The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales [REVIEW] – A Tantalising HD-2D Journey Across Time 

Square Enix have utilised HD-2D for a revival of turn-based RPGs, but with The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales, they are confidently stepping into the real-time action arena – and if you grew up swinging a sword in top-down retro classics, this is going to feel incredibly nostalgic for you. Embracing the essence of legendary 90s adventures and injecting it with a gorgeous modern aesthetic, it is an absolute blast from start to finish. 

Check out some screenshots down below: 

The overarching premise of The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales is classic fantasy comfort food, with players stepping into the boots of the titular Elliot – a brave young adventurer tasked by King Hichard with tracking down a traitorous royal advisor. The power-hungry villain has cursed the Kingdom of Huther and the magically gifted Princess Heuria, forcing you to pursue him across the timeline to stop his plans. This sees you travelling through four distinct periods: the prehistoric Age of Budding, the utopian Age of Magic, the bleak Age of Reconstruction, and the present-day Age of Safekeeping. Seeing how the world and its civilisations shift across the millennia is genuinely fascinating, and while the main plot is fairly standard as far as RPGs go, it’s easy to find yourself heavily invested in the more distinct side stories that span across history.  

Oh, and yes, there is an entirely optional quest dedicated to rescuing cats… what more could you want? 

Of course, the big selling point of The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales comes with its action-orientated approach to gameplay, with combat fast, fluid, and completely real-time. You have access to seven distinct weapon types: swords, bows, boomerangs, bombs, spears, hammers, and a chain and sickle, with players able to map two of these at any given time, swapping effortlessly to deal with different enemy encounters. It’s really good fun, and if you’re a fan of the likes of the old-school The Legend of Zelda titles, you’ll quickly find yourself absorbed in each enemy encounter. With a good blend of clever puzzling and tantalising boss fights, everything comes together wonderfully. 

What keeps the fights feeling fresh is the brilliant Magicite system. By slotting these magical, craftable gems into your gear, you can completely change how a weapon behaves. Sure, sometimes this is just a stat boost, but since they can also bring with them some more unique abilities, it adds an extra element of fine-tuning to your build that’ll really allow you to get that tactical edge in battles. And, of course, defence is just as important as offence, with your trusty shield blocking incoming damage – it runs on a stamina bar though, so you have to block strategically rather than just hiding behind it indefinitely, ensuring there’s a lot of nuance to your balance of going on the aggressive and holding back. 

“The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales is a wonderful old-school, action-RPG adventure that’ll keep fans of the genre hooked from start to end.” 

It’s worth noting that Elliot isn’t tackling this massive journey alone – early on, you meet Faie, a chatty fairy who is far more than just a glowing waypoint or a hint dispenser. In a brilliant design choice, you actually pilot Faie simultaneously using the right analogue stick, and she’s set up with her own abilities that can help out as you progress through the adventure, whether that’s by igniting enemies, teleporting Elliot across gaps, or even duplicating him for double the damage output. Sure, it can get a bit chaotic when dealing with both characters on occasions, so it does take getting used to, but a seamless local co-op mode where a second player can jump in and take full control of Faie does make life easier. I haven’t tried it yet, but it could add a whole extra layer of enjoyment, strategy, and co-operative teamwork to the game that RPGs don’t always offer. 

There’s also another cool hook that comes with Faie: if you fall in battle, you can bribe her with your hard-earned Tul (the in-game currency) to revive you on the spot. However, her price goes up every single time you die before reaching a checkpoint, forcing you to manage your economy carefully. I loved this, even if she cost me a BOMB at times, with it injecting an extra element of personality into The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales that makes the rapport between them all the more endearing. Just keep in mind that she can be a bit chatty, so if you found Navi a bit irritating when playing The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, you might get a similar energy from Faie. 

It is impossible to talk about The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales without praising its presentation. The HD-2D graphics are nothing short of breathtaking, with the game blending wonderfully designed (and incredibly expressive) old-school character sprites with incredibly detailed 3D environments. The visual effects (and particularly the lighting and water) are phenomenal, with everything coming to life to make for a truly breathtaking visual experience. And the boss fights? Simply spectacular show pieces that highlight just how stunning the game can be. It’s easily my favourite HD-2D game so far, with it clear there’s still plenty that Square Enix can get out of the visual style. 

Check out some screenshots down below: 

Matching the visuals is an evocative soundtrack by Tomohiro Nakamachi and Yuto Moritani, which perfectly captures the mood of each time period, elevating the epic boss encounters and the quieter emotional moments alike. The voice cast also does a stellar job of bringing the rather archetypal characters to life with earnest, charming performances, and whilst it can feel over the top at times, it feels fitting of the experience. 

As brilliant as the game is, it is worth noting that The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales isn’t entirely flawless. The time-hopping mechanic, while conceptually brilliant, means you are essentially running through the exact same environments and dungeons four times, and even with different visual dressing and shifted layouts, the repetition can definitely start to drag in the final quarter of the journey. As long as you have unlocked a guidepost, you can zip across space and time instantly, meaning side quests and backtracking never feel like a chore, but still… there’s no denying that it can feel a bit samey. Did it affect my overall opinion of the game? Not really, I was having a blast, but I know that some players might get a little tired of the constant recycling.

Developer: Square Enix, Claytechworks 
Publisher: Square Enix 
Platform(s): PlayStation 5 (Reviewed), Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, PC 
Website: https://store.playstation.com/en-gb/concept/10007935