Eternights is a decent indie action RPG with fun combat, anime styled romance, predictable story beats, and an ending that still manages to shock us!
Eternights released in September 2023, developed and published by Studio Sai, a South Korean indie studio as their debut project. It launched on PC and consoles with very little noise, and that silence followed it even after release. Eternights is basically hack-and-slash action RPG with dating simulator elements, set in a post apocalyptic world. Recently, Eternights was given away for free on the Epic Games Store, and that is probably how many players, including me, finally discovered it. Ironically, despite being a fairly solid game, most people did not even know Eternights existed before that giveaway.
Which is unfortunate, because while Eternights is not some hidden masterpiece, it is a well-made indie JRPG project that engages you almost immediately and rarely wastes your time. From the opening moments, the game pulls you into its post apocalyptic setting without overexplaining itself, and it keeps things moving at a pace that makes it easy to continue playing.
A Simple Story That Moves Fast Enough
The story in Eternights is straightforward, and in many ways, predictable. You can see what is coming from a distance. If you are playing purely for story and deep lore, this is likely not the game that you should play now. Around ninety percent of the narrative unfolds exactly how we expect it to.
That said, the pacing saves it. Eternights does not linger too long on any one idea, and it never feels like it is wasting our time with silly side quests just to increase our runtime. Even when you know where the story is heading, the journey itself stays engaging because the game keeps pushing forward instead of circling the same themes endlessly.
n Eternights, the apocalypse is not just random chaos caused by aliens or zombies like most stories. It is tied to godlike beings known as the Architects, powerful entities who shape reality itself. One of these Architects, Lux, helps the protagonist by granting him a weaponized arm, guiding him to fight for humanity’s survival. Opposing Lux is another Architect called Umbra, who seeks to seize control of a powerful artifact called The Stone and reshape the world in her own image, which would mean destruction and rebirth of reality itself.
Eternights Characters and First Impressions
The Eternights characters are very much built from familiar anime templates. Cute personalities, exaggerated expressions, awkward humor. At first, this can feel a little cringe, especially if you are not already comfortable with anime styled writing.
However, once you spend more time with the side characters, the Eternights characters start to grow on you. They may not be deeply complex, but they are likable. The game takes just enough time to humanize them beyond their surface traits, which makes forming bonds feel natural rather than forced.
Among all the Eternights characters, Min stood out the most for me, which is why I chose her for romance. Her personality is extremely sweet, caring and innocent. In a broken world filled with violence and loss, that innocence feels fragile, and that is exactly why her arc works.
Without going into spoilers, choosing Min makes the ending more painful than you might expect. Even though the story is predictable, the emotional payoff still lands. The sadness does not come from shock. It comes from watching someone so kind, innocent and gentle willing to sacrifice themselves for a world that is anything but gentle.
Combat That Is Fun Even When It Repeats
Combat in Eternights is enjoyable, even if it lacks depth in the long run. The hack and slash gameplay feels responsive, dodging works well, and chaining attacks together has a satisfying rhythm. Early on, the combat feels fresh and energetic. You can also ask your sidekicks for help whenever the meter is full.
The problem is variety. Enemies are not particularly unique, and they are not explored much narratively either. Monsters simply keep coming, you fight them, and then you move on. There is no deeper mystery to them, no interesting evolution in how they behave. They exist mostly as something to hit, and nothing more.
Still, because Eternights is not overly long, the repetition never becomes unbearable. The combat remains fun enough to carry the experience, even if it does not grow in meaningful ways.
How Many Acts in Eternights and Why the Pacing Works
Many players wonder how many acts in Eternights while playing the game, and while the game does keep annoncing this, the arcs don’t really feel that different from one another. There are a total of five acts, with the fifth one being the shortest.
By the time you reach the final arc, the game is ready to end. How many acts in Eternights matters less than how smoothly they flow, and here the game succeeds quietly, as you hardly feel bored.
Presentation and Indie Confidence
Visually, Eternights looks quite good for an indie project. In fact, it looks so smooth and polished that I had to google and confirm that whether it was actually an indie game. The anime inspired art style is clean and expressive, even if it does not push boundaries. Character designs are memorable enough, environments serve their purpose, and the overall presentation supports the tone the game is aiming for.
The game also respects your time. You should be able to finish it in around 20 hours or so. Long enough to build attachment, short enough to avoid burnout. In an industry obsessed with stretching content, this restraint is refreshing.
Final Verdict: 7.5 out of 10 stars
Eternights is a decent game that most likely deserved more attention than it received. Its combat is fun despite being repetitive, though its enemies are underdeveloped, and its story is mostly predictable. Yet it remains engaging from start to finish, largely because of good pacing and likable Eternights characters.
If you are looking for a good hack and slash experience mixed with dating sim elements, Eternights is worth your time. Just do not go in expecting a mind blowing brilliant story that you have never seen before. Go in expecting a sincere, focused indie game made with love.
It is a little sad that it took a free Epic Games giveaway for most players to even notice it.
