Developer: Game Studio
Platforms: PC, PS5 (Reviewed), Xbox Series X|S
Genre: Action, Shooter
Publisher: Bandai Namco Entertainment
Synduality Echo of Ada is a mech shooter and extraction game that combines classic mech warrior combat with resource-gathering gameplay. You and your Magus (AI bot helper) form a team, dropping into various areas to collect valuable crystals and other items before extracting them safely. Your mech must avoid toxic rain while exploring a dystopian future where the planet is nearly wiped out. The gameplay loop involves repeating missions to earn money and materials to upgrade and customize your mech.
While this is a basic overview, the game offers much more depth. New players begin with tutorial missions to learn the controls and game mechanics, presented through engaging animated videos. After completing these, you’ll embark on your first sortie (mission) to gather crystals, which help improve your mech’s capabilities against enemies and other threats. Like many eager players, I jumped into my first mission with default weapons and settings, barely glancing at the menus—and promptly got killed. My second and third sorties were cautious affairs where I avoided combat, doing only the bare minimum to complete the mission. It took 6 or 7 attempts before I realized how underpowered I was and that this careful approach was necessary. Through these defeats, I explored the menus more thoroughly, learning about upgrades, gear load-outs, and various tasks. While the premise is simple, there’s substantial depth to master before progressing. Completing missions and requests unlocks new upgrades for your mech and garage. Your Magus provides helpful information like weather updates, crystal locations, and enemy warnings.
The mechs are fast yet semi-clunky, featuring a brief boost ability. Weapons and mods are customizable, but you’ll need valuable crystals and base upgrades to access these options. The deep customization system significantly impacts your playstyle, as my options are limited. A crucial detail: dying on a mission means losing everything. This affected my gameplay considerably—I became cautious, focusing on completing missions while avoiding conflict.
During missions, you’ll encounter other players who can be either allies or enemies. Initially underpowered, I avoided conflict since I’d die quickly if challenged. I’d stick close to friendly players, helping complete missions while letting them handle the fighting. This multiplayer element adds an excellent layer of strategic choice to the game.
The graphics are impressive, and the world is immersive, with a varied-level design that effectively conveys the dystopian setting while maintaining hints of hope. Combat features spectacular explosions, and the diverse terrain offers tactical advantages. While I enjoyed the combat and customization systems, the Magus became irritating with their repetitive, simplistic dialogue. The game’s main drawback is its repetitive nature—landing on similar planets, extracting crystals, fighting or avoiding mechs, and killing monsters becomes a grind. I found myself revisiting the same areas repeatedly, with upgrade progression feeling particularly tedious. Despite enjoying the game, it would benefit from more diverse environments and mission types.
I enjoyed the look and feel of the game—it’s graphically wonderful, with solid gameplay despite some repetitive elements. The crystal and material grind feels excessive; more variety would have improved the experience. The mech combat and movement are enjoyable, especially after upgrading my mech to take on any challenge!
Overall: A solid 7.5/10.
Enjoys more than the odd game, long time gamer, somewhat a technologist and everything else in between.
Also enjoys a good solid game of FIFA online. Currently PS4, XBOX 360 and STEAM.
