Lies of P - a Pinocchio-Inspired Souls-Like Game

[Ivan]

I enjoyed exploring the world for its level and encounter design. Seldom if ever did I feel trolled by the encounter design. The difficulty outside of boss fights is tuned nicely such that I didn't want to stop playing. I enjoyed the progression curve, being able to swap out this game's version of the Devil Bringer from DMC added some nice spice to the general gameplay. The atmosphere does ape Bloodborne, I even found a suitable Hunter's cloak that I liked very much. Breaking your enemy's weapons via the perfect-parry mechanic feels and sounds fantastic, again it reminds me of the high I got from Revengeance. The bosses became annoying over time, especially the more gargantuan ones. They hit like trucks so not dodging in time or failing to perfect parry and pretty much ruin that attempt. I definitely perceived my enjoyment of the game nosediving here. I managed to pull off some final victories by going with a spin to win greatsword.

In sum, I had a mostly great time and would highly recommend this for anyone looking for a store-brand version of Bloodborne. Will definitely be checking out their next title. It most likely WON'T be on Gamepass but I think I'd day 1 buy it based on what they've achieved here.

Value: I played this on gamepass (which I mooch from a nephew who games on console) and a thorough playthrough easily nets you 25-35 hours of playtime. The game performs well (it ran on High on my 1080), the animation work is fantastic, and I only suffered/encountered 1 bug during my entire playthrough (it was one of those elevators where upon ascending you can observe 2 exits and I tried to exit to the first one soon after the elevator has passed it and I clipped in the wall and fell beneath the elevator :D)

Favorites of 2023: Hi-Fi Rush, Blasphemous 2, Lies of P

 

[abija]

But fun gameplay not a reward if you payed for a game. That's the bottom of the barrel bare minimum of what you should get for $80.

Your take is absolutely retarded.

Still, for others:
+ Solid systems, interesting world, no handholding, difficulty tuned for abled people(not game journalists), aaa production value, runs really well.
(probably the best "boss help" system I've seen so far: it doesn't completely trivialize the hard fights and even if you want to kill the bosses without it, it's still useful to rush to later phases of the encounters while you are learning them)

 

[jaekl]

It's retarded to think that you're being done a favor when you're buying a video game. Fun gameplay only means you've not been completely ripped off, you should actually expect more than that for your money. Though if you're delusional enough to think this has production values that could be described as "aaa" then you definitely got your money's worth, retard.

 

[Frank Capicoli]

Out of all the "souls likes" I've tried so far this is the least enjoyable for me. Combat is very slow with a large focus on perfect parries that don't fit for me. Would give it more of a chance on gamepass but not worth the full 60 to me.

 

[cvv]

Out of all the "souls likes" I've tried so far this is the least enjoyable for me. Combat is very slow with a large focus on perfect parries that don't fit for me.

Apparently they're looking into player's feedback, the too-tight parry windows are the biggest issue for most so maybe they'll adjust it.

I'm waiting until then but I'll definitely get it at some point. I'm not a huge fan of the whole Pinocchio-puppets-Victorian stylization, a bit too faggoty for my taste, I much prefer the kind of aesthetics I've seen from the new Lords of the Fallen, but my life goal is to play all soulslikes and I sure as shit not gonna miss this one.

 

[abija]

Though if you're delusional enough to think this has production values that could be described as "aaa" then you definitely got your money's worth, retard.

Yeah my bad. It lacks low fps, stutters, random horrible textures while requiring 16+gb cards (because true AAA devs cannot "deal" with less anymore) , doesn't need an upscaler and (at least so far) no ESG.

 

[jaekl]

Though if you're delusional enough to think this has production values that could be described as "aaa" then you definitely got your money's worth, retard.

Yeah my bad. It lacks low fps, stutters, random horrible textures while requiring 16+gb cards (because true AAA devs don't cannot "deal" with less anymore) , doesn't need an upscaler and (at least so far) no ESG.

It's okay, I forgive you bro.

 

[cruel]

The weapon / handle assembly mechanic is actually more interesting than I initially thought. I thought it's only about the moveset provided by the handle, but it seems it's both moveset AND scaling. So, if you're running a rapier and technique / dex build, and find a big blade that does more damage, you can actually disassemble it (free) and put the blade on top of your rapier handle. This means you will keep your rapier moveset, dex / technique scaling and increase the damage, at the cost of the speed. Thinking about it for a moment, this means tons of experimentation possible.

Also, it seems that upgrading the weapon means upgrading the blade itself. You can disassemble and put your upgraded blade on any type of handle without needing to re-upgrade, which basically means another incentive for experimentation. Nice.

