Aside from a confused, misguided mish-mash of various and poorly executed concepts that take turns organising rakes for itself to step on, Lost Soul Aside is an satisfying character motion sport. I’ve had a blast in battles and boss fights, however too usually in between them I needed to slog by a repetitive story plagued with unmemorable characters, ranges peppered with awkward platforming, and puzzles that may make the form-matching challenges you’d give to a toddler seem like rocket science, all disguised in a deceptively flashy package deal.
Originality is fleeting in video games, a medium the place concepts and improvements blur the road between craft, expertise, enterprise, and artwork. That’s very true within the ever-wider tent of excessive-price range fantasy motion video games with flashy combos and light-weight RPG parts. And usually, that’s not a problem; even a reliable tackle a personality motion sport impressed by the likes of Bayonetta or Satan Might Cry might be going to supply some fluffy, inoffensive enjoyable – and to its credit score, Lost Soul Aside is greater than competent as an motion sport. However in clearly borrowing and worsening concepts from a number of latest Last Fantasy video games specifically, it’s not trying an thought of its personal that didn’t work out; it’s doing one thing badly that begs comparability to video games that received the identical concepts proper, a few of them practically a decade in the past.
That’s what drove me up the wall throughout my playthrough. I really feel like I’ve been taking part in the product of boardroom conferences held per week after Last Fantasy XV or VII Remake got here out the place the dialogue was on how you can capitalize on their success, fairly than a ardour challenge made by a workforce paying homage to these video games. From a we-have-Noctis-at-house primary character (named Kaser), to the story’s setup feeling awfully acquainted, to the construction and scale of every degree resembling a pared-down Last Fantasy VII Remake, with all of it peppered with uninteresting additional puzzles and platforming challenges, I discovered one thing new to sigh at round each nook – and belief me, that’s not as a result of I used to be swooning over the dangerous-boy protagonist.
Set in a sci-fi/fantasy world the place a mysterious alien power has been harnessed to gasoline an all-highly effective empire, Lost Soul Aside opens with a premonition that humanity is quickly to face its darkest days and {that a} savior will rise to the event. Then, you’re thrust into a gap section the place you’re launched to an underground resistance group run from a poor neighborhood within the capital metropolis as they perform an open act of defiance towards the empire – sound acquainted? If it doesn’t you must play Last Fantasy 7 as an alternative, as a result of it’s carried out higher there and this retelling doesn’t do something attention-grabbing or authentic with it.
Doled out by often dazzling, motion-packed cutscenes however principally in considerably much less spectacular, awkward dialogue sequences, the story is very repetitive. Each alternative for a twist or tonal shift is squandered in favor of a simple, black-and-white story that doesn’t really feel prefer it’s about something apart from desirous to be like different RPGs. Lost Soul Aside doesn’t use its roughly 16-hour runtime effectively sufficient for any characters to develop. As an alternative, it flings correct noun after correct noun at you, hoping that considered one of its many aspect characters will make an impression. However this story’s rhythm strikes too shortly for anyone to exist past cartoonish caricature at finest. Being beneficiant, possibly their memorable traits have been misplaced within the English translation, however possibly they have been by no means there to start with.
Its particular person story moments are available in a equally offbeat meter, with awkward animations and principally flat voice performing filling in its hours’ value of primary, over-the-shoulder dialogue segments. All of it’s delivered by characters who usually fall into unflattering RPG cliches (like a scantily clad girl who seems to be and acts like an adolescent however is definitely a whole lot of years previous or a gruff, emo protagonist who’d slot in with a boyband and has a mysterious backstory and a penchant for kicking ass) with out taking part in with or evolving these concepts in any discernible method.
With a greater localization, extra energetic voice path, or a stronger dedication to the bit, Lost Soul Aside might maybe have nailed the identical B-film-like campy attraction worn so nicely by the motion video games that so clearly impressed its higher elements. As an alternative, it’s by some means each half-hearted and overserious. Kaser and his dragon-like sidekick Lord Area ultimately share a couple of moments that bent the sides of my lips right into a smirk, however it takes so lengthy for the pair to hit their stride that I used to be principally checked out from the story and there just for the motion by the point their dynamic clicked.
