Review | Lords of the Fallen (2023)

A short review of the same game?

Lords of the Fallen is a third-person action role-playing game developed by Hexworks and published by CI Games. I’m not familiar with any other titles from these studios, but I hope there will be more—I kinda like what they’ve done here. It’s a typical From-like game, not a copy, but a title that stands on its own. While it borrows plenty of mechanics, the double-world design stands out the most—and it kicks ass.

This Lords of the Fallen is a successor to the 2014 game of the same name (which, from what I’ve heard, sucked—I never tried it but heard plenty of criticism). Released on October 13, 2023, for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S, this version is vastly different. It’s fun, original, and not overly difficult, making it a good entry point for newcomers or for those of us who need a Souls-like fix every now and then.

If you’re interested, as I’m writing this review, the game is discounted on the PSN store—go for it. My review is based on the PS5 Pro version, but I’d say most of the game’s perks come from patch 1.7, which fixed almost everything, making this an almost ultimate experience.

The couple of frames and I was hooked! It looks awesome, feels good and plays good. Let's go!

Story and the characters

You know how it goes, right? There’s a bad guy, you try to beat him, you save the world, or continue down the dark path. That’s the gist of it. If I were to be more specific, here’s the setup:

After eons under the rule of Adyr, the dark god of the demonic Rhogar, the followers of Orious, the Radiance God, rose against him. Unable to kill him, they sealed him away. One of Orious’ finest warriors, Judge Cleric, established the Order of the Hallowed Sentinels to guard five magical beacons in the land of Mournstead and prevent Adyr’s return. Over time, however, the once-righteous Sentinels became corrupted and tyrannical.

Honestly, I don’t really care about the story, the plot, or the characters. It’s the usual formula with a mix of intertwined and missable quests. As you work to save the realm, you’ll meet characters, progress their questlines, uncover memories, and piece together what happened in the world. But honestly? I couldn’t care less. The storytelling feels shallow and uninteresting. What I love most comes from the worldbuilding and atmosphere—not from the characters or the narrative.

I will say I like the hub area and a few of the quests, but I can’t heap much praise on this aspect of the game. If you’re looking for a memorable story or engaging characters, this game is far from delivering that. I’d rather focus on the good stuff it does offer.

I was constantly impressed by the design and presentation. I can't think of many areas I dislike, instead, most of the locations are well-crafted and fun to explore.

Game design, exploration

So, the Umbral world—have you ever played the Soul Reaver games? You know, the ones they remastered recently? The main game mechanic here reminds me a lot of those. When you feel stuck, you can switch to the "dark" world—the Umbral world. While in it, different enemies spawn, and they appear much faster the longer you stay. It’s a trade-off because most of the secrets and hidden paths are in the Umbral world, making it mandatory to take risks at nearly every turn. And the good news—the game is designed around this, offering you ways to return to the real world on almost every corner.

I absolutely love this. For me, it’s the game’s biggest selling point. I love how you automatically switch to the Umbral world when you die but with only half of your health. You can regain it by striking enemies before they hit you, which cuts into the white portion of your health bar. I also love how blue butterflies guide you—your lamp is drawn to them, subtly hinting that something is hidden nearby. The concept is simply brilliant, and when you combine it with some of the best dungeon and world design I’ve seen, it creates an incredibly fun experience.

The game looks great and plays well. Performance mode on the PS5 Pro is stable and looks fantastic. I encountered no crashes, major issues, or glitches. However, the downside is the lock-on system. After most actions, there’s an annoying step-forward motion that messes up your flow. Combine that with camera issues—especially when you get stuck in a corner—and it can be frustrating. The jump mechanics also feel clunky, particularly the landing roll, which often leads to irritation.

Lastly, the Umbral world sometimes feels overwhelming, with too many enemies spawning at once. If you’re not careful, just moving around can become tedious. When you die, you lose all experience. Don't forget to pick up the remains before you die again.

I love the design. The world feels depressing and dark. There is just something about these souls-like games, I think this is my favourite genre alongside with JRPGs.

Combat

Combat, huh? Well, not bad at all! There’s a ton of weapons, a variety of moves, a weight system, and all the usual mechanics. I’m a big fan of longswords and greatswords—you can probably guess which weapons were my favorites. Of course, you can’t max out all of them, so you’ll need to stick with 2–3 weapons and save the rest for NG+ if you’re up for it. I’ll admit, the sheer number of options felt a bit overwhelming at first, but even sticking to just one weapon for half the game was a blast.

There are a few different attack moves, and my favorite has to be the R1+R2 combo—with a longsword, it’s just beautiful to watch. You’ll also need to adapt your approach depending on the environment, like being mindful of walls to avoid bouncing your weapon off them. Boss fights, too, demand a more refined strategy. They aren’t overly difficult—maybe a couple are—but you can summon NPCs during story boss fights if things get too challenging.

As for magic? It’s not bad. I played as a Dark Crusader with Inferno magic, and my go-to tactic was a fire-imbued, two-handed sword massacre. I didn’t bother much with parrying; instead, I focused on dodging and doing my best to split some heads. The monster variety could have been better, but it didn’t bother me too much. Survival was my main goal, and while there were moments of frustration, I found that focusing and hunting for hidden paths always paid off.

It's almost impossible to be dissapointed with the weapon/armor rooster in this game. On the other hand - nothing here stands out, it's solid and that is all there is.

Do you know how many times I had to strike the boss 1 more time to kill it? Too many. Sometimes, the game feels like kicking you from behind during some fights.

Side Content

I think of the whole game as one huge side quest—not in a bad way, though! Almost all quests are missable. For example, if you open certain doors or defeat a specific boss, you might get locked out of a quest. That’s frustrating, but veterans of the genre are used to it. It’s absolutely worth exploring every nook and cranny—you’ll definitely be rewarded with upgrades and equipment, and that’s always satisfying.

Speaking of quests, I did enjoy some of them. The levels are well-crafted, so unlocking shortcuts and fast-travel checkpoints (called Vestiges) makes returning to missed secrets or quest parts a blast. However, the game struggles when it comes to tracking progress—you have no way of knowing what you’ve collected, how much you’re still missing, or where you stand with certain questlines. A detailed video walkthrough is almost a must if you want to find all the hidden stuff. There’s just no way to explore everything on your own and complete all the quests without help.

If you really connect with the game, you’ll likely aim for the different endings—the secret one being the hardest to achieve and the best of the three. I missed it on my first run, so I guess my second playthrough will focus entirely on chasing the secret path.

Even though I don't really care for story, I care for all the sceneries my eyes saw. Excelent work!

Conclusion

Lords of the Fallen delivers a solid Souls-like experience with its standout Umbral world mechanic, exceptional worldbuilding, and satisfying exploration. The game’s atmosphere and level design shine, even if its storytelling and character depth fall short. Combat is enjoyable, offering a variety of weapons, moves, and customization options, though some mechanics—like the lock-on system and jump mechanics—can be frustrating.

The abundance of hidden secrets and missable quests makes exploration rewarding but also overwhelming, especially without proper tracking tools. For veterans of the genre, this challenge might feel familiar, but newcomers may find it daunting. With multiple endings, including a challenging secret one, and stable performance on modern consoles, Lords of the Fallen is a flawed yet engaging adventure worth diving into—especially for those craving a Souls-like fix.

I'm happy, I'm satisfied. But people weren't at Day 1! With patch 1.7, this is probably the game that we all deserve. Before that? Solid 7/10 I guess. Hooray for patches, eh?