General Gaming Lords of the Fallen (PC/Xbox Series/PS5) - "Master of Fate" (Version 1.5 Update) trailer

[Pikachu]

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

Lords of the Fallen: A Breakdown of the Three Schools of Magic | IGN First - IGN

WWW.IGN.COM

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A breakdown of the three schools of magic in Lords of the Fallen: Rhogar, Radiant, and Umbral.

 

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Over the course of our month long coverage of Lords of the Fallen, we’ve dived deep into the Umbral/Axiom dual realm mechanic, went over some vital combat tips, and talked about the ways in which the developers at Hexworks are aiming to innovate upon the standard Soulslike formula. But one important element that we’ve only briefly touched upon has been the magic system of the game. And so, let’s correct that oversight and breakdown how magic works in Lords of the Fallen.

 

 

 

In this new Lords of the Fallen, there are three schools of magic, each tied to one of the three warring Gods at the heart of the story. There’s Rhogar, which is the magic of the god of Chaos Adyr; Radiant, the holy magic of the god Orius; and Umbral, the magic of the goddess that rules the Umbral realm. Each school of magic has their own unique type of catalyst that you’ll need to equip in order to wield it, but you’re free to specialize in whichever you want. Of course, that choice largely will come down to your own stats and what kind of build you’re aiming for.

 

There are two core magic stats when it comes to magic scaling. Infernal is what players will want to sink points into if they want to specialize in Rhogar pyromancy, and Radiance is the stat for Radiant magic. Interestingly, Umbral magic actually scales with both of them, so you’ll have to make that choice of whether you want to go full Pyromancy, full Radiance, or double dip into both so that you can go big on Umbral magic.

 

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

Lords of the Fallen: 8 Combat Tips from the Developers – IGN First - IGN

WWW.IGN.COM

 

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Lords of the Fallen is not designed to be a walk in the park. This is a game meant to teach you lessons the hard way: by killing you repeatedly until you learn how to best deal with the obstacle that’s being put in your way. Fortunately, the developers at Hexworks didn’t want to leave people completely in the dark, and thus were kind enough to share these eight combat tips to help you survive the realms of Axiom and Umbral.

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Meet the Enemies of Lords of the Fallen - IGN

WWW.IGN.COM

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Hexworks breaks down just a handful of the fearsome enemies you'll be facing off against in both Axiom and Umbral realms in the upcoming Lords of the Fallen.

 

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One of the key elements of any good soulslike is good enemy design. Imagine Demon's Souls without the Mind Flayers, Bloodborne without the vicious werewolves that roam the streets of Yhanam, Dark Souls without those wheel skeletons... I actually I did imagine that last one, and that actually sounds kind of nice. The point is, imposing beasties and nasties are at the heart of this genre, and Lords of the Fallen is full of horrific denizes that reside in both Axiom and Umbral. Wanna see? Look no further than down below as we break down a handful of enemies that you'll be facing up against in Lords of the Fallen.

 

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

[Remarkableriots]

It looks great and I like that it continues from the original.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

[Bacon]

3 hours ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

 

Gotta say, that doesn't look good to me. Big DS2 vibes from movement and combat.

[eventide11]

5 hours ago, Bacon said:

Gotta say, that doesn't look good to me. Big DS2 vibes from movement and combat.

I'm not getting that impression at all. DS2 looked and played clunky, not nearly as smooth as DS1, DS3, Bloodborne, Elden Ring but this looks pretty damn close to a next Gen Fromsoft Souls Team title

[Bacon]

Just now, eventide11 said:

but this looks pretty damn close to a next Gen Fromsoft Souls Team title

disagree big time

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

A few more gameplay videos:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[eventide11]

On 10/6/2023 at 7:58 PM, Bacon said:

disagree big time

No problem with that. But from someone that put 600+ hrs in DS2 and multiple class playthroughs it doesn't give me that vibe at all

[skillzdadirecta]

On 10/6/2023 at 4:56 PM, eventide11 said:

I'm not getting that impression at all. DS2 looked and played clunky, not nearly as smooth as DS1, DS3, Bloodborne, Elden Ring but this looks pretty damn close to a next Gen Fromsoft Souls Team title

I agree.

