Etrian Mystery Dungeon

1. ravenclaw77

   Aug 4, 2015

   9

   By far the best Rogue-like on 3DS. Lots of depth and tons of content, this is a great value for people who love the genre.
   
   If you're new toBy far the best Rogue-like on 3DS. Lots of depth and tons of content, this is a great value for people who love the genre.
   
   If you're new to rogue-likes, it's a turn based game where every time you take a step or an action, the enemies do the same. It requires you to think and strategize. Rogue-likes are known for being difficult and this is no exception -- the first area is easy enough, and you can grind away if you find the game too hard, but it either takes a great deal of skill or a great deal of time grinding to defeat.
   
   The dungeons are pseudo-random and this offers some variety of each dungeon, you'll never see the exact same layout twice, most likely. However, there are parameters as to what can be in each floor, so it's not total chaos.
   
   Some people have complained about terrible A.I. My opinion is those players didn't give enough care to positioning. You can control any character at any time, and the other characters act themselves. Yes, it's important to not block doorways and make sure your allies have line of sight (LOS) on their targets, and this is part of the game. Once you realize you're controlling a squad and not focusing on a single character, the A.I. is at least on par with other rogue-likes.
   
   There is no 'permadeath', but if you fall in battle, you will lose a fair amount of progress. If you are impatient and impulsive, this will cause a lot of frustration. Once you learn to take your time and pace yourself, it's very rewarding.
   
   There are a number of things I haven't seen before in rogue-likes, such as the DOE system and building of forts. These add another dimension to an already complex game type, and I applaud it.
   
   Fans of rogue-likes should absolutely pick this game up for certain. If you're new to the genre, this is more complex and involved than most, and it could be frustrating, especially if you're unused to the need to really plan and strategize. For younger or new-to-the-genre players, I'd recommend pokemon mystery dungeon which generally doesn't offer quite as much challenge. For adults or anyone with experience, looking for a challenge, this is my favorite by far.… Expand

   • 1 of 2 users found this helpful
2. ventzx

   Jul 4, 2015

   9

   It's an awesome game if you're a fan of the Mystery dungeon games, if not it will get repetitive and boring pretty fast because that's howIt's an awesome game if you're a fan of the Mystery dungeon games, if not it will get repetitive and boring pretty fast because that's how this type of games works, nevertheless it doesn't really disappoint anyone.… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
4. midipon

   May 15, 2015

   9

   I very highly enjoy this game. It's like a gift that keeps on giving! Have to take some off for somewhat clunky interface and horribly dumbI very highly enjoy this game. It's like a gift that keeps on giving! Have to take some off for somewhat clunky interface and horribly dumb party AI though.… Expand

   • 1 of 2 users found this helpful
5. ItsTamo

   Jun 2, 2021

   7

   I'm a big fan of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon and Etrian Odyssey, and playing EMD was a treat. I loved the concept of the game and it was veryI'm a big fan of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon and Etrian Odyssey, and playing EMD was a treat. I loved the concept of the game and it was very grabbing. It's THE type of game I love and would love to dive into. The dungeon crawling aspect is fun, and how they utilized the guild system was quite brilliant. But I'd say what brings my review score down are terrible UI, party AI and some system commands.
   
   EO series in general doesn't have that great of UI, and EMD perfectly incorporates and worsens it. Too many skills, too many items and limited number of buttons forces the player to constantly study and spend time on the menu option.
   
   Party AI is the worst I've seen in a game. After 30+ hours of gameplay, I still don't know when the game prompts the leader (or the player) to input commands of the party members. The members use up the items that I don't want them to waste. They use their skills pointlessly (and waste MP) even if I click 'cancel' on the battle command that's occasionally prompted to the player. This really broke my immersion and raised the overall difficulties.
   
   The part that I enjoyed the most was DOE battles, which I usually use the 'command all' skill to command all of my party members. The battle becomes a lot more enjoyable if I don't have to suffer the party AI.
   
