Eternights
Developer: Studio Sai
Publisher: Studio Sai
Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC (Reviewed)
Release Date: 12 Sep 2023
Price: $29.99 USD – Available Here
Overview
I like games that tend to combine the unthinkable. Two or three genres that have nothing in common morphing into one can be either a hit or miss, but once it works it works great. Eternights is trying to fit a whole lot into one game; it is a dating sim and a bit of demon fights with a side of RPG elements. Is this working as developers imagined or is this another attempt to create something new out of something predictable? Let’s find out!
Story
An anti-aging drug called Eternights mutates people into monsters, and supernatural events begin to occur. An 18-year-old boy (aka you) is attacked by an unknown woman named Delia who cuts his arm off using her scythe, and another woman he met on a dating app replaces his lost arm with a magical, glowing one that can also transform into a sword, allowing him to fight the monsters. And all of that happens in the first hour of the game. After that, it turns into a decent mix of juggling the relationships of the main character and getting better at combat.
Gameplay
When I mention dating and combat, the first association for most of you might be the Persona series. And you wouldn’t even be that far off. Besides that obvious anime aesthetic, there is one more common trait of Persona and Eternights. There is a time limit on almost everything in the game when it comes to the story and after a while, some activities might become unavailable while some others open up.
The combat is decent, nothing out of the ordinary but it’s enough to keep you engaged. Dodging the enemies with precision slows down time, giving you a better opportunity to attack. Hitting an enemy enough times within a short period creates a combo, allowing you to perform a stronger attack or a finisher. Attacking enemies or performing perfect dodges charges the elemental gauge, and parts of the gauge can be used for an elemental fist attack that breaks enemy barriers if the player succeeds in a quick-time event.
It’s also important to mention that choosing certain dialogue options while talking to other characters can increase your social stats, as well as your relationship level with other characters. Increasing the relationship level with another character grants you new abilities in combat so there’s another incentive to be a “player” if you ever needed one.
Visuals
Aside from in-game cutscenes, the game also features full animated scenes (ore could just call them movies) that change depending on the story decisions you make in the story and they’re also dependant on who you decide to date. As far as the engine goes, the game runs remarkably well and it isn’t taxing on your requirements. No slowdowns or crashes of any kind although the level design could use a little more details. The dungeons often feel empty and barren, aside from the occasional monster mobs here and there. Not many secret areas, passages, or anything, it’s pretty straightforward from start to finish.
Audio
The game is fully voiced in English, Japanese and Korean. While English is my preferred choice when it comes to audio, I feel like there are far more emotions and commitment that went into Japanese voice acting here. Every character has a distinct personality boosted by great voice acting although some characters might toe the line of being annoying due to their “animeness” (overreacting, being unreasonably emotional about simple things, being unnecessarily edgy, and so on).
Overall
Eternights is not here to reinvent the wheel and it’s obvious from where it draws most of its inspiration from. Despite that, it is a small game with a lot of heart. Surprisingly packed with content for an indie game and while the story isn’t anything remarkable, it’s engaging enough that it doesn’t make you roll your eyes to the back of your head. Take it from the certified anime hater™ (disclaimer: not a real and officially recognized title).
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