are working to improve and fix issues in the game. I would recommend this game to anyone who enjoys action rpg games and has some patience as this is a indie studios first foray but worth the cash
So, I played about a half hour of the game, and in this time I found that the abilities are ridiculously over powered one rocket blast blow kills most of the minions the turrets are clunky and the monsters run up to you so you cant shoot them anyway it has a ton of potential, but they did not realise it the skills themselves don't have a lot of variety, and I don't feel the need to continue pushing though the game because there's no new next skill I look forward **** do I care about the next skill when its the same as the last one, and the last one already kills everyone? with that said maybe with some updates it could be better for now my rating is 50/50
This game really caters to a niche and is certainly not for everybody. A main city acts as your hub as you venture off into instanced linear environments on very standard and sometimes lengthy quests. Very reminiscent of Monster Hunter, but in setup alone. The combat can feel clunky and isn't as satisfying as it should be. I really hope the LoA devs continue to improve and expand on the game because there is a lot of potential here, it is just yet to be realised.
The game fails on some basic levels making it one of the poorer RPGs out there and in my opinion not worth buying. I breakdown my opinion as follows:
Graphics:
The graphics on the game are dated in appearance and even on the highest setting provide very little in the way of improving the game experience. The lack of real-world flow to graphic elements detracts from the game. Graphic hiccups seem to be normal and can really affect enjoyment.
Characters and story:
The characters in single-player mode are amateurish at best, verging on comical at times specially when the voice actors are trying to sound serious or grim. The story line of the game is interesting but not as engaging without polishing the immersive elements.
Game Play:
As will all RPGs fighting takes on a major role in getting stuff and gaining experience. In this game the skills and fighting are cumbersome and full of bugs. From skills misfiring or firing and having no effect to enemies jumping around the combat is either fist-mashing or a slow back and forth that quickly becomes a bore. Character movement in combat is either slow prodding or a successive mashing of the space-bar and movement keys to try to bounce around from enemies trying to flank you. I can see where the developers were going with the combat system and, if implemented better would have been quite cool. As it stands now, it misses the mark in all but the PvP system. The PvP combat is the slow, plodding and yes, calculating and strategic but there are better PvP combat games out there if that is all you are looking for.
Crafting:
Crafting in the game is, well, crafting. A somewhat better implementation than most games but you have to be pretty strange to buy and play a game just for the crafting.
I am a HUGE fan of RPGs. In fact, I've played a number of subpar RPGs all the way to completion just because I like that type of game. This, however, was a wast of 30 bucks. I built an "inventor" class character and found that what looked like an awesome development tree was nothing but bombs. Every manner of bomb you could want, all of them boring.
Melee feels clunky. Not very satisfying. It was almost like they went back 12 years, used current technology for that time period, and tried making an MMO, then realized they didn't have the time.
Quite disappointed!
SummaryJoin forces in online multiplayer cooperative expeditions as the Inventor, Astrographer, Officer or Animist and venture into the uncharted wilderness of Aethereus seeking fame, glory and untold riches. Invite your friends to your own customized Nexus city-state where they can buy, trade or build unique items only available in your specif...