Echoes of Mystralia - Early Access Preview

I will admit that it took me a very long time to warm up to the roguelike/roguelite genre of video games. I always found them very frustrating and often unfair, especially when it came to ending up in runs where you know that you have no chance in hell of succeeding and can't possibly salvage it.

When I heard about Echoes of Mystralia, I decided to give the game a chance. The developer describes the game as an intense roguelite ARPG, which is certainly an accurate description. Yet in my time with the game, I never once encountered anything that felt unfair or frustrating. Every run felt meaningful, and I found that very refreshing. Echoes of Mystralia has only just begun Early Access, and it is off to such a strong start right out of the gate.

A rift has appeared in Mystralia, and it is devouring all the memories of this mystical land. The player assumes the role of Mazarim, a Watcher who protects the balance of Mystralia and watches over the Cycle. As you progress further into Mystralia with each run, you learn more about the world, the Cycle, and Mazarim's role in it.

I absolutely loved the art style and visuals of Echoes of Mystralia. The environment changes as you progress further into Mystralia, and nothing feels copy-and-pasted or overused. The music was really good too, especially the combat music, which has been stuck in my head for days.

Before beginning your next run, you start at the Azimuth Temple. There, you can adjust your spells and unlock permanent upgrades that will make it easier to progress further. There are also training dummies that you can use to practice your spells or theorycraft what kind of build you will try on your next attempt. You start out with two basic spells unlocked, but you can unlock more as you progress.

While every run starts the same, there is a great deal of variety in where you go and what you find. As you clear each area, you can choose where you go next, allowing you to have some influence on what rewards you find along the way. Between that and NPCs you encounter along the way, every run feels new and unpredictable.

One of the things that I liked most about the combat in Echoes of Mystralia was the spellcrafting. As you progress through a run, you will find memories that you can equip to your spells. These memories can drastically alter the spells you have equipped. Each spell has a limited amount of points for equipping memories, and the point costs of memories vary.

One of my favorite combinations was the lightning spell, where it spread in three separate directions and then spawned spinning swords at the end of the blast. This combination created what was essentially an electrified weedwhacker that shredded enemies like grass. When combined with the fire spell as my second ability, it made me feel like a firebender in Avatar: The Last Airbender, and that was a deeply satisfying playstyle.

Experimenting with memories on my spells made each run exciting as I learned what worked and what didn't. Unfortunately, there are some memories that stand out as being borderline mandatory when/if they show up, while others feel weak in comparison.

While you lose all your equipped memories at the end of the run, there are various currencies you can acquire that you do get to keep. Eternal Wisdom can be used to unlock permanent upgrades, while Ancient Lessons can be used to unlock more base spells. You also periodically come across Echoes that unlock more features in future runs, like additional memories and relics.

While coming up with great spell combos will help you get far in a run, Echoes of Mystralia rewards skill above all else. With such a focus on action-heavy combat, it is possible for skilled players to get really far in a single run, especially once they have mastered enemy attack patterns.

Speaking of attack patterns, another highlight is the boss fights. While they may seem daunting at first, they have clear tells that you can learn over several attempts. Yet even when it took several tries to beat a boss, it never felt frustrating or unfair when I died. I could clearly see what I did wrong, and I learned from that failure.

Overall, I really enjoyed the time I spent with Echoes of Mystralia so far. The gameplay is solid, the spell customization is deeply satisfying, and there is a lot of content here for just $19.99. So if you have been looking for a good roguelite ARPG to play, then I heartily recommend Echoes of Mystralia. I look forward to seeing how this game develops further as it goes through Early Access and is shaped further by player feedback.