Echoes of the End Review

Unreal Engine 5 is shiny and amazing tech in the right hands, in others, it can over promise and underdeliver in big ways…

There was a game by InXile Entertainment some years ago called Hunted: The Demon’s Forge which was a cooperative experience featuring two mercenary characters seeking an artefact. High-fantasy in its setting, it presented something a little different and unique in that space, particularly where the two main characters, Elven Bowmaster, E’Lara and Human Barbarian, Caddoc, were concerned. Specifically, their banter was perhaps more advanced for that type of game back then than now in that it was loose and casual and kind of raw. The game itself wasn’t great, but it was at least different to most other titles out in the landscape in the same setting where grandiose speeches and overarticulation were more the norm. Well, beyond the peononical “more work?”.

Echoes of the End doesn’t start all that well. It’s clunky from a control and movement perspective and its story feels adrift between the insanity of a Final Fantasy ‘end of the world’ epic and something attempting to be high-fantasy while also bucking the genre’s setting norms to be different. And, initially, it doesn’t grab you. That is until we start to experience the banter between its two opening characters, Ryn -- a “Vestige”, and her naive and adventure-green brother, Cor. Suddenly, after just 10 minutes with the pair as you jank your way through the heavily invisi-walled game-world we get a steady amount of exposition that meaningfully builds out the space around you. There’s nothing throat-stuffing here, it’s fluid and candid. And each character’s personalities and traits shine through. The awkwardness of the rest of the game melted away and we were compelled to just learn more about its inhabitants and their respective plights.

Then we started to experience environmental puzzles and a taste of Ryn’s magical powers (read our “Would you like to know more?” box out for… MORE!) and before long it all worked, despite its other flaws. Was there a genuinely good game here? Can writing and performance alone save something that otherwise might be seen as derivative and lacking in polish or confidence? Read on to find out…

Echoes of the End

Genre: Action-Adventure
Developer: Myrkur Games
Publisher: Deep Silver
Release Date: August 12, 2025
Classification: M 15+
Author: Stephen Farrelly
Date: September 17, 2025

Magic and Slash

We soon got vibes that mix between God of War and Forspoken for much of this game after its awkward opening, which could be construed, equally, as a mix between very good and very bad. Echoes’ overall strength, however, lies in its environmental puzzles which are thoughtful and cleverly contextual. The God of War instance in this aspect is absolute and while Echoes never went beyond the core mechanics of its own established rules; staying fairly true to its own loop, it never stopped it from being compelling. The game’s world, Aema, is entirely influenced by the Icelandic landscape of its developer, Myrkur Games, and is always stunning (just scroll our carousel for evidence). Additionally, layered upon the glacial and volcanic rock-laden horizon is an embedded history crafted specifically for this IP that is forever inviting -- decaying villages and fortress ruins, lost cities and places of secrecy and magic, and more, play host to those contextual environmental puzzles mentioned above and give glimpses at a violent history here, and it’s often jaw-dropping. 

"Those “invisi-walls” mentioned earlier, also, are a constant reminder you can look, but you can’t touch..."

Unfortunately it’s also a lot of eye-candy with not much else. Off certain beaten paths you’ll find chests containing either elements to bolster Ryn, or parts of the world and its aforementioned history to build out its lore, but nothing else. Those “invisi-walls” mentioned earlier, also, are a constant reminder you can look, but you can’t touch. A pure visual tease tied to that UE5 drop also mentioned earlier that simply leaves you wanting more because it looks so good. 

What you can interact with, however, is the game’s baddies which range from orc-like creatures to humans and beyond. Ryn harbours magic that is considered almost ‘toxic’ in the game’s lore and as a “Vestige” her very existence is frowned upon. But as she slowly uncovers the world’s forgotten past and the powers and magic that still binds it, she becomes more and more powerful. This is also in conjunction with her blade skills, of which she’s no slouch, meaning as you power through the game she’ll become a force to be reckoned with. Her upgrade pathway and how you do it is as rudimentary and easy as they come, but the barebones nature of all of this is actually one of the game’s strengths, believe it or not. I mean, we’ve already lamented its relatively linear nature so keeping things streamlined in this space is actually good. 

Would you like to know more?
Ryn's powers have her aligned to a magical force within the very world of Aema. So powerful is the alignement -- and dangerous -- most children born with it are abandoned to the wilderness, or worse. As a "Vestige", however, she was embraced by her father and has been slowly grasping her powers and abilities throughout most of her young life. It's a different spin on magic, and one that takes historical cues from the Viking age and what's otherwise known as "infantacide" as being a Vestige in the world of Aema is also considered something of a disability.

