Elliot Quest is fun with beautifully designed dungeons, but the finer details and overall story fall short of what it needs make it a truly great game.

In terms of the indie market, there is definitely no shortage of pixelated platformers that harken back to the early days of the 8 and 16-bit era of gaming. Elliot Quest is another title that throws itself into this crowded arena but it does distinguish itself from most of its competitors in that it takes inspiration from what many may consider to be an unlikely source – Zelda II. Whether this is a good thing or not depends on just how much you are willing to put up with being frustrated.One of the main gripes with Elliot Quest is that the plot is never explained in an effective manner. You are left to piece together what you can from the random thoughts of the hero. These cryptic messages provide little background to exactly why you are going on this quest. The very start of the story all boils down to Elliot not being able to die and events spring from there.It’s an annoying problem, especially considering that other similar games, like Zelda II and Castlevania: Simon’s Quest are able to tell a much more convincing and compelling story.

The idea is obviously that the developer wanted the player to discover the plot as they played, bringing together the elusive clues to make sense of the adventure. However, it falls flat for the most part.

Eventually, cutscenes explain that Elliot has been cursed by a demon. This is the reason he cannot die and it also means that he will turn into a demon himself if he cannot find a cure for the curse.This motivation is certainly an interesting one and it combines with the recent disappearance of the protagonist’s wife to provide enough intrigue to want to find out what has happened. Yet, it is let down by the shoddy way that the plot is presented. It would have been nice to have been able to experience the overall story in a much more satisfying way.This idiosyncratic thinking from the developers comes into play in other areas as well and they are equally baffling. The control schemes can change between four different types but the options do nothing to explain what the changes are and what the buttons will now do with each type.

It is also impossible to skip dialogue or make it scroll faster. This is fine the first time you are talking to new characters but can get frustrating very quickly when you have to speak to them multiple times after dying.If you can get over those problems, then Elliot Quest begins to shine. In terms of gameplay, it is basically exactly what you would expect from this type of game. You have a jump button and an attack button and have to fight your way past enemies while jumping over obstacles. This isn’t a run and gun type of game though. It requires careful timing and patience thanks to the fact that the platforming sections can be deceptively difficult and the combat is far from simple.The main weapon in Elliot Quest in a bow. It is fairly weak when starting out, only able to shoot arrows a short distance before they plummet into the ground.

Although this may be a little unforgiving for inexperienced players it does add a layer of tactical thinking as you need to plan attacks rather than jump straight into the action. The bow slowly becomes more powerful as you kill enemies and gather experience.As you might expect from a game that is trying to blend the genres of platforming, RPG’s and metroidvania together, there is a significant levelling system in Elliot Quest. Defeating enemies and bosses grants experience to buy upgrades and become stronger.

These can range from making your bow shoot faster or make arrows fly longer distances. There’s also a great deal of items and magical powers that can be unlocked along the adventure as you find secret areas. Unfortunately, cycling through all your new powers and items is not an easy feat. It requires trips to the inventory screen when a far more elegant solution, such as using the bumpers, could have made the game much smoother to play.The visuals of the game are also a strange beast. Elliot Quest is undoubtedly a much more colorful affair than its retro counterparts are, and yet it appears to have a much more basic presentation. The pixel art style has obviously been done on purpose to give a physical connection to the games that are its inspiration. There are games that have done a much better job of nailing this visual style, such as Shovel Knight and Rogue Legacy.

On the other hand, the soundtrack that accompanies the title is outstanding and is well worth listening to as you play.Ultimately, Elliot Quest is a steady reinterpretation of the likes of Zelda II and Metroid. While it doesn’t do anything new or bring fresh features to the table it does manage to execute most of what it does well. The strange design choices with some elements and the disappointing story presentation are the only major problems with it. If you can get over them then there is a rather enjoyable game underneath that will provide you with hours of fun.This review is based on a digital copy of the game that was provided by the publisher for review purposes. Elliot Quest is available now on Xbox One for $14.99.