[Bacon]

The way the character slides across the ground is very unappealing.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

[skillzdadirecta]

42 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

 

Great video... looking forward to finally playing this.

[nublood]

On 10/6/2023 at 6:56 PM, eventide11 said:

I'm not getting that impression at all. DS2 looked and played clunky, not nearly as smooth as DS1, DS3, Bloodborne, Elden Ring but this looks pretty damn close to a next Gen Fromsoft Souls Team title

Yep. And some of what I've seen looks on par or better than the Demon Souls remake. Definitely looks like a true next gen title.

[best3444]

I will eat my words if this gets great reviews. I'm still skeptical. 

[Bacon]

Feelin' pretty smug atm. Wonderin' how I'll feel as the day goes on.

[Pikachu]

Lords of the Fallen (2023) Reviews

OPENCRITIC.COM

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Lords of the Fallen (2023) is rated 'Fair' after being reviewed by 20 critics, with an overall average score of 71. It's ranked in the bottom 48% of games and recommended by 67% of critics.

[Firewithin]

Looks like a good $15 sale game in a few months

[best3444]

I knew it wouldn't be good. 

[Mr.Vic20]

It sounds like they can patch some of the difficulty imbalance though, so this one might be "easily" salvageable. 

[Bacon]

5 minutes ago, best3444 said:

I knew it wouldn't be good. 

I doubt it will be bad, but that "this looks pretty damn close to a next Gen Fromsoft Souls Team title" comment was an insane take. Especially when ER looks better.

 

Lies of P blows this crap out of the water.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Game Information

Game Title: Lords of the Fallen (2023)

 

Platforms:

• Xbox Series X/S (Oct 13, 2023)
• PlayStation 5 (Oct 13, 2023)
• PC (Oct 13, 2023)

 

Developer: Hexworks
Publisher: CI Games

 

Review Aggregator:
OpenCritic - 73 average - 58% recommended

 

Critic Reviews

Spoiler

AltChar - Semir Omerovic - 95 / 100

Lords of the Fallen stands as a genuine ode to the souls-like genre, a shining masterpiece that deserves recognition as one of the finest action RPGs in recent years.

PC Invasion - Aidan Lambourne - 10 / 10

Lords of the Fallen sets a new benchmark for all Soulslikes out there. It masters what we love about the genre, and adds to it in many ways. It won't get better than this for a while.

XboxEra - Jesse Norris - 9.4 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is a stunningly good game.  Following a path set for it by Dark Souls 3 it nails every major part of what makes From’s games so damned good.  Stunning visually, the art style and music are some of my favorites.  While the very end does get too “big” for its gameplay this one is an easy recommendation to both the most hardcore Souls lovers and those who feel intimidated.  Seamless co-op takes what is a great game and makes it a special one.

Attack of the Fanboy - Christian Bognar - 4.5 / 5

Most of what fans of Soulslikes want are at the maximum: masterclass-level design, unforgettable bosses, and extensive freedom toward build creation. The combat can feel rough at times, and there are way too many enemies in certain levels, but these downfalls don't negate the fact that Lords of the Fallen reaches for a spot in the highest tier among the genre's greats and finds itself right at home.

GameSpew - Richard Seagrave - 9 / 10

With its stunning visuals and unique mechanics, Lords of the Fallen has quickly become one of our favourite Soulslikes. Its setting may be derivative, but it’s so well realised that you likely won’t care, especially when you’re switching between the worlds of the living and the dead, each with their own monstrosities to deal with and treasures to find. Hexworks has created something that genuinely feels like a successor to Dark Souls, leveraging the power of next-gen to push the genre forward. And so, put the mediocrity of the original Lords of the Fallen out of your mind: this may have the same name, but it stands head and shoulders above its predecessor in every single way.

