Lies of P: We tried the promising Korean Soulslike inspired by Pinocchio

After two days spent with this one, we certainly wouldn’t risk proving us wrong. Gamescom 2022: Lies of P is undoubtedly the game of the year. In a not-so-rich year, witness the incredible line-up surrounding the stand, with a small show floor and few booths. NEOWIZ Even the single, infrequent station on the Xbox stand gave us this important endorsement. An absolutely disturbing announcement trailer followed by the first game reveals itself to be the undisputed protagonist of Tuesday night’s Live Opening Night.

Frankly, in these pages, we did not miss the opportunity to thoroughly examine this latest video in order to focus on the mechanics of a title that undoubtedly belongs to the soul-like genre, but thanks to a vision and experience disconnected from experience and archetypes. standardizations of tool type 8. Tour Studiowhat’s brought to the screens now seems to offer a minimal amount of originality compared to the clichés we’re addicted to.

It’s not just a matter of fiction, artistic fiction, or protagonist appeal: The combat system in Lies of P seems to treasure a host of mechanics we’ve already found in other titles in the past, and, albeit the film’s inspiration. The comparisons of FromSoftware titles seem to be very strong, with some sprinkles of more or less classic action here and there (someone said Devil May Cry?) and perhaps even a narrative system more connected to the western adventure tradition.

Now, we’ll try to go into the details of what we’ve been through since this year’s Gamescom allowed us to seize a pad connected to a PC station where Lies of P is running in all its glory and face 2 different episodes. The game was apparently unlocked in the second and third, one demo, in terms of the depth of the scenario, but limited for time reasons and to prevent the queue from reaching disproportionate dimensions.

Everything after that is, therefore, the result of the author and the author’s thoughts. Evidence of the P lie we managed to do it with the aim of capturing every single element of the battle system and the movement of the avatar. We may have definitely overlooked something, or maybe we haven’t fully focused on some dynamics, but you’ll definitely be there to point it out in the comments. And best of all, don’t dive into the rest of the article without reading this particular section on the setting, protagonist and dynamics of Lies of P.

Bloodborne or Sekiro or maybe Devil May Cry?

In reality none of 3: Lies of P is strictly an original experiment, but all the titles mentioned above where it’s clearly mandatory to include Dark Souls as well, inspiration for the game’s battle system.

The demo opened with a selection of pre-set builds with the possibility to choose between 3 possibilities: a balance-based setup, one for agility and the other for heavy hits. The change was mainly the main weapon equipped, but we are convinced that there are also some differences in the characteristics of the P. Characteristics, unfortunately it was not possible to visualize it during the demonstration. In terms of movement, we can expect all of the most classic repertoire: roll, heavy attack, light attack, the possibility of stealing certain combinations, as well as the possibility of jumping by holding the start button and pressing the left analog when necessary.

The first, correct, variation on the theme is represented as: mechanical arm your avatar. In the demo, it was possible to choose between four prosthetics that can only be replaced with the Stargazer, a personal interpretation of the bonfire by Round 8 Studio. Via a special menu it was possible to switch between an electric attachment that could charge a close range shot to make opponents more vulnerable to subsequent attacks; a hook that can attract the farthest enemies to us; a portable cannon capable of firing projectiles that can explode a few seconds after impact; a useful arm wrestling for shooting close-ups loaded with great power. Each lever specifies a different activation behavior, for example, the electric lever that lets you move slowly while we load it, and instead of focusing on the management of the ball, which includes the sight approach without any possibility of movement. seeing. Consider, however, that it’s very likely that we’ll get a lot of other mechanized art throughout the game. All prostheses insist on a certain energy bar, the battery will not charge over time, but only while resting in Stargazer or using a certain consumable.

In the modernized bonfire, it was also possible to upgrade weapons on the fly, and this makes us especially curious for non-player characters dedicated to the sale and development of our equipment.

Of course, there’s also the parade, which can be done by equipping a weapon and perfected when used with the right timing. By doing this, even in the middle of a sequence, the opponent’s attacks are instantly blocked and the opponent stunned at the mercy of our best shots. It is also possible to equip 2 weapons that will be changed instantly with digital cross printing, but it does not seem possible to use them at the same time or to hold them with 2 hands. Apparently, the mechanical limb cannot be used to craft “regular” weapons.

then there is 2 more mechanics It comes into play when the struggle intensifies. First of all, there is a type of stun that can only occur in conjunction with mid and main bosses, those with the energy bar located at the bottom of the screen, so to speak. After a series of hits in quick succession, the bar starts to flash white, at which point we can stun the enemy by holding the trigger of the heavy blow, knocking them to the ground or to their knees. Next, a very short attack window will open, where we can perform a special blow using the right spine of the light attack, but only by placing ourselves laterally or behind the opponent.

The other “original” idea from Lies of P is represented as: fairy tale arts, a sort of series of shots we can fire with our main gun or mechanical arm, as long as we fill a blue bar located just below the energy and stamina indicators. This bar fills with landing attacks and is divided into 3 sections by the strength of the strikes, depending on the number of spaces fully filled before emptying the combo.

On the other hand, it seems impossible to attack and kill opponents from behind with a well-placed single shot, while cures are determined by some bottles that can be filled at rest like the usual Stargazer, but there is an interesting variation. on theme: once all bottles, it is possible to save only one by successfully fighting with opponents. The gauge will fill up as the shots hit, and once the max is reached, we’ll go back to having a single bottle and then re-enable this mechanism when we’ve exhausted it.

A peculiar artistic style

Also on artistic facade The numerous similarities we’ve heard and read about Bloodborne really don’t do Lies of P justice. Clearly the Victorian setting is a point of contact between FromSoftware’s game and Round 8 Studio’s new work, but P seemed much brighter to us, animating and filling Yharnam Completely free from the Lovecraftian demonic spirit. Here we are much closer steampunk images Made from vending machines, robots, gears, factories and out-of-control puppets. The characterization of the protagonist by his mechanical prosthesis, clothing, and demeanor seems to reflect his belonging to a world that retains its “livability” even though it has escaped human control.

Among other things, it is possible for Lies of P to submit an offer, as was assumed in the previous article posted here on Multiplayer.it. Narration away from FromSoftware’s style and much more conforming to Western canons, or in any case much clearer and clearer. If what we’ve seen gives a clue as to what we’ll find in the final game, it seems even possible that there are real traditional secondary quests: at a certain point in the exploration, we stumbled upon a public phone that actually interacted with us. kind of riddle ready to post a riddle. Having this figured out correctly allowed us to have a handy key to open who knows what door.

But to find out, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X | We’ll have to wait for the final game release, which is scheduled for a general 2023 on S. Google Stadia.