- January 27, 2016
- Snowcastle Games
EARTHLOCK
Earthlock: Festival of Magic marks the glorious return of the heartfelt, story-driven, turn-based JRPG; the kind of game we haven’t experienced since the era of Lords of the Rings: The Third Age and Final Fantasy X.
Platforms
About
Desert scavenger Amon soon finds himself in his life's adventure when he crosses paths with a most peculiar creature back home in Zaber. Join Amon and other remarkable heroes in this turn-based fantasy RPG, on an unforgettable journey across the world of Umbra; a mysterious, beautiful but harsh planet that stopped spinning thousands of cycles ago. With a unique set of customizable characters, a…
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- Earthlock features a beautiful art style and a lush world that captures the essence of classic PS1-era JRPGs.
- The game offers enjoyable battles with a refreshing take on the battle and development system, along with a variety of useful characters.
- It provides a solid experience with a good amount of side quests, crafting, and exploration, making it a delightful choice for genre fans.
- The game suffers from inconsistent dialogue, long load times, and a lack of polish that detracts from the overall experience.
- The story and characters are often seen as bland and clichéd, failing to engage players meaningfully.
- Battles can feel tedious and grindy, with some difficulty spikes that may frustrate players.
story
6 mentions Positive Neutral NegativeThe story of the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its heartfelt, well-written narrative and nostalgic JRPG elements, while others criticize it for being bland, cliché, and lacking engaging characters. Although the visuals and soundtrack are noted as highlights, many players feel the story fails to deliver a compelling experience, often resulting in a repetitive grind. Overall, there is a desire for improvement in future installments.
“It combines aspects that make a game great, like a very well-written story, a beautifully composed soundtrack, and characters that stand out.”
“Earthlock: Festival of Magic marks the glorious return of the heartfelt, story-driven, turn-based JRPG; the kind of game we haven’t experienced since the era of 'Lord of the Rings: The Third Age' and 'Final Fantasy X.'”
“[Refreshing take on the battle and development system, interesting and potentially good story, the world looks visually beautiful in its style, the graphics style is quite fun and reminiscent of 90’s JRPGs.]”
“The story is guff with a set of bland characters that do little more than move you from place to place, but you could do worse.”
“Boring; the story and characters are clichés, and the combat isn’t very tactical.”
Earthlock (Nintendo Switch)
The nostalgia is nice, but I’m also reminded of advancements that the genre has made over the past twenty-plus years. With brisker combat and some much-needed voice work, this could be great, but Earthlock is still good as-is for genre fans.
70%Earthlock Review
An indie adventure with a lush world, fun characters, and enjoyable battles, Earthlock brings the soul of PS1-era JRPGs to the Switch with excellent results. Inconsistent dialogue and notable load times are among its few missteps, but as a package, it captures the appeal of the epoch wonderfully. If you’re looking for a fresh-feeling JRPG that still calls back to the classics, this is a lovely choice.
80%Earthlock (Switch) Review
Nostalgia is not enough to make a RPG an enjoyable experience.
60%