Echo

Echo is a sci-fi stealth action game set in a futuristic world where players control a protagonist navigating a mysterious, sentient spaceship. The game’s unique mechanic involves an AI that mimics your actions, creating a tense and strategic gameplay experience where every move you make can be replicated by your enemies.

Echo: Review

1. Introduction

In the vast, crowded cosmos of video games, few titles dare to reinvent the fundamental language of interactivity as boldly as Echo. Released in 2017 by Danish indie studio Ultra Ultra, this third-person stealth adventure transcends mere genre conventions to deliver a haunting, philosophical experience. Its central premise—a sentient palace that learns from your actions to spawn hostile clones of yourself—is not merely a gameplay mechanic but a narrative and existential exploration. Echo emerges as a flawed, ambitious opus that, despite its commercial obscurity and the studio’s abrupt dissolution, stands as a landmark in experimental game design. This review deconstructs its intricate mechanics, evocative atmosphere, and thematic depth to argue that Echo is a misunderstood masterpiece—a cautionary tale and a triumph of creative risk.

2. Development History & Context

Ultra Ultra, founded by former IO Interactive (Hitman series) developers in Copenhagen, approached Echo as a labor of love and innovation. Led by director Martin Emborg and writer Christel Cecile Graabæk, the team of 31 developers envisioned a game where the AI wouldn’t just react to the player but evolve with them. Built on Unreal Engine 4, the project pushed technical boundaries to realize its adaptive AI system, but budget constraints and a small team limited its scalability. Released in September 2017 on Windows and October on PlayStation 4, Echo arrived amid a saturated market dominated by AAA titles like Destiny 2 and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. As an indie stealth title, it struggled to cut through the noise, exacerbated by a niche concept and minimal marketing. Ultra Ultra’s closure in 2019, citing unsustainable costs, cemented Echo as a poignant swan song—a game that dared too much for the industry to embrace, yet too little to survive.

3. Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

Echo unfolds as a melancholic odyssey through memory and guilt. En, a genetically engineered “Resourceful” voiced with raw vulnerability by Rose Leslie, awakens from 100 years in cryogenic stasis aboard a ship piloted by London, a sardonic AI voiced by Nicholas Boulton. Her mission: to revive Foster, her deceased partner, whose consciousness resides in a red cubic device. The narrative drips with existential dread, revealed through sparse, razor-sharp dialogue. En’s conflict with London—initially bitter over her role in Foster’s death—evolves into a reluctant partnership, their exchanges weaving lore about the “Push Era,” a future where humanity colonized planets through reckless technological advancement.

Thematic resonance permeates every layer. The Palace’s Echoes are literal manifestations of En’s actions, forcing her to confront her manipulative past. Her quest to atone for manipulating Foster into sacrificing himself becomes a study in fate versus free will—a theme underscored by the Palace’s cyclical blackouts, which mirror life’s inevitable repetitions. The narrative culminates in a heartbreaking sacrifice: En must give her own flesh to restore Foster, implying that salvation demands self-annihilation. This bleak, poetic conclusion reframes the entire journey as a battle against one’s own demons, echoing Borges’ Library of Babel in its labyrinthine despair.

4. Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

Echo’s genius lies in its dynamic AI, which learns and unlearns from the player’s actions during light/dark cycles. During “light” phases, every interaction—sprinting, vaulting, or shooting—is recorded by the Palace. After a blackout (a brief “dark” phase), the Palace updates the Echoes, granting them your latest tactics while reviving fallen clones. This creates a meta-horror: the player arms their executioners. For example, crossing water to evade Echoes in one cycle teaches them to follow suit in the next.

Stealth is paramount but fluid. En’s suit tools—the Sphere-HUD for life-detection and a two-mode pistol (lethal or riot)—demand tactical precision. Power cells limit reckless action, encouraging conservation. The system is brilliantly unforgiving; as Destructoid noted, “defeating yourself” becomes the ultimate triumph. Yet, Echo stumbles in execution. Repetitive level design and limited enemy variety sap tension, while punishing checkpoints amplify frustration. The AI’s “learning” sometimes feels superficial—Echoes might mimic sprinting into walls rather than developing true counter-strategies. Still, as a proof of concept, Echo remains unparalleled, forcing players into constant improvisation and self-reflection.

5. World-Building, Art & Sound

The Palace itself is the game’s true protagonist. A planet-sized structure of Baroque opulence—marble pillars, gilded mirrors, and endless corridors—it evokes the grandeur of Versailles filtered through cosmic dread. As En descends, environments shift from sterile chambers to overgrown crypts, each level deepening the Palace’s mystery. Art director Martin Emborg crafted a “beautiful void,” where empty spaces and stark lighting amplify isolation. The aesthetic, inspired by Stanisław Lem’s Solaris, transforms the Palace into an Eldritch Location—haunting, silent, and alive.

Sound design elevates the atmosphere. Bjarke Niemann’s score is a haunting blend of ambient synths and melancholic strings, evoking the same emotional weight as Vangelis’ work in Blade Runner. The soundtrack’s recurring motifs—low hums during exploration, crescendos during chases—sync seamlessly with the light/dark cycle’s tension. Voice acting is exceptional; Leslie’s husky tones and Boulton’s dry wit turn static exposition into intimate drama. Together, art and sound forge an immersive trance, making the Palace feel like a character rather than a backdrop. As one critic noted, “If heaven is a place, it sounds and looks like Echo.”

6. Reception & Legacy

At launch, Echo polarized critics. Aggregators like Metacritic scored it 71–79%, with praise for its AI and visuals but criticism for repetition and difficulty. Hardcore Gamer hailed it as “a puzzle game disguised as action,” while Games TM lamented its “punitive checkpoints.” Commercially, it flopped; Ultra Ultra cited “unsustainable costs” when closing in 2019. Yet, Echo’s reputation has evolved. It won four Danish Game Awards (2018), including Game of the Year, and earned cult status among patient gamers. Its adaptive AI is now seen as a precursor to dynamic enemy behaviors, even if no major games have fully replicated its ambition.

The film adaptation announced in 2019 remains dormant, highlighting Echo’s niche legacy. For many, it’s a “sleeper hit”—a game that rewards slow, deliberate play. As one Redditor raved, “It oozes promise,” while a Medium essay called it “a dream you’ve awoken from but can’t remember.” Ultimately, Echo endures not as a blockbuster, but as a testament to indie ingenuity—a flawed, unforgettable echo in gaming’s history.

7. Conclusion

Echo is a paradox: a game that feels both timeless and dated, profound yet frustrating. Its adaptive AI redefines stealth, while its art and sound create an unparalleled sense of place. Yet, repetition and pacing issues prevent it from achieving perfection. Ultra Ultra’s closure underscores the risks of such ambition—a studio that dared to innovate but couldn’t survive its vision.

In the pantheon of game design, Echo occupies a unique space. It’s a dialogue with the player, a meditation on identity, and a cautionary tale about industry commercialism. For those willing to embrace its punishing rhythm, it offers transcendent moments of triumph—when outsmarting your own echoes feels like outsmarting fate. Flawed, yes, but essential? Absolutely. Echo is not just a game; it’s an experience that lingers long after the credits roll, proving that the most memorable journeys are often the ones that challenge us most. Verdict: A flawed masterpiece that reshapes stealth’s future, even if it couldn’t secure its own.