Even the simplest of “trash mob” encounters can be quite challenging, and I’d often find myself completely overrun by an enemy and forced to reconsider my strategy.īut losing a battle isn’t a problem. The game feels more or less balanced around you exploring and chasing those rewards, and – for me at least – remained consistently challenging if not sometimes quite tricky throughout the game. Indeed the achievements in some way take the place of the grind for character levels. Achievements are rewarded handsomely, too, giving you essential in-game items and upgrade materials to make the most out of your characters.

In true modern videogame style – exploration and completionism are benchmarked by in-game achievements so you’ve always got a means to benchmark your explosion. You won’t be bored to tears by the minutiae of your characters stats and you don’t need to micromanage your inventory. Most noticeable in the early game is the reduction of busywork. I need some pictures from Chained Echoes for my review but getting screenshots off my Steam Deck and into here is an enormous hassle so here are three… have of the building blocks of Chained Echoes aren’t groundbreaking or new, but it pieces things together into a cohesive whole that feels modern and streamlined without leaving its 2D JRPG roots behind.

Steam chained echoes download