Elderand

Elderand is a game full of mystery, monsters, exploration, and gore. With so much to see this title is sure to keep you busy for a long time. I just wish you were able to make spots on the map so you knew specific locations to come back to once you get new abilities.

It lacks ambition and doesn't have much to differentiate it from its peers, but the design is so solid and the world is fun enough to explore that there's certainly a good time to be had in Elderand.

Elderand is, for better and worse, a fairly by-the-numbers Metroidvania. It does nothing exceptional, but it rarely slips up badly either.

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Elderand is another solid entry in the Metroidvania genre, though it doesn’t push any new boundaries where gameplay is concerned. It does manage to stand out somewhat thanks to its strong enemy design and worldbuilding, as well as a good soundtrack. For a debut game, it’s impressive to see something as well realised as this, but there's precious little here you haven't seen elsewhere in this crowded genre. Perhaps it needs a second entry to fully live up to its potential.

At the end of the day, not many games come close to a masterpiece like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, but Elderand tries in its own way to honor its inspiration. Exploration is a fun endeavor enhanced by great art design, the RPG system has the potential to do much more, but its combat can be hit or miss. The storytelling follows the same path, but for players looking for Lovecraftian creatures to kill and glorious gothic aesthetics, Elderand will fit the bill.

Elderand feels like a game that would have thrived in a previous generation of gaming. It holds onto some mechanics that just don’t feel that great compared to what the Metroidvania genre offers in the modern day. It’s not all bad, but there are better games in the genre that you can play.