Soulstice Review – When two sisters fight as one

One is grumpy, carries a huge sword on her back and does not like to rely on others. The other is full of naivete, floating in the air like a ghost, and will do her best for her older sister. One strikes, the other prevents them. Heather and Lute, the central pair of the Soulstice action, fight as one creature, and your task is not only to stop the expansion of a dangerous crack in the clouds with them, but also to get used to their movements, and also find out what really happened to them.

• Platform: PC (Steam), PlayStation 5 (Remastered), Xbox Series X/S.
• Publication date: September 20, 2022
• Developer: Reply Game Studios
• Publisher: Game mode
• Genre: Action, hack and slash
• Czech localization: Yes
• Multiplayer: Not
• Data to download: 21.1 GB
• Game time: 20 hours
• Price: 1,049 in the PS Store, 1,199 in the Deluxe Boxed Edition.

It is at this level that Soulstice works best. At the beginning, we learn that the sisters have to solve an unpleasant situation in the city of Ilden, where a rift has opened and restless souls rush into the world of the living. Sounds like a classic “two ordinary girls save the world” story. But it quickly becomes clear that the girls are definitely not ordinary.

Heather and Lute is one of several chimeras. Warriors working in pairs – one is always alive, and the other is dead, however, in the form of a spirit that has not yet reached eternal rest. It is chimeras that help rid the world of vicious monsters, because they are stronger, more resilient and more agile than ordinary warriors. But… Briar also has some of that “corruption.”

At first, you wield a massive sword, but gradually Briar will gain access to other weapons, such as a bow or a very stylish whip. You can ignore her little sister for a while, but over time it will become clear that you cannot survive without her. When you are attacked by seven enemies at once, dodging to the right and left becomes not enough. But Lute can block. When you give her the command at the right moment, she will use her abilities to stop the attack of the enemy, and over time she will even learn how to send a series of brilliant explosions or create a barrier.

Every swing and combo made by Briar and every well-timed counterattack by Lute increase something called Unity. Basically an indicator of how well you can “dance” on the battlefield and unite two sisters. Is your Unity exhausted? Congratulations, you can activate an extremely powerful attack that will cut down even tough enemies.

Exploring the city and your own memories

Briar and the Lute are rightfully at the center of the entire game, whether it’s the story, their design, their abilities, and their fighting style. If there’s anything good about Soulstice, it’s these two girls. Both, by the way, are voiced by Stephanie Joosten, known as the silent sniper Quiet in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. Her voice gives them a different character and emotionality, but at the same time somewhat overshadows the voice acting of secondary characters, who are not doing so well.

During the game, the girls explore not only the monsters infested with Ilden, but also their memories using smaller puzzles. There are strong moments in Briar and Lute’s relationship and in scenes from their past that may surprise you with their sensitivity.

The problem was not bloated bosses, but platforms hanging in the air.

Although the title may seem like the xth variation of a soulslick modeled after FromSoftware, the resemblance hides at most in the gloomy atmosphere of a world full of bloodthirsty monsters. Soulstice is actually a classic slasher that is somewhat reminiscent of games like Devil May Cry or Bayonetta. This is not a very common genre lately, so even if the game contains a few flaws, the fan turns a blind eye to something.

An example of these defects is often a fixed camera that does not allow you to, for example, look around at a magnificent landscape. You sometimes look at the backs of the sisters, but when you enter the room, you suddenly look at them from above or from afar and, as it were, “two-dimensional”. He’d gotten used to it a long time ago, but it wouldn’t have mattered in and of itself anyway. But there are platforms that you have to jump on and… Let’s just say that in the last levels, the problem for me was not bloated bosses, but stones hanging in the air from which I fell and repeatedly hit my head on them when I tried to jump.

In the fights themselves, the camera is then released and you can circle around the enemies at will. But as a result, for many players, some battles become confusing, and blocking enemies does not help much.

Especially when Lute eventually learns to control two fields: blue and red. She then has to activate alternately when she and her sister fight an enemy studded with blue or red crystals – otherwise Briar’s sword won’t even scratch them. But the field does not last forever, and if you try to keep it active for too long, it will recharge and Lute will temporarily disappear. Personally, I liked this mechanic, but I understand that for some it may be unnecessary chaos. The fight, which just a moment ago was spectacular and full of perfect tricks, suddenly becomes muggle.

Thankfully, Soulstice is a game open to experimentation. For example, the Lute can be set up so that its “bubbles” often recharge but cause a massive explosion. Also, there is no penalty for reallocating a special currency to its abilities, so you can move points around as you see fit. You can repeat each chapter and try different approaches.

The pace slows towards the end

But… Why are you doing this? Boss fights are quite inventive and require different approaches and weapon usage. However, the same cannot be said for the design of the individual levels. Around the time when the second and third thirds are interrupted, you will feel that the tempo is lost. The environment is repetitive, common enemy types are too, and the mood is dull.

The heroines and their companions sometimes repeat what we have learned earlier.

Soulstice will take you about 20 hours if you don’t play on the higher difficulty and complete all the extra challenges. But this is already too much, and there are definitely chapters in the game that could be cut or skipped altogether.

It is the same with some dialogues, in which the heroines and their companions sometimes repeat what we have learned earlier. In other cases, secondary characters act overdramatically, even comically. For example, when you find out that the monastery is falling apart and the mysterious monk has no time to deal with you now … But at the same time, after the conversation, he continues to stand still and silently waits for you to complete the level.

At these moments, it becomes obvious that this is still a smaller game with a smaller budget and a smaller development team from the Italian studio Reply Game. However, in performance mode, where the emphasis is on frame rate, it runs stably. In addition, he does not bite, and except for one case, my game did not crash.

Compared to other “more expensive” games, it also boasts Czech localization, including excellent subtitles. It is also available as a boxed deluxe edition, where you will receive a digital artbook or soundtrack.

Soulstice is the typical cheaper one if you want AA games that have ideas and see the efforts of a limited number of developers. However, much has not yet been completed. However, if you’re a fan of the genre and love flipping through old games, you’ll be missing out on a lot in Soulstice, including the fixed camera. Briar and Lute are a likeable heroine couple, and the combat system that tends to match their movements is a nice touch.

Warning: If you are purchasing a digital version on PlayStation, be aware of the size of the downloaded game. If it’s only around 8 GB, it’s likely that the game won’t let you get past the second chapter. A few tricks can help: first check if you have downloaded all the language versions, if not, download them manually. Conversely, removing the Czech language from the add-ons and then restarting the game can help.