A Plague Tale: Requiem Reviews
Even though it's not without some faults, A Plague Tale: Requiem is likely one of the better games I have played this year. In a time where story-driven action games are starting to become more sparse, Asobo continues to prove with Requiem that it's very much capable of assisting with carrying the torch within this genre. I'm not sure if we'll see future Plague Tale titles come about in the future, but given the leap that has been seen with Requiem, I'm definitely hoping that this isn't Asobo's final outing in this space.
A Plague Tale: Requiem delivered a much more evolving adventure, coupled with enhancements in almost every aspect that gifted a more exciting and terrifying experience and felt like playing in a movie. Although, the combat system had the game lose a few excellent points, despite its upgrade. Nonetheless, this game is a few levels above its predecessor.
A Plague Tale: Requiem is an excellent follow-up to one of the surprise hits of 2019. It builds on the foundations of the first game and uses the investment you have in the characters to craft another gripping narrative. The beautifully gruesome world is a technical marvel, but one that at times can be let down by an inconsistent frame rate. Aside from that though, this is one of the best single-player experiences of 2022.
What started out as a humble new series has expanded into something much more ambitious. But while that ambition is admirable and sometimes extraordinary, it’s also the root cause of many of its problems since it lacks focus and seems like Asobo spread itself thin going this much larger.
A bigger, bleaker sequel with hauntingly good art direction, but storytelling holds this biting medieval adventure back.
If you were ever on the fence about the original, now would be the best time to jump on board. The numerous updates to the formula expand Amicia’s toolkit in all sorts of fun and dynamic ways, making each encounter and puzzle to be solved an absolute treat. While the story and character development don’t leave too much of a mark, there are still some genuinely great scenes that bounce naturally between extreme tension and silly moments of levity. It isn’t every day you see such a tightly-focused stealth game like A Plague Tale: Requiem. So even if it’s only for the gameplay, this dense 18-20 hour journey should not be missed.
A Plague Tale: Requiem serves up a sprawling adventure across a plague-ravaged, rat-infested France, though the simple tale and mechanics at its core can’t bear this sequel’s bloat.
Despite the first few chapters moving quite slow with far too many unforgiving stealth segments, by the time I’d completed A Plague Tale: Requiem I was in love with its narrative, gameplay, visuals, and outstanding voice acting and music. Although the game feels very similar to the first one, the new mechanics, companion abilities, adaptive skill tree, and new larger environments help create a new experience that’s familiar but not identical. There are some performance issues and technical flaws which will (hopefully) be resolved, but nothing hampered the enjoyment and excitement I felt throughout my entire playthrough of this GOTY contender.
With solid gameplay, a fantastic story that's excellently acted and presented, and set pieces that could challenge even the biggest game in the industry, if you like the first outing from Asobo Studio, you will love this.
Unfortunately not much has changed where that sentiment is concerned. And if we’re looking solely at the studio’s technical and artistic strengths, it doesn’t need to prove this aspect of its game anymore, but looking at things purely from a gameplay perspective, Asobo might need to come out of the Dark Ages.
A Plague Tale Requiem is one of the must play games of 2022 on the Xbox Series X and if you enjoyed the original or looking for something different yet totally enjoyable, this next-gen experience from Asobo Studio will keep you invested from start to finish.
A Plague Tale: Requiem tells a thrilling and bizarre tale of a plague through bold performances and stunning scenes. But its lack of important gameplay such as combat and puzzle solving, the work has not reached a higher level in my mind.
Review in Chinese | Read full review
A Plague Tale: Requiem is a safe but exciting sequel with an impressively alarming amount of rats.
This long awaited follow up to Asobo Studio's cult hit doesn't come without grievances, but A Plague Tale: Requiem a rock-solid adventure that's grim and gorgeous in equal measure. Smart iteration on established mechanics and pitch-perfect pacing lead the way to a journey across some breathtaking locales that ups the ante in nearly every way by its shocking conclusion.
With stunning visuals, incredible performances and a poignant and grim narrative that hits hard, A Plague Tale: Requiem is a truly compelling journey even if it buckles under its own ambitions along the way.
Requiem has refined and improved the formula that made the first game so intriguing. Amicia and Hugo are not the timid children they were at the start of their journey, and while the goal used to be just survival, things have changed: it’s now about making sure that the people they want to be will survive this new hardship.
A Plague Tale: Requiem has a strong identity and a good degree of allowance for player creativity and expression. Moving through its stunning world and spending time with its characters is gratifying – even if many of its setpieces are terrifying or grim, even if its inhabitants are a bit too chatty, and even if there are far, far too many rats. The hope you find on the other side is usually worth the struggle.
Some minor framerate drops and odd pacing are hiccups in an otherwise phenomenal package that crafts a gut-wrenching and emotional story, elevates Amicia to one of the most compelling female protagonists in gaming and vastly improves upon every facet of its chilling and unique premise.
The rats are coming, again! Requiem is bigger, bolder and more beautiful than it's predecessor. The story is both huge and intimate, which is an accomplishment in its own. Requiem builds on what Innocence set out to do, and does everything better.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
A Plague Tale: Requiem doesn't bring revolution or change but merely grinds what the first installment brought in 2019. While this may seem like a minus, Requiem handles all the leading aspects of an action-adventure game, dispatching brilliantly. The story unravels the further journey of siblings Amicia and Hugo, introduce entirely new characters, and subverts your stereotypical idea of how the story could continue, creating some great twists. The gameplay may be somewhat basic, and you won't find anything else in the game besides stealth, action, and exploration, but thanks to the excellent pacing, you won't even mind eliminating enemies silently or aloud; you'll enjoy solving puzzles and exploring locations both beautiful and hideous. Requiem also continues to use rats creatively, though with them come some ills that will sometimes cause frustration, and don't expect too many graphical options on the console. There are very few, and the game languishes in places with its 30 frames per second. The visuals and styling are breathtaking, though. A Plague Tale: Requiem thus proves that linear games can still be fun in 2022 and that you don't need a revolution to create a unique experience.
Review in Czech | Read full review