Reviewed by playing a on May 19, 2017Elliot Quest is also available for, and.As a love letter to one of the most overlooked 8-bit classics (Zelda II), gamers familiar with Link's second adventure will immediately recognize similarities between the 1987 action-adventure game and Ansimuz Games' Elliot Quest. There's always time to work on your tan in the hot desert sunTo start out, Elliot isn't very strong. He's armed with a bow and arrow which is his only option to defend himself against the wide array of enemies on the island. He also starts with only three heart containers so you'll want to take things slow and avoid damage whenever possible. Fortunately, you'll come across plenty of new items, abilities, and potions as you progress through the journey. You'll also gain experience for each baddie that you kill and when you level up, you can choose one attribute to upgrade.

Shenmue iii xbox one. Here’s how to block in. That, unfortunately for Ryo, will mean he’s going to end up getting into a few fights.

This includes being able to fire your bow farther and faster, cause more critical damage, and improve your health recovery abilities. Every time you die, you will lose a good chunk of experience points so you'll definitely want to do your best to stay alive.Elliot Quest features side-scrolling combat and platforming which is very similar to the gameplay of Zelda II but with a bow and arrow instead of a sword. There's even a zoomed-out overworld to explore complete with towns, caves, a vast desert, and plenty of secrets to find. You'll navigate around the world using this map then choose your destination and enter the side-scrolling portions. Spikes and traps and skeletons, oh my!Elliot Quest's enemies are diverse and powerful and the variety of them is one of the most impressive aspects of the game.

The first time you encounter a new enemy, you'll probably take a bit of damage as you figure out their patterns and the best way to defeat them. As you fight it several more times, you'll start to memorize their moves and confidently dispatch it without too much of a headache. There are also more than a dozen bosses scattered around the world (not always in dungeons) so you'll regularly face off against some major opponents. Journey below the earth elevate. As you acquire new items and spells that allow for things like double jumping and casting fireballs, traversal becomes much simpler. You may have to make a long trek across the desert to get to the second dungeon but you can unlock a shortcut for future use. This helps cut down the time spent backtracking to an extent and encourages exploring old areas with your new abilities.Elliot Quest is true to its retro roots for better and worse. One of the more dated aspects is that it doesn't provide you with many navigational hints.

The layout of the map suggests the direction you should go somewhat but I ran into at least two or three different instances when every single forward path was blocked by an obstacle. This meant that I was missing an item from somewhere and required some serious backtracking to figure out which location now had a new section open for me. Retro gaming purists will love the forced exploration but more modern (and less patient) players will probably be frustrated and feel like they're wasting time searching every nook and cranny to figure out where they're supposed to go. Speaking of retro, the graphics don't always pop the way pixel art games sometimes do. Overall, the look is very clean and functional but many of the sprites are simply unexciting. The landscapes and backgrounds look quite a bit better at least and the soundtrack is absolutely wonderful.

That's one smug-looking dragonElliot Quest is a fun and challenging throwback to gaming of long ago and will appeal mostly to those with nostalgia for classic action-adventure games. A familiarity with Zelda II will definitely help you appreciate many of the finer details. Maciejewski (crazyaejay): Fantastic review! Seems like my kind of game. You've played Chronicles of Teddy: Harmony of Exidus, right? How would you say the two compare seeing as they're both heavily influenced by Zelda II?Tylerh1701: Yeah I played that, it's pretty fun. The graphics are a lot nicer in Chronicles of Teddy, but Elliot Quest is a bigger and more robust game.

Both have issues with requiring backtracking without really explaining exactly where you need to go, something that I've gotten less and less patient with over time.A.J. Maciejewski (crazyaejay): I agree 100%. Lack of direction is definitely one of the biggest pieces of retro baggage that needs to go. Ever since they invented waypoints, there's no excuse to let gamers get lost.Tylerh1701: For me it's a tough balancing act. I also hate games that refuse to let go of my hand, and just guide me everywhere I need to go.

So I do like some exploration, but in Elliot Quest there are easily 20 or more different areas that all vary in size, and it's basically impossible to know which one to backtrack to to unlock a previously inaccessible key item.A.J. Maciejewski (crazyaejay): Sounds like that can get annoying.

I think the perfect balance is when games offer you a hint after it detects that you haven't made any progress in a while. I've only seen that utilized a few times but I hope more developers start implementing it.