Edge Of Eternity Review – The Edge Of Mediocrity

Whenever I look for games to review or to maybe just sit down and casually play, I never look at what people have to say on it. Sometimes, all it takes is some good cover art and screenshots to get me curious.

And up until now, one game has had me incredibly curious to try out. Edge of Eternity. This RPG made by Midgar Studio has always made me curious about it, and yes, I did see that it has a rather… mixed score on Metacritic. But after finally grabbing it on a sale, I decided to check if the negative reviews that it got on its release years ago were truly justified, or if this is a secret diamond in the rough.

A Rather…Interesting Beginning

Edge of Eternity’s story starts you off right away with a monologue from the protagonist, Daryon, who mentions that our planet got some rather interesting visitors that have decided to share their technology with us. However, humanity would soon invoke their wrath, which caused them to unleash a deadly disease known as the Corrosion.

During his journey, Daryon receives a letter from his sister, Selene, who informs that their mother has fallen victim to the disease, but that a potential cure for her has been found, but in order to do so, Selene needs Daryon’s help. And so, he deserts from the army and meets her again in order to pursue said cure, fully knowing that they could very well lose their lives in the process.

So…What Is the Story About?

If the previous paragraph like a very perfunctory tale with lots of explaining to do, then don’t worry, you’re not alone in this. The story felt incredibly confusing at first for me, and it doesn’t set itself up very nicely. Edge of Eternity feels like it throws its plot points seemingly at random, without sticking the landing on a single one.

From a glance, it’s clear that the developers wanted to tell SOMETHING, and I did hear that this game received frequent updates before coming to console, after many early access phases.

But the story is an absolute snooze, even at the beginning. It does get slightly better at some parts, but its pacing as a whole is all over the place. I mean, one time you’re talking to your sister, and then all of a sudden, you switch the POV to many years before? It almost feels like a book where you go from chapter 1 all the way to chapter 5, and THEN you reach chapter 2, if that makes sense.

Rather Cheeky Difficulty Spikes

In Edge of Eternity, combat is performed with an ATB-esque system, where characters and enemies can move around in a hexagonal grid and attack. All characters are able to either use a physical attack or stand still for a bit to cast an elemental spell. Pressing L1 and R1 can speed up the flow of time, allowing for quicker battles.

Elemental affinity also plays a role here, and the in-game weather system affects how certain battles will go. Furthermore, you can also place traps that will inflict status effects on enemies if they approach a hexagon adjacent to you. There are also additional objectives that are given in each battle that can grant you extra money,

It’s certainly a well fleshed-out system, but definitely a sluggish one, especially at the beginning. Battles also have a weird difficulty spike in between chapters that are somewhat easy to overcome. The game does offer some settings in the main menu that allow you to reduce the difficulty, however, if you’re in for just the story.

An Empty World to Explore

Edge of Eternity boasts over 50 hours of content, and even features a New Game+, carrying over the level of the characters, their equipment, crystals…y’know. Typical stuff. However, besides a few side quests here and there, the overworld feels very empty, with not a whole lot going for it.

Scattered across the overworld are some NPCs that you can obtain sidequests from, but a good chunk of them are just standing there, motionless. And even if you do get one that gives a sidequest, it’s always the same loop: Talk to NPC, then talk to another, fetch an item or two for them, then talk to them again to get your reward.

Edge of Eternity also offers what it calls “Immersive Mode”. Basically what this does is just remove the UI…including the minimap. Other than taking screenshots, I fail to see just why this mode is even called that. Oh, and the most mind-boggling aspect of it? You can’t jump. Yeah, you read that right. There are so many places in-game that feel like you could get to if Daryon was able to jump, but alas, he doesn’t.

A Very Frustrating Platinum

Looking at the trophy list, it is certainly possible to get a platinum for the game in your first playthrough. Some trophies are behind side quests that are irritatingly hard to find without a guide, and some of these quests are super annoying to do for the pitiful rewards that they give.

And remember what I said about this game’s balancing issues? …Yeah, one of the trophies requires you to play the game on the highest difficulty, Nightmare. And if you thought the difficulty spikes were bad on the Normal preset, then prepare for them to be exponentially more frustrating on Nightmare.

Unity Graphical Pack #56

Oh boy, do I have something to say about the graphics of this game, for they are certainly…something to behold. One thing needs to be made clear, is that they are not necessarily bad, but they aren’t great either. Facial expressions are almost nonexistent, and the game shows inconsistent visuals from time to time.

Sometimes, it feels to me like they just used the default assets from Unity and called it a day. And while that isn’t bad per se, nothing in Edge of Eternity stands out in the graphical department, with even the UI looking very generic. Even the combat interface and other aspects of the game don’t have an “identity” that sets them apart.

Conclusion

I truly wanted to see if Edge of Eternity could be a nice title to recommend. A “diamond in the rough”, made by a small team who genuinely believed in their final product. I have a tendency to sometimes see if I like a game that is mixed among its fanbase. And well, if you happen to get it at a sale, and set your expectations accordingly, it can be a decent RPG.

Still, if I’m going to be honest, the story feels like it was hastily cobbled up together, and it shows. For someone who enjoys the story of an RPG above all, that is a major setback for me. The combat having those nasty difficulty spikes and the rather…generic looking graphics also don’t help the game in its favor. Yet, I still can’t help but feel that, there was an idea. It just didn’t stick the landing. At least I can finally put that curiosity to rest.