Lords of the Fallen (2023) Reviews
As you can see, Lords of the Fallen won't be one of our Games of the Year in 2023. While the title is still an improvement on what it offered us in 2014, we're not there yet. Yes, Axiom and Umbral are beautiful and make the game intriguing. But we quickly discover all the game's negative points, and they're far too present to make the overall experience enjoyable. The combat can be excellent or mediocre, the level design disappointing and the story uninteresting. Perhaps we'll be treated to a third attempt in the future? As far as I'm concerned, I'll be missing out this time...
Review in French | Read full review
While it addresses many aspects lacking during the franchise’s first outing, the overall experience still misses the high-water mark it aims for, with a glut of gameplay systems and wonky mechanics rearing their ugly heads each time a measure of success is achieved elsewhere. It outpaces its predecessor in terms of quality, to be sure, but not enough to make for an emphatic recommendation.
Lords of the Fallen doesn't reinvent the wheel and can be fun at times with some nifty new mechanics, such as traversing dual worlds and setting up custom checkpoints. However, due to its uneven difficulty spikes and some performance issues, Soulslike fatigue sets in a lot quicker compared to other games of its type. I wouldn't check off Lords of the Fallen entirely, as it really gets a lot of aspects right in creating a fun Soulslike game. The visuals and gameplay are on point, creating the mood and feel that many Soulslike aficionados are searching for. However, I feel it is a missed opportunity due to its many technical issues.
The game design and exploration logic tied to Lord of the Fallen's main mechanics work great, thanks to a game map layout that remains elaborate and intelligent throughout. Unfortunately, the lack of variety of enemies and poor management of their placement, coupled with a number of serious technical inaccuracies in the control system severely ruins the gameplay.
Review in Italian | Read full review
For a title with such a troubled development process, to some extent the mere fact that Lords of the Fallen (2023) was released in such a state is in itself a small achievement.
Review in Greek | Read full review
There is a LOT to love here with Lords of the Fallen, and I am genuinely optimistic about the legs this game has, and the potential it has to really go far.
...some will fall in love with its inventive mechanics and rich lore, while others might find themselves tripped up by its shortcomings “Lords of the Fallen” is a game that will undoubtedly find its niche audience, those who can overlook its flaws for the sake of its innovations.
You will find one of the most fascinating, rewarding and in-depth souls like out there. Lords of the Fallen deserves to sit next to some of the genre best, such as NioH 2, Lies of P and so many others. It brings its own flavor to the table, even if it sometimes tastes sour. I’m more than sure that I will be back to it sooner rather than later. Mournstead is calling me, and I already have many planned builds to tweak with.
The new Lords of the Fallen does many things well and stands with both feet very solidly on the ground. But also against a strong wind at the same time. It stumbles here and there in its parts. For veterans of souls-like titles, though, this is a great experience that shouldn't be missed as the technical issues are gradually resolved.
Review in Czech | Read full review
Lords of the Fallen is a good game overall, but by no means the gem fans would expect.
Review in Greek | Read full review
Lords of the Fallen looks and plays great but frustrating difficulty spikes and an undercooked narrative hold it back from reaching the heights of its Soulslike counterparts.
Lords of the Fallen shows promise and delivers an exciting adventure but falls short of providing a consistently engaging Souls-like experience.
Lords of the Fallen is a brilliant Souls-like and a great successor to the previous attempt, even though it has a few drawbacks. Between the story and the visuals, you’ll find yourself losing hours (or even days) just exploring the worlds of Axium and Umbral, but you might also end up putting the game aside due to how unforgiving it can be. All the game really needs is just a bit of cleanup on resolution scaling and some minor quality-of-life fixes for it to really shine.
Lords of the Fallen is a fairly solid, enjoyable Souls-like that really finds the mood and atmosphere that was prevalent in early From titles. The use of Umbral offers some really clever mechanical ideas that keep things fresh, the dynamism to create combos also opens up a range of possibilities, and you’ve got a nice range of environments and bosses that provide a worthy challenge. There are some frustrations with combat though, between balance and abundance of enemies, as well as some technical hiccups and issues around the multiplayer component, but all told, this gets more right than it does wrong.
Great visuals, and impressive voice acting but the combat could use way more improvements for Lords of the Fallen to be considered above average soulslike game.
You might want to give it a shot after it receives some patches and gets a more stable release since there’s a lot of untapped potential here. But for now, the Umbral realm is still too uncanny to explore.
Lords of the Fallen has a lot to offer but is largely held back by technical issues throughout, and the further I progressed through the game, the more striking these problems became, escalating from a few dips in framerate to hard crashes and glaring pop-in.
Lords of the Fallen is a really ambitious Souls-like game. It's one of the few that brings great innovation to the table, but it forgets to keep the technology together and to alternate bosses and enemies in addition to the oppulent visuals. Fans of the genre should therefore give the game a few more patches, then you should have quite a fun time in Mournestead.
Review in German | Read full review
Lords of the Fallen offers us an experience that seeks to improve the Souls formula with your personal contribution, creating a game with its own identity. The title takes things from other games of other genres, such as Zelda: A Link to the Past, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes or the Soulreaver saga, in which it plays with two very similar maps, but with just the right differences to play by memorizing and interspersing both. A game that every fan of the Dark Souls saga should try, and although in its first hours its new mechanics may seem excessive and overwhelming, they soon become accessible, intuitive and fun to use. A real challenge for any self-respecting gamer and that also allows you to play online in both cooperative or competitive mode.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Lords of The Fallen is another soul genre entry that offers seamless co-op between players, a unique dual-world mechanic, a gorgeous art style and a gripping story. Unfortunately, the bugs and performance issues and over-reliance on familiar souls tropes bring it down, making it struggle to stand out in the overcrowded soulslike genre.