SYNDUALITY Echo of Ada brings the frustration of dying in the middle of nowhere in Minecraft and losing all of your inventory to the mech world. These frustrations are shortlived, with the game offering an addictive and satisfying gameplay loop that will make a quick 30-minute gameplay session turn into 3 hours. But has the game reached the potential it could have? Find out in our SYNDUALITY Echo of Ada review.
In a world where humanity has fallen victim to a poisonous rain called Tears of the New Moon and is forced to live underground, a group of courageous humans called Drifters utilise mechs, known as Cradlecoffins, to navigate the post-apocalyptic world above them. Drifters are partnered with AI companions called Magus, who assist with their survival throughout the treacherous environments.
The game first sets you in a character creation screen, where you can create the Magus of your dreams. The options are plentiful and offer a diverse range of hairstyles, skin colours, and a huge array of other customisation. I feel this is necessary as despite having a Cradlecoffin, the most distinguishable you are from other players is your Magus. Your Magus can be assigned a skill set during their creation, which will offer some passive abilities such as displaying enemy health, weather forecasting to avoid the poisonous rain, and other useful skills. You can own more than one Magus, so your selection is not necessarily locked to your whole playthrough.
Before attending each expedition, referred to as a Sortie, it’s important to ensure you are well-equipped to face the challenges ahead of you. But not too well-equipped, as carrying too many items with you will cause you to move slower and have less inventory for the valuable resources you require. I found it difficult at first to find a balance between what was necessary for a mission but after several hours in, I was more than confident in my ability to handle the Enders and other Drifters without overloading myself.
During Sorties, your main goal is to collect resources and other requests relating to the restoration of humanity. The overworld is littered with flora and fauna mutated by the Tears of the New Moon. Unfortunately, the variation of enemies is not there, and it feels repetitious to hunt down the same enemies over and over again. It would have been in Synduality’s favour to include different enemies depending on the time of day or weather conditions to assist with this combat fatigue.
What was immensely thrilling was finding other players around the map. It’s that first interaction with a player where you are trying to gauge whether they will wave and say hello or shoot you once you turn your back that had me proceed with caution around every corner. During my hours with Synduality, most players are passive and will just say hello using the chat function, but that just makes it more chaotic when you find someone who wants to destroy you and take all of your belongings.
If your Cradle gets destroyed or you emergency evacuate during a Sortie, you immediately lose all items you had in your inventory. The only equipment redeemed is what is covered under insurance, which you can pay for before initiating the Sortie. Insurance is costly, so I was rarely utilising this function. Losing your inventory is soul-crushing and really prompted me to choose my battles. Is it worth grabbing that one item surrounded by a group of enemies? Probably not. Managing your HP and Resist meter is vital to your survival. Just remember, if it rains, find something to take shelter under.
The end of a Sortie might be the most stressful. Your Cradlecoffin battery is generally running low, and the elevator to evacuate takes 45 seconds to get you out of there. Other players are notified that you are calling the elevator which is basically ringing the dinner bell if you happen to have some antagonistic players nearby.
The Garage is the main hub or “base of operations” between each Sortie. The Garage is your safe space where you can equip your Cradlecoffin with new parts, weapons, and consumables, as well as check requests/missions, view your collectibles, and more. One of my favourite functions is the ability to upgrade the garage and its functions, which mostly just improve the aesthetics of The Garage, but there are some useful upgrades that increase your storage and other perks. Resources are required to upgrade, which initiated the addictive gameplay loop I found myself engaged in.
Where I hesitate to fully immerse myself in this game is the disconnect between expeditions and the subdued storyline beneath it. It never felt like any of the requests I completed ever made a difference in restoring humanity. The game’s enjoyment stems from the addictive gameplay loop and not the progression of the story itself, and while the game does offer cooperative play with players you find on an expedition, it does not offer co-op with your friends, which I feel is a big oversight. Scavenging for resources with a mate would uplift the experience drastically.
SYNDUALITY Echo of Ada does offer a battle pass called a “Drifter Pass”, which offers weapons, parts, emotes, and clothing for your Magus. I was given the Drifter Pass and a copy of the game for review, but I lost some of the best items I earned from it upon death. It feels a bit predatory to offer paid items that you can lose quite easily during a Sortie. If you want to splash additional money on this game, be cautious.
SYNDUALITY ECHO OF ADA REVIEW
GOOD
6.5
Synduality: Echo of Ada is a ton of fun but ultimately struggles to capitalise on the addictive and satisfying gameplay loop it has with a subdued story.
PROS
- Addictive gameplay loop
- Magus AI companions are charming as hell
- The aesthetic of the overall presentation and UI design is neat
CONS
- Has a battle pass when maybe it shouldn’t
- Story feels like it should be more center stage.
Reviewed on PlayStation 5. A review code was provided by the Publisher for purposes of this review.
