Ecco The Dolphin Review

By Kristan Reed Published 20 August, 2007

Flippin' game.

Version tested: Xbox 360

Is there an echo in here? There is if you're a fan of SEGA's 16-bit output, with no fewer than three opportunities this year alone to get your hands on its lauded late '80s/early '90s output. Ecco The Dolphin first appeared this year on the Wii's Virtual Console service, downloadable for 800 points in unoptimised form, (complete with ugly 50hz borders if you're unlucky enough to be European). Then a few weeks later gamers had the chance to pick it up on PS2 or PSP via the fantastic value Mega Drive Collection which, lest we forget, cobbled together more than 30 titles for less than half the price that it used to cost to buy one of the flippin' things. Better still, you could even run all the games in prog scan and eliminate the borders. Perfect.

And yet, after all that, having already spammed the Virtual Console channel with all sorts of forgettable filler, Sega's now seemingly intent on re-issuing each and every title via Xbox Live Arcade as well. Colour us bemused. Admittedly the 400 point fee required to download Ecco The Dolphin works out significantly cheaper than it does via the Wii (£3.40 versus the almost criminal £5.60), but it's yet another one of those pointless additions to the service that you'd have trouble justifying purchasing at a quarter of the price. Sadly, despite still representing some of the most sumptuous visuals that the 16-bit era had to offer, the gameplay on offer is some of the most teeth-grindingly irritating we've come across in ages.

Environmental disaster

It's a shame, because Ecco was a one-of-a-kind game with a wholly original premise. The gist is that some of the marine life has been mysteriously sucked out of the bay in a freak storm - and all that just because you wanted to show how high you could jump. How guilty do you feel?

And with practically zero direction, you're left to try and figure out what to do next. This might have been normal practise in 1992, but in 2007, if you've never played the game before it's hugely irritating to be left to swim around with precious little idea of what you're supposed to do. With a little persistence, though, you'll suss out that strange 'glyphs' (whatever they are) are blocking your path, and in order to get past them you'll have to seek out a corresponding 'glyph key'. Confusingly, both look the same, and the only confirmation that you've even picked up the key is that circles appear around it. From there, you need to swim back to the glyph and squeak your sonar at it. Well of course.

'Ecco The Dolphin' Screenshot 1

Sorry, have I got tuna breath again?

If the game's total inability to point you in the right direction doesn't immediately grate, then the fact that it's incredibly easy to die will leave you scowling with disapproval. In a curious concession to pointless realism, you can only explore underwater for a limited period before you'll drown (so why don't the Dolphins you end up rescuing drown? Huh? ANSWER ME!), rendering much of the game's initial exploratory charm redundant as you desperately try to find the next air pocket. But on the way to these safe havens are an unending population of what are officially known as spiky gits - the kind that you can easily ram into and get rid of, but which reappear the second they're out of sight. Turn around and they're back, ready to steal precious health away from you and cause maximum irritation. On top of the that, the controls just aren't particularly helpful to precision navigation, which is an absolute basic requirement in a game as pedantically difficult as this one.

Guessing game

So, with broken controls, unhelpful game mechanics, and a total absence of any helpful signposting whatsoever, the game basically requires you to blunder around haplessly until you suss out what trial and error task it wants you to complete next. The truth is, most of the time you're just working out how to plot a path through the currents, finding keys and unlocking glyphs. It's hardly inspired stuff. For the game to then kill you off and dump you back at the start of a level...well. It's a wonder anyone bothered persisting with it when it came out.

Nowadays, the whole farce is made slightly more tolerable on 360 thanks to the 'save anywhere' system, ensuring that you don't have to put up with such arcane mechanics. That said, you can't simply reload a save game when things are going wrong - you have to manually exit the game before it will allow you to do so. Hrmph. Quite what the point of doing that was we'll probably never know.

'Ecco The Dolphin' Screenshot 2

Dolphin meets Alien.

No apologies

Still, if you're some kind of Ecco apologist who poured their entire childhood into solving its many complex mysteries, then you're doubtlessly wondering why the hell this dribbling idiot is gibbering on about. How dare we urinate on your childhood memories! If this over-hyped relic still means a lot to you, then fair enough - you don't need us to tell you that you imagined having fun with it, and we'd be the first to admit that it's a serviceable conversion that can't be faulted on a technical level. You even get the option to smooth out the graphics, stretch the screen and enhance the audio, which is a plus, and, as we mentioned, the save game ability is a real bonus. You even get achievement points to aim for, which, as we all know, are a curious fascination.

