Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City Critic Reviews

While everyone feels a certain sense of accomplishment after completing a game, Etrian Odyssey III's exploration and incredible challenge make it rewarding throughout.

Atlus believed that it could push the series that little bit further, however, and discover something special within the Etrian Odyssey formula. In The Drowned City, it has found it.

Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City is a huge step in the right direction of the series and it's made me nothing but excited for the already announced forth game in the series that will be coming out on the 3DS.

The new character classes are a blast to play.

Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City is for hardcore RPG fans only. Those looking for a challenging title that will deliver 50 to 80 hours of gameplay will not be disappointed.

If the first two games left you wanting more, more is exactly what the third game in the series offers.

Though it is quite the challenge throughout, when the class systems, party mechanics and questing all pull together, this becomes one RPG that is nothing short of brilliant.

Aside from the misstep of the stunted co-op mode, every other aspect of Etrian Odyssey III has been vetted and manicured to ensure that the game provides the highest quality dungeon-crawling conceivable.

Considering the game sets out to recreate a classic experience, it's hard to find any real faults in Etrian Odyssey III aside from the graphics and music.

A wholly enjoyable if gruelingly difficult dungeon-crawler, Etrian Odyssey III is a worthwhile improvement on its predecessors, offering a variety of new features, options for customization, and fresh challenges to face.

It's certainly an enjoyable game, and it's one that dungeon crawler fans and Etrian Odyssey followers will instantly be drawn to, but everyone else needs to know that this is a game that puts a focus on planning, pre-battle equipment choices, and character strategies over action. I'd call it a thinker's dungeon crawler.

This latest game in the Etrian Odyssey is going to be a lot of fun for the fans of the series, or of the dungeon-crawling genre in general.

It's a ridiculously challenge old-school RPG experience to be sure, and you can expect to have your party wiped out frequently amidst streams of curses and a few rage quits. But even so, it's a dungeon crawler we heartily stand behind.

Story and presentation take a backseat in favor of an incredibly intricate class-based role-playing experience.

If you want something fast and full of action, this probably isn't the game for you. However, if you like turn-based games that reward you for putting a lot of thought into your skill choices and are willing to put up with a significant amount of (game-assisted) level grinding, it's likely that you'll appreciate Etrian Odyssey III.

Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City requires a level of commitment that few RPGs dare to ask of players. You will struggle to survive and you will curse the hours of grinding to restock your supplies, but the victorious satisfaction of beating the odds and reaching the next floor makes it all worthwhile.

It's a decent way to earn some money to gear out your party, but overall, the movement-based puzzle game is much less fun than killing weird monsters underground.

Old school RPG junkies will have a good time, even if it's marred by repetitive mechanics and an extreme difficulty!

This is one game that you can't just pick up and play. It takes a large level of commitment to get into. The small story that is there is forgettable, but it does try to explain what's going on.

The fierce foes and expansive dungeons of Etrian Odyssey III welcome all those with a love for a good old-fashioned challenge.