It’s almost 9 years since the last Lords of the Fallen (28.10.2014) saw the light of day. I played it back in the day and I it was…not very good. But I have to give it to them for trying to take on From Software and the mighty Dark Souls.
It’s 2023 and here they are again. Same publisher, with a new developer and a new Lords of the Fallen. With the same name taking a another stab at a game using the “souls formula”.
Been watching this a while, but after their last game I had my reservations…
This time Lords of the Fallen is made with Unreal Engine 5 and damned, it looks good. The art style is right up there and even above the Souls games. After playing it a good chunk, the game looks way better than all the Souls games (no shit, the last one was 2016) and even the mighty Elden Ring (2022).
GRAPHICS:
As mentioned, it looks really really good. They nailed the look and feel this time around.
There is a character creator which works I guess , it could have been better in some sections, but hey, you will cover your character with fancy armor from the start so it’s not that important.
GAMEPLAY:
You play two worlds at the same time. Axiom (living world) and Umbral (world of the dead). The latter one you can access in two ways, with your trusty lamp you can shine a peek and jump in or if you die. When you die you’ll get a chance to return to Axiom. When I saw this pre-launch I have to say I was very sceptic. Gladly it works and really ad another level to your gameplay.
The game ran smooth in all my time with it, not a single crash. (Played on PC)
I almost forgot I was not playing Dark Souls 3.5 and I find my self enjoying the same “good grind” feel of the Souls games.
I wish there was a real dedicated jump button, but you can jump while sprinting.
CONTROL:
The most important thing in a game like this. In all games to be honest. Here I was even more sceptic because of the 2014 game, but also here I was pleasantly surprised. The speed and responsene from the controls are a step up in souls games. I went back to Dark Souls 3 and it is confirmed 🙂
There are some issues though…
The target locking system are a little to “aggressive” and to save you some deaths, turn of the auto-target system.
Your character also lunges a little too far when attacking which is painful in tight places, but you’ll get used to pretty quick. Keep this in mind when you do some climbing on platforms!
This aside, it plays really well.
LAST WORDS:
I’ve seen some reviews of the game and someone did manage to give it 2 out of 5 stars, another 5/10. I’m not sure which game they have been playing. Maybe they had a particularly bad day, lack of love in their life or some of the devs have said something politically incorrect 10 years ago.
I bet if the game was PS5 only or had From Software printed on the cover it would be 5/5 and 10/10 ;P
Some has also reported bad performance. As mentioned I had no problems running it at all.
The developers have been patching the game at least 5 times since launch 13. October, not bad.
And of course there is the fact that it’s way to similar to the Dark Souls series… But you know what? That’s a good thing. More companies should pay attention. Lords of the Fallen has earned it’s place among the souls. And no microtransactions, stupid in game shop and maps with more markers than land.
This game is a solid 8 out of 10, if I where to put a number to it. I have and still enjoy this one a lot and looking forward to spend more time in Mournstead.
So…do I give a flying fuck about Lords of the Fallen?
YES!
If you like Dark Souls, Bloodborne and Elden Ring you will love this one.
https://lordsofthefallen.com
RELEASE DATE:
13 Oct, 2023
DEVELOPER:
HEXWORKS
PUBLISHER:
CI Games
