The game opens with you and your friends beta testing Sword Art Online (SAO) before trouble ensues. During this time, you learn the basic mechanics, such as combat abilities and healing. Eventually, you’re ambushed by some player killers, defeat a Kobold Lord boss, and complete the dungeon before returning to town. Honestly, disguising a prologue as a beta is genius; this perfectly sets the tone of the game.
Echoes of Aincrad (EoA) delivers a semi-open world, but only lets you explore smaller portions of larger zones during the story. Going out of bounds throws you back to where you came, killing any sense of exploration or freedom I’d have hoped for with such a game. It feels like a kick in the face to have such a beautifully crafted world, only to be railroaded in exploring it.
I understand the developers want us to arrive at and activate safe zones, but this restrictive approach doesn’t sit well with me, especially when it occurs immediately. Once I stepped out of the initial dungeon, the camera panned across the world, piquing my excitement. That excitement quickly faded, however, as I tried to reach my first safe zone. I attempted to cross a bridge which faced the correct direction, only to be thrown back around as this wasn’t the bridge the developers wanted me to take.
While the world does slowly open, it takes too long and still feels far too restrictive. The level design also suffers, usually offering only 1 path to your objective, lacking any need to explore, more so given treasure chests are always visible on your minimap (and repeatedly announced by your party members).
This contrasting good-bad seesaw is felt throughout Aincrad. For example, towns feel alive, yet everything else feels like a barren wasteland. It’s a case of the world being as wide as the ocean, but as deep as a puddle.
The saving graces were the combat, gear progression, and levelling, which were all equal parts fun and methodical. Combat is what you’d expect: hit, block, and dodge – where it shines is in perfectly timed parries or dodges. Doing so allows you to break the enemy’s stance and unleash stylised parry-based attacks.
I assume easier difficulties, for the most part, would allow for button mashing, but I highly recommend against this approach as combat is easily the most fun I had with this game. It’s not groundbreaking in any way, nor is it unique, but it’s executed perfectly, delivering a fun, fluid, and weighty experience. What EoA does that most others don’t is a death mode difficulty – One save, one death; that’s all you get. If you want to amp up how hardcore combat feels, this is the way to play.
I wish mini bosses were more fleshed out and tested your knowledge of the various combat mechanics rather than being damage sponges. Presently, they’re mostly larger versions of monsters you’ve already defeated, recycled throughout the world. Similarly, standard monsters also feel like different skins, with the same mechanics throughout the game, leading to a budget feel in the game’s design.
Eventually, the fun of combat didn’t outweigh how tiring fighting the same mobs becomes. Additionally, their line of sight and the fact that they don’t stop chasing you is an unnecessary feature and one of my largest gripes with the game. I don’t want to fight under-levelled enemies, and I especially don’t want my followers to repeatedly comment on them.
Similarly, the loot isn’t all that exciting and doesn’t introduce anything new to the genre, but it fed my inner loot hunter perfectly. I absolutely loved hunting for gear with the modifiers I wanted for myself and my party. I also appreciated how easy it was to understand crafting and upgrading.
Something I absolutely hated about gear was that it could only be changed at the inn. This isn’t a good idea from either a lore or design perspective and feels like unnecessary padding. I hope this gets removed or reworked, as it detracts from the fun.
Extracting weapon modifiers and learning sword skills extends the depth of combat and crafting, with sword skills in particular being enjoyable thanks to their flashy visuals and impact in battle. Some may not like how easy this all feels, but I loved it as it made crafting my ideal character that suited my playstyle simple.
Character levelling is just as simple – You get points to invest in several different categories, each unlocking additional perks at certain points. While I appreciate the simplicity, unfortunately it feels like EoA is playing it safe rather than delivering deep into RPG mechanics found in other titles.
Randomly generated repeatable dungeons are unlocked between hours 3 and 5, depending on how much you explore prior. At this point, the beta is over, the game releases, and your journey begins. Now comes yet another problem for me: all the safe zone waypoints I discovered in the ‘beta’ are now gone and must be rediscovered. Thematically, this makes sense; from a gameplay perspective, however, it’s a tedious, boring run.
Another example of this contrasting seesaw is in how unique your party members are, and how enjoyable their writing can be. I genuinely enjoyed how cheerful Saayu was, how Argo charged for information, or how Cal was a purple-themed solo player who clearly knows how to play. They all played their part, perfectly recreating the types of players you’d meet online.
There’s one moment where the writing shines. We all know a confident player who’s all talk and gets agitated when you tease them. When Argo joked with Lori for losing his gear, it captured this moment perfectly. Unfortunately, I become annoyed with their repetitive combat and exploration dialogues – Yes, I know it’s an enemy, yes, I can see that chest, yes to everything you’ve repeated hundreds of times, now please stop.
Not only that, unlike other SAO titles, Aincrad only allows you to select a single party member to accompany you. For a game which opens with you being in a party of threes, and a prologue section which repeats how important party play is, I’m saddened that I can only have one other member of my choosing. In Bandai’s other 2026 release, Code Vein 2, having a single member works well, but in EoA, it feels like it goes against the lore of being an MMO. During certain quests, more members will accompany you, so I’m sure this decision revolves around balance or performance, but still.
I also wish EoA leaned more heavily into either the MMO theme or RPG mechanics when it came to followers. I’d have loved it if they improved as the game progressed, as if they were going on their own quests, finding their own loot and crafting their own builds. Currently, rather than being able to fully customise their gear, skills, and items, you can only change your partner’s weapon and combat mode – It feels dumbed down.
I also wish it allowed me to play with a friend, which is something I expected given the message advising others will see my name. The idea of two nameless heroes playing an MMO together would fit the tone of the game brilliantly, and the foundation is already there.
There’s a genuinely enjoyable RPG underneath, especially when it comes to combat and loot. Unfortunately, EoA leaves a lot to be desired. It’s not a bad game, and it has a lot of potential. Unfortunately, that potential isn’t realised and ultimately leaves the experience feeling hollow. The world doesn’t feel like an MMO regardless of how much the writing (or lore) tells you it is, and the surface-level world design extends to all other systems. I’d have loved to be able to talk to more NPCs, see NPCs (or random critters) roaming the world, and to experiment with weapon types not restricted to melee for myself and my party.
ECHOES OF AINCRAD REVIEW
If you’re looking for a new RPG to sink your teeth into, this isn’t it, at least not now, and not for the current price. If you’re on the fence, I suggest waiting until it’s on sale as it doesn’t excel in any way, nor does it do anything better than what’s already available in the market. Sadly, I expected a SAO RPG, what I received was something akin to an indie Early Access title with a triple AAA price.
PROS
Character creator
Engaging combat thanks to block and dodge mechanics
Character writing leans into MMO tropes perfectly
CONS
The maps are far too restrictive
- Repetitive monsters and bosses
Some may find crafting far too simple
Questionable design choices (like only switching gear in your room)
Reviewed on PC. A review code was provided by the Publisher for purposes of this review.