But seriously. Do you really need to delve into this game now? And if so, wouldn't you feel much better about it if you could do so in the company of all sorts of other big Mega Drive names for a fraction of the price? Although you can excuse Sega for trying it on with a true classic like Sonic, foisting dated crap like Ecco on us yet again feels like a monumental waste of everyone's time. Download the free trial if you must, but don't even think about parting with your hard-earned cash for this. It might still look pretty, but Ecco plays like a dog. Avoid avoid-o!

3 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Kristan.

About Kristan Reed

Kristan is a former editor of Eurogamer, dad, Stone Roses bore and Norwich City supporter who sometimes mutters optimistically about Team Silent getting back together.

Read more articles from Kristan by visiting the Kristan Reed archive page.

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Comments (68) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • DDevil #1 5 years ago

    I was surprised how badly this game has aged to be honest.

  • BBIAJ #2 5 years ago

    Hated this on the MegaDrive, PStwo, PSP, and the 360 demo was no different!

    Down with Ecco... Bring on Streets Of Rage 2 and Sonic 2 I say!

  • BBIAJ #3 5 years ago

    Edit: Fixed!

    Thanks :)
    Edited by 1 at 20/08/07 @ 08:46

  • BBIAJ #4 5 years ago

    Heh, no probs!

    Understandable in early morning write-ups I guess ;o)

  • fletcherr #5 5 years ago

    How badly it's aged??? It was always terrible. I remember at the time all the magazine reviews were going on about how peaceful and cool it was having clearly never played the thing and just assuming because it had dolphins in it it must be all new age-y. It was teeth-grindingly, joystick-smashingly frustrating from the very beginning.

  • space_ace #6 5 years ago

    better wait for forever blue?

  • Mattb90 #7 5 years ago

    I was about to correct that 600 Wii Points is actually only £4.20, when I realised that Ecco is a MD title and thus must be 800 Wii Points instead (which is £5.60, so £6 is almost right). I know it's 600 in Japan, but it can't be both 600 and £6!

  • Nithron #8 5 years ago

    I never quite understood why everyone kept going on about this back when it came out, either.

  • NewYork #9 5 years ago

    "dolphins you end up rescuing"

    Well that's ruined the plot, then.

  • OnlyMe #10 5 years ago

    I've noticed how 99% of the games for the Nintendo/Sega generation have aged so badly, even "classics" like this. Though I expect this game was a bit overhyped because of it's quirkyness, and very realistic (for its time) animation of a dolphin.

    When are they going to start releasing the good games? No they're not Nintendo or Sega games, they're Amiga and PC! Alien Breed, Project X, Overdrive, ATR, Quak, Flashback, Another World, SWOS (thankfully that's out soon), Kick Off 2, Lotus, Zool, Superfrog, Super Cars (screw Rock'n'Roll Racing), Super Stardust (the PS3 have that already, and it's the best arcade game yet on any of the current generation platforms), Disposable Hero, Gods, Hero Quest (not Quest for Glory), Stuntcar Racer, Turrican etc etc.

    So many to choose from, yet only one true Amiga game is on the way to the X360 Live Arcade, and only after two years!

  • SilasMalkav #11 5 years ago

    This was a game? I always thought it was an interactive screen saver. I don't think I got very far in it, and I eventually just ended up doing jumps into the air.

  • Azazel #12 5 years ago

    Has anyone actually ever got to that bit with the aliens without cheating? Even when I cheated I still died.

  • Lutz #13 5 years ago

    "And yet, after all that, having already spammed the Virtual Console channel with all sorts of forgettable filler, Sega's now seemingly intent on re-issuing each and every title via Xbox Live Arcade as well"

    I hope to god that they release Shining in the Darkness on XBLA. Please Sega, make it so.

  • Martin #14 5 years ago

    The only Ecco the Dolphin game I recall is on the Dreamcast but that would have to be the sequel then I suppose as it didn't look, play or made me feel remotely like this game seems to.

