While the turn-based J-RPG has been in a strong identity crisis in recent years, some actors prefer not to question their own and trust in their experience and in the enthusiasm of fans of the genre. This is particularly the case with Eiyuden Chronicle, although a new license brings together former big names in the Suikoden saga around a similar title. Unfortunately, when the title is postponed while its kickstarter has been a hit, the fans have to be kept waiting one way or another.
This is how a spin-off of a series that has not even arrived yet arrives to make us wait. Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising will have to take on this difficult role...
In Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising, we are dealing with an action-RPG in which you play as CJ, a digger, or treasure hunter if you prefer, who goes in search of treasure to pass a rite of her people.
Her adventure will lead her to a small village devastated by an earthquake, which will prove to be a passage to staggering riches for the most robust of adventurers. This is how CJ will decide to help the villagers to collect stamps on his card, which will be able to get him a license to enter the famous mines of the village.
But the story will quickly evolve into a more global threat and your stamp hunt will take a back seat via side quests.
Alone at first, CJ will soon be joined by Garoo, a mercenary kangaroo whose only motivation is the lure of profit. A magician will accompany them a little later in the adventure.
Each having skills, but all controlling themselves with a single button per head: CJ acts with X, Garoo with Y and the third will attack with B. This in no way hinders the diversity, since you can combine the button with a direction or manage the pressure to come out different attacks. Simple, efficient, elegant. This also allows during fights to perform combos and relays between all characters, thus boosting attacks whose limits will be set by your equipment.
During peaceful zones, the 3 protagonists will be displayed at the same time, unlike dungeons. It will also be the time for the eternal dialogues, recovery and validation of quests, as well as the reconstruction of the city, because the more you progress in your side quests, the more you will see the businesses set up and expand to offer you weapons, armor, equipment and other services.
These side quests are very much based on going back and forth to seek x materials or talk to A, B and C, then A, which does not help to prevent repetitiveness. Because not only are the objectives often similar, but the hostile areas to explore are not very numerous, although they have the merit of gradually revealing themselves a bit like Metroid.
Afterwards, even if the whole thing is repetitive, the gameplay is very pleasant. Really pleasant to the point that we end up forgetting this repetitiveness. Especially when moving in such sumptuous settings.
Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising has put on its 31 and is full of peepers and it's a very good thing because you will see the same environments over and over again, so as much as they are shiny, right?
Side life, unfortunately, I could not finish the game for the purposes of this test. But knowing that I have already lined up ten hours, not far from the eleventh and that there are still a lot of side quests to do (compared to the maximum number of stamps), it is not very risky to be able to evaluate all in about twenty hours of gameplay.
Casually, the result is rather positive and Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising is a nice little appetizer of the future Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes which should look more like Suikoden. But we will have time to talk about it again in 2023, when it is released. In the meantime, you can go on this Rising without too much hesitation.
