Final Fantasy 16 may already have been outdone by a new 16-bit RPG
Unchained
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It’s festival day in the idyllic trading town of Farnsport. After years of war, the people of the town are finally able to come together in celebration of the tenuous peace. Ser Victor of Arkadia – a well-meaning and strangely long-lived playwright – is here to enjoy the celebration and win a few prizes at the game stalls while he’s at it. Before long, Victor has a hefty pocket of tokens and is ready to trade for some ludicrously powerful items. With relish, our bard approaches the prize kiosk. However, as he goes to make the trade, he realizes something dire has happened: he’s been robbed.
At this point, our perspective shifts. We are now Sienna, the opportunistic thief who parted Victor from his well-earned prize tokens not moments ago. As our perspective shifts, so too does our objective. Authoritative text at the bottom right of the Nintendo Switch screen informs us to use the cover of the fair to “look for things to steal". With a single line of text,Chained Echoeshas reframed the entire festival. To Sienna, this is an opportunity to make a quick buck – a world apart from Victor’s light-hearted goal of a nice day out. With text alone,Chained Echoeshas framed two wildly different characters with a precise storytelling economy.
Chained Echoesis a well-oiled machine, dispensing dialogue, world-building, and characterization with impressive precision. The RPG features a cast of memorable characters set against a nuanced backdrop of geopolitical intrigue and high-fantasy melodrama. From the opening prologue depicting Glenn’s past as a mercenary to princess Lenne’s high-minded geo-political quest for peace, developer Matthias Linda never fails to useChained Echoessetpieces to diligently realize its world.
Yuji Horii, the creator of Dragon Quest, famously ascribed the success of his long-lived series of JRPGs to an ironclad commitment to “making the game world feel real” (viaForbes). This quality is a hallmark of what I call the era of “classic” 16-bit JRPGs in the tradition of the early Dragon Quests as well as Final Fantasies 1 through 6. Through its mechanics and writing,Chained Echoesnot only faithfully recreates this quality in its writing and game mechanics but also iterates upon them in a meaningful way.
Despite the difference in scale and production value,Chained Echoesput me in mind of imminent blockbuster JRPGFinal Fantasy16. Cards on the table:Final Fantasy 16is one of my most anticipated games of the year, but Linda’s bold indie offering affirms the notion that an RPG absolutely does not need cutting-edge graphics or modern prestige trappings to immerse and compel its players.
Turning point
Chained Echoesproves that, even in 2023, an RPG does not require 3D graphics or voice acting to deliver a top-notch experience. What it does do, however, is take the old-school formula and refine it for modern sensibilities. In the past, turn-based combat systems have often suffered by encouraging us to mindlessly repeat sequences of attacks. Why make an interesting choice from a varied buffet of different attacks when you already have an optimal move that youknowworks?
Linda sidesteps this problem inChained Echoeswith the Overdrive system. During combat, on the top left-hand corner of the screen, you’ll see a gauge, representing the party’s cohesion in battle. Most attacks cause your Overdrive level to rise. After a few moves, you’ll find yourself occupying the sweet spot in the middle of the gauge, and you’ll benefit from powerful party-wide buffs. Go too far, however, and your party will burn out and suffer a nasty debuff.
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Far from being a gimmick or an afterthought, the Overdrive system offers a fundamental shift in the turn-based JRPG gameplay loop
To keep your Overdrive low, you’ll need to use a certain type of move as denoted by the symbol on the bar itself. Once you use a move of that type, your Overdrive level will decrease, but the sort of move you have to use to get this benefit will also change. This gives battles a satisfying ebb and flow, forcing you to thread a needle of varying attacks to keep your Overdrive gauge in that sweet spot, while also concentrating on the traditional melange of elemental weaknesses and resource management.
Far from being a gimmick or an afterthought, the Overdrive system offers a fundamental shift in the turn-based JRPG gameplay loop. To get the most out of your party inChained Echoes, you’ll need to be mindful of the Overdrive bar’s surprisingly treacherous rhythm. It ensures that every decision you make comes with an opportunity cost. However, unlike the traditional action economies of the likes of Tactics Ogre,Chained Echoesensures that the exact cost changes from turn to turn by making varied demands of the player.
Future perfect
Though we’ve had our fair share of recent RPGs that use turn-based mechanics, very few modern titles outside ofOctopath TravelerandBravely Default 2have recreated the halcyon charms of “classic” Final Fantasy with gusto. What separatesChained Echoes, however, is the extent to which it offers immersive story setpieces in the old-school tradition while also meaningfully iterating on “classic” mechanics to create something new.
Contrary to the likes ofXenoblade Chronicles 3, the mechanical sections that intersperse the game’s story are just as thoughtful and rewarding as the narrative.Chained Echoeshas a healthy relationship with the past, appropriating the qualities of classic JRPGs while improving upon the weaker areas of the formula to create something unashamedly modern.
It is gratifying to see that, in 2023, the traditional formula of the “classic” 16-bit JRPG is not only a viable basis for an excellent game but can be meaningfully improved with meaningful mechanical tweaks. It will be interesting to see if upcoming JRPG giantFinal Fantasy 16will be able to capture the genre’s magic with the same efficacy.
An editor and freelance journalist, Cat Bussell has been writing about video games for more than four years and, frankly, she’s developed a taste for it. As seen on TechRadar, Technopedia, The Gamer, Wargamer, and SUPERJUMP, Cat’s reviews, features, and guides are lovingly curated for your reading pleasure.
A Cambridge graduate, recovering bartender, and Cloud Strife enjoyer, Cat’s foremost mission is to bring you the best coverage she can, whether that’s through helpful guides, even-handed reviews, or thought-provoking features. She’s interviewed indie darlings, triple-A greats, and legendary voice actors, all to help you get closer to the action. When she’s not writing, Cat can be found sticking her neck into a fresh RPG or running yet another Dungeons & Dragons game.
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