There Came an Echo

There Came an Echo is a real-time tactics game set in a futuristic sci-fi universe where players command a team of super-powered operatives to combat a rogue artificial intelligence threatening humanity. Featuring voice-controlled gameplay that allows natural interaction with multiple units through spoken commands, the game delivers a concise five-hour narrative adventure starring voice talents like Wil Wheaton and Ashly Burch, blending strategic battles, immersive storytelling, and innovative indie design in a diagonal-down perspective with free camera movement.

There Came an Echo: Review

Introduction

In the annals of video game innovation, few titles have dared to challenge the sacred cows of input methods as boldly as There Came an Echo. Imagine barking orders to a squad of futuristic mercenaries not with frantic mouse clicks, but with the raw timbre of your own voice—echoing the tense radio chatter of a battlefield commander. Released in 2015 by indie studio Iridium Studios, this real-time tactics game emerged from the crowdfunding boom, blending cyberpunk intrigue with a groundbreaking voice-control system that promised to redefine player agency. As a sequel to the lesser-known 2011 rhythm-RPG hybrid Before the Echo, it built a small but fervent legacy of experimental storytelling in sci-fi settings. Yet, for all its ambition, There Came an Echo stands as a poignant reminder of indie’s double-edged sword: a dazzling proof-of-concept that tantalizes with potential while stumbling under its own brevity. My thesis is simple: this is a game that revolutionizes interaction in tactical genres, delivering an immersive narrative punch and technical wizardry, but its shallow mechanics and rushed execution relegate it to a cult curiosity rather than a genre-defining masterpiece.

Development History & Context

Iridium Studios, a modest Austin-based outfit founded by Jason Wishnov, entered the scene with the quirky Sequence in 2011—a rhythm game masquerading as an RPG that explored moral dilemmas in a dystopian future. There Came an Echo marked their ambitious pivot, evolving from a stealth sequel to Before the Echo (retitled to hint at connections midway through the story) into a full-fledged real-time tactics experiment. Wishnov, wearing hats as writer, director, designer, and programmer, envisioned a title where voice commands weren’t a gimmick but the core of immersion, drawing inspiration from sci-fi icons like Ender’s Game and Star Wars‘ Admiral Ackbar. The studio’s small team—bolstered by talents like lead concept artist Noe Leyva and gameplay engineer Archie Prakash—faced the era’s indie constraints head-on: limited budgets, proprietary voice tech challenges, and the post-Minecraft crowdfunding wave.

Launched on Kickstarter in 2013, the project smashed its $90,000 goal, raising $115,570 from 3,906 backers, fueled by promises of AAA-caliber voice acting (Wil Wheaton as Corrin, Ashly Burch as Val) and Intel RealSense integration for gesture controls. This windfall, plus undisclosed Intel investment announced in 2014, allowed ports to PlayStation 4 in 2016 (Xbox One was planned but canceled) and Unity engine polish. However, the mid-2010s gaming landscape was unforgiving for indies: the RTS/tactics genre had waned since StarCraft II‘s 2010 dominance, overshadowed by MOBAs like League of Legends and narrative-driven indies like Papers, Please. Voice tech, fresh off Kinect’s novelty fade, carried baggage—remember Tom Clancy’s EndWar‘s 2008 misfires? Technological hurdles abounded: proprietary speech libraries stymied Linux/SteamOS ports, and calibration for accents/languages demanded rigorous testing. Iridium’s vision—to humanize command interfaces amid a sea of button-mashing—clashed with hardware limitations, like inconsistent mics, yet birthed a game that felt like a heartfelt rebellion against AAA bloat, prioritizing fresh ideas over sprawling scope.

Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

At its heart, There Came an Echo is a taut cyberpunk thriller masquerading as a tactics game, unfolding a character-driven plot that grapples with technology’s double bind: empowerment versus existential threat. You play as Sam, a faceless mission control operative (echoing The Matrix‘s Oracle or Morpheus), guiding reluctant cryptographer Corrin Webb (Wil Wheaton) from his mundane Santa Monica life into a maelstrom of conspiracy. The inciting incident—a midnight raid by mercenaries hired by the shadowy Farrick (Cindy Robinson)—stems from Corrin’s Radial Lock algorithm, an unbreakable encryption hiding world-rattling secrets. Guided by the snarky, all-seeing Val (Ashly Burch, channeling a digital ghost in the machine), Corrin assembles a ragtag squad: pilot Adam (Yuri Lowenthal, a straight gay everyman with a boyfriend quip), mercenary Miranda (Laura Bailey, a mole with shifting loyalties), hacker Grace (Cassandra Lee Morris), and enigmatic Syll (Jason Wishnov, tying into the prequel’s lore).

