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A Soulslike That Rivals FromSoftware
This review is from the perspective of someone who 100%s games on Steam
To sum up my thoughts… Lies of P is the best game I have played in the last couple of years. The only experiences I can think that rival the time I have had with this game are playing Outer Wilds for the first time, and that legendary first play through of Elden Ring. That isn’t saying Lies of P is without fault, but if you are a fan of soulslike games - or just games with fair difficulty, an interesting and engaging world, and a beautiful soundtrack - it is hard not to recommend Lies of P.
I will now go in-depth on several different aspects of the game including Story, Combat/Gameplay, MISC, and the Completion Experience. There will be minor spoilers for what the game contains, but I will not go into any specifics that would ruin your experience.
Story
Soulslikes are often known for having confusing stories that are often up for your own interpretation – this game is not quite like that. There is a fairly straightforward plot to follow, and while it is not spoonfeed down your mouth, I did not find myself rushing to YouTube to watch a lore summary after beating the game.
Speaking of the story itself, this game is a twisted interpretation of the Pinocchio tale. If you’re a fan of the story then there are a lot of fun easter eggs to pick up on, but for the most part you don’t need any knowledge coming in. The characters and plot are fairly interesting, but this isn’t quite on the same level as something like God of War or Red Dead Redemption. It did keep me engaged enough though to want to read any of the little lore notes scattered throughout the game, as those provide some additional context to what is going on in Krat.
Overall, I was happy with the story Lies of P provided. Some of the character questlines nearly made me tear up and I am excited to see what is in store for this world.
Combat/Gameplay/Bosses
Lies of P is a hard game. It requires precision to parry correctly, it demands an understanding of each enemy and bosses moveset, and most importantly you need to stay determined. These are staples of the genre and Lies of P is no different.
What separates this game from a lot of the other soulslikes though, is that this game is polished and refined to another level. Every encounter is balanced and the animation work makes it easy to tell what a boss is doing. Even fromsoftware struggles with this sometimes, but Lies of P nails it. There is only one boss in this game that is in my opinion “bad”. It is a gank fight where you can suddenly get pulled across the arena. Thankfully, the fight is not too hard and the rest of the boss roster ranges from good to f*****g amazing. Seriously, I am surprised by how solid this boss roster is.
Your character also has access to many different forms of customization and progression. There is a skill tree, a leveling system, a weapon crafting system, a customizable flask, amulets, a sort of armor system, and even a customizable prosthetic arm. These are all introduced at a reasonable pace, so I did not find myself getting overwhelmed by all the things I could tweak. The way your character controls is also solid, and each weapon feels good to use. These elements, combined with the great bosses, make Lies of P a challenging, but fair and rewarding experience.
The only part of the gameplay I would say is weak is the level design. Don’t get me wrong, the levels look great! This game is linear though, with pretty much 0 optional areas. The levels themselves are designed fairly decently, with shortcuts that loop back on one another and plenty to discover within, but don’t expect to find entirely secret levels just by jumping into a painting of anything.
MISC
The only thing I want to touch on here is the music. It goes hard. I don’t want to go into too much detail to avoid spoilers, but this game has a way of providing some beautiful tracks at certain moments that really helped me get immersed into the world. It’s something special.
Completion Perspective
It took me around 50 hours to 100% this game. It does require at least 3 playthroughs to get all the different endings and collectibles. All of the collectibles items are fairly straight forward though. I will say that a decent amount are locked behind NPC quests, but this game does have a way of telling you when to talk to certain NPCs to progress their story. The quest lines themselves also are not too complicated and I was able to complete them all without a guide.
My recommendation would be to play the game however you want on your first run, then look up a guide on anything you missed. It should be a fairly straightforward and fun experience, with the hardest part being just getting good enough to beat the game.
Final Thoughts
Lies of P is my favorite game I have played this year. If upon watching the trailers you think this looks kind of fun and like something you might enjoy, I highly encourage you to check it out. Best of luck!
P.S Feel free to friend request me on Steam if you want to keep up on my completionist journey!