Eternal Strands [Review]
Eternal Strands features repetitive fantastic and refreshing gameplay and an underwhelming magic system, yet the story and overall experience are positive. Magic is the primary way to get an edge over the enemies in this game and is very helpful with world traversal. Although underwhelming, it is still a fun mechanic of the game. Just nothing is creative or new about the magic system. Unfortunately, magic can be more of a nuisance than helpful in a lot of ways, for example. I've frozen myself and gotten stuck many times. I lit myself on fire and/or blew myself up, and ex. 9 times out of 10, you will hurt or eliminate yourself during combat. Magic differentiates the game from Zelda and is a core element.
The game starts with a beautifully animated cutscene, with some fantastic worldbuilding and voice acting. Players will primarily utilize telekinesis for combat and the freeze ability to stop enemies in their tracks (and yourself), but later players employ it for enemy avoidance. Elemental magic proves mostly ineffective due to visual obstruction during combat. The Kinetic Tunnel skill, acquired mainly towards the end of the game, is valuable for propelling the player forward. Although useful for specific boss fights, its late acquisition limits its overall utility. Luckily the character still uses swords and other weapons to fight, this is where the Zelda-like combat comes in. If magic isn't working out for you then you can just play the game like a regular action RPG and use magic when you have to. The game involves exploring an open world for quests and gathering materials.
Eternal Strands combines elements of Monster Hunter with Breath of the Wild and, for some fights, adds elements of Shadow of the Colossus, pitting players against massive enemies. These enemies are not as large as those from Shadow of the Colossus, but they are certainly much bigger than the player character or even a house. It is comparable to a human dealing with a Titan from Attack on Titan. Additionally, as is common in games of this genre, players gather materials to use for crafting new equipment, base building, and other crafting elements. Fighting enemies causes them to drop materials. Overall, “Eternal Strands” offers a simple and beautiful adventure. With approximately 12 hours of gameplay, players can find a plethora of content to explore and activities to engage in within this rich and expansive fantasy world, which is full of diverse species and humanoid creatures. Its engaging gameplay and the expertly mixed Zelda/Monster Hunter gameplay help to create a positive experience.
