Forspoken Is Disappointing (Review)

The highly anticipated Forspoken is finally here, but was it worth the wait?
#forspoken

[@DownwardThrust]

*Additional Review Write-Up* -I was given plenty of time to finish the game and prepare a review. It is a shame, however, that the embargo for reviews is so close to launch. People deserve more time to research a game and watch the reviews they want to, don't you think? -Accessing new spells happens two ways: going to spell shrines in the open world, but mostly by spending mana crystals in the spell menu. Thus, mana crystals are the primary currency for your progression. You'll see me picking lots of blue shiny orbs up in the video - these are mana crystals. They are littered everywhere in the game and the intention was to use them to guide you around the map and to get you off the beaten path as well. I mentioned that Forspoken is kind of like Sonic - in that you can view mana crystals sort of like rings - you want to grab as many as you can. Mana crystals are also given to you when you level up. *-Spell acquisition is generous thanks to the plentiful amount of mana crystals in the world, as you get new spells to play with at a good rate* -Crafting itself isn't a huge gameplay feature. It's there, but not something I engaged with very much. Perhaps I missed something, but the crafting list was very small. You don't craft cloaks or nails or anything like that, mostly potions and small upgrade perks. -Freya levels up with traditional experience points, and gains power as you level up. So, there is a traditional "level system." You can optionally visit shrines around the world that give you permanent boosts to your stats. You'll also find micro dungeons and small challenges that award you in the same way. -The game features a nail system in which you can paint your nails to increase the power of select magic schools. I did not touch on this in the review, as the nail unlocks are gated by the same micro dungeons and horde enemy challenges you'll find as icons on your map. You select the ones that give you what you want, you equip them, and that's it. It's pretty standard fare. -The same for upgrades, in which you can find materials in the world and upgrade your cloaks and what not. There's a lot of collecting in the open world, and you'll never need to farm any items so long as you pick everything you see up. *-As a result, I strongly recommend turning on auto-loot in the accessibility menu* -I also didn't mention spell challenges in the video. At any point, you can go into your magic menu and select spells to level up through mini challenges. If you want to upgrade your flame sword spell, you can do a challenge that requires you to kill 50 enemies with the flame sword spell. I engaged with this system quite a bit, cycling in the spells I wanted to boost. It doesn't really add anything to your play experience, in fact it's quite susceptible to cheesing instead. For example, the requirement to level up your fire punch combo in the fire school of magic is to cancel your combo into a dodge 10 times. You can do it naturally, or spam roll 10 times as you hold down the R2 button. You catch my drift. Another neat idea, but again... doesn't add much to the game honestly. -Enemy variety is very, very low. Typically, your fighting animals or faceless, indistinguishable monsters. I honestly couldn't tell you how many enemies there were, but it feels very low. -The game has 4 or 5 big zones, and each have a distinct color palette. This isn't a small game, but it's certainly not gigantic. I enjoyed the game size. As I said in my review, the map sucks and the environmental design isn't the best, so overall the world of Athia is somewhat of a let down. -The game is designed around a potion system. You can craft them in safe houses, and they do not replenish when you rest... only your health does. I found this system unnecessary as you constantly have to craft potions when you run out, even when you fast travel and sleep in your bed. I'd prefer if they would just replenish when you rested to avoid the hassle. *-I can't overstate how bad the first 1-2 hours of this game are. I talk about it immediately in the video, but it must be said again. Square, get with the times man. Things don't need to be so hand-holdy and scripted.* -There's a difference of saying a game is worth $30, and saying a game is worth $30 and I can recommend playing/buying itit. Many people would agree Elden Ring was worth $60. But that doesn't mean they should buy it, because it might not interest them. *Even though I say I think Forspoken is worth $25-30 bucks, *I would also recommend buying it at this price point if it seems interesting to you.* It's not a bad game by any means, just a bit disappointing considering its potential. Thanks, let me know if you have any questions. -TL

[@hpharold23]

Ubisoft is notorius on this, I hated it when game devs treats gamers like idiots with hand holding, glow everything BS and cluttered UI.

[@Jza-GZa]

@@hpharold23 Makes your brain fry and confused just by getting your head around what is the purpose of the mechanics and gameplay.

[@Valid_Viking]

I have better hopes for the PC version, but, depending on how bad they've ported it for PC, it might just be a shitshow instead. I can imagine the combat being better and overall looks + fps being a better experience for high-end PC players. The absolute worste part though is the Denuvo being on the PC version. It's a single player game ffs... sigh. The only hope this game has to make headway would be to allow PC users to mod the game probably.

