The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales Review

The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales offers everything an enjoyable action RPG should: tricky puzzle design, rewarding exploration, and nuanced combat. While a lack of gameplay innovation and reliance on well-worn tropes hold it back from true greatness, it remains a quest well worth embarking on for fans of the genre. I’m awarding it an 8/10.

Developed by Team Asano, the studio behind Octopath Traveler and Triangle Strategy, this title feels like a love letter to the top-down classics of the past. Set in the realm of Philabieldia, the story follows the rogue Elliot, Princess Heuria, and a cast of characters fighting to protect the kingdom of Huthia from aggressive beast tribes. If you have any experience with the genre, you will likely spot the narrative trajectory early, as the game leans heavily on familiar fantasy tropes.

Gameplay and Combat Depth

The core loop of adventuring, combat, and puzzle-solving is incredibly intuitive. Within an hour, you will have access to four of the seven available weapons—ranging from bows to boomerangs—allowing for creative loadouts. You can equip two weapons simultaneously, and the inclusion of a Magicite Box adds a layer of customization that feels akin to modern roguelikes. By slotting gems into this box, you can buff specific weapons or enable unique attacks, providing the build variety that separates Elliot from a simple genre clone.

The dungeon crawling is where the combat and puzzles truly shine. While early puzzles are simple, they eventually ramp up in difficulty to match the challenging combat. The introduction of Faie, Elliot’s fairy companion, adds a layer of complexity; she is controlled by the right-hand analog stick and can move independently, allowing for satisfying, albeit chaotic, cooperative play.

Visuals and Performance

Team Asano’s signature HD-2D visuals are a highlight here, making the various eras of the game feel articulate and distinct. On the Nintendo Switch 2, the performance is flawless, with no frame rate dips or pop-in issues, and it manages to be battery-efficient during extended sessions. My only visual gripe is that the colors sometimes lack richness, which may be a result of the hardware display rather than the art direction itself.

The soundtrack is equally impressive. It is a symphony rooted in the history of RPG scores that perfectly complements the action. However, the game is not without its minor flaws. The UI for the cat-collecting side mechanic feels dated, and some boss designs—specifically the doorway guardians—feel a bit generic compared to the standout "rat on wheels" encounter.