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Etrian Odyssey
Developer(s)	Atlus, Lancarse
Publisher(s)	Atlus, Nintendo (Europe and Australia)
Designer(s)	Kazuya Niinou
Composer(s)	Yūzō Koshiro
Platform(s)	Nintendo DS
Release date(s)	JP 2007-01-18 NA 2007-05-15 EU 2008-06-06 AUS 2008-08-14
Genre(s)	Console role-playing
Mode(s)	Single-player
Rating(s)	CERO: A ESRB: T
Media	Nintendo DS Game Card

Etrian Odyssey, released in Japan as Yggdrasil Labyrinth​ (世界樹の迷宮, Sekaiju no Meikyū ^?), is a 3D dungeon crawler role-playing video game by Atlus for the Nintendo DS. It was released on January 18, 2007 in Japan, May 15, 2007 in North America, and June 6, 2008 in Europe.

Gameplay

Drawing comparisons to titles such as Wizardry and The Bard's Tale,^[1] Etrian Odyssey challenges players with exploring and mapping a vast dungeon. In classic fashion, players navigate through the dungeon a single "step" at a time, moving and turning in fixed increments. Time passes only when an action is taken, causing movement, random encounters, and combat to all be entirely turn-based. The game uses a first-person view to present the dungeon using a combination of relatively simple 3D computer graphics for environments and single-frame 2D sprites for enemies.

As in the era prior to the inclusion of automatic mapping in the genre, Etrian Odyssey requires that players maintain their own map. However, rather than doing so on a separate sheet of graph paper, players do this by directly annotating (with the stylus) a small map displayed on the DS' touchscreen. The accuracy of the map is entirely controlled by the player, so he or she is free to map accurately or haphazardly. However, since the ability to successfully navigate back out of the dungeon (in order to save the game by returning to town) relies on keeping an accurate map, doing so is highly advantageous.

While many console role-playing games ask the player to control pre-existing characters with their own unique characteristics and personalities, Etrian Odyssey requires players to create their own characters from a number of different character types (classes). Each character type has at least one special skill or aptitude. While only five characters can be in the party at a single time, a much larger number can be created and kept in waiting back at the "guild hall". Characters can be switched in and out when in town, so if a given specialty is needed for a specific obstacle, the party can be tailored appropriately. The player customizes characters by allocating skill points to specific skills during level advancement.

Development

The title was first announced by Atlus through Famitsū after demonstrating it behind closed doors at E3 2006.

The development team within Atlus was led by Kazuya Niinou who also directed the development of Atlus' first in-house game for the DS, Trauma Center: Under the Knife. The game features character designs by Yuuji Himukai, monster design by Shin Nagasawa, a story by Shigeo Komori, and FM-like music by Yūzō Koshiro.

The game was originally to be released internationally as Yggdrasil Labyrinth, but was renamed to avoid any possible confusion with Yggdra Union (a game published in North America by Atlus a year earlier) or Deep Labyrinth.^[2]

Reception

Media Create/Famitsū reported that Etrian Odyssey had sold 119,584 copies in Japan as of July 1, 2007.^[8] Atlus' own July 2007 investors report listed US sales of the title at around 30,000 units, roughly 2 months after release.^[9]

Although the title was recognized as accomplishing its goals (in terms of presenting a very classic RPG experience), it was noted that this greatly limits its appeal to a certain "hardcore" demographic. The IGN review noted, "[...] if you gave this game to ten players you may find one or two in the group that truly enjoy it".^[7] GamePro concurred, remarking "Ultimately, this one is for fans of the genre and not for the short-on-time".^[10]

Most reviews noted that those who enjoy rigorous dungeon crawls or fondly recall similar titles from years past may greatly enjoy the game. 1UP.com summarized this sentiment by concluding "Etrian Odyssey will definitely appeal more to the OCD'd than the ADD'd, and its punishing difficulty and very deliberate pacing may turn off younger gamers who grew up on flashier roleplayers. But it offers a real sense of wonder and a sense of accomplishment -- feelings missing from far too many modern games".^[4] N-Europe awarded the game an 8/10 score, though criticised its lack of story and the fact that it is "too old school for some".^[11]

Sequels

Towards the end of 2007, Atlus announced a sequel to Etrian Odyssey.^[12] It was reported that the game would feature 12 job classes and that Yuji Himukai, Makoto Nagasawa and Yūzō Koshiro would reprise their roles, with Shigeo Komori taking on the role of director. All original character classes are included, along with three new classes: Beast, Gunner, and War Magus. Screenshots were released showing that the mapping system has been improved, with new symbols that can be added to the map for more detailed and accurate maps.

The sequel was released on February 21, 2008 in Japan. It was later released in North America on June 17, 2008, under the title Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard.

In early December of 2009, the third installment in the series, titled "Etrian Odyssey III: Visitor From Star Ocean" ("世界樹の迷宮III 星海の来訪者"), was announced in Japan. This game will feature ocean exploring in addition to dungeon exploring, both with the familiar mapping system. In addition, the classes from previous games are removed in favor of all-new classes, including Prince/Princess, Monk, Phalanx, Shinobi, and Pirate. The game is scheduled for March 4, 2010 release in Japan.^[13] Release in other regions have not been announced as of yet.

References

External links

• Official Etrian Odyssey websites: Japanese | English
• Into the Labyrinth, an Etrian Odyssey Fansite

From StrategyWiki, the free strategy guide and walkthrough wiki

Etrian Odyssey
Developer(s)	Atlus, Lancarse
Publisher(s)	Atlus Atlus USA Nintendo Nintendo
Japanese title	Yggdrasil Labyrinth (世界樹の迷宮, Sekaiju no Meikyū)
Release date(s)	January 18, 2007  May 15, 2007  June 6, 2008  August 14, 2008
Genre(s)	RPG
System(s)	Nintendo DS
Players	1
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	CERO: All ages ESRB: Teen
Followed by	Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard
Series	Etrian Odyssey

Etrian Odyssey, released in Japan as Yggdrasil Labyrinth (世界樹の迷宮, Sekaiju no Meikyū), is a 3D turn based dungeon crawler role-playing game by Atlus for the Nintendo DS. It was released on January 18, 2007 in Japan, May 15, 2007 in North America, and June 6, 2008 in Europe.

Drawing comparisons to titles such as Wizardry and The Bard's Tale, Etrian Odyssey challenges players with exploring and mapping a vast dungeon. In classic fashion, players navigate through the dungeon a single "step" at a time, moving and turning in fixed increments. Time passes only when an action is taken, causing movement, random encounters, and combat to all be entirely turn-based. The game uses a first-person view to present the dungeon using a combination of relatively simple 3D computer graphics for environments and single-frame 2D sprites for enemies.

As in the era prior to the inclusion of automatic mapping in the genre, Etrian Odyssey requires that players maintain their own map. However, rather than doing so on a separate sheet of graph paper, players do this by directly annotating (with the stylus) a small map displayed on the DS' touchscreen. The accuracy of the map is entirely controlled by the player, so he or she is free to map accurately or haphazardly. However, since the ability to successfully navigate back out of the dungeon (in order to save the game by returning to town) relies on keeping an accurate map, doing so is highly advantageous.

Table of Contents

From Wikia Gaming, your source for walkthroughs, games, guides, and more!

Etrian Odyssey
Developer(s)	Atlus
Publisher(s)	Atlus
Release date	May 15, 2007 (NA)
Genre	Role playing game
Mode(s)	Single player
Age rating(s)	ESRB: E
Platform(s)	Nintendo DS
Credits | Soundtrack | Codes | Walkthrough

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