As a seasoned adventurer with countless hours spent slaying beasts and battling bosses in various Soulslikes, I must confess that Bleak Faith: Forsaken has piqued my interest with its unique spin on the genre. The ability to carry two sets of weaponry and the option to distribute stat, perk, and ability points outside of combat is a refreshing change from the usual leveling system.
Forsaken from Archangel Studios has made me ponder these aspects more than many others within the genre.
To start, let’s discuss the concept of “flow” in gaming, particularly in games designed by From Software. Those who are familiar with their style of world design would grasp my meaning. The thought of navigating vast, interconnected worlds without a map used to terrify me before I played Dark Souls; however, it miraculously worked, and From continued to refine this approach.
Disappointing Sense of Awe: Abandoned Faith, launched on PC last year and soon to be available on consoles, aspires to evoke the same feelings of exploration and awe, yet falters in several key aspects. Although it excels in not overcrowding the environment with enemies or hidden items, there are instances where developers have inserted excessively lengthy pathways or numerous staircases when transitioning between areas. This incongruity is noticeable every time it occurs, and navigating the world can become tiresome at times due to these prolonged journeys.
It’s unfortunate that everything is so vastly spread out in Bleak Faith. Last year’s Lies of P cleverly made smaller spaces seem larger by incorporating various elevations, shortcuts, and numerous save points. However, Bleak Faith only provides one save point per area, allows you to place a secondary one, and demands you to walk or run everywhere else. There are instances where I genuinely felt exhausted trying to recall the alternate paths I hadn’t explored. In fact, I overlooked a significant portion of the game for quite some time because I failed to notice a set of steps off to the right in the second main area, which has several routes diverging from the entrance.
There’s nothing wrong with ambition, but it sometimes feels as though Archangel Studios have taken the wrong lessons from the genre. Another example is the story, which is frankly impenetrable. I read all the documents I picked up, listened to the dialogue of every NPC, and still had no idea what I was doing or why. I had no idea why I had a digital scanner in a fantasy world, no real understanding of what the “Anomaly” is. I couldn’t work out what “Flux” did for the first few hours. I’m all for telling stories through lore and flavour text, but give us something to hang it all on. I struggled to understand any part of Bleak Faith’s story or world, and therefore struggled to care about the plight of any of it.
Characters in this game seem to pop up randomly, often discussing events or people that aren’t familiar to you, creating a sense of disconnection from the world. Unlike characters in games like Dark Souls, they don’t feel like integral parts of the environment, but rather appear, deliver cryptic messages, and then disappear only to reappear later. This inconsistency can detract from the immersion, especially when compared to other areas of the game that feel more like a traditional action title.
I’ve had a blast with Bleak Faith: Forsaken, primarily due to Archangel’s knack for filling every corner with treasures, lore, or crafting materials. In this game, if something appears collectible on a high perch or hidden in a byway, more often than not, it’s there. Additionally, encumbrance doesn’t significantly slow down your movement speed; instead, it affects the rate at which you use stamina and how long it takes to recharge. To top it off, some of the armor sets are visually appealing as well.
In this game, you have the freedom to equip a variety of weapons such as bows with multiple arrow types, swords, shields, dual-wielded sets, or go for two-handed options. There are also magical weapons that can be found after defeating bosses, which come with unique abilities or spells. You can carry two separate weapon loadouts, offering a good amount of versatility in combat. I chose to use dual wield and a bow, focusing more on Agility and Constitution for increased stamina and health.
The gameplay in Bleak Faith: Forsaken provides a sense of casualness amidst its challenging nature, but this ease often contrasts with the occasional technical hiccups in combat, such as lock-on issues or attacks passing through enemies. Sometimes, arrows can unexpectedly fly from your character’s back when locked onto a target. Certain foes stagger at your attacks while others simply ignore them. The game also features sudden spikes in enemy difficulty, with some barely causing damage while others can instantly kill you. Dying to optional bosses often requires retracing long paths, which is particularly frustrating because these bosses can be hard to predict due to their complex attack patterns. One optional boss even creates confusion by repeatedly slamming the ground with heavy attacks that make it difficult to locate him post-attack.
In this game, there are various defense mechanisms to contend with Piercing, Blunt, and Spell damages, yet the instructions provided are not entirely clear. Regardless of your character’s build, managing stamina is frustrating because once it runs out, you’re vulnerable until it regenerates, which can take a few seconds. There’s also a parry move that stuns grunts, but I discovered it was ineffective against bosses. The parry would activate and make a sound, but the bosses wouldn’t be stunned by it. Consequently, I opted to swap my shield for another melee weapon quite early in the game.
Throughout your journey, you’ll encounter uncommon items that grant access to unique perks or abilities, some of which can significantly alter the gameplay experience. Initially, I opted for a vampiric ability that granted me permanent health regeneration upon dealing damage. To enhance this, I added a ring and inserted Anomalous Crystals into my weapons. This allowed me to emerge from most battles almost completely healed, without needing to use potions. It’s important to note that you should upgrade your equipment at a specific NPC named the Handler. The Handler requires Echoes to advance and expand her services. Interestingly, there are several optional visual modes available, such as cel-shaded and 16-bit pixelated, or a nightmare and dream mode which make the world appear darker or more radiant respectively.
Visually, Bleak Faith offers an inconsistent journey. Though certain character designs catch the eye, a significant portion of the environment is dull and hard to distinguish, even with game-provided items such as glowbugs and torches. The world design lacks creativity, featuring repetitive fantasy architecture combined with contemporary shipping crates, glowing red lights, and poor application of color and texture.
Instead of being critiqued for its lack of direction, Bleak Faith: Forsaken shines with its ambitious spirit. It’s clear that it was created with sincerity, love, and passion, making it more pleasurable and successful than titles such as Thymesia or Hellpoint, which share a similar budget and atmosphere. Despite some inconsistencies in design, it offers an enjoyable journey, and I hope Archangel Studios can refine this foundation further in the future.
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2024-08-05 15:16