Into the Echo is a New Upcoming Next-Gen Unreal Engine 5 MMORPG

So, here’s a title that has kinda.. flown under the radar. I haven’t heard anyone discussing it or covering it, even though it was just announced and confirmed to be an upcoming MMORPG built utilizing Unreal Engine 5. Yeah, not Unreal Engine 3 like Elyon, not Unreal Engine 4 like most current-gen MMOs, but Unreal Engine 5.
And I know what you’re all thinking. “How long will it be until the dev team ends up asking for money to aid in the “development” of the game because they ran out of funds?”
“How long will we need to wait before we’re even capable of participating in an Alpha or Beta test? Years?” and most importantly, “How much money will we invest into the game before it’s overrun with delays and vanishes from the public eye?”
All 100% valid questions. And you know what? I don’t have the answers to any of them. All I know is what was revealed in the trailer, and what is available via their website.

So, what exactly is “Into the Echo?” According to their website, it’s a “massively multiplayer time travel odyssey.”
The game takes place on the planet Raava and will feature a narrative that propels you through time. “Polish your skills, hone your craft and prepare yourself for the journey into the echoes of the past to uncover the mysteries of planet Raava.”
Interestingly, they note that you’re capable of “mastering a craft,” confirming crafting professions will be present, you’ll be able to “become a legendary code-breaker,” alluding to a much more complex selection of content to consume, and there will be options to engage enemies in combat, however they have yet to elaborate on the type of combat that will be present within the game.

Now a trailer for the MMO was released on September 14th 2021, and… well, I say trailer, but even the term “teaser” would be generous here.
All we were shown in the trailer was a very small glimpse of a single shot – with a female avatar walking – quite.. humorously, I might add – and perhaps even a little tipsy, like she’d had a loooong night out and really wanted to get back to her car but forgot where she left it and instead opted to walk into the giant glowy circle in the middle of the garden.

Seriously, take a moment and tell me that isn’t exactly how it looked.

And then we got a… logo. I’m not entirely certain if that was supposed to hype us up for the game or generate some kind of excitement, but to me, it felt as though someone said “We need a trailer, quick!” And someone quickly recorded a basic model walking in a straight line and called it a day.
Into the Echo is an ambitious new MMORPG. Their goal isn’t to build on what is already present within the genre. Rather, to build an entirely new universe with – in their words – “a beautiful and dynamic virtual universe that you would actually want to live in, with events that will transcend platforms and media channels, where you feel a sense of purpose and individuality that makes you want to cherish it and feel the need to protect it.”
Those are some lofty goals that I honestly think any development studio would crumble underneath. But just because it might be difficult for studios to develop something new and exciting, doesn’t mean that it isn’t within the realm of possibility.

I’m… on the fence about this. We’ve heard the same idealistic promises time and time again. “This time’ll be different, though!” Yeah, that’s always a possibility, for sure, but how likely is it really?
They even state, at the end of their blog post, “It has been a lofty goal, but it is best to shoot for the stars.” I’m gonna be real with you though, setting the bar as high as it will go.. when you have no success within the genre at all is one of the worst things you can do.
Imagine trying to deadlift a 500lb barbell with no type of athletic history whatsoever.

But maybe that’s just me being skeptical. I’m not hating on the game, but at the same time I can’t say I’m really very excited for it either. It has some great ideas, but then again, so did a lot of failed games in the past.
And given we don’t even have a full trailer to gauge how the game will look… let alone a schedule for a release – given that this is an Unreal Engine 5 MMO it likely won’t be here until the latter half of the 2020s, I wouldn’t get my hypes up too high.
But instead, remain cautiously optimistic.

One thing worth noting, however, is that pre-registration for their first Pre-Alpha is currently open. If you’re interested in taking a look at the game in its current form, simply click the button below to be taken directly to the pre-registration page!