When Lords of the Fallen got here out in 2014, it was attention-grabbing to see one other developer daring to imitate From Software program’s Souls method. However now that it’s an entire style, seeing one other big-budget soulslike simply doesn’t really feel particular anymore – even Star Wars has had a crack at it. So what’s The First Berserker: Khazan bringing to the desk? What recent twist or novel setting makes this soulslike stand out? To be frank, I can not see one. If I had been to be as reductive as doable, I would say it merely takes some core concepts from Nioh, and slaps Sekiro’s parry on prime.
A few of you would possibly learn that and assume this anime-eyed motion RPG sounds spinoff. Others will most likely salivate with glee. Properly, each reactions make sense. There’s completely nothing unique about The First Berserker: Khazan. It may additionally be essentially the most enjoyable I’ve had taking part in a soulslike in years.
You’re Normal Khazan, a once-celebrated veteran who has been framed for treason by a cowardly emperor. After the tendons in your arms are severed, you unwillingly make a pact with a giant bloke known as the Blade Phantom who grants you the facility to cheat loss of life. From right here you set out on a quest to punish those that framed you and restore your title.
Yeah, it’s hardly Macbeth. The story is without doubt one of the sport’s weakest components, a by-the-numbers story of revenge that sees you tear by way of a bunch of forgettable one-note villains and expendable allies. Worse nonetheless, nearly all of the plot is divulged by way of narrated slideshows. To offer the writers some credit score, they appear hamstrung by the truth that this can be a prequel (of types) to Dungeon Fighter On-line, a free-to-play beat ’em up by the identical builders. However I can’t think about even diehard followers of that can discover themselves invested.
The primary story missions are easy sufficient. Battle by way of some enemies and mini-bosses, gentle some bonfires and unlock shortcuts alongside the best way, then beat the snot out of the boss on the finish. That journey is, sadly, one other of Khazan’s shortcomings – every little thing up till these boss fights seems like a formality. They attempt to combine it up often by introducing puzzles, however principally you’re simply going from level A to level B and killing every little thing alongside the best way.
There is a sense of sameiness to enemies that will get worse the longer you go on. Combating a bunch of lizardmen was enjoyable the primary time, however by the point they featured as the first antagonists of a fourth major mission, I used to be really bored of dispatching them. It’s not simply the forms of foes that get tiring both, the best way through which they’re organized all through ranges makes the entire affair really feel tedious. I misplaced rely of the variety of occasions the sport threw a cumbersome mini-boss at me, positioned a bunch of archers behind it, and known as it a day.
Even while you attempt to milk a bit further selection from aspect missions, these principally simply really feel recycled from the principle story. A number of the maps are repurposed in attention-grabbing methods, by including puzzles or opening up new routes that had been beforehand inaccessible. However, once more, only a few of those missions add distinctive enemies, and each one I performed simply had a reskinned model of a major story boss at its finish. One aspect quest went out of its option to justify this by insisting the boss was the dual brother of the final man I fought. You’re not being slick, Khazan – I do know you simply put a helmet on the final boss mannequin and dusted your fingers.
However whereas bosses can reappear greater than you need, they do make up for it in a single vital method: they’re absolute menaces. On prime of the standard unblockable blows, there are combo strings which are ten assaults lengthy, grabs which are solely signified by audio cues, assaults that construct a destructive standing impact even while you block them, area-of-effect swipes that nearly fill your complete enviornment. Khazan’s icicle yetis and hammer heaving demons throw every little thing at you. Hardcore followers of the style would possibly assume I’m burying the lede right here, however this genuinely is likely to be one of many hardest soulslikes I’ve performed, solely as a result of boss fights.
Finally, nevertheless, they’re nonetheless honest. Khazan balances its aggressive nonsense by supplying you with an enormous bag of defensive instruments. Granted, there are solely three weapons – the Twin Wield, the Greatsword, and the Spear – which in comparison with Elden Ring would possibly sound like an enormous limitation. However this extra intently resembles the concepts of Nioh. Each weapon kind has its personal ability tree, unlocking distinctive particular assaults, motion choices, and buffs. All three weapons really feel distinct from each other, and due to the ability tree’s regular development I by no means felt burnt out when merely sticking to the Twin Wield for almost all of my playthrough.
The cleverness is available in how you employ these blades. There are 4 alternative ways you possibly can counter enemies: you possibly can dodge, you possibly can guard, you possibly can parry, and you need to use the counterattack ability to deflect unblockable assaults. However by timing a dodge or guard completely, you need to use their “brink” variants. These will assist you regenerate stamina or replicate injury again at your foe.
This leads to huge battles which are satisfying in a method that no different boss fights have felt to me since Sekiro. There’s nice satisfaction in completely reflecting a beast’s 30-second-long combo. Or parrying a hulking monstrosity and shaving off half of its stagger bar. There are not any tacky methods or exploits to be discovered, you merely need to lock in and play an ideal sport each single time. It’s daunting, however there’s an unmatched feeling of getting to surpass a wonderfully timed and intensely deadly sport of Dance Dance Revolution.
As somebody who loves the style, I can forgive so lots of Khazan’s defects due to this fierceness. However I can’t deny that the sport has loads of weaknesses outdoors of these pitched battles. If it was a extra concise journey (a full playthrough will set you again round 80 hours), plenty of the problems I’ve talked about won’t appear to be such a giant deal. As a substitute, it leaves me feeling conflicted. I am caught between lamenting its laborious (and sometimes rehashed) marketing campaign, whereas really celebrating its gratifying, in-depth fight. There are some bruising boss battle treasures buried in Khazan for any tough-knuckled soulslike followers, it’s only a disgrace you need to dig by way of mounds of uninteresting ranges and scores of samey enemies to succeed in them.
This assessment relies on a assessment construct offered by the writer.