  • Nova5lag #15 5 years ago

    just been a little sick in my mouth

  • BBIAJ #16 5 years ago

    The DC game was the third Ecco game ;o)

  • GrandpaUlrira #17 5 years ago

    This review read a little bit like the reviewer needed to RTFM, although I don't know if you get anything like that with Live games. I remember working out what to do on this when I was 14, so I find it hard to believe that we've dumbed down so much in the interim that this is now impossible to suss out.

    Even given the reviewer's personal dislike, it's not a 3, especially given the scores some equivalently-priced games (I'm mainly thinking some of the old-school shmups that have been reviewed) that frankly have aged even worse.

  • krudster #18 5 years ago

    Whatever memories you may have of the game from 15 years ago, I suggest you play it now and try and extract any enjoyment out of it.

    As for RTFM - even playing this with a FAQ was a complete pain in the chuff, so I don't think you can even blame that.

  • famous_roy #19 5 years ago

    Krudster is spot on, I downloaded this out of curiosity on VC (only played it round a mates briefly as a kid) and I have to say its a bloody mess. Really tried to give it a chance but the terrible controls combined with a ridiculously unfair diffuculty make it one to miss.

  • shamblemonkee #20 5 years ago

    this is the ecco I remember:

    [link url=http://www.gamerevolution.com/oldsite/g ames/dreamcast/adventure/ecco5.jpg
    ]http://ww w.gamerevolution.com/oldsite/ga...[/link]

    Why not remake this one (even though I remember this being annoyingly finicky too)
    Edited by 2 at 20/08/07 @ 11:02

  • yupyup #21 5 years ago

    I'm pretty sure I did enjoy this when I was younger ;_;

    I remember that sodding alien thing too!

  • zozart #22 5 years ago

    I think the charm of this game is in the atmosphere. I find it really calm and relaxing, although, yes, the controls sometimes do get a bit irritating.

    Don't agree with the 3. It's not everybody's cup of tea, but it's still unique and dolphiny.

    Ecco was always hard, even back then (come on, compare it to Sonic which has always been laughably easy). If the controls weren't so "grid based" it would be easy; if you get used to them you learn to make them work for you.
    Edited by 1 at 20/08/07 @ 11:27

  • weeno #23 5 years ago

    I'll go against the grain here,
    I loved this when it came out and completed the game with out any cheats.
    I tried the demo and found it was pretty much as I remembered, I guess it's just not for everyone (3 seems a tad harsh though)

  • Vin #24 5 years ago

    Christ, I nearly cried at the difficulty with the DC version.



  • Mint #25 5 years ago

    I must have been better at games when I was little, I remember almost finishing this when it came out. Couldn't get past the first level when I played it on PS2 a few months ago, sigh.

    Always rubbish, in hindsight.

  • Nithron #26 5 years ago

    So aside from the difficulty, was the DC version actually any good?

    I've got a DC sitting here gathering dust, and it's one of the only, you know, potentially good games that i've not played

  • Monkey_Puncher #27 5 years ago

    I agree, I've never been a fan of Ecco in the slightest. Stupid controls, incredibly difficult, and just not very interesting in all honesty.

  • GrandpaUlrira #28 5 years ago

    Well, I will admit I haven't tried it in a few years (probably last on an emulator five or so years ago) but... I can't imagine it's aged so badly that it's a 3 from an 8/9 in its time, especially as I remember Galaga-type and scrolling beat-em-up games that cost about the same getting an 8 for the same sort of price, which as genres have aged terribly. As for playing it through with a FAQ, fair enough, as I can imagine I had a lot more time to spare when I was younger to spend working out what to do.

    I don't even want to go back to the game after reading the review though; I have enough memories from my youth tarnished already. I could see something like a 5 or 6 coming, but a 3 felt like a slap in the face for younger me.

  • Laserbream #29 5 years ago

    "Screw Rock'n'Roll Racing"

    HERESY

  • Aurifex. #30 5 years ago

    Dreamcast Ecco was/is supperb.

  • Crea #31 5 years ago

    I remember finding this game bastard hard at the time, to be honest. I think I had to use cheats to complete it.