The narrative arcs across 10 missions in roughly five hours, blending high-stakes escapes, base defenses, and infiltrations with in-engine cutscenes that blur gameplay and story. Dialogue crackles with wit and tension—Val’s sarcastic prompts like “Say hi, Sam!” invite player meta-interaction, while Corrin’s evolution from action survivor (“I’m a programmer, not a soldier!”) to vengeful leader feels earned through Wheaton’s nuanced delivery. Twists abound: Miranda’s double-cross reveals her as Farrick’s informant, subverting trust themes; the mid-game bombshell links to Before the Echo‘s Tower facility, exposing Syll as an AI construct from a “super breeding program” gone awry. Underlying motifs probe AI ethics (Val’s sentience hints), surveillance paranoia (Radial Lock as a MacGuffin for reality-warping data), and human fragility amid tech overreach—Corrin’s arc embodies the “it’s personal” fury of disrupted normalcy, culminating in a Radial Lock breach that questions free will.

Thematically, it’s a stealth sequel’s love letter to sci-fi tropes: The Matrix echoes in office escapes and red-pill revelations, while NATO phonetics (Alpha to Foxtrot waypoints) nod to military authenticity. Pacing falters—exposition-heavy cinematics dominate, sometimes eclipsing action—but the voice cast elevates it. Burch’s Val is a standout, her banter humanizing the interface; Lowenthal’s Adam adds queer representation subtly. Flaws persist: jargon-laden monologues veer into incoherence, and the ending’s emotional payoff feels rushed, prioritizing twists over depth. Yet, in an era of shallow blockbusters, this indie yarn dares to philosophize, making Corrin’s journey a microcosm of tech’s seductive peril.

Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

There Came an Echo‘s core loop is a stripped-down real-time tactics affair: command a squad of up to four units from an isometric, free-camera view, orchestrating flanks, suppressive fire, and revives against energy-shielded foes in sci-fi arenas. Voice control is the star—issue phonetic orders like “Corrin, advance to Bravo 3” or “All units, open fire”—with a robust system recognizing accents, custom phrases (e.g., alias “Wesley” for Corrin), and queues executed on “Mark” cues. Calibration is key; a headset yields near-flawless accuracy (rare misfires in chaos), fostering immersion as you queue multi-step ambushes, like suppressing with the Screw gun while sniping. Traditional inputs (mouse/keyboard/gamepad) work via radial menus, but they’re clunky—commands vocalize audibly before execution, highlighting voice’s supremacy and underscoring non-voice as a fallback for mic-less play.

Combat revolves around energy management: shields double as ammo for special weapons (pistol baseline), depleting on hits or shots. The Charge gun’s AOE blasts clear clusters (moderate cost), Screw gun pins foes for setups (low cost), Sniper picks off at range (needs suppression), and Railgun one-shots heavies (high cost). Progression unlocks slots for two secondaries plus accessories (e.g., accuracy buffs), but no deep trees—loadouts pre-mission emphasize tactical variety over grinding. UI shines: top HUD tracks squad energy, weapons, and recharges (two per unit before permadeath risk); bottom logs recent commands and objectives. Innovations like remote mines (“Detonate Mine 1!”) or turrets add wrinkles, enabling stealth takedowns or traps.

Flaws mar the elegance: missions feel scripted, limiting creativity—enemies spawn predictably, and no grenades/cover mechanics reduce depth. The War Room’s wave defense practices queues but lacks variety (one arena, no PvP). Pacing imbalances exposition (40% time) with frantic brawls, where voice flusters add tension but expose recognition limits in noise. At five hours, it’s replayable on harder difficulties or customs, but shallow loops (no base-building, minimal branching) evoke a demo. Still, voice elevates it—coordinating a pincer feels visceral, a rare bridge between player intent and digital chaos.