[@Segaton]

they can hold off on buying it then research, people need to control their impulses

[@lukeairborne5552]

What would you recommend they change about the sonic ring type mana crystal system maybe someone will make a mod?

[@suicidalkangarooz]

I actually gasped when you said there's only one city and you never see any NPC's outside of it.

[@xdervin6114]

there are multiple cities just all the rest are abandoned because plot

[@SaltyCatling]

Yeah, that's awfull. My main force to explore is to find more about lore and world setting.That's disappointing there are only main quest, mindless monsters to kill and uninteresting collectibles. I don't think I can stand being alone with only mc and Cluff to listen to for whole exploration.

[@Zaimulwaie]

I think one of the showcase trailer mentioned these points. So I'm not too surprised

[@rosshaikenleonen1416]

Yeah, same here. Imagine playing Skyrim but only Whiterun is populated.

[@marquet1025]

It’s a video game get serious. People these days have high standards and expectations for games this is what happens when only these old people review all the time taking it as if it’s some serious thing. If it’s not your game then that’s it

[@lloganm1234]

This just feels like a tech demo that was never properly extended into a full game

[@calorie5508]

Exactly, it’s like someone whipped up a POC after that Unreal 5 demo reveal.

[@scumlord4709]

It literally was originally just a tech demo for UE5. But then decided to make a game out of it

[@AzureRoxe]

It's not even a tech demo, it feels like a fan game based on FFXV, even down to many animations taken straight from the game.

[@barsabe]

@@scumlord4709 it is not on unreal engine

[@cr4sher7]

@@scumlord4709 how was that a demo for UE5 when it is done in Luminous Engine?

[@ACameronUK]

This feels like a game designed by A.I the technology behind games is improving all the time but the enjoyment factor and quality of the end product is deteriorating fast…

[@J.B.1982]

Not AI, just NPCs

[@theregedingding3594]

The game was made by NPCs

[@arthurdent9281]

This reminds me more of Anthem than anything else. Where it had a core gameplay idea that was essentially good, but failed to create a good game around it. I'm still sad about the potential that Anthem had. What a waste of good art and fun combat.

[@Jza-GZa]

@@arthurdent9281We need a remake of it with a better company or EA to really recreate it with learning their mistakes with it and then bring it to next gen.

[@OrionDawn15]

@@arthurdent9281 Yeah, what a damn shame. A tragedy it is.

[@R3TR0J4N]

Forspoken does really prove how ahead of its time Dragons Dogma was. hell DD is far more comprehensive title that had verticality w/ added mantling, and even has breakable parts that weren't exclusive on boss fights and has visual damage and status indication.

[@Jeffmetal42]

To this day, I feel like DD is the only game that has nailed the night time. It's actually dark and difficult to see without proper light. Talk about stressful when you don't know where every enemy spawns and you happen across a Chimera or something.

[@Praisestothemosthigh369]

Bro I’ve seen your comment in 4 other different reviews lmao I love dragon dogma , but I’m not seeing with this has anything to do with it lol

[@ExeErdna]

Dragon's Dogma allowed you to basically go anywhere you wanted hell you just go RIGHT TO end game content pretty quickly. The world felt like a world that's lived in. From the bandits to the monsters in the field to the people in the cities. Again you're not really bound by anything you can grind and wander off for hours. Like at first you fear the night until you realize that's when fights get REALLY good.

[@Walamonga1313]

@@Praisestothemosthigh369 DD is another fantasy open world. Are you saying they've nothing in common?

[@Baklavah1]

DD2 is going to dump all over this for certain. I cannot WAIT for that. DD was phenomenal.

[@shottxy4647]

Easily my favourite reviewer. Always appreciate your take on games, I even go back and watch your old reviews on games I only just got around to playing.

[@Graavigala85]

even when he gets basic information wrong...

[@Paradox9743]

@@Graavigala85like other reviewers don’t

[@Graavigala85]

@@Paradox9743 and shouldnt that be reason enough to get facts right as to be better than others?

[@DownwardThrust]

Appreciate that dude

[@DownwardThrust]

@@Graavigala85 examples?

[@Jukettaja]

It does look like a proof of concept that got a serviceable story slapped onto it. I find the level design extremely barren and the stationary NPCs with no lives of their own is super jarring when you're trying to immerse a player into this magical world.

