More often than not this offensive-heavy, gun-jumping, unga-bunga playstyle will carry you through most parts of the game (until it doesn’t). You can lose meter for taking hits, or you can use weapons kills, wizardry magic and spirit attacks that cost meter.Įssentially, the core combat revolves around landing solid strings of hits that build the Spirit meter, then cash out with a spirit attack ender. It behaves like the posture meter in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice where you build meter by landing and deflecting hits. On the micro-level, the combat system ditches the stamina bar for a Spirit Gauge, displayed in the lower center of the screen alongside your health bar. Wo Long’s design is based on momentum, on the micro-level and the macro-level. Team Ninja brings a different flavour to Wo Long when compared to either the typical FromSoft soulslikes or its own Nioh series. But it could use a few more curveballs to keep players guessing a bit and not be numbed into monotony. I don’t mind the level structure being this rigid. Start a level, intro cutscene plays, gameplay, then a boss fight at the end, end-of-level cutscene plays, and rewards for completing the level drops. The pacing of the story is also old-school. In the fact that the levels are compartmentalized as levels and they are not as sprawling as other soulslikes out there. If you’ve played a Team Ninja soulslike before, you can expect the game structure to be familiar. You are some anonymous warrior that somehow got caught up in the war, and will be assisting the many other fabled figures during this era to not only win the war and bring back peace but uncover the mystery of this demonic force that has plagued the lands. In this take of the fabled Three Kingdoms saga, factions are warring for control of Elixirs that are able to harness the power of demonic Qi. In Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, the Han Dynasty has fallen. Hopefully, it does get better in the coming months. I’ve heard reports of Wo Long not doing as well performance-wise on PC, but at this rate, it’s a Koei Tecmo game staple for the PC version not being as optimised at launch. On the PS5, the performance mode is great at maintaining a stable framerate at around 60fps or so, at the cost of visibly low-res textures if you stop and stare at the scenery. The rest of the soundtrack? Your mileage may vary, and for me, they don’t register as well. The war march anthem that exists when you open the travel menu is also great. The village theme in the early parts of the game is great at evoking a sense of tranquillity you get from the safety of a hub world, away from the bloodshed of war and power struggles. There are hints of memorable melodies here and there, when no one is shouting and crossing swords. The music also feels too dire and muddled in the background on most levels. And for extra authenticity, the game has Chinese voice-overs as well. The enemy variety isn’t that much either, which also contributes to the samey-ness.īut at least the cast of characters, many of the legendary figures (or Dynasty Warriors characters- depending on how you want to look at it) are here and they look great in their big armour sets and weaponry. It’s justified due to its setting, I get it, but it just feels all too samey too quickly. The game tries to spice things up by having each level change up its main colour hues, but I just cannot stop seeing how drab and uninspiring everything looks. And as a result, expect to see many, many desolate buildings, ruined castles and burning cities and villages. The Han Dynasty has fallen, specifically, but with demonic forces coming to play. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is set in the world of ancient China during the Three Kingdoms period. But its uneven spikes of difficulty and the samey-ness of the gameplay structure hold it back from true greatness. This game’s fantasy take on the Three Kingdoms saga (now with more demons!) brings a new direction for its combat system that’s fresh and fun. With Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, Team Ninja is shaking it up a bit more. The makers of the Nioh series and last year’s Stranger Of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origins know how to not only make these sorts of games, but also be distinct enough with their flavour. Team Ninja is on a roll with their brand of soulslikes, which they refer to as “masocore” action-RPGs.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |