- Publisher: Seismic Squirrel
- Release Date: Mar 30, 2026
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Mar 30, 2026Superbly written and acted with some of the finest worldbuilding in any RPG this decade, Aether & Iron is an instant classic and one of the best games of the year.
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Mar 27, 2026Aether & Iron is an RPG of masterful writing and stark contrasts. There's a lot to praise between the combat and the narrative, but it's the characters that make this New York a city with breathing lungs and a beating heart. It's truly something special.
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Apr 16, 2026Aether & Iron is a stylish and ambitious narrative RPG set in a retrofuturistic 1930s New York. Its strongest elements are its rich worldbuilding, sharp social themes, and noir-inspired storytelling, driven by meaningful choices and an introspective protagonist. While its tactical combat and RPG systems take a back seat, the game excels where it matters most, delivering a cohesive, immersive experience that feels fresh and distinct.
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Apr 1, 2026Aether & Iron is one of the most atmospheric video games I've played in recent memory. Even characters who show up for a scene or two seem to have an inner life, and the aether-powered New York is an excellent example of alternate history. After a while, I started playing in shorter sessions, completing only two or three quests at a time, to extend my time with the game. Car combat is a good gameplay system, adding variety and tension, but the mechanics do not match the storytelling. The vehicle customization is a little fiddly, while the idea of environmental dangers for flying cars is a little incongruous. These are minor issues for Aether & Iron, which is impressive in its ability to marry a cool world and strong characters with decent, if not innovative, gameplay.
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Mar 27, 2026Aether & Iron delivers a compelling story wrapped in gorgeous visuals and smart, tactical combat with its own CRPG twist. Despite some bugs and pacing dips due to heavy dialogue, the strong characters and presentation carry it through. Bottom line: an excellent game you shouldn’t miss.
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Mar 27, 2026Aether & Iron pulls players into the role of a well-written anti-heroine and a gorgeously-drawn art deco setting, and adds turn-based vehicular combat and a simple-but-effective RPG system to create a fantastic debut title for developer Seismic Squirrel that feels thematically relevant to our modern struggle. Its worldbuilding leaves a bit to be desired, but if you can take it for what it is, it delivers on its promises very well.
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Mar 27, 2026Aether & Iron takes immense joy messing around in the noir decopunk playground it has constructed, and that joy is often infectious. Some polish, mechanical depth and omissions aside, Aether & Iron’s world and characters monologued their way into my heart, and the inventive tactical car combat, charming indulgence of tropes, and overall direction make for a glamorous and gold-embellished package that deserves to have its name in lights for a time.
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Mar 31, 2026Despite occasional stalls, this combination of tactics and talking has plush-leather depths worth sinking into.
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Apr 28, 2026Aether & Iron delivers a narrative-driven noir adventure that can be both enjoyable and frustrating. This “decopunk” New York is beautiful, brutal, and sets the stage for great stories, even with some flaws in the pacing. Its combat is interesting enough to provide a break between episodes, but it’s up to the player to decide whether or not they’re in the mood to make the most of it.
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Apr 6, 2026Aether & Iron is great in executing its premise, even with technical flaws or limitations. Challenging combat, a rich plot and a lot of great ideas come together in an excellent narrative RPG.
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Apr 6, 2026Aether & Iron delivers a high-quality narrative RPG experience, boasting a captivating steampunk-noir aesthetic and a well-crafted story set in an alternate 1930s New York. The unique turn-based vehicular combat system is innovative but underutilized, appearing infrequently. While the hand-drawn art style and dense, atmospheric writing are strong points, the game suffers from a lack of accessibility due to no Portuguese localization, occasional audio bugs, and an unintuitive UI, particularly in inventory management. Less experienced players may struggle with the complex menus and fragmented narrative flow.
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Apr 3, 2026Aether and Iron presents a dark-toned experience with metallic resonances, offering a lucid management system embodied by a lively and resolute protagonist. Set in the heart of a decopunk New York, layers of violence unfold, requiring the player to navigate them to complete each mission. Its mechanics, seemingly simple at first glance, flow with an almost contemplative rhythm, yet remain sufficiently immersive to sustain both the narrative dimension and encounters of notable solidity.
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Mar 27, 2026Aether & Iron rises above its quirks with sheer creativity and artistic expression. I love the hand-drawn world, the characters I wish I could engage with far beyond the credits, and the struggle Gia and New York City’s citizens engaged in. A story worth telling, it’s a cliche noir tale told from an entirely different angle and elevated by a cast that stands above most others. My hope is that we see more tactical RPGs with imaginative systems like this, with their creative visions better realized.
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Apr 15, 2026Aether & Iron offers a story-driven noir adventure that can both satisfy and frustrate. The retro-futuristic depiction of 1930s New York with floating cars on flying islands is enticing, complete with factions and seedy characters. Turn-based combat on high-speed streets is engaging and satisfying, offering some new considerations to your typical turn-based experience. While the story and characters are worth experiencing, some of the storytelling mechanics can feel frustrating and unwieldy. That said, the patient, strategic gamer looking for a well-told story will find a good time with Aether & Iron.
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Apr 15, 2026Aether & Iron is the sort of game I like to see exist. It populates a novel setting with an interesting cast of characters and uses them to build upon a solid gameplay structure, while trying out plenty of its own ideas. There are definitely flaws within, but despite these, it’s ultimately a very enjoyable game to play through, and I would be very happy to continue Gia Randazzo’s story in the future.
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Mar 29, 2026Anyone with a penchant for narrative-driven video games should check out Aether & Iron: the captivating setting, the criminal undertones, and the wide variety of characters encountered and locations visited guarantee entertainment. Furthermore, there's the tactical component, which, without overdoing it, manages to offer a satisfying challenge. Seismic Squirrel's offering is certainly not without its flaws—at times it's a bit too textual and not visual—but it will win over those willing to immerse themselves in its story.
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Mar 27, 2026Aether & Iron is a very promising title that tells a highly compelling story of power and class, and is crowned with one of the most clever SRPG battle systems on the market. However, it is full of disruptive glitches and bugs that rear their heads far too frequently, which prevent the mind from fully engaging with the wonderful story. Signs indicate that the developers are quick to fix issues as they arise, so there is reason to believe they will get fixed over time. However, at the moment of writing, the flaws are too numerous to overlook. This makes it difficult to fully recommend the game to a wider audience than hardcore SRPG and aetherpunk dystopia fans. For those that love these aspects, though, there are few titles on the market that will scratch that itch as well as Aether & Iron.