Shacknews - TJ Denzer - 9 / 10

As unfairly challenging as I could find Lords of the Fallen to be, I also appreciated its creativity. The Umbral world and mechanics surrounding it made for an extremely compelling and risky adventure where I often rode the line between safety and death. I feel like the game could have done better at making the threat of Umbral more than escalation of foes up to an unkillable pursuer that could one-shot me, but I can’t deny I was tickled by the possibilities and always curious of what was on the other side. Mix its intertwined-worlds mechanics into good melee, magic, and archery in a beautiful gothic setting and 2023’s Lords of the Fallen feels like something I’ll more than remember for what it did right and how it set itself apart. The duality of this game’s settings is both dastardly and dazzling.

Use a Potion - 9 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is an impressive release that trumps the original in every way, all whilst introducing some splendid mechanics that help it stand out in the crowded Souls-like genre. The parallel worlds idea is really, REALLY cool, whilst simply exploring the land of Mournstead is always satisfying thanks to its wonderful environmental design and sense of unpredictability across both Axiom and Umbral. It gets all of the basics right too, with combat slick and varied throughout and each epic boss encounter putting your skills to the test.

Whilst I’ll admit there were some areas which lacked the polish for it to fully match up to the likes of Elden Ring, Lords of the Fallen is still a very good game. The difficulty spikes can be a little bit unfair in places, especially when the game overwhelms you with a high enemy count, but it doesn’t stop Lords of the Fallen from being another Souls-like release that REALLY deserves your attention.

Windows Central - Brendan Lowry - 4.5 / 5

After nearly a decade since the launch of the original Lords of the Fallen, CI Games and HexWorks deliver a reboot that exceeds all expectations. With responsive, precise, and challenging combat, innovative twists, stellar grimdark presentation, and more, it's one of the best Soulslikes I've ever played.

Fextralife - Fexelea - 8.8 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is an amazing achievement from the Hexworks team, and Souls-like fans will immediately feel at home in this highly ambitious title. Despite a few performance issues, and a handful of bugs, Lords of the Fallen is some of the most fun I've had this year, and that's saying something considering the titles that have launched in 2023.

Gamersky - 心灵奇兵 - Chinese - 8.5 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is probably the closest game to the Dark Souls series. Its unique world-switching mechanic, resurrection upon death, and bonfire-building features show the development team's deep understanding of Souls game design.

Generación Xbox - Pedro del Pozo - Spanish - 85 / 100

Possibly, we are facing the closest soulslike and almost equal to the Dark Souls saga itself. It has absolutely everything a fan of the franchise could want from this type of game: It is difficult, challenging, but not impossible or unfair, it has many possibilities to approach the adventure, and technically accompanies both sight and ear. Perhaps the story does not become so transcendental, because it is one that we have already seen more than once, but we must not detract from it, because the design of the characters is impressive in many cases, something that also happens with the more than 30 bosses that are in the game, each with its own mechanics, phases and aesthetics.

Seasoned Gaming - Zach Bateman - 8.5 / 10

CI Games and HEXWORKS have realized their potential by creating one of the greatest souls-likes I’ve had the pleasure of getting lost in.

The Nerd Stash - Patrick Armstrong - 8.5 / 10

Lords of the Fallen ranks amongst the best Soulslikes!

3DNews - Денис Щенников - Russian - 8 / 10

You can show Lords of the Fallen to someone and say that it is Dark Souls 4 has leaked. Chances that people will believe are pretty high. But this build is not so polished as you would hope.

But Why Tho? - Eddie De Santiago - 8 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is a massive improvement over its namesake prequel, and it provides many highs, but there are definitely some lows as well. For the masochist action RPG fan, though, there’s plenty to love, and it’s all going to hurt.

