Elliot’s motivations are gradually presented to you in form of thoughts and flashbacks, what he did in the past.

When it comes to narrative, though, Elliot Quest is much deeper than you may have expected from this kind of game. Some of them are very challenging, so you may see yourself dying and redoing the same map three or four times, just because you had no clue that you needed a new skill for that set scenario. Every time you come back to a previously visited area, you will be required to complete the same map once again. You could argue that an adventure that encourages exploration is exactly what makes a good Metroidvania, but the problem with Elliot Quest is that it is very harsh when it comes to checkpoints. Due to this, you’ll often wander aimlessly, exploring already visited places again in order to figure out what exactly you’ve missed. The main challenge, however, is that Elliot Quest is a very stubborn game and will annoy you frequently as it doesn’t really explain anything to you, and does a bad job of indicating where – or what – your next objective is. In order to access new areas, or find secrets in maps you’ve already visited, you must gather a series of equipment, skills and magic powers – which will expand your ability to manage the challenges you face. Once you enter these locations (highlighted by an exclamation mark on top of Elliot’s head), your perspective changes to the 2D side-scrolling, in which you’ll engage into platform challenges, combat against enemies, and puzzle solving.Īs you can expect from a Metroidvania, your progress is tailored by your current set of skills. The game features a top-down map of the island, and you must explore it to find caves, temples and even cities. You control the titular hero Elliot, who, in possession of his bow and arrows, must travel all over Urele island, exploring dungeons, finding new skills and beating the all-mighty guardians. It looks and feels like an ode to the often-neglected Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, and brings more to the table than it may seem at a first glance.

Not solely restricted to the Metroidvania genre, Elliot Quest also mixes up many RPG elements into a side-scrolling action game. Is this one of the little gems on the eShop or one to avoid? The eShop release rate shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon and the latest Metroidvania game to try to tempt you is Elliot Quest. A quest too big for the box that holds it.

Elliot quest map