Fight in Lost Soul Aside acts as a palette cleanser for the uninteresting story. Kaser hacks and slashes by enemies with fashionable aptitude, utilizing the style-commonplace mild and heavy assault buttons. Mixing the 2 along with totally different timing and order will open up new combos, and you’ll unlock much more utilizing ability factors to fill out branches on a ability tree. With a selection between 4 totally different weapons – sword, greatsword, poleblade, and scythe – every has its personal ability path and playstyle. And switching them on the fly mid-combo opens up an expressive, diversified tree of assaults catered to a spread of playstyles. The polearm, for instance, works nicely at lengthy vary, the place the greatsword is finest for dealing satisfying, heavy blows. My favourite was the usual sword, although; an all-round, fast, agile weapon with strong ranged and melee assaults, it’s remained my go-to for slicing up legions of invading Voidrax beings throughout the period of my playthrough.
Supplemented by further mechanics just like the combo-extending Burst Pursuit that means that you can throw out large finishers after a combo or the Witch Time-like excellent dodge that nets you a distinct, highly effective assault for every weapon, requisite – although cleverly restrained – parry, and the Area powers that allow you to throw out large, space-of-impact assaults that work nicely for resetting the battlefield, Lost Soul Aside’s fight system is the star of the present. Even towards largely unmemorable enemies, I’m actually having fun with experimenting with new combos and powers as Kaser and Area’s flashy animations dazzled throughout longer sequences.
The boss fights that cap off elements of every degree make for much more fashionable encounters. Whereas larger opponents play with scale, throwing out huge, enviornment-sweeping assaults, others are extra nimble duels to the end towards human-sized opponents. Practically each battle culminates in an thrilling finale. Dosed with simply the correct quantity of toothy problem, every battle supplied the proper of mind-tickling, thrilling showdown as I dodged and weaved between assaults earlier than wailing on their stagger meter to deal a particular Sync Finisher on my dazed opponent.
I did discover an odd ache level in a few of these fights, although: There’s not sufficient suggestions when Kaser takes injury from some smaller swings. In order I’m wailing away at a foul man seemingly doing nicely, I’ll look down at my well being bar and it’s considerably decrease than I assumed it could be as a result of I didn’t know that I’d taken any injury within the first place. Fortunately, Kaser and Area are talky sufficient that you will hear about it as soon as your well being is de facto low, and people barks stand out towards the in any other case-repetitive battle chatter.
Sadly, Lost Soul Aside isn’t a pure boss-rush fight gauntlet, and the remainder of the gameplay between every battle isn’t practically as compelling. Many of the ranges are made up of a linear, boring collection of corridors with occasional “open” areas that add an additional platforming “problem” or two to the combo. Positive, there could be a primary puzzle or treasure chest round a nook (although I used nearly not one of the crafting supplies amassed throughout my playthrough as a result of the rewards didn’t enhance my stats sufficient to trouble with), however nothing I’ve seen to date has actually come near justifying its existence past drab padding between battles. Its excessive-constancy, visually detailed areas masks easy, homogenous non-fight challenges and empty chambers that toss a couple of unrewarding pickups your method, seemingly simply to interrupt issues up.
That is sensible, contemplating many of the degree development and exploration is marked by boring and easy paths the place you principally simply stroll ahead till the subsequent battle, damaged up with a easy puzzle right here or there. It was nothing offensive…. till the platforming reared its ugly head. At a number of factors throughout Lost Soul Aside I discovered myself leaping by platforming segments that might make even the Plinko and Chuckster ranges that make up the dregs of Tremendous Mario Sunshine seem like a blast. Plagued with imprecise operating and strolling, floaty jumps with laggy-feeling animations, poor suggestions, a claustrophobic subject of view, and a barely seen shadow, I’m really shocked on the low-high quality platforming I endured to get from battle to battle. A few of it was optionally available, however I nonetheless needed to do so much to finish any given degree. Fortunately, I might discover methods to cheese sure annoying segments, however don’t count on to see anybody at GDQ displaying off Lost Soul Aside speedrunning strategies; these are tourniquets used to sluggish deadly bleeding, not expressive instruments indicative of a mechanically deep platformer.