My Dad was kind enough to purchase a couple of Steam games for me for my birthday that recently passed. One of them was Echo, a game that had escaped my attention but that he assured me was interesting and that I would enjoy it. Apparently he had purchased the game earlier on and had already played a bit, and he was right — it’s intriguing from the start. You play a woman named En? I’m unsure what her actual name is and that’s the only name that she has been referenced as thus far. You have awoken after a 100 year space flight, where you were trying to find a planet that was almost missed. It is here you were trying to reach, as a message from “grandpa” gave these coordinates. Honestly, I have no idea what’s going on or what you’re here for. This is one of those titles that tells you very little to begin with, and reveals bits of the story as you progress. When first landing on the planet, it’s clear that it is not what you would think of when you think “planet” because the entire surface of it is a structure. It’s massive. It looks alien until you get inside. It’s confusing. Who built this thing? Why is it here? Why is it so big? Why am I being copied and my copies are attacking me? I have no idea.
Clearly you will make sense of everything as you make it further into the game, but at this point I have an impression from only the first couple of hours. I do want to get deeper and learn more, but as these things go – it takes time. The game is gorgeous, despite having similar textures everywhere. The lighting is very impressive, and you’ll notice that most when you first enter “the palace.” Combat doesn’t take place until after you get the power on, and though it seems effective to shoot your enemies, your suit only has so much energy so they almost force you into doing stealth bits. I detest stealth myself, so I typically run past things and shoot when I can, thankfully enemies have an aggro range and you can typically leave them in the dust as long as you don’t corner yourself. I have a feeling that this will get better over time, or maybe they’ll force you further into being stealthy, but if I can avoid it I will.
Overall I think that if you like a mysterious adventure type game you’ll enjoy this. I wouldn’t say you’ll need much in the way of shooter skills, particularly if you go the stealth route, but that element is present so it’s not just walking around, puzzles and exposition. I look forward to getting more time in with this game, but wanted to jot down my initial impressions. I’d recommend it.
Me Vs. Myself and I 