World-Building, Art & Sound

The game’s world is a neon-drenched cyberpunk tableau: near-future California morphs from urban sprawls (Santa Monica airports, office escapes) to fortified hideouts and orbital towers, evoking Blade Runner‘s grit with a tactical lens. Atmosphere thrives on isolation—squads navigate fog-shrouded labs or besieged bases, where Radial Lock’s omnipresence looms as an invisible panopticon. Visuals, via Unity, impress with vibrant, detailed environments: dynamic lighting casts holographic glows on rain-slick streets, particle effects sell energy blasts, and isometric zoom aids scouting without clutter. Character models falter—robotic animations and stiff lips betray budget—but cutscenes integrate seamlessly, maintaining immersion.

Sound design elevates the sci-fi veneer: a 20+ track score by Big Giant Circles, Ronald Jenkees, and Jimmy Hinson pulses with synthwave urgency—pulsing beats underscore flanks, ambient drones build dread in stealth. Voice acting is AAA polish on indie bones: Wheaton’s Corrin arcs from bewilderment to resolve, Burch’s Val quips with sardonic edge (“The problem with all locks is they were made to be opened”), and ensemble (Bailey’s scheming Miranda, Lowenthal’s affable Adam) delivers naturalistic banter, including Easter eggs like “Shut up, Wesley!” SFX punctuate tactics—railgun whines, shield crackles—while voice feedback (e.g., confirming “Alpha 2 locked”) reinforces command flow. Collectively, these forge a cohesive, tense atmosphere: visuals dazzle in motion, sound immerses like a radio drama, turning procedural battles into narrative beats. Yet, repetition in assets (recycled rooms) and minor sync issues dilute the polish, but the sensory synergy makes every “Mark” a thrill.

Reception & Legacy

Upon PC launch in February 2015 (PS4 in 2016), There Came an Echo garnered mixed reception, aggregating to 58-59 on Metacritic—a “mixed or average” verdict reflecting its polarized innovations. Critics lauded the voice tech (Hardcore Gamer’s 80/100: “a shining example of non-traditional controls”; Forbes’ 8/10: “magnificent accomplishment”) and narrative (GameZone’s 7.5/10: “rivals greatest sci-fi thrillers”), but slammed brevity, shallow tactics, and spotty non-voice options (GameSpot’s 4/10: “greatest threat is the voice system itself”; Push Square’s 5/10: “proof of concept, not a game”). German outlet 4Players (71%) praised immersion but noted tactical limits; Destructoid (6/10) eyed a sequel’s potential. Commercially, it sold modestly on Steam ($14.99, bundled with OST/artbook), buoyed by 71% positive user reviews (243 tallied), though complaints of bugs (post-patch fixed) and shortness persisted. PS4 port fared similarly, unranked due to fewer reviews.

Over a decade, reputation has warmed nostalgically: once dismissed as gimmicky, it’s now hailed in indie histories for pioneering accessible voice AI pre-Hey Google era, influencing titles like Earthlingo (2021) or VR commands in Half-Life: Alyx. No direct sequels emerged—Iridium shifted gears—but its RealSense nod prefigured motion tech in Beat Saber. Legacy-wise, it embodies 2010s crowdfunding’s highs/lows: a bold ethics-in-AI tale that spotlighted voice’s viability, yet exposed indie’s scope pitfalls. Cult status endures among tactics fans, its Wheaton-led cast fostering fan art; commercially, it’s a footnote, but historiographically, a vital experiment in humanizing interfaces amid rising AI discourse.

Conclusion

There Came an Echo weaves a compelling cyberpunk yarn with voice-command brilliance, its squad tactics and star-studded dialogue crafting fleeting but unforgettable immersion amid sci-fi shadows. Iridium’s ambition—forged in Kickstarter fires and Intel’s glow—delivers on narrative depth and auditory innovation, yet falters with terse campaigns, simplistic systems, and recognition quirks that temper its shine. As a historical artifact, it occupies a niche: not the RTS revolution of Command & Conquer, nor the voice pioneer of EndWar, but a spirited indie beacon illuminating tech’s narrative potential. Verdict: Essential for tactics enthusiasts and voice-curious players (8/10), a flawed gem cementing Iridium’s experimental ethos in gaming’s eclectic tapestry—proof that even echoes can resonate profoundly.