Etrian Mystery Dungeon

 3DS
  • Publisher: Atlus
  • Release Date: Apr 7, 2015
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 56 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 41 out of 56
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 56
  3. Negative: 7 out of 56
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  1. 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 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 notEMD 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
  2. 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 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    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 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. night4
    Feb 3, 2017
    5
    In no world does this deserve a green score, let alone a 10. The AI is so horrifically awful it's probably literally the worst AI I've ever seen in my entire life.

    There are some positive aspects of the game, like the general gameplay, the addition of positioning to the Etrian base formula, and some unique classes. Just thinking about the AI makes me want to punch someone in the    In no world does this deserve a green score, let alone a 10. The AI is so horrifically awful it's probably literally the worst AI I've ever seen in my entire life.

    There are some positive aspects of the game, like the general gameplay, the addition of positioning to the Etrian base formula, and some unique classes.

    Just thinking about the AI makes me want to punch someone in the face though. I don't understand how the game could have launched like this.    … Expand
  4. 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 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 systemI'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
  5. skunkyjosh
    May 25, 2023
    5
    A dungeon crawler with a terrible party-controlled AI.

    You can go solo or with a party of 4 and explore dungeons. You collect gold, items, materials, potions, etc. As you defeat bosses, you will find out that your character level is meaningless and that all that matters is to use the proper item or spell to break the shield. Once the shield is broken, all the bosses seem to be very easy    A dungeon crawler with a terrible party-controlled AI.

    You can go solo or with a party of 4 and explore dungeons. You collect gold, items, materials, potions, etc. As you defeat bosses, you will find out that your character level is meaningless and that all that matters is to use the proper item or spell to break the shield. Once the shield is broken, all the bosses seem to be very easy to kill with melee or spell damage once you discover their weaknesses.

    If you fail on the boss, you lose some items that you were wearing, half your gold and all your inventory. It's setting you back into grinding mode for several hours due to several items lost. You better hope to have every possible stun, paralysis, magic, poison, etc on you or you could be doomed.

    It's not a fun dungeon crawler. I played this for over 60 hours+, I had 40 characters in the range of level 35 to 45 from all the classes available and I tried them all with their skills and spells. The classes all look the same, they are rushed and one of them is game breaking bugged. Even the artwork is often just a different colour with the same art. Very rushed and washed out. Save your time and money, there are better dungeon crawlers out there waiting for you.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

17
#17 Best 3DS Game of 2015
22
#22 Most Discussed 3DS Game of 2015
29
#29 Most Shared 3DS Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 44 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 30 out of 44
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 44
  3. Negative: 1 out of 44
  1. CD-Action
    Jan 12, 2016
    70
    An old school roguelike enriched with some interesting twists. [13/2015, p.73]
  2. IGN Spain
    Nov 30, 2015
    78
    Mixing RPGS and roguelike elements, this game manages to offer a deep challenge, but fails in being too short for its kind.
    Read full review
  3. Cubed3
    Nov 15, 2015
    70
    The enjoyment of Etrian Mystery Dungeon will be very much dependent on how much a player enjoys the core experience of repeated dungeon excursions.
    Read full review
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