CGMagazine - Philip Watson - 8 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is a solid entry in the Soulslike genre, and deviates from the recipe enough to craft its own identity.

God is a Geek - Mick Fraser - 8 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is an enjoyable, challenging game, and the aesthetics are out of this world, but it suffers at times from a lack of focus.

Hobby Consolas - Álvaro Alonso - Spanish - 80 / 100

Despite its many problems, Lords of the Fallen has managed to conquer us by combining the soulslike of always with a mechanic as novel and interesting as the jump between worlds. If they correct their failures, we could be facing one of the great surprises of 2023 and one of the best soulslike of recent years.

IGN - Travis Northup - 8 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is an awesome soulslike with a fantastic dual-realities premise, even when performance shortcomings and wimpy bosses crash the party.

IGN Spain - Alejandro Morillas - Spanish - 8 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is one of the most interesting souls-like games of recent years, providing new ways to face exploration in the genre, as well as a superb artistic section. Even with its irregular technical section and its roughness at the gameplay level, it is a highly recommended game.

INVEN - Kyuman Kim - Korean - 8 / 10

Returning as a reboot after nine years, 'Lord of the Fallen' successfully carves its unique niche on the solid foundation that is familiar for those fans of Souls-like genre. Some elements, such as unseparated multiplayer even after death are even better! However the lackluster impact of combat and rather frequent system clashes left a big room for improvement. Luckily, the developer is eager to make the game better with patches before release so, we'll see.

PSX Brasil - Portuguese - 80 / 100

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RPG Site - Junior Miyai - 8 / 10

Lords of the Fallen has a well-crafted world, interesting stories, cool bosses, and plenty of player customization on offer. However, a frustrating dual-world mechanic holds back this RPG from achieving excellence.

Screen Rant - Jacob Zeranko - 4 / 5

Taking all of this into account, it's still safe to recommend Lords of the Fallen to anyone remotely interested in this genre, be it veterans or those looking for an entry point. When it comes to Soulslikes, this release is very accessible to new players to the genre and offers more than a good challenge to those with more experience. While it still has plenty of fine-tuning ahead, Lords of the Fallen is a worthy reboot of its predecessor that offers something new and lays a strong foundation for future adventures in Mournstead and beyond.

Slant Magazine - Aaron Riccio - 4 / 5

Umbral is a beautiful dark twisted fantasy, and then there’s all of Axiom to explore as well. The developers have made the most of these realms, layering distinct challenges atop one another. And the result is the best of both worlds: Axiom’s dense, gothic world (and its interconnected twin in Umbral) and a second life with which to better appreciate the masocore combat.

The Outerhaven Productions - Keith Mitchell - 4 / 5

Lords of the Fallen (2023) is finally here, despite a challenging development cycle, and it's a way better game than the original title. Everything that I had issues with the 2014 game has been addressed, and then some. Combat is fun, the world is beautiful, and I can't get enough of the unique way we can visit the world of the dead using a lamp. It really bugs me that the game on the PC has some slight performance issues that hold it back, and that's a shame. Still, Lords of the Fallen (2023) is a great Soulslike that fans of the genre need to play, despite a few flaws with the game.

VideoGamer - Finlay Cattanach - 8 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is a game that wears its passion and love of the genre on its sleeve. A gorgeous world, gripping gameplay, enthralling bosses, and depthless worldbuilding persist in spite of some rough edges and a struggling sense of unique identity.

We Got This Covered - David Morgan - 4 / 5

Lords of the Fallen copies Dark Souls so thoroughly it feels like game design plagiarism but, astonishingly, it's indeed worthy of being mentioned in the same sentence as FromSoftware's brutal dark fantasy classics. Anyone who's survived Lordran, Drangleic and Lothric will find a lot to love here.

WellPlayed - Nathan Hennessy - 8 / 10

Lords of The Fallen makes up for its clumsy combat and opaque systems with the fantastic Umbral lamp and its impressive audiovisual design.

