Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty Reviews
Team Ninja evolves Nioh's formula in a Three Kingdoms-era action RPG where allies, flags, and stealth make its brutal challenges more manageable than ever.
Technical issues aside, Wo Long is a master of its craft that future soulslikes should study under.
Familiar issues with storytelling and loot aside, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is another great entry in Team Ninja's growing collection of action RPGs that features some of the best combat in the soulslike genre, even though those battles start to lose their tension due to a distinct lack of enemy variety to fill out the 20+ hour runtime.
Wo Long sees Team Ninja build on the core quality of the Nioh games. Its new systems, from the spirit gauge to morale levels within each stage feel well-considered and tightly honed to encourage exploration and bold, expressive fighting styles. Some old habits die hard, especially the tiresome loot gathering, but the game's core combat and traversal options always shine through.
A disappointing follow-up to Nioh, that has most of its same qualities but, unfortunately, almost exactly the same flaws; with two few new ideas to make up for the lack of advancement.
But even as its second half failed to match what came earlier, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a finely honed delight. Its action is precise and responsive, and learning the intricacies of each adversary is exceedingly fulfilling. While I wish its back stretch was either pared down or had a wider variety of foes, this is a rare title that induces trance-like focus and euphoric moments of victory. It may not quite reach the heights of the works that inspired it, but it’s not far off.
Wo Long has stylish, parry-heavy combat and a more approachable challenge than most Souls-like games, but difficulty spikes may prove to be a barrier.
Surviving the calamities of Wo Long requires nearly obsessive hours of practice. But what comes after is the exhilaration of being able to deftly execute hordes of enemies and demons alike with merely a reflexive twitch of your well-honed limbs. With its intricate combat system and an equally evocative setting, Wo Long is a journey worth embarking on — even if it means devoting three more hours to your next boss fight.
That’s what I hope developers in the genre and players of these games take away, as well. Sometimes, you need help to take down an army, especially one with demons and evildoers high on performance-enhancing drugs. Doing it yourself is possible, as shown in something like Bloodborne. But as 1986's The Legend of Zelda put it, “It’s dangerous to go alone.” So, why not take some reinforcements with you? You’ll be grateful you did.
A hallmark of excellence. There may be flaws, but they are negligible and won't cause massive damage.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is much more than "Team Ninja's Sekiro": the parry is a core mechanic, yes, but so are its ingenious skill system and the way it invites us to explore. If we combine these ideas with the impeccable gameplay of the studio, the result is an action game and a great first step to a new IP.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is nearly always a rush to play, and even when you're getting pummelled, it still feels as though you could overcome the fight if you just learned the attack patterns a little better, or maybe just summoned some more help.
In Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, Team Ninja flexes its twenty years of experience designing action RPGs. Combat is beautifully layered, and it feels satisfying to pull off difficult maneuvers and topple overpowered foes. The world itself is filled with interesting characters to meet and interact with, even if their performances are a little inconsistent. Despite some light performance hurdles, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a haymaker of a video game.
Wo Long has an addicting combat system, but also troubles in finding the right balance: the new RPG from Team Ninja leans too much in the player's favor, while reducing the sense of challenge.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is an excellent action game, and a tightly-focused, well-executed example of why Team Ninja is often mentioned in the same breath as FromSoftware. Razor-sharp combat that wields the power of momentum with deft ease, supported by intricate and well-designed levels, against the backdrop of an over-the-top historical fantasy? It’s just a shame about the quality-of-life aberrations that constantly chip away at your morale.
Team Ninja shows its best side. In Wo Long there are still some of its common problems, but the result is a remarkable Soulslike.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Head into Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty with the right frame of mind and you'll find an enjoyable adventure that refuses to pull its punches.
The best way to describe how Wo Long feels is if you combined the visuals and swordplay of the Dynasty Warriors and Nioh games with a pinch of Sekiro. What then happens is that you have a game that is quite difficult, but oh-so-rewarding when you conquer the seemingly impossible.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is an engrossing, dense, and hard-fought slog, but nevertheless a slog weighed down by some heavy recycling and inconsistent difficulty.
Team Ninja has streamlined Nioh with dashes of Sekiro, but it stands on its own as a Soulslike with, arguably, the crispest combat out there.