So, what did other sites have to say after the preview? Here’s the rundown:

Polygon: “Everywhere you look in The Adventures of Elliot, there are tons of enticing nooks and bomb-fodder cracked walls to distract you. The maps are compact and densely packed, a far cry from the open-world sprawl that has become so common elsewhere in the genre. For every run-of-the-mill cave, you’ll also find mini-dungeons with unique terrain features and puzzles, like squishy pumpkins that can be used as springboards and air vents to bomb and open new paths. There’s always some kind of reward for your curiosity, whether it’s a piece of magicite that you can use to customize your weapon stats, a new traversal skill for Faie, or a container to increase Elliot’s HP. (It’s not shaped like a heart, but it’s basically a Zelda heart container.)”

The Outer Haven: “You could say The Adventures of Elliot is a bit like The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past dressed up as Octopath Traveler. But this would be a tad reductive. There are obvious parallels—Elliot can destroy pots, grass, and other objects while accompanied by a talkative fairy. And the game shares the HD-2D art style of Octopath Traveler. But it also throws a few things into the mix, like Magicite that can alter weapons, varied locales to visit, and your fairy companion controlled independently by yourself—or by a friend.”

Shack News: “Elliot is armed with his sword, capable of going toe-to-toe with most of the game’s enemies. Many of his other abilities come from fairy companion Faie, who will be happy to tell you about them. She’ll be happy to tell you a lot of things. People of a certain age who remember The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time will not hesitate to talk about how annoying fairy sidekick Navi was in that game and Faie is cut from a similar cloth. She likes to talk a lot, commenting on her surroundings, cheering Elliot on, talking trash to enemies, and making general observations about the current situation. A talkative sidekick is not for everyone and certain players may find Faie’s enthusiasm a bit… annoying, to put it kindly. Fortunately, the Options menu has a setting that allows players to reduce her verbosity.”

But Why Tho?: “The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales marks the studio’s first foray into action combat, but from my time with the game, they know what they’re doing. With the freedom to explore, the ability to change how your weapons work, and some handy quality of life features, this is looking to be a great adventure across the ages.”

Noisy Pixel: “The combat already has a nice rhythm, exploration feels rewarding, and the promise of time travel gives the adventure a larger sense of purpose…For now, The Adventures of Elliot seems to understand the appeal of getting lost, finding a path forward, and remembering some odd little corner of the map that may matter hours later. That’s the kind of adventure design that gets its hooks in me. I only played a slice of what Square Enix and Team Asano are building here, but it was enough to make me want to return, chase down those points of interest, and see just how far this millennium tale goes.”

Of course, if you want to see for yourself how this new action RPG plays, you can download the latest demo for the title from the Switch 2 eShop.