Neon Echo

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Neon Echo is a 3D side-scrolling action Roguelite game with an anime and tech-wear style.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reviews

61%

Audience ScoreBased on 592 reviews

gameplay56 positive mentions

grinding12 negative mentions

The game features a vibrant art style and engaging visuals that are visually appealing.
Gameplay is fast-paced and fun, with a solid combat system that allows for various character builds and upgrades.
The game has a charming aesthetic with cute characters and a unique rhythm mechanic that adds an interesting layer to combat.

The game has been abandoned after the entire development team was laid off, meaning no future updates or content will be released.
Despite its potential, the game is now considered abandonware, leaving many players disappointed and unable to recommend it.
The English voice acting and translations are often poor, which detracts from the overall experience.

gameplay
122 mentions
46 % positive mentions
52 % neutral mentions
2 % negative mentions
The gameplay is generally praised for its smooth mechanics, vibrant visuals, and engaging combat, offering a satisfying loop that combines rogue-like elements with unique character upgrades. However, some players find the rhythm mechanic underwhelming and feel that the game could benefit from more content and clearer timing in its mechanics. Overall, while the game shows potential and is enjoyable, it has areas that need refinement, particularly in its rhythm integration and depth of gameplay variation.
- “The gameplay is incredibly smooth, with great and unique visuals, and a fun (if somewhat poorly-translated) story.”
- “This game satisfies the itch of good combat with rogue-like elements, great difficulty curving for those that want a challenge, and has a great gameplay loop that helps you get stronger to accomplish more, similarly to Skul or Ember Knights, but in more detailed and specific ways.”
- “The gameplay flow is great, combat is fast and fun, and mixing and matching cores is very satisfying.”
- “The rhythm mechanic is totally not used; if you sync with the rhythm, you're supposed to be rewarded with more damage, but honestly, spamming the attack button is almost always more efficient.”
- “Impenetrable gameplay jargon without the tooltips to explain them... excruciatingly slow metaprogression... loose, unsatisfying game feel: limp sound effects, jerky animations, gradual low-impact wind-ups for enemy attacks... only played briefly, but not impressed.”
- “Overall, I don't think it's an enjoyable experience; feel free to try the game, but the gameplay isn't that good.”
music
100 mentions
36 % positive mentions
56 % neutral mentions
8 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players enjoying the funky beats and techno vibes that enhance the gameplay experience, while others criticize the soundtrack as bland and generic, failing to match the game's musical theme. Many reviewers express a desire for a more varied and engaging soundtrack, especially given the game's focus on music as a core element. Overall, while the music has its moments, it often feels underwhelming and disconnected from the game's potential.
- “The music and art are wonderful; you can tell where the work went in development already.”
- “The combat is fantastic and the music absolutely slaps.”
- “I would love to see it filling in sync with the music, opposed to increasing and decreasing over time and having to monitor it.”
- “Music-wise (which is announced like it's the most important thing in the game), it is absolute trash, bland, or whatever you'd call it - it is not the same music that plays here on the store.”
- “For so much being themed around music, I'm not particularly impressed by the soundtrack.”
- “Music is not good; this is a game with a hint of focus on rhythm and the entire theme being about a world of weird music corrupting people, and you give me the most bland OST I've ever heard in my life.”
graphics
72 mentions
64 % positive mentions
32 % neutral mentions
4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim for their vibrant and unique art style, with many users praising the cute character designs and colorful visual effects. The overall aesthetic is described as beautiful and polished, contributing significantly to the gameplay experience, although some players noted a disconnect between the character illustrations and the gameplay style. Despite minor criticisms regarding the dialogue and voice acting, the visuals are consistently highlighted as a standout feature, making the game visually appealing and engaging.
- “This game is absolutely fire, with gorgeous art style.”
- “The graphics are amazing, the gameplay is elevated, and I recommend this game for anyone who is looking for the next generation of roguelites.”
- “Visuals are amazing, very vibrant.”
- “I have a lot of mixed feelings about the game; the chibi aesthetic is endearing and cute, but when the dialogue occurs, the character illustrations create such a disconnect from that aesthetic of the gameplay that it pulls me out of it. I became hyper aware of how jarringly different those styles are. On that front, I kind of wish they leaned more into that simplified style for the character illustrations.”
- “- graphics quality appears to do absolutely nothing.”
- “Oh my god, the graphics.”
story
28 mentions
11 % positive mentions
79 % neutral mentions
11 % negative mentions
The game's story is often criticized for being confusing, poorly translated, and left with loose ends, leading many players to feel it is not a central focus. While some appreciate the charm of NPCs and the thematic elements related to sound and music, others express frustration over character unlocks tied to story progression, which detracts from the overall enjoyment. Overall, the gameplay and visuals receive praise, but the narrative aspect is generally seen as lacking depth and coherence.
