A gruesome role-playing game

Elderand is a 2D action platformer with gruesome RPG elements. It appeals to lovers of Metroidvania-style games and offers a gaming experience with lots of combat and exploration.

The most captivating thing is that Elderand was born and raised in Brazil. Even with foreigners working on its production, the creation and idea for the game came from brazilians.

We had early access to the full game, which presents us with the story mode and only one difficulty, but with different gameplay possibilities (depending on how the player wants to go through this world).

The story is still not very clear at first. From the beginning, we do not know our name, where we come from, and what our purpose is, but with the passage of time (and in-game milestones), we find out why we are there. In other words, Elderand does not necessarily tell a linear story.

With this, we collect text fragments during our trajectory in the game, which is called notes. By reading them, we can understand that they serve as a basis to introduce the characters and elements of the main line, guiding us, little by little and within a context, about the game's story.

A trailer, full of mysteries, is shown at the very beginning of the game and presents phrases that bring us a reflection, such as "what is the reward when fate is at stake?", a question that introduces us to the morbid world of Elderand.



During the gameplay, we understand that the character has to make some decisions in order to continue his path. Everything, in general, is part of the idea and story of the game, from choosing between exploring every corner or just going for the main goal.

In Elderand, we have a wide variety of killing tools and magic powers against imposing and frightening monsters. Customize your character, level up, and upgrade your skills, all in a completely retro environment full of RPG elements. Weapons, vests, loot, and adventures await you!

Starting the exploration 

Right at the start of the gameplay, we choose our character's look and are given our first weapon: a sword. The path we must follow is shown by the flags indicating left and right, which give a clear indication of our next step.

At some point in the game, a new flag with a question mark appears, which takes us to the map showing the "exploration percentage", which is nothing more than an indicator of how many spaces we have already discovered and have yet to discover.

On the subject of the map, we are not instructed how to use it. At one point in the game, I was going the opposite way from my main objective because I had a "point of interest" on the board, marked in red. The next thing I knew, I had already passed that level and there was nothing more to be done there.



With that, I started going the other way and new fragments were appearing on the map, which means we need to explore a lot to get a complete version of it. So I recommend that when playing, you pay close attention to the direction you are going and if that is your goal, so you don't waste time.

As I explored and found the game store, I was relieved to be able to spend the coins I had collected during the entire gameplay, which, until then, I had not seen any use for. I destroyed vases and defeated monsters to redeem coins that I later exchanged for better equipment.

With buffed equipment and more loot, it became much easier to get through the stages and defeat the scary creatures. New creatures appeared and, even with new attacks, I used my skills (which were much stronger) and picked up the rhythm of the game.



There are many types of imposing creatures and scary bosses that can be killed with magic or attacks. We can also improve our skills by leveling up, getting superior weapons, and thus facing more challenging monsters, the famous bosses.

But the basic attacks are not to be dispensed with. A knife attack can be combined with magic and greatly improve your gameplay, and with the mechanics of dodging and investing, you will be able to defeat monsters and people more easily.

When playing Elderand, you will have a variety of weapons and special powers, such as axes, staffs, bows, swords, and more. Be very careful how you spend your mana, as there are skills that can be very consuming and should be used with caution.



Also, pay close attention to what each creature (and especially the bosses) has as a power, and learn how to counter quickly so you don't get so stuck in an episode and get tiresome.

Lovecraftian Design

A detailed pixel world runs through Elderand. The gothic aesthetic and Lovecraftian level design fit very well with the game's purpose.

Elderand has good video and image graphics. The animations were very well done and brought great nostalgia for the old 2D games. I really liked the style of the game, with traces that recall the Middle Ages and simple mechanics, but that is very nice to be executed.

Putting all this together with good animation, Elderand shows a lot of potential in the midst of retro RPG games. The accessibility menu is easy to use and has many options.



The sound graphics have also greatly increased the level of the game. The sound effects of the player using weapons, attacking and dodging, the ambient sound of water, of monsters nearby, of footsteps and jumps, are very satisfying to listen to.

The soundtrack, which made me feel like I was in a haunted mansion, is also very good. The sound of the piano, harp, and percussion that runs throughout our journey gives a spooky, mystical, and macabre touch to the game, fulfilling its purpose.

Taking into account that the game asks as minimum requirements an Intel Core 2 Duo E7500 processor, an NVIDIA GeForce 9600 video card, and 2 GB of RAM and I played on a PC with 16GB of RAM, Intel Core i5-9400F processor, and GTX 1050 Ti video card, I did not suffer any bug or glitch, the game ran perfectly.

Thanks to Graffiti Games for the Elderand key, which made this content possible. For this review, Elderand was played on PC.