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Achilles: Legends Untold (Nintendo Switch) Review

For honor and glory on the go!

We’ve been lucky enough to follow Dark Point Games’ Achilles: Legends Untold from its Early Access PC build to its initial console release. From its starting point as an isometric Souls-like ARPG, it evolved into a more streamlined and balanced action-RPG that mixes elements from Souls-likes and the reigning behemoth of ARPG’s, Diablo, into its own little thing. Now we’re taking a look at the Switch port of the game and asking ourselves, has it made the jump to Nintendo’s ageing hybrid-handheld intact?

If you’re not familiar with Achilles: Legends Untold, then let’s get you up to speed with the basic premise. Legends Untold drops you into the blood soaked sandals of that mythical warrior, Achilles, during the Siege of Troy. When Paris cuts his legend short, Achilles awakens years later in a Greece that he no longer recognises. Cruel soldiers, brigands, mythical monsters, and an even crueller king have reduced the land to a nightmare. Seeking to find out what’s happened to him, Achilles begins a legendary quest to rival The Odyssey.

It would be easy to compare Legends Untold with Titan Quest or Diablo because they contain similar gameplay mechanics and that traditional isometric view, but Dark Point Games have developed a more straightforward ARPG that isn’t purely about mob management and loot drops, though gear plays an important role later in the game. Instead. Legends Untold is more of a straight-forward hack-and-slash experience, whose difficulty settings will determine your play style, whether that be more tactical in approach, faster and more frenzied, or all about kiting enemies from a distance.

Some remnants of its initial Souls-like ambitions still abound, mainly in the light and heavy attack system, dodge rolls, and save shrines to activate and spend skill points at. However, beyond that, the streamlined combat, gear, and skill system gel with a heavier focus on story and side quests, which give the game its own feel. That I didn’t have to struggle with massive mobs, repetitive loot grinds, or a punishing difficulty on the default difficulty setting is the icing on a wonderfully fun game.

And that is exactly what Achilles: Legends Untold is, just a lot of fun – even if its story and side quests ultimately boil down to kill and fetch quests. What it may lack in narrative surprises, is made up for with exciting minute-to-minute gameplay and a world that won’t block you from exploring when you want to. And while the world is big and interconnected via tunnels and corridors, it never feels unmanageable or arduous to trek across.

Your skill tree is similarly constrained, featuring several constellations that you unlock new moves or stats through, from more health to stamina and damage. That limited scope keeps your roving eye moving forward towards skills that actually matter to your play style, such as a parry-focuses constellation if that’s more your speed.

There’s also a nice and steady flow to gaining new weapons if you explore thoroughly, from standard swords and spears, to axes and shields, with different material tiers and elemental enchantments.

Finally, there’s the question of performance on the Nintendo Switch. A concerning one considering that Achilles: Legends Untold is an Unreal Engine powered game.

Like most UE powered games running on, or ported over to the Switch, cutbacks have been made to get the game running decently. Luckily, these cutbacks have not been as heavy as they are on most UE powered games, but there’s no denying that geometry detail, texture resolutions, character models, and overall environmental complexity and prop density has been stripped back. The advantage to these cuts is performance that remains mostly smooth, with the only drops in frame rate I noticed occurring when larger enemies were on screen.

And for a game like this, you want that smooth frame rate for the action-based dodging and counter attacks. Even with these visual cuts, I still think Achilles: Legends Untold looks pretty good on the Switch in handheld mode though, if I had to be picky, I’d say screen characters are a little too small.

One visual nit-pick I have is how environmental objects can obscure the characters. The camera angle coupled with scenery that doesn’t fade out or disappear leaves you with plenty of blind spots, in which you can’t see either Achilles or the many enemies roaming the world. This is most noticeable when traversing paths between rising cliffs or in the games forests where foreground trees obscure the action.

Minor gripes aside, Achilles: Legends Untold remains a fun, isometric ARPG that is a nice break from the usual RNG loot and season grinding of most games that dominate this genre. And it’s also a nice dip back into Greek mythology with a fun, responsive combat system that gives you a nice amount of freedom on how you want to play. Barring some slowdown, the fact it also looks and runs pretty well on the Nintendo Switch is a bonus and makes this version of the game just as easy to recommend as I would on any other gaming platform.

Achilles: Legends Untold was reviewed on Nintendo Switch using a code provided to gameblur by the publisher. It is also available on PC, Xbox Series S|X, and PS5.

Achilles: Legends Untold (Nintendo Switch) Review

Achilles: Legends Untold (Nintendo Switch) Review
8 10 0 1
8/10
Total Score

The Good

  • Engaging yet streamlined mechanics
  • Fun combat system that's a mix of skill and gear score
  • Looks good for a Switch port and mostly runs well

The Bad

  • Scenery or foreground objects can obscure the player and enemies
  • Some slowdown when larger enemies are onscreen
Total
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