PC Gamer - Harvey Randall - 79 / 100

Some of the best boss fights in the genre's recent history, riddled with difficulty spikes in all the wrong places.

COGconnected - Mark Steighner - 77 / 100

With incredible art design, challenging action, and a very innovative, dual-world mechanic, Lords of the Fallen is probably a must-play for fans of Soulslikes. But it’s hard to ignore the game’s issues, too, from sometimes unrefined movement and clunky combat to its many technical hiccups. While these can be frustrating or worse, ultimately the game’s ambition and dark fantasy vision are at least as compelling as its flaws.

Cerealkillerz - Nick Erlenhof - German - 7.7 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is a really ambitious Souls-like game. It's one of the few that brings great innovation to the table, but it forgets to keep the technology together and to alternate bosses and enemies in addition to the oppulent visuals. Fans of the genre should therefore give the game a few more patches, then you should have quite a fun time in Mournestead.

Video Chums - A.J. Maciejewski - 7.7 / 10

There's a lot to enjoy in Lords of the Fallen, especially with its phenomenal dual-world reality that adds a layer to exploration. Slaying bosses and trekking ahead may not always be a delight but what's here is still very good nonetheless.

Everyeye.it - Riccardo Cantù   - Italian - 7.5 / 10

Ultimately, this new incarnation of Lords of the Fallen was only partially able to convince us.

GamingTrend - Abdul Saad - 75 / 100

While not without its issues, Lords of the Fallen is an entertaining game with many great action RPG elements and challenging but satisfying gameplay.

Multiplayer First - Paulmichael Contreras - 7.5 / 10

Just like the original that preceded it, Lords of the Fallen is a solid Soulslike game, which relies on a familiar game loop of dying repeatedly, learning from your mistakes along the way, while finding a nice track of enemies to slaughter endlessly as you slowly grind your character’s level up to meet the challenge, or for those more inclined to not cheese things, then memorizing enemy attack patterns as you fight and claw your way to victory. The Umbral mechanic has brought something new to the table, but it’s a shame visits to the other side are limited. Hexworks set a high bar for themselves, and while they didn’t quite reach the heights they were going for, they should be commended for what they have accomplished.

PlayStation Universe - Garri Bagdasarov - 7.5 / 10

Lords of the Fallen does a lot of things right. Its exploration is its strongest point, and jumping from the human and Umbra realms provides unique enemy encounters and secrets. However, while its combat could have been great, it's ultimately marred by poor hitbox detection and a lock-on camera that will get you killed more than it will save you. There is just something about the world that kept me coming back for more. Whether it was the exploration, the great monster and character designs, or the world itself. Lords of the Fallen is a great return to the dark gothic style of these highly difficult titles.

Spaziogames - Domenico Musicò - Italian - 7.5 / 10

Lords of the Fallen fails to meet every expectation and its own ambitions. With many technical flaws and some gameplay issues, CI Games and HexWorks reboot is very far from top notch soulslike games.

The Games Machine - Marco Bortoluzzi - Italian - 7.5 / 10

While Lords of the Fallen has a good foundation, what is built upon it often leaves a sour taste, and not all of it can be boiled down to personal preference. Poor optimization, wonky hitboxes, poor enemy variety and a frustrating lock system are only some of the issues we encountered. This is the kind of game that could become great, but it needs patches and updates to get there.

Tom's Hardware Italia - Andrea Maiellano - Italian - 7.5 / 10

Everything works and is fun, the ideas are many, and very interesting, and the general feeling is to find oneself in front of a work done with passion. However, slips on that banana peel called "experience." We would have preferred to be confronted with a Souls-like that was more refined in its foundations and capable of introducing a couple of thick innovations, as opposed to playing a title that errs on the side of presumptuousness in terms of copying FromSoftware's work, causing the many, perhaps too many, ideas it puts forth to falter.

Capsule Computers - Admir Brkic - 7 / 10

Great visuals, and impressive voice acting but the combat could use way more improvements for Lords of the Fallen to be considered above average soulslike game.