- “The gameplay is incredibly smooth, with great and unique visuals, and a fun (if somewhat poorly translated) story.”
- “The main story is a little too short, but the gameplay and visuals are very good.”
- “During the story, character models actually move and make facial expressions, though they're chibi models, but cute.”
- “The game still has loose ends; they didn't bother wrapping up the story at least.”
- “- The story and writing make no sense and are just plain confusing.”
- “I don't personally care for the anime stuff or the terrible story, but the gameplay loop is neon crack.”
humor
18 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is largely derived from its English dub, characterized by a heavy Chinese accent that many players find hilarious, despite acknowledging the poor localization. The voice acting adds a comedic element to serious cutscenes, making the overall experience entertaining and quirky, though some may prefer to switch to a different language due to the unique style of humor. Overall, the game's sense of humor is a significant draw for players, enhancing replayability.
- “The English dub done in a heavy Chinese accent is hilarious.”
- “Everyone says that the localization is really bad, which it is, but it makes some really serious cutscenes really funny.”
- “I'm playing this game for the voice acting at this point; it's hilarious!”
character development
12 mentions
67 % positive mentions
33 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
Character development is highlighted through exceptional NPC and character design, showcasing a vibrant and detailed aesthetic that enhances the game's atmosphere. While the visuals and art are praised for their creativity and flair, some players feel that the variety in character abilities is lacking, suggesting a need for players to engage more deeply to unlock new powers and items. Overall, the love and care put into character design are evident, contributing positively to the game's appeal.
- “The character designs are fire, the atmosphere is stunning, the music is kinda generic, but alright.”
- “Tons of style and flair with great art and character design.”
- “In fact, a ton of detail, care, and love has gone into the various special effects, character design, and art to give it a futuristic neon-rave feel.”
grinding
12 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Players express frustration with the grinding mechanics in the game, noting that the requirement to repeatedly play through levels to unlock characters and improve stats can lead to tedium and boredom. While the game offers enjoyable gameplay, the grind for meta-progression, including numerous boss kills, detracts from the overall experience and can make it feel less fun over time. Many wish for more immediate access to character options to better match their play styles.
- “Really fun game, didn't like the grinding aspects for quality of life run improvements.”
- “Beyond that, I find myself disappointed that I can't play as the other characters right away. I had hoped that I could swap between or choose one from the get-go to play as a character that matches my own play style, but they are all locked behind progression of the 'main missions' that force you to play as just the one character through the same levels over and over until you reach that milestone. I bought this because I wanted to play as the gunslinger or the brawler; the sword thing got old very quickly. At some point, the enemies become such damage sponges that it becomes too tedious and regrettably boring to want to continue. So if any dev reads these, please make the character options available from the start, not locked behind grind/death fest, because in the end, I put down the controller because I realized I wasn't having fun with it anymore; no elemental buff can fix that.”
- “This is a big bonus as far as play and fun, but does not segue well with the hugely grindy meta-progression (e.g., the hundreds—and no, I'm not kidding—of boss kills required are going to take a lot longer now than it was taking in the early hours, because it simply takes longer to get to the bosses).”
replayability
6 mentions
33 % positive mentions
67 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The game is noted for its high replayability, drawing comparisons to titles like Dead Cells and Have a Nice Death, thanks to its fast-paced, flashy side-scrolling gameplay that encourages repeated playthroughs. Players can expect a dynamic experience that keeps them engaged over multiple sessions.
- “A side-scrolling anime/PGR-like game that has high replayability.”
- “The gameplay feels more like Dead Cells, or more recently Have a Nice Death (with a touch of rhythm and timing) - very fast-paced, flashy side-scrolling with all the replayability you'd expect from games of this genre.”
optimization
4 mentions
0 % positive mentions
50 % neutral mentions
50 % negative mentions
The game requires considerable optimization before its official release, with performance issues primarily occurring during intense combat scenarios with many enemies on screen. Testing on a Steam Deck may provide a useful benchmark for assessing its performance.
- “There is still a significant amount of optimization that should be done before this game is ready for official release, but the lag is only an issue when there are a ton of enemies on screen.”
- “I’m playing on Steam Deck, by the way - might be a good hardware baseline for benchmarking and performance tests.”
atmosphere
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its stunning visuals, complemented by impressive character designs. However, the music has been described as somewhat generic, which detracts from the overall experience for some players.
stability
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The game demonstrates excellent stability, particularly on the Steam Deck, where users report smooth performance.
- “Runs great on Steam Deck.”