Ethyrial: Echoes of Yore is an promising indie fantasy MMO with intriguing mechanics.
Indie Spotlight: Ethyrial: Echoes of Yore Brings a Modern Spin to a Classic Formula
Written by Ollie Bradley at 04/30/2022, 07:13 AM
When it comes to indie fantasy MMOs, Runescape's name crops up a lot. A name that comes up less often is the 2D top-down MMO Tibia, but there's no doubt that genre veterans will have had their fair experience of both retro MMOs.
Such is the case with this month's Indie Spotlight recipient, Ethyrial: Echoes of Yore, whose Lead Developer Robin Fredman was keen to create as a tribute to both seminal classics. And whilst it doesn't reinvent the wheel - there's a lot about this indie fantasy MMO to be excited about.
Ethyrial Key Features
Ethyrial offers a new sheen to the classic fantasy MMO formula. Whilst inspired by retro classics, it doesn't shy away from sleek graphics and animations. The open world of Irumesa is, of course, fraught with danger. Though that doesn't have to mean every player must become an intrepid hero.
Characters are not defined by a chosen class upon creation. Instead, they are encouraged to focus on whichever skills they wish to define them. Want to become the best Blacksmith in the land? Then practice blacksmithing. It's like real life, but infinitely more fun.
Similarly, each player's choices will have in-game consequences. Dealing demonic entities for some hefty buffs, for example, will exclude you from the Church of the Holy Flame and the benefits they bring. Which isn't that surprising, but exciting nonetheless to gamers who love seeing consequences to their actions.
Another exciting feature is the non-instanced player and guild housing. Players maintain full control over their plots of land and buildings, with guilds nominating an estate manager that can allocate land to members & infrastructure whilst deciding and implementing tax and tariffs.
Dynamic events that can significantly change the landscape of Irumesa will also occur depending on the communities within each server and their actions. For instance, players may find that a cult has begun summoning demons in their backyard. And it's probably thanks to that guy that was dealing with demons for a buff.
When Can We Play?
After a few closed betas, Gellyberry Studios are hoping to release an open beta imminently. Interested parties can sign up for early access via the Steam page, where April 2023 is listed as a potential release date.
In the meantime, Gellyberry are avid video creators - so for a real deep-dive on the mechanics, spend some time binging their YouTube channel.