Daily Star - Tom Hutchison - 3.5 / 5

It looks medieval, dark, like a bloody horror film and it plays tough.

GAMES.CH - Benjamin Braun - German - 70%

If CI Games should solve the performance issues on PS5, Lords of the Fallen is nothing less than one of the best Soulslike games so far. The game might be very similar in some of its basics, but cleverly makes use of its dual-layered game world that makes Lords of the Fallen stand out from the often trite Dark Souls clones.

GGRecon - Morgan Truder - 3.5 / 5

Lords of the Fallen has a lot to offer but is largely held back by technical issues throughout, and the further I progressed through the game, the more striking these problems became, escalating from a few dips in framerate to hard crashes and glaring pop-in.

Gamer Guides - Chris Moyse - 7 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is a solid, if conventional Soulslike, offering imposing adventure while never quite breaking new ground. Though a litany of performance woes currently hinders the experience, expansive realms, gloomy lore, and a bloody, heavy-handed challenge await the more sadistic corners of the game-playing audience.

GamesRadar+ - Joel Franey - 3.5 / 5

Lords of the Fallen just about justifies the return of this forgotten franchise by being basically fine. It has a few clever ideas and a whole bunch of very predictable ones, ultimately resulting in a soulslike experience that won't feel particularly new or fresh, but rarely offends or goes too far wrong.

Hardcore Gamer - Jordan Helm - 3.5 / 5

A far more confident and competent iteration of the Souls template than what came before, Lords of the Fallen's all-round impressive design is marred by occasional technical issues and all-too-frequent questions on its very philosophy around challenge.

Hey Poor Player - Shane Boyle - 3.5 / 5

Engaging combat, brilliant boss fights, and top-notch level design that is amplified further by the creative dual-world mechanics introduced by Umbral, all coalesce into a version of Lords of the Fallen that not only leaves its predecessor in the dust but moves the genre forward in meaningful ways. That being said, it’s difficult to ignore the lackluster performance that significantly impacts upon the experience of the opening few hours, resulting in Lords of the Fallen not being the absolute recommendation that it should be, so here’s hoping Hexworks are hard at work on further optimization updates that brings performance to a level worthy of the rest of the package.

MonsterVine - Sean Halliday - 3.5 / 5

Lords of the Fallen is a solid and enjoyable task but rarely goes beyond good, instead, it titters on the edge of being special. Great looking, but ultimately too safe and lacking a real bite, Lords of the Fallen may not push the genre in any real direction, but it’s a worthy addition.

Push Square - Aaron Bayne - 7 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is an exciting kind of Sous-like. Whereas many others aim to perfect the formula, Lords of the Fallen's goal is to innovate. It certainly has its own array of problems, like lacking audio, repetitive enemy types, and combat that could be tightened up a little. However, when the game sinks its claws into you with its thrilling dual world mechanic, you won't be able to get enough of it.

The Game Crater - Chris Melnyk - 7 / 10

Lords of The Fallen is another soul genre entry that offers seamless co-op between players, a unique dual-world mechanic, a gorgeous art style and a gripping story. Unfortunately, the bugs and performance issues and over-reliance on familiar souls tropes bring it down, making it struggle to stand out in the overcrowded soulslike genre.

Xbox Achievements - Josh Wise - 70%

Lords of the Fallen is enough to tide you over until the next Soulslike, and it has some arresting sights, but it lacks a focus of its own.

Wccftech - Francesco De Meo - 6.8 / 10

Lords of the Fallen boasts impressive visuals and an interesting story for a soulslike, but unfortunately, that's where the praise ends.

Prima Games - Patrick Souza - 6.5 / 10

You might want to give it a shot after it receives some patches and gets a more stable release since there’s a lot of untapped potential here. But for now, the Umbral realm is still too uncanny to explore.