    How things have changed. A game that's too hard just loses my attention these days. No time for it. Ninja Gaiden excepted, of course.

  • The-Bodybuilder #32 5 years ago

    Somrbody, whether ninty, sony or MS (most likely the latter 2, as they have HDD) needs to start releasing dreamcast games.

    /hopes for LIVE-enabled power stone 2.

  • Azazel #33 5 years ago

    I loved this when it came out and completed the game with out any cheats.

    /falls to the floor

    We're not worthy! We're not worthy!

  • krudster #34 5 years ago

    Seriously, anyone who can claim to have finished this game without cheats deserves applause....or pity :)

  • SomaticSense #35 5 years ago

    I used to love this game as a kid. Granted, that was with the Infinite Air cheat and all the maps for the levels from one of those gaming solutions mags you used to get back then.

    Bought the VC version due to those rose-tinted specs and regretted it. Played the VC one again recently though (sans cheats this time) as I actually quite liked the trial of the XBLA version (mostly due to rampant boredom due to the agonising wait for Bioshock...).

    Took me about 20 odd times to get past the Undercaves. Still enjoyed it..... until the next level. The Vents was fucking brutal. Thought I was doing OK, after about half an hour I found 2 of the missing dolphins and was well on my way to the 3rd. But then I died, which took me RIGHT back to the beginning of the level, which lead to saying out loud "fuck you then" and switching it off. That was just the 2nd proper level......

    So yes, this game is really harsh, and is riddled with some of the most unfair and plain stupid gaming designs of recent years. I never understood all the people complaining about the newer Ninja Gaiden being so hard, as it is absolutely nowhere even close to the level of difficulty of many - maybe even most of - the games back then. Ecco is one of the best examples of infuriating level designs and horribly counter-inituitive movement controls. Those people who complain about the difficulty of games like Ikaruga and Ninja Gaiden really should be forced to play all the way through this game, before they are allowed to complain about game difficulty again.
    Edited by 2 at 20/08/07 @ 13:13

  • andreadst #36 5 years ago

    The MD version was hard as hell, granted, but it's definitely worth more than 3/10.
    The DC version was great and it still is by today standards (The first 2 levels are quite boring though, you have to stick through those...) and wasn't near as hard as its predecessors. There are some really imaginative levels in there, not to mention how beautiful they look...

  • SomaticSense #37 5 years ago

    It's a shame though that hadly any of the kids who are playing this for the first time will make it to Atlantis. I was looking forward to all the comments about that MASSIVE and almost impossible jump. I remember that one very well......

    edit: Do the cheats still work? If so, I might just give them a go purely so I can do a nostalgic tour through the game, minus the stress ;)
    Edited by 1 at 20/08/07 @ 13:21

  • weeno #38 5 years ago

    @ Krudster

    c'mon, I was a much younger and more patient gamer back then!
    Can't imagine I'd have the patience now though... but I still think a 3 is harsh.

  • SomaticSense #39 5 years ago

    I think I might do the same. Without the stress and unfairness, it really was an experience. Might be worth experiencing again. I have really fond memories of that pseudo level with the giant whales. Big Blue I think his name was.

    And yes, it was the third jump if I remember it rightly. A proper bastard. City of Forever think it was called.
    Edited by 1 at 20/08/07 @ 13:47

  • Eraysor #40 5 years ago

    I love this game.

  • krudster #41 5 years ago

    Given that you can't cheat on this version, I can't see how you can apply that logic to this review. You constantly run out of air, die easily, get sent back to the start despite decent progress...

    With all that in mind, 3 is positively generous :)

    I can quite imagine that with infinite air and health this could be reasonably good fun, but sadly those options aren't available to you, so....

  • the_sas_man #42 5 years ago

    when is Speedball released?

  • Stoatboy #43 5 years ago

    I'd recommend Death Worm instead. Ecco-like controls with the added bonus of actually being fun to play. You play as a Tremors style sand worm and have to scoff as many meaty animals and people as possible, whilst avoiding the ever-escalating miltary and alien attempts to destroy you. It's ace.

    http://gm c.yoyogames.com/index.php?showt...

