Esoteric Ebb will be talked about as the Disco Elysium for D&D nerds, and that is not a wrong statement. The Cleric has constant internal monologues with his inner physique not unlike Harrier Du Bois, and the entirety of the game is solved through dialogue boxes. These conversations, however, are with the classic D&D stats: Strength, Constitution, Charisma and so on. They even banter among themselves about their own personal views of the world and the Cleric.
Even in general themes, they are similar, although Esoteric Ebb tries for a more whimsical approach. Still, it is a game where you are as likely to stumble into a Troll as you are to discuss the nature of a soul with a psychologist. And above all, it is a game about democracy.
The Cleric Detective
In the game, you’ll play as the Cleric, a clergyman sent to investigate a strange explosion. You’re not someone of status, but a clear government pawn sent to ease tensions before a coming democratic election; the first this world has seen since… Well, ever.
While you’re always a ‘cleric,’ you actually have a lot of room for character customization. Your stats, for instance, are yours to allocate as you see fit, and your spellcasting won’t be affected at all. Your real class is decided during gameplay, by both actions and words; I ended up playing as a rogue that pickpocketed everyone he met.
The game is best understood as loosely based on D&D rather than an adaptation of the system
You will also find plenty of items that can alter your stats, but that’s all they do. If you find a shield, you won’t be any harder to hit. You have to read what each item does before equipping it; at the start, you’re better off with nothing on than a bunch of items that lower your attributes.
All this said, the Cleric is still very much its own character who brings his own mysteries. A few conversations offer glimpses into the Cleric’s past, his time learning magic, and the fate of his loved ones. For me, he ended up being the best mystery of the game.
The D&D Trap
If you’re familiar with Dungeons & Dragons, you will enjoy the game’s narrative greatly. The gameplay, however, can be a bit confusing at first, at least as far as the Cleric’s attributes are concerned. I, for example, made Strength my dump stat since I assumed I could use Dexterity to fight or Charisma to get by. Strength ends up being mandatory in quite a few places, and Charisma is not the be-all-end-all during conversations. Fights were, as you might expect, a bit of an issue.
The game is best understood as loosely based on D&D rather than an adaptation of the system, but it can still be jarring for us D&D veterans to see a fully armored Cleric sneaking around at night. Just know that every stat is important, and I found that a great baseline is having everything between 10 and 16. This is not only key for your rolls, but because what each ability score can say is dependent on their base score.
The main thing a D&D fan might need to read is spell descriptions, since many spells function differently while having the same name/flavour text. Barkskin, for example, would normally make your base Armor Class 17; since Esoteric Ebb has no Armor Class system, the spell instead reduces all damage taken by half. Which, to be honest, sounds way better.
The Nuances Of Combat
There are many mandatory and optional fights in the game, although they mostly work as their own kind of conversation. You can think about your options by talking to your attributes, but once you commit to a dice roll, your turn is over. While the game makes great use of all the stats during normal dialogues, in combat, it can get a bit basic.
Of course, I didn’t encounter every single fight in the game, but only one encounter used Charisma to de-escalate a situation. To actually end a fight, you need to either succeed on several Strength rolls, or survive long enough for your allies to finish the job.
You can cast spells, but the only offensive one I found (Inflict Wounds) was lackluster at best and didn’t benefit from my attributes. So, if you want to tackle the game solo, you’ll need a lot of Strength and Constitution.
A Strong Narrative
The game is all about talking to characters, getting to know them, and sometimes, rolling dice. And that’s exactly where the game shines, since you’ll spend quite a lot of time learning backstories, putting pieces together and learning about the world. A lot of it is optional, so you don’t have to read everything the game has to offer if you don’t want to.
You are, of course, rewarded for exploring, particularly as you find spells that open new avenues of conversation. You’ll end up speaking to animals, plants, and even the deceased, all in an effort to put together who blew up a tea shop, and why.
As you talk to people, you learn about them and make choices, and that sometimes opens up new dialogue trees. But the most common way the game reflects your impact in the game is through modifiers: if you learned someone’s secret while asking them something, you’ll see something like a “+3 You know their secret.” This is a clever way to nod at all you’re doing without bogging down the narrative. This system goes pretty deep as well, since I got a bonus on the final fight for discussing my world view with a knight over ten hours earlier.
Through cleverly written lines and repetition, you’ll end up knowing quite a lot about this world and its denizens. It is a place of change, where the scars of old wars meet with the hopes of youth. There is plenty of corruption, manipulation and no right answers, something that the game’s ending likes to nod at.
A Weak Interface
All in all, the game is a joy to play, but it can be a little hard to navigate. You can Behold, Interact or Trifle with most objects/characters, but it isn’t immediately clear what each option does or how to alter them. Trifle, for example, is the “stealing” option, which can lead to awkward conversations if you suddenly steal a kobold’s crossbow when you were just inspecting it.
Behold is meant to be an option for your Cleric to inspect characters and learn about them, but I only understood its use at the game’s epilogue. See, once you click Behold, you have to click on the Behold button again so you can, finally, behold someone. At that point, I wasn’t gaining any new insight that the characters hadn’t already told me.
No matter if you play your Cleric as a rogue, barbarian or, god forbid, an actual cleric, you will enjoy your time in Esoteric Ebb because it is a labor of love.
To talk to animals, you need to use the Speak with Animals spell, but you have to use it during a conversation. While the spell does shine when it is usable, your spells are on the left of the screen while all the text is happening on the right; this makes it hard to tell when context-sensitive spells are available for use, unless you know what you’re looking for.
The time limit the game presents can also feel like an oppressive presence, but fortunately that feeling is eased pretty quickly. While not initially clear how time passes, it is mostly related to dialogue options and short rests, not time spent walking. For reference, I finished the game on day 3 of 5.
A Journey Worth The Hassle
Even if you fumble all your rolls and end up with a less-than-optimal character, Esoteric Ebb is a beautiful game well worth experiencing. If you’re into text-heavy, lore-first games that delve deep into philosophical discussions, you will enjoy your time a great deal.
While the themes are deep, the tone is lighthearted, something that worked for me but might not be for everyone. It’s less a brooding exploration of the self, and a more chill conversation between scholarly friends. The game also explores the ins and outs of D&D’s alignment and magic system, and while you can get everything being said without being a fan, it certainly helps being one.
No matter if you play your Cleric as a rogue, barbarian or, god forbid, an actual cleric, you will enjoy your time in Esoteric Ebb because it is a labor of love. It is made by someone who wears their inspirations up their sleeve, and isn’t afraid of telling you how much they marked them. This game has certainly marked me, at least.
Reviewed on PC. Review code was provided by the publisher.
Esoteric Ebb is the Disco Elysium that D&D fans wanted, and much more. If you're into fantasy, humor, or just a good story, you'll find that in spades here.
The Good
- Great narrative
- Immersive world
- Rich D&D-esque world
The Bad
- Conflicting D&D ideas
- Slightly confusing interface
