If you haven’t heard of Yongshi’s Aether Gazer, you’re definitely missing out. In Aether Gazer, the old world was destroyed in the far future in an event known only as ‘The Calamity’. To ensure the survival of the human race, the survivors’ consciousness was separated from their bodies and uploaded into Gaea, an orbiting supercomputer divided into ten zones, each with its own unique culture and beliefs, which are all working together to build Idealbild, the perfect civilisation. However, horrible computer viruses known as Visbanes lurk beneath the surface, determined to destroy humanity’s promised paradise.
Aether Gazer puts you into the shoes of the Administrator, a high-ranking individual in charge of Gaea’s Modifiers — sentient versions of Gaea’s self-check programmes tasked with fixing bugs in the system. You must work together with the Modifiers (you start with Verthandi, Zenkibo, and Poseidon) to finish the remaining Visbanes.
It’s a familiar concept used in games in which humanity is faced with a major catastrophe, complete with evil corporations, terrorists, confusing alliances, and a spreading, inhuman scourge. Aether Gazer, despite this familiarity, has a lot of potential.
Having a cast of interesting characters is practically a must to survive the competition nowadays. It’d be tough to grab attention if the game consisted of a bland-looking, low-effort cast, especially because the characters frequently appear in promotional materials. The characters aren’t different from those in other RPGs, but they are some of the most beautifully designed characters seen in a long time.
One of the things that set the Aether Gazer characters apart from the other contenders is their relatability. Yongshi created the characters’ personalities so that it’s clear they’re conscious of their own existence. Few of them make unnecessary remarks, and when they do, it’s usually with context.
Each Modifier has a unique basic attack, active and passive abilities, and combos. They’re fun to learn but difficult to master. A handy ‘Dodge’ button is also available, which does a real-time quick evasion in the direction your Modifier is facing. It’s mostly employed for rapid combinations, chasing foes, and avoiding oncoming blows. Timing your abilities with your basic attacks to improve your combo hit count will be key to doing the most damage in the least amount of time.
Aether Gazer has the typical RPG elements such as upgrading your modifiers, limit breaking their ranks, increasing their rarity, and upgrading their skills. These tried and true methods allow players to get to know their Modifier better, and grind different game modes more often to get valuable resources. Though resources are limited, the main goal of the game is to collect more Modifiers and build a stronger team.
Modifiers also have varied rarities, with S Ranks being the highest and B Ranks the lowest, and the difference in power between the rarities is definitely noticeable. Modifiers are mostly obtained through the in-game gacha system, and players that enjoy collecting new characters will enjoy collecting them all.
However, the game isn’t without its flaws. Players in Aether Gazer will find themselves needing to wait for their cooldowns to finish in a game that requires quick responses to counter enemy moves — which may be somewhat irritating for new players. But it’s one of those things that adds to the challenge of the combat sequences.
If you’re a fan of anime-style action RPGs, Aether Gazer is worth trying. It’ll be interesting to see the new content released to keep the players entertained and engaged, as Yongshi is known to be entirely dedicated to keeping its fans happy.
With polished gameplay that relies on tried and true mechanics, Yongshi has created a game that will absolutely catch the attention of anime and RPG fans. Backed by a team that with a proven track record, Aether Gazer’s future looks bright.