  • wopr-lower-case #44 5 years ago

    Scuba Dive on Spectrum > Ecco

  • jonnyreb #45 5 years ago

    This was cool back in the early 90's...when we didn't know better :/

  • jonnyreb #46 5 years ago

    "This was a game? I always thought it was an interactive screen saver"

    Best 'old game' quote ever.

    /Seriously

  • Lemming81 #47 5 years ago

    Dunno what all the moaning about is. It was a highly original game and -God forbid- hard.

    Are we that far into the cry-baby generation. Bummer. :(

  • Darren #48 5 years ago

    The first Ecco game I ever played was the gorgeous Defender of Time on the Dreamcast which was more of an experience than a game with beautiful visuals, gorgeous music and a totally serene atmosphre, it was certainly different back in its day.

    I didn't get to play the MD version of Ecco until a couple of years ago and I was shocked at how basic it was not to mention how confusing it was trying to work out what you had to do. Defender of Time was criticised for this too but it was perfect compared to this game. Somehow I can't help thinking the devs created the lovely graphics first and then tried to add the gameplay later but ran out of time before they had to release it...

  • Azazel #49 5 years ago

    @Lemming81: Yeah, there's hard and then there's 'No fun at all'.

    Ok, I'll admit that back in the day I did enjoy this quite a bit. But if you have to cheat to enjoy a game then that just tells you that they didn't get the design right to begin with.

  • krudster #50 5 years ago

    Frankly, Lemming81, I'm 34, I've played all the 'hard' games in the world, dating back to the start. This wasn't so much hard as just terrifyingly badly designed.

  • jonnyreb #51 5 years ago

    There comes a point when pretty games do not equal good games.

    I remember returning Ecco (back in those days it was tough returning games - especially in WHSmith) for Flashback, which I played for about 2 years.

    As opposed to Ecco which I gave up on after 2 hours.

    I enjoyed the 'cooooo, I'm on a dolphin, I can jump and leap and sing, woohooo'.

    Then after an hour I thought 'screw this, visual beauty DOES NOT = fun'

    /Exit stage

  • OnlyMe #52 5 years ago

    Ironically, Flashback looks even better.

  • MasterControlProgram #53 5 years ago

    I'd summarize it all with "once, games were made for men but were played by kids. Now, games are made for kids but are played by men".

    In my memories, the most frustrating of them all was called Titus the Fox.

    /that is, not counting a certain C64 game where a certain level was on purpose made unbeatable, because the programmer was lazy/not-paid/too-smart/whatever and did not code the following levels.
    Edited by 1 at 20/08/07 @ 19:43

  • SomaticSense #54 5 years ago

    I think levelling the term 'dated' at it is plain wrong. Yes, it's really unfairly hard, and bearing in mind you can't cheat on this one, deserves a 1 at the most.

    But honestly, bearing in mind there wasn't really a game like this before it, and certainly not since, it's hardly fair to call it dated. Fair enough, it's stupidly hard and the controls are shit, but they were always like that, regardles of when it came out. In fact, it felt exactly the same playing it now as it did back then, which can't even be said of the old Mario or Sonic games.

    Shit it may be, but dated it ain't. It's exactly the same as it was back then.

    @ Kristan re: no cheating:

    Fair enough then. But basically that means I won't be parting with the 400 points for the crabby (pun intended ;) ) 360 'update'. As long as the Wii VC one still allows cheats, then that's all I care about ;)

    edit: Did somebody mention Flashback? Now seriously, why the living fuck hasn't that been released on the VC or XBLA yet? Sod Halo 3, just give me Bioshock and Flashback HD this year and I'll be set :)
    Edited by 1 at 20/08/07 @ 19:57

  • Fatnick #55 5 years ago

    Ha! wimps. I clocked Ecco when I was 8...and that was in the days before help was simply a '[link url=http://www.gamefaqs.com']http://www.gamefaqs.com' [/link] away!

    Why do they insist on making kids games so stupidly easy these days?

  • Carrybagma #56 5 years ago

    I only got 'no apologies' - anyone get the other two?

    Mr. Krudster - do you decide these things by whatever you happen to have on at the time?

  • Skywise #57 5 years ago

    Come on Eurogamer, I know this game is not for everyone but 3 seems just far too harsh. The game is incredibly hard in the later levels and I wasn't able to complete this without cheats, although I could make level 8 without any.