By parry you mean well timed guard? There are also some parry skills and I might be wrong but it feels they have different timing.

Yes, I mean the perfect guard. Regular blocking works well and is easy enough, but pulling 'perfect parry' (zero health lost, only stamina) consistently is very tricky for me.

 

[Bendu]

I finished chapter 4 today and I think I'm in the middle of the game right now. It's a good soulslike with Bloodbornes rally and Sekiros parry mechanic. If you played Sekiro without Kuro's charm and with the Demon Bell the parry windows shoudn't be a too big problem. The weapon and handle assembly mechanic is indeed very nice.

Things I didn't like so far: It is way too linear and the storytelling is way too straightforward for my taste. So if you think FS storytelling is too cryptic, you should like this one.

 

[Dr1f7]

guys we have:

dark souls 1 + dlc
dark souls 2 + dlc
dark souls 3 + dlc
bloodborne + dlc
sekiro
elden ring
and now armored core

guys if you've played all this, and that's still not enough for you, and you need to play some third rate rip off to get your fix
sorry to say
you should really go see a therapist

 

[cvv]

guys if you've played all this, and that's still not enough for you, and you need to play some third rate rip off to get your fix
sorry to say
you should really go see a therapist

What a nice post, good job Jimmy.

Everybody give Jimmy a round of applause please, he really gave it his best.

 

[Dadd]

Guys if you've played seven games over twelve years you should really go see a therapist

 

[Surf Solar]

I like this game. But the enemy design having so fucking many delayed attacks, combos that go on for what feels like minutes and unreadable animations in general really dampen my enjoyment.

This shit started in DS3 and only got worse.

 

[Jinn]

I think I'm about 2/3 of the way through the game at 25 hours. The last few bosses I've fought have gone down in the second or third try each, so the challenge is evening out a fair amount for me. This may be due to my heavy Motivity and Capacity build I've got going right now, but I've also been making use of every tool at my disposal during boss fights too: throwables, element grinders, the most effective legion arms, well-timed fable arts. I usually get the boss through it's first phase, then unleash everything a little ways into the second. I think I've adjusted to the perfect-guard a good deal more as well.

Anyway, hope I haven't jinxed myself by posting this, but wanted to share for those who might be concerned the game is unfairly difficult. It's not, I'd say. Just a good fair challenge that asks the player to look at the tools available to him.

 

[HeatEXTEND]

"Parry" is the lingo from the OG Demon's Souls, different soulsikes now call it differently but it always means blocking at the right time.

Blocking at the right time for value: Instant Block or Just Defend, certainly not a parry.

Also, it seems that upgrading the weapon means upgrading the blade itself. You can disassemble and put your upgraded blade on any type of handle without needing to re-upgrade, which basically means another incentive for experimentation. Nice.

That does sound real nice. Too bad I realy REALY don't like how the game looks, probably give it a go later for like 15 bux.

 

[HeatEXTEND]

cvv A timed block and a parry are two different things

 

[cvv]

cvv A timed block and a parry are two different things

Not in FromSoft games, which is what I was talking about.

(Unless you're confusing parry with riposte? Parry is the timed block, riposte is the follow-up.)

 

[HeatEXTEND]

DS doesn't have instant block, right? You have block, used to block, and an active parry, used to parry (Sekiro deflect for example does function as an instant block).

 

[cvv]

DS doesn't have instant block, right? You have block, used to block, and an active parry, used to parry (Sekiro deflect for example does function as an instant block).

Oh you mean that.

That's seems like hair splitting but ok. Plus in DS you don't parry just with shields but also weapons or bare hands, without the blocking part.

 

[HeatEXTEND]

That's seems like hair splitting but ok.

Naw, it's good to have specific terms for different things.

 

[abija]

Specific terms, like "guard parry" :D

 

[cruel]

10+ tries and I'm not even close to beating the Scrapped Watchman. The best I did was to bring him down to 30% health or so. The fight is basically 'fuck you of you can't do a perfect parry' unfortunately, not a good sign before future bosses. A few more tries and I may need to use a summon

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[gabel]

Eh, don't start posting negatively, cruel. :p

 

[cruel]

Who knows, maybe our personalities switched and I will be the negative one now

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[Jinn]

cruel, just use summons when you're beating your head against a wall, dude. You'll have more fun in the long run. I've had to use them for a couple boss fights, and they certainly didn't trivialize said fights. Some of the bosses almost seem designed around it, ala summon spells in Elden Ring.

Speaking of beating your head against a wall, Laxasia has to be one of the most insane boss fights I've ever dealt with in one of these games. Holy shit.