Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty Reviews
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty differentiates itself from Nioh thanks to a few key mechanics, though the experience can feel a little linear and easy at times. Still a fun game for fans of Team Ninja, and faster Soulslikes in general.
Wo Long is a good starting point for soulslike newbies and some needed breather for more experienced players. They won't break a sweat, but their time won’t be wasted. Wo Long has a really well-designed combat system. Pity that nothing else is as good.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Yet, although I did enjoy the time I spent with Wo Long, I don’t really want to invest more time into it. And I think that fact alone speaks more than any of my words in this review could ever convey. My main reason for not wanting to jump back in is simply because of its optimization issues on PC. I’ve seen that it suffers other problems on Xbox, such as ridiculously long loading times, whereas the PlayStation version is relatively free from these worries. Which makes sense, given that Team Ninja’s last two titles, Nioh and Nioh 2, initially launched exclusively on PlayStation consoles before. On PC however, it just feels like a bad port. Which, to be clear, it is. I found the overarching experience in Wo Long to be enjoyable on the whole, though I do lament the fact that they chose to develop a new IP instead of making Nioh 3. Despite the optimization issues and random difficulty spikes, I do think that Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is ultimately good – it just could have been so much better.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty offers a cool morale system, leaping attacks, and fresh spins on magic and character customization, though stilted storytelling and underwhelming stage designs prevent it from reaching the heights of other Nioh games.
A notable drop in depth compared to the Nioh games, Wo-Long still has some engaging additions inspired by Sekiro. I often enjoyed myself but repetition and a horribly uneven difficulty curve certainly don't help.
The Battle of Zhongyuan DLC for Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty follows in the same footsteps that Team Ninja's prior games did, not in the form of actual new story content, but instead in the form of weapons, gear, and most importantly, a new difficulty tier. This is a no-brainer purchase for those who are a huge fan of the base game that are looking to inch towards true end-game, but I still recommend waiting for a sale or buying the season pass instead, which offers a reduced price per DLC.
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.
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.
Wo Long is definitely a good Soulslike, with addicting combat and epic encounters, but an uneven parry and level design drag the experience down.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Overall, I do think Wo Long has a good starting foundation that I’m sure other players in the community will be able to master more than me. I don’t want to claim I’m expert at the game (despite finishing NG+ on hard,) but I have seen others based on the demo manage to pull things off I haven’t. Basically what I’m saying is that the things I disliked, aren’t necessarily going to be the things the community dislike. Wo Long is still an entertaining game to play through. Its combat is solid, making it closer to Sekiro, Ninja Gaiden, and even Onimusha, though I do feel some things could have been fleshed out more. Souls and Nioh fans will no doubt be right at home with this, as it certainly scratches that Soul itch, and for that I do recommend you play the game at some point.
Wo Long is another solid entry into the hardcore hack and slash RPG genre, but some wonky difficulty and questionable enemy AI spoil some of the design nuances and mean it doesn't quite hit the heights of Team Ninja's previous efforts
Nioh was Team Ninja’s take on the “Souls-like” genre and was pretty good at doing its own thing with it. Wo Long on the other hand is what you might call a “Sekiro-like” but it doesn’t set itself apart well enough from neither Sekiro, nor Nioh.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
With a little bit of loot system reduction, refinement to the morale system in regards to player level, removal of sociopolitical nonsense, and tweaks to make spirit attacks a bit more useful, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty could have a sequel that goes from pretty good to superb. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty isn’t perfect, but it sets a great baseline for what could become a terrific franchise much like Nioh did before it.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a solid foundation for a new IP with fluid combat and fun exploration but fails to topple its spiritual predecessor due to oversimplification of customization and a lackluster PC port.
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 a good action RPG that can be a good starting point for beginners, offering convenience to players without sacrificing its brutal punishments. It also offers a good challenge for experienced players. Some of its success is marred by its weakness on the technical side.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is sure to satisfy Team Ninja and Nioh fans in the combat department, but some aspects are not quite as good as the Nioh franchise. Recommended for console players itching for satisfying action, but a wait for patches for PC players due to performance issues.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty sets itself apart from Nioh, Team Ninja’s other soulslike series, with plenty of inventive mechanics that thrust you into the midst of a war. But by spreading the action out over various disparate battlefields in second century China, with plenty of chatty characters to meet along the way, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty loses a little bit of its magic in the process.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty seems like a Nioh spin-off: same game structure, same issues and same assets. Despite that, the introduction of new gameplay elements like Morale Rank, Spirit Gauge and Wizardry Spells helped Team Ninja to make another compelling game.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is not a revolution, but it's still a solid action RPG with a great-feeling combat and design that make it worth playing despite some other issues.
Review in Slovak | Read full review