    Apart from that it's a wonderful game with a very nice atmosphere. I can remember enjoying the puzzles a lot as well, especially the kick from figuring out their solutions.

    And for the lack of directions in this game, it's far better than the overdose of handholding that recent games have imo.

  • smelly #58 5 years ago

    "The game is incredibly hard in the later levels and I wasn't able to complete this without cheats, "


    And that makes it good?

  • Skywise #59 5 years ago

    @Smelly: the first 8 levels are all worth it :D

    This game is so different from all other games, even now. It's a shame that unique games like this get so slated by EG and it makes me reconsider all their past VC games that they dissed.

    I haven't replayed this yet since the MD days but I will post a review here as soon as I have :)
    Edited by 1 at 21/08/07 @ 00:51

  • OnlyMe #60 5 years ago

    Skywise: it's not right to give a game a high score just because it's unique though, is it? If it's shit, it's shit - and this is certainly shit. I had the pleasure of playing this game the very first time a couple of years ago, on a modded Xbox. And I asked myself, why did people like this game? Then I thought, oh, it's on Megadrive... cartridges were expensive, and people needed to defend their purchases. I understand that, if I had to dish out a lot of cash on dross like this, I'd desperately try to extract some fun from it too.

    Fortunately, I was an Amiga user, so I never needed to worry about stuff like that. We had the option to try the (full) game before we bought it.

  • w00t #61 5 years ago

    Bring on the Amiga vs Sega fanboy war!

  • Agent_Llama #62 5 years ago

    Can't really agree with 3/10 for this. As has already been said, Ecco always was rock-hard, and yes most of us used cheats to get to The Machine level at the end. But it's not *that* hard. With a bit of thinking you can work out what to do - it's no more cryptic than some of the utterly bizarre puzzles in say, Silent Hill, or the point-and-clicks where you try silly combinations of everything until something works. Some of us relished the challenge it presented.

    Plus, the soundtrack for Ecco was, and always has been, outstanding - one of the best in my opinion. It got the atmosphere nailed, and was very diffierent to that in other games.

    *fondly remembers finishing City of Forever level on MD, being whisked around in the time machine and going back to Pterandon Pond or whatever it was called*

  • Lutz #63 5 years ago

    .o/

    I too finished Ecco on the MD without cheats. Bloody hard end boss.
    Wasn't too tough up until then though AFAICR...

  • MuTaunt #64 5 years ago

    Had the MegaCD version of Ecco with the improved graphics and music. I remember enjoying it quite a bit even though it was stupidly hard. The Machine levels were ludicrously hard even with cheats on.

    Still 3/10 seems a bit harsh.

    Ecco 2 was the best of the Ecco games though IMHO.

  • smelly #65 5 years ago

    TBH The only ecco i ever played was on the dreamcast.. couldnt get along with it (draw distance wasnt far enough)

    .. wouldnt mind playing a modern day version.

    Perhaps a remake of the 3d one taking advantage of 360 power?

  • krudster #66 5 years ago

    Why do people keep mentioning "but it's ok with cheats". You *can't cheat* in this version, therefore it's unplayable and annoying.

  • Skywise #67 5 years ago

    @onlyme: Apart from being unique the game was great fun too, I just wanted to say that apart from the sequel and the CD version I haven't seen a better game yet of it's ilk. Just like the 2D Sonic and Streets of Rage games it amazingly hasn't been improved upon in it's own niche. Now try this with Tekken 1 :D
    Even in those days I only finished the games I liked, and Ecco was among them.
    Expensive games meant that you needed to be very sure that you'd like a game before you bought it. I always looked down a bit on the Amiga guys at that age, fun to hear that some of them had the same on the MD :)

    @smelly: I was too annoyed by the camera of the 3D version to persist for long, I got motion sickness of it :S

    @krudster: for mere mortals it's impossible to complete without the cheats, but it is possible to enjoy the best levels without them, even for one with average gaming abilities like me.
    Edited by 1 at 21/08/07 @ 22:30

  • reality_cheque #68 5 years ago

    Even using the skip-to-the-penultimate-level cheat I still never managed to finish this game. I used to absolutely hate it.

    And yet I still tried the demo. Curse you rose-tinted glasses!