   The Fortress system was fun. I liked using the guild members (and jobs) that I left dormant for some time. Most of the fortress defence members I set were different from my main party so the fort battles were refreshing.
   
   Job system is broken. There are 10 classes, and Runemaster, Medic, and Landsknecht are almost mandatory in an exploration party. It's difficult to make much notable progression without any of them. The other 7 classes are supporters or long-ranged fighters, and I really didn't get much use out of them. I think this type of job system was ok in the base EO games, since there are 5 party members and you could put at least 2 supporters, but in EMD, you can only put 1 supporter and the other classes go to waste. I tried to utilize the support classes as much as I could in the fortress battles but still didn't get much use out of them.
   
   I loved the gameplay, but can't stop thinking that the overall game was a missed opportunity. Some parts seem rushed and I believe they needed some extra time in the oven (which I understand that this was not the type of game that would be granted with that much of a budget). Heck, I'm seeing frame drops on New 3DS XL. There were so many improvements they could've implemented. It's not a bad game by no means and I greatly enjoyed it. However, from an objective perspective, it's not a well-constructed game. And I'm disappointed to say that.… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
6. ironzombi

   Aug 16, 2017

   7

   EMD is a good game, its just not great. There is plenty here for fans of dungeon crawlers and roguelike RPG's but it just doesn't hold upEMD is a good game, its just not great. There is plenty here for fans of dungeon crawlers and roguelike RPG's but it just doesn't hold up compared to the Etrian Odyssey games or the other Mystery Dungeon games I have played(I have not played Gates to Infinity) and while it should be viewed for what it is and not against EO games I just cant help but feel there is potential that was not quite reached.
   
   Recommended for fans of dungeon crawlers and roguelike games but just because you were a fan of some of the earlier Pokemon Mystery dungeon games doesn't mean you are going to enjoy this game. I am really pleased so see they are releasing EMD2 as I really feel the combo of mystery dungeon and Etrian Odyssey is a winning formula and with some small balance tweaks here and there this crossover is sure to shine.… Expand

   • 1 of 1 users found this helpful
7. mikeanite12

   Apr 26, 2015

   5

   First of all, I would like to say that this game is fun in its own merit and worth a play-through if you like rouge-like games and want aFirst of all, I would like to say that this game is fun in its own merit and worth a play-through if you like rouge-like games and want a fresh feel in gameplay. That being said, there are many, MANY issues with this game that seem to more than just oversight, but actual negligence.
   
   First of all your team AI is almost worthless, the only saving grace being the skill that allows you to control your party for 9 turns and turning off their skills altogether so that they don't burn all of their TP in the first few encounters of enemies because apparently if my tank is missing 5 health, she's in need of an immediate heal. If a party member is in a hallway, they see nothing and seem to be incapable of making any choices for themselves, often my gunner gets stuck in the hallway with a monster just a few squares away, but because the healer is standing in the doorway, my gunner is blind to the monster.
   
   DOE's. The only ONLY threat they possess is sneaking by you when trying to get to the town. Other than that, throw on a couple of debuffs and they fall without having much of an impact on the game other than slowing down your exploration of the dungeons. I like the idea of DOE's being very strong but it was handled very poorly, a fire link and a bind shouldn't be every single damn DOE's weakness. Granted, the bosses were actually entertaining.
   
   I like pokemon mystery dungeon, and etrian odyssey is one of my favorite game series, but if something isn't done to at least fix some basic mechanics of EO mystery dungeon, it was both a waste of etrian odyssey's development team and my time.… Expand

   • 3 of 7 users found this helpful
8. d4haxor

   Apr 12, 2015

   0

   This is one of the buggiest, most imbalanced RPGs ever made. The starting dungeon has monsters that can 1 shot your entire party before youThis is one of the buggiest, most imbalanced RPGs ever made. The starting dungeon has monsters that can 1 shot your entire party before you can even react, and half the time the game goes to auto save it corrupts your data. Save your money and avoid this game at all costs.… Expand

   • 2 of 18 users found this helpful

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