A Conflicting Pull

Would we have wanted more from a character growth and investment perspective? Yes, but that’s the push and pull here, and the pull in that sense can be… frustrating. So we’re actually okay with keeping things basic where possible. This is billed as a ‘cinematic’ action-adventure anyway and not everything can be The Witcher III in its delivery, which we understand. Moreover, Echoes is also the debut title from this studio, so no telling what the future holds, but for now, be prepared to be wowed and heavily gated all in one.

"Being forced into two of our most disliked movement combos in mud-slide-to-rope-swing..."

Adding to some of that frustration are elements of your traversal. The journey is great, but being forced into two of our most disliked movement combos in mud-slide-to-rope-swing, alongside the game’s ‘skatey’ and ‘floaty’ physics for Ryn often made the experience feel less grounded. Camera woes also permeated our time with the game, particularly in boss or heavy mob sections of the game’s combat bottlenecks. Not game-breaking, but still things to add to the overall frustration of the ‘what could have been’ thought process of it all. But honestly, the mud-slide-to-rope-swing thing needs to be purged from all games, period. It is an abomination. 

That said, while “cinematic” in tag, Echoes’ cadence is still to be lauded. The world feels geographically real despite those invisible blockers, which means despite being ushered through a fairly linear path, there’s a genuine sense of progression to your journey and throughout all of that banter spoken of above becomes all the more important. And with little to interact with, all you can do is ponder and consider the world’s history. Again, it’s all a huge tease, but one we became happy to bear witness to because of the future possibilities here (not at all in a dissimilar manner to South of Midnight). It also started to lay bare its actual fantastical intent which quickly diminished from high-fantasy wannabe to something more hybrid and more Viking or Icelandic in nature, which we loved. (There are also shades of Hellblade throughout.)

There is a future here, and a world that can be much more than what you get to play through.

And… Seen

Which leaves Echoes’ performances as its absolute hook. And they are good. 

In 2024 there was a Lovecraftian cinematic action-adventure not so far removed from Echoes of the End called Still Wakes the Deep. Its gameplay loop was built on dev-directed survival and an ever-present descent into madness, but what sold its admittedly barebones depth, from a gameplay perspective, was the writing and performances. So gripping was it, that it wound up being one of our most-loved games that year, which was the year in which we were deep in development of this site and this writer sorely regrets never having been able to review it. It, to this day, stands as maybe one of the better examples of how intelligent writing and believable performances can sell worlds in the interactive realm.

At the close of Echoes, it too left such a mark. 

"The writing is brilliant, but not overly dynamic. This is where its “cinematic” self shines, but it’s also one last part of its very linear self..."

Ryn is brilliantly portrayed by Aldís Amah Hamilton who offers her avatar a tough and walled-up exterior that is easily relatable. Naturally, inside she is a different and oft conflicted person and the two sides to her manifest and coalesce brilliantly as Echoes’ tale unfolds. She’s joined by the wise and actually very supportive Abram, a colleague of her late father who also takes on a bit of a patriarchal role to help Ryn unpack that inner-self. The writing is brilliant, but not overly dynamic. This is where its “cinematic” self shines, but it’s also one last part of its very linear self. There’s very little reason to play through the game more than once, which is fine, but it certainly limits its audience. It’s also where it differs from most of the games we’ve compared it to in this review, but as has been peppered throughout, it also just has us wanting more.

A surprise ditty with great writing and world-building that looks stunning in every postcard (read: screenshot), but is actually fairly limiting in its explorative self and feels a bit one and done, when its Icelandic-inspired dust settles.

What’s Boss?

  • Incredible performances throughout
  • Backed by great writing moment-to-moment and sequence-to-sequence
  • Fun and challenging boss battle
  • Excellent use of UE5, albeit in fairly linear fashion
  • In the wake of its "cinematic" billing, it's refereshingly streamlined

Not Boss Enough?

  • Unfortunately, that streamlining is also a bit of a tease because there's a lot here players will want more of
  • Floaty animations and no 'natural' physics does the game no favours
  • Decline or slippery surface surfing is an antequated gameplay tool best forgotten and does not work here

If you want a simple enough escape in a well thought-out but wholly relatable fantasy realm, Echoes of the End will work for you. It's a streamlined experience with little in terms of exploration or dynamism, but it delivers a great cast with great writing.

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About the Author

Written By Stephen Farrelly
Stephen Farrelly is a veteran journalist and editor with more than two decades experience in the worlds of gaming, entertainment, lifestyle and sport. He is a proud pug dad, loves art in all forms (particularly street and tattoo culture), and is the director of Swear Jar Editorial and Media Pty Ltd, this site's owner and publisher. When not dispensing words, he's also dispensing boutique beers as a taproom fixture at Bracket Brewing in Marrickville, NSW...
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