Esoteric Ebb Reviews
What begins as a Disco Elysium imitation quickly grows into an exciting and compelling RPG experience that stands firmly on its own.
Christoffer Bodegård has made an excellent game in Esoteric Ebb, especially for a fantasy RPG and D&D fan like me. Even if you don’t know about D&D, it’s easy to get into. With a rich world to explore and an intriguing story, there is plenty to do, plus numerous interesting side quests. The satirical humour and colourful characters throughout provide a very fun fantasy world. With many hours of gameplay, the stunning graphics and attention to detail will keep you engaged, partnered with a solid soundtrack. Amazingly, this is Christoffer Bodegård’s debut game, and I’m beyond excited to see what they develop next. I’m thrilled to give Esoteric Ebb the Thumb Culture Platinum Thumbs Up! I previously reviewed Knights in Tight Spaces, a similar isometric fantasy RPG, so feel free to check that out too.
Esoteric Ebb will delight those who love fantastical tabletop adventures but have been craving a single-player experience, especially if you are remotely into medieval stuff, silly stuff, political stuff, and/or male identity stuff. I am not alone in thinking that it's one of the best successors to Disco Elysium, a game I very much loved. There's strong potential for Esoteric Ebb to get a sequel, or even some DLC, and I'll be lining up to try it. I think Esoteric Ebb is an excellent example of the CRPG genre, though it is pretty deep into its systems and those who are new to this style or don't enjoy it will be hard-pressed to click with it. But if you do love a TTRPG, you're gonna love it. I'm confident that, at the end of the year, I'll be putting it on my list of best indie games.
For those who appreciate dense narrative games and experiences that emphasize character role-playing, Esoteric Ebb offers one of the most interesting proposals in the genre in recent years.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Esoteric Ebb succeeds because it embraces its inspirations with confidence and reverence. It borrows the philosophical backbone of Planescape: Torment and the introspective depth of Disco Elysium, then reshapes those ideas into something playful, political, and unmistakably its own. This “thinking person’s RPG” will surely find a spot in our Best of 2026 list.
A highly competent CRPG in its writing, freedom, and artistic style, delivering a relatively dense load of politically and socially relevant dialogue, but which, for better or worse, clings too much to its original inspirations.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Esoteric Ebb is an unexpected delight that pairs elements of D&D campaigns with Disco Elysium, which turns out to be a perfect fit.
Esoteric Ebb, then, arrives as something that feels new when everyone is chasing games-as-a-service mandatory-multiplayer only: a single-player, well-written, extremely fun game that is about screwing around and enjoying the game rather than unlocking lootboxes, progressing through the season, or paying for content. Sit back, relax, and listen to what the voices in your head are telling you.
Esoteric Ebb quickly became a favorite game. Its sharp wit, outlandish characters, and endless Cleric choices are magnetic. Early on, I knew it stood out—what’s not to love about a game where fleeing from a goblin queen is on the table, even if I fail spectacularly?
Esoteric Ebb shows that the spirit of Disco-likes can be done in a way that is incredibly potent and resonant with the player in the same way the original game was. It is a game that will inevitably stick with me as the months go on, and although 2026 is far from over, I believe you'll be hard-pressed to find anything else with this level of high quality writing this year. Games such as this come very rarely and they need to be harbored for how special they are as narrative experiences.
Esoteric Ebb is one of the few games that manages to combine tabletop role-playing, story-driven CRPG mechanics, and player choice into a single, enjoyable experience.
While Esoteric Ebb certainly doesn’t try to avoid the direct comparisons to Disco Elysium’s style, it manages to stand out through its original setting and entertaining set of mysteries. The ingrained usage of skill checks to help guide conversations and what the game reveals to players helps keep them engaged, with plenty of highly enjoyable quests and interactions to be had all the way through.
Esoteric Ebb is the Disco Elysium that D&D fans wanted, and much more. If you're into fantasy, humor, or just a good story, you'll find that in spades here.
Where Esoteric Ebb feels new and fresh is in its approach to the fantasy genre.
This is a unique, clever RPG that dares to choose well-written dialogue over action-packed spectacle.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
Esoteric Ebb may borrow heavily from some of the greatest games in its genre, but it takes what it borrows and shapes it, creating something that still feels unique and fresh in its own right.
An impressive and highly unique RPG, as well as the most comprehensive "Disco Elysium Clone" we have seen to date.
Labeling yourself as a Disco-like is a bold move and following the blueprint this closely is even bolder, as this will surely draw comparisons to what many consider to be one of the greatest CRPG’s of all time. Luckily, Esoteric Ebb can withstand the scrutiny and pressure of the comparison because it’s not a carbon copy and there is a clear line of distinction between the two experiences. It might be a little inconsistent and clunky at times, but with a high level of autonomy, witty writing and satirical tone that balances the heavy themes within, Esoteric Ebb is a dungeon worth plundering.
Esoteric Ebb is incredible. Saturated with fantastic writing and memorable characters, its systems blend CRPG and TTRPG in clever ways.
The Disco Elysium-esque gameplay of Esoteric Ebb provides a blank canvas for a colorful 2D graphic style that feels a bit like an interactive comic and often creates an interesting balancing act between style and content. I have very little bad to say about Esoteric Ebb. The only thing I still find difficult even after many hours of gameplay is navigating the different areas and moving from one to another as well as the questing tree, which is a bit rough in use while looking gorgeous. But those are really just minor things. Recommending such a story-driven game without spoilers is always somewhat impossible though. So to put it simply: the Visuals are awesome, the music is great and the story abolutely wild. Esoteric Ebb is really good. Trust me.
Review in German | Read full review