[@igortolstov487]

Didn’t hear anyone complaining about stationary NPCs with no lives in Elden Ring

[@WdawgSmith]

@@igortolstov487 good point man Yeah You’ll find that because the perception of forspoken is not good And especially because they aren’t letting reviewers play the game early It’s going to get poor reviews and for the most part will be labeled a bad game Not saying this guy is a biased reviewer I haven’t seen his stuff Just came across your comment and thought it made a lot of sense And no I don’t usually randomly read comments and reply but Well done sir I tried Elden ring but I guess I need a story to play a game that difficult

[@marcogianesello6083]

@@igortolstov487 except they're not stationary. Like at all. Not even a little

[@ididntaskverified3663]

Souls games always had stationary npcs🤔

[@JediMentat]

Many of the exact same issues ff15 had. They keep trying and failing to make great "open world" games. There's nothing wrong with staying in your lane and doing damn good, single player, linear rpg's with great stories. This game would've been much more successful if they'd just picked one: open world, or rpg

[@theydisintegrate]

I liked your comparison to Novigrad in TW3 ... I've been playing the remaster on Ultra with my 3070 and I'm taking screenshots all the time and just consistently being surprised at the level of detail. It makes the world feel like it actually exists and people live there. When I saw gameplay from forespoken I knew it was a least effort cash grab just by the generic blandness of the open world. It's sad and frustrating because this could have been a good or maybe even great game. But selling the new video cards won out over artistic integrity.

[@editorrbr2107]

I’m in Beauclair right now, and the details and NPCs lives are just fascinating every time. I went upstairs in one house, while I was foraging, and it is one old man that lives alone, but his entire house is full of women’s dresses, and some sewing equipment. It very much hints environmentally that he’s a cross dresser. Thousands of little things like that in the game.

[@igotdembombs]

I'm 60 hours in to my first play through. I took it for granted, but thinking about it, Novigrad does feel alive.

[@randomdude8877]

I currently play Red Dead Redemtption 2 again and the comparisson in the landscape is crazy. The river beds and the transition to grass, the rolling hills filled with life. Man Red Dead is just so awesome. Also cool was New Horizons i really liked their landscapes too, super fun to explore with a lot of landmarks and generally filled with life. Forspoken.. missed the mark big times from the looks of it. Sad, i always enjoy new fascinating open worlds to explore.

[@DownwardThrust]

Ya I loved the topography of RD2

[@berserkasaurusrex4233]

My modded Skyrim terrain looks better than this, and even my mods are nearly a decade old by now. A lot of the assets in this game look like they could be from Resident Evil 4 or 5; might be the lighting or how the game renders the textures, but once you get to the fantasy world part the quality drops way down.

[@drakkull007]

Square Enix: "Guys, you know The Witcher 3, Breath of the Wild, Red Dead, Elden Ring, etc? Let's make something like this, but boring!"

[@Arcademan09]

They should have made it into a comedy, her begining is literally Fry from Futurama, " I'm 1000 years into the future, all my friends, my family, they're all gone... *WOO-HOO!* ". Like if her IRL life was that bad, why the hell would she want to return

[@PeterKoperdan]

McDonald's

[@Uro_Boros]

memes.

[@PeterKoperdan]

@@Uro_Boros 😂

[@MollyHJohns]

WiFi, smartphones and internet. And yeah McDonald's, or Chipotle or something.

[@BigChapDidNothingWrong]

Motorized dildos

[@AlsoAlaskanBeard]

You're one of the only reviewers I'm still subscribed to. Great content, as always man. I was really looking forward to the game because of the parkour/traversal and it's disappointing that the game around that system isn't great.

[@DownwardThrust]

I appreciate that!

[@bigmack70]

It's crazy witcher 3 came out almost 8 years ago and most modern RPGs can't come close to its quality.

[@asdergold1]

I'd like to say The Witcher 3 is overrated, but you'd still be right.

[@hitman9198]

​@Asdercol I'm playing it now. Its one of best games of all time.

[@Walamonga1313]

@@asdergold1 Same. I don't even like it, but it is still a great game.

[@juanecheverria11]

I tried playing it, in my opinion it was a boring game... couldn't get past a few minutes of game time before getting bored playing it.

[@hitman9198]

@Juan Echeverria lol a few minutes. The main story is over 30 hours long. That's like going to a Movie and walking out after the opening previews.

[@smacky623]

Really great review. