The Etrian Odyssey games are a masochistic pleasure. They force you to invest lots of time and effort in the hopes of mastering what seems like an endless dungeon. While this does alienate many DS owners, it also makes it an unparalleled gem for RPG fans who love arduous adventures filled with formidable opponents and a multitude of character customization options. Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City is the culmination of the series and will impress anyone looking for a nostalgic and challenging RPG experience…

After hearing all about the DS game Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City after it was released in Japan, and seeing an hour long sneak-peek preview, I was more than ready to start my own adventures around Armoroad. Thankfully, that opportunity arrived earlier this week! Etrian Odyssey III begins the same way as all Etrian more »

Gamertell recently had the opportunity to attend an Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City demonstration led by Atlus’ Aram Jabbari and Nich Maragos that went into some of the new additions to the series introduced in the third game. The next step in DS first person dungeon crawling and cartography may not be out until September 21, 2010, but we now know a bit more about what party creation, sea exploration and dungeon scouring will be like.

Before the demonstration began, Jabbari showed a sneak peek of the Etrian Odyssey III preorder incentive, the Etrian Odyssey: Forests of Eternity artbook. There were images showing location art, character sketches and much more. It reminded me a bit of the Knights in the Nightmare DS preorder book, Knights in the Nightmare: Tome of Lost Souls. But where the Knights in the Nightmare book was more of a companion guide/artbook, the Etrian Odyssey III book is all about the art from all three entries in the series.

After that sneak peek, Jabbari and Maragos took a moment to show what party creation would be like in the latest entry. When the game began, there were 10 classes available…

Good news for Atlus fans! You can get something free with your copy of the forthcoming DS game Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City. The thing is, you’ll have to preorder to get the freebie. It’s worth it though, since you get a 60 page artbook called Etrian Odyssey: Forests of Eternity. The artbook not only features artwork and designs from Etrian Odyssey III, but also from Etrian Odyssey and Etrian Odyssey II.

The Atlus Faithful email that announced the preorder incentive even lists a few of the retailers which should be participating in the Etrian Odyssey III preorder deal. While you will still want to double check first, Amazon, GameStop, Walmart…

In Fall 2010, DS owners are going to be able to take on another Etrian Odyssey adventure. Atlus announced at E3 2010 that Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City is on course for a Q3 2010 release date. The company also announced a few additional details about the DS game where dungeon crawling and cartography go hand-in-hand.

As with all Etrian Odyssey games, Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City allows players to create a custom party of characters, with 30 member slots available at the in-game guild. Once you’ve decided who you want in your party, you head out to explore the dungeon or the ocean for quests and glory. You’ll need to craft maps on the touch screen though, if you want to keep track of where everything is for future reference and exploration. You can even explore the seas for extra islands and quests.

Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City will also be the first game in the series to offer multiplayer…

The July 2010 issue of Nintendo Power is quite informative. For example, a quick look at it’s Table of Contents reveals that Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City is going to be coming to the US. When? We’re not sure. But it’s almost assuredly coming to us courtesy of Atlus, since the company has handled the previous two Etrian Odyssey DS games.

Like the previous Etrian Odyssey entries, Etrian Odyssey III is a first person dungeon crawler where the player creates a custom party of characters and sets off to complete various missions, while also crafting maps of each visited area on the touch screen. There’s always a massive dungeon to explore and lots of secrets to find.

Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City stands apart from the other entries for two reasons. First…

Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard gives fans of the original Etrian Odyssey exactly what they want – more. More mapping tools, more character classes, more enemies, more quests, more equipment – you get the idea.

In doing so, some things were also altered. Classes from Etrian Odyssey may not have the same skills or abilities in Etrian Odyssey II, forcing players to rethink parties that may have worked in the previous entry. So after a bit of research and experimentation, Gamertell came up with five potential parties that might be great for exploring the dungeon.

Round-robin stories are common in writing classes and schools as a writing exercise which builds a story everyone has contributed to. It’s a fun way to join together as a community and bond. Atlus has decided that it would also be the perfect form for its Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard contest.

The “Storytellers of Lagaard” contest is now taking place in the Atlus forums, and will last until May 13, 2008, 5:30pm PDT. Everyone is invited to join the Atlus forums and post as often as they like, but there are a few restrictions. The Atlus administrator Inzaghi states that participants should keep each entries under 200 words, not post too frequently, quote the last sentence of the post ahead of you and not spam the topic. The person who contributes the most and best additions to the story will win a copy of the Etrian Odyssey II 3 CD soundtrack.

Only a month after its Japanese release, Atlus has announced that it will be localizing Etrian Odyssey 2: Heroes of Lagaard for a North American release. The DS game is the sequel to the May 2007 sleeper hit Etrian Odyssey and is expected in stores June 17, 2008. The sequel looks to build on the success and challenges found in the original, by providing more map creation options, more character classes, more quests, more enemies and more items. The original Etrian Odyssey quickly became scarce, so fans might want to preorder the sequel to ensure they’ll get a copy.

Etrian Odyssey was a first person RPG sleeper hit from Atlus which garnered quite a bit of praise in May, 2007, Fans of the series can now prepare to preorder a female paladin figure from the game from JBox. This new Japanese import item announcement coincides with the release of the game’s sequel Sekaiju no Meikyuu 2: Shoou no Seihai. The figure won’t be available until May 2008, but eager fans can place an order with JBox to guarantee that they get the item.