ZTGD - Jae Lee - 6.5 / 10

Lords of the Fallen is a marked improvement over the original and the mechanic of traversing between two realms makes it feel unique among its contemporaries. If not for a handful of questionable design choices and an overall lack of polish, this could have been something special.

Destructoid - Steven Mills - 6 / 10

When the FPS isn’t dipping, and bosses aren’t cheesing you every step of the way, LotF feels good. But with myriad performance issues, broken multiplayer, and boss fights that increase difficulty through unfair mechanics as opposed to well-developed ones, it really weighs down on the experience.

Digitally Downloaded - Matt Sainsbury - 3 / 5

I am quite sure that some people will absolutely love the intensity of the horror and dark fantasy that infuses Lords of the Fallen. As cartoonishly silly as it comes across by trying so hard, it is technically impressive. Similarly, the game is perfectly solid mechanically, and while it does have some issues with pacing and the design of some boss battles, it is, for the most part, very playable. I had more fun with this than I think it deserved, and while I’m not sure whether I was laughing with it or at it most of the time, I was definitely laughing and having fun with it. Who knows? Perhaps satirising the self-seriousness of dark fantasy was the entire creative point and if so, bravo developers, you nailed it.

Game Informer - Wesley LeBlanc - 6 / 10

Despite a solid gameplay foundation, stunning world, and unique two-realm mechanic, by the time I reached credits after 48 hours, I was overjoyed to be done.

Game Rant - Adrian Morales - 3 / 5

In its current state, however, Lords of the Fallen proves that Hexworks still has a bit to go before it learns the same lessons that many souls-like developers have in terms of quality-of-life adjustments and making sure that it strikes the right balance between challenge and frustration. Right now, it seems like Lords of the Fallen is taking the worst elements of every souls-like game and making those elements its main catalyst for difficulty, which is a bummer because everything else is so good. For the souls-like hardcore, Lords of the Fallen will be a fine conquest, but for the souls-like beginner, there are better entry points to the genre that offer a more well-rounded exploration into what souls-likes are capable of.

Press Start - Harry Kalogirou - 6 / 10

While this iteration of Lords of the Fallen sheds many of the flaws that plagued its predecessor, it also brings its own baggage. Excellent systems related to the dual realms of Axiom and Umbral alongside fantastic art direction are held back by middling combat and uneventful boss encounters. There are some definite highlights in Lords of the Fallen, but it struggles in the areas that matter most.

TechRaptor - Joe Allen - 6 / 10

Lords of the Fallen's shameless copy-paste approach to Dark Souls undermines its great level design and the potential evident in some of its boss encounters.

VG247 - Sherif Saed - 3 / 5

Lords of the Fallen is a game of uneven quality. At its best, it offers level design, bosses, and combat that’s generally up there among the best Souls-likes. At its – more often – worst, it leans hard on quantity over quality, and a fundamental misunderstanding of what makes those games challenging. My issues with its balance and difficulty can improve with patches, and my misgivings about its design pitfalls are the sort of thing that sequels improve on all the time. It’s left me wanting to play Lords of the Fallen 2.

GameSpot - Phil Hornshaw - 5 / 10

While Lords of the Fallen has all the right Souls-like elements, its disjointed pacing and painful checkpoint system make much of the game a slow and frustrating march.

Metro GameCentral - GameCentral - 5 / 10

An absurdly generic Dark Souls clone whose general competence is all the more frustrating for the fact that it refuses to come up with a single new idea of its own.

GameGrin - Artura Dawn - 4.5 / 10

Lords of the Fallen feels like a passionless soulslike, relying on the same old tricks to make its experience "difficult" all the while failing to lean on its most innovative ideas.

Eurogamer - Ed Nightingale - 2 / 5

Missing the elegance of FromSoftware, Lords of the Fallen is let down by Soulslike clichés and performance woes.

TheSixthAxis - Jason Coles - 4 / 10

I desperately want to like Lords of the Fallen, but it's the first game all year that's actively annoyed me. I love the Soulslike genre more than any other, but this game took all of the lessons it could have learned since the original Lords of the Fallen and either forgot them entirely, or just misunderstood them so greviously that you'd assume it skipped a class.

Chicas Gamers - Álvaro Bustío - Spanish - Unscored

Lords of the Fallen offers us an experience that seeks to improve the Souls formula with your personal contribution, creating a game with its own identity. The title takes things from other games of other genres, such as Zelda: A Link to the Past, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes or the Soulreaver saga, in which it plays with two very similar maps, but with just the right differences to play by memorizing and interspersing both. A game that every fan of the Dark Souls saga should try, and although in its first hours its new mechanics may seem excessive and overwhelming, they soon become accessible, intuitive and fun to use. A real challenge for any self-respecting gamer and that also allows you to play online in both cooperative or competitive mode.

Polygon - Diego Nicolás Argüello - Unscored

After 30 hours and counting, the world of Lords of the Fallen is one I have enjoyed visiting, but ultimately dread inhabiting. Quality-of-life elements, like the option to create your own checkpoints in designated areas, are often jeopardized by an actual checkpoint found two houses later, after you just used up a rare resource. Magic classes, which are introduced as "advanced" in the character creator, actually seem integral, with item descriptions, weapons, and rather powerful spells demanding a stat commitment that knights or archers simply can't afford. Seamlessly switching between realities, as impressive as it looks in action, isn't new. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart and The Medium boasted their SSD-powered tech years prior, while Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver showcased similar ideas to Umbral with its Spectral Realm decades ago.

Rock, Paper, Shotgun - Ed Thorn - Unscored

A Soulslike elevated by a magnificent realm-hopping twist, yet chained down by a host of irritating little flaws.

Skill Up - Ralph Panebianco - Unscored

Video Review - Quote not available

The Escapist - KC Nwosu - Unscored

Video Review - Quote not available

The Game Fanatics - Julian Harris - Unscored

Lords of the Fallen is a great addition to the Soulslike family. The game feels familiar but brings some welcomed changes that I think many people will enjoy and find challenging. There are so many secrets to experience and there are a ton of different character archetypes to try out. You will encounter the occasional hiccup or quirk but it doesn’t kill the experience. If you are looking for a new challenge, this is a great game to jump into.

gameranx - Unscored

Video Review - Quote not available

 

[eventide11]

1 hour ago, Bacon said:

I doubt it will be bad, but that "this looks pretty damn close to a next Gen Fromsoft Souls Team title" comment was an insane take. Especially when ER looks better.

 

Lies of P blows this crap out of the water.

I said that's what it LOOKED like so false positive whatever. It's still getting 8/10s for the most part but yeah, not on the level with Elden Ring looks like. And Lies of P was an amazing game. Just kinda overstayed it's welcome in the end

[Bacon]

6 minutes ago, eventide11 said:

I said that's what it LOOKED like so false positive whatever. It's still getting 8/10s for the most part but yeah, not on the level with Elden Ring looks like. And Lies of P was an amazing game. Just kinda overstayed it's welcome in the end (giga wrong btw -Bacon)

Oh, I meant even before the reviews came out it was an insane take lol.

On 10/6/2023 at 7:58 PM, Bacon said:

disagree big time

 

[Firewithin]

for what its worth the only souls youtuber i like Fightincowboy likes for the most part

 

 

[Bacon]

I don't trus any Souls YouTuber. Too many like DS2 even a little bit.

[Keyser_Soze]

I'm not a Souls youtuber but DS2 was good

[Bacon]

1 hour ago, Keyser_Soze said:

but DS2 was good

[eventide11]

1 hour ago, Keyser_Soze said:

I'm not a Souls youtuber but DS2 was good

Yep. That's why I'm inclined to think it's worth playing. If you don't like Soulslikes and think they're too hard etc then I'm probably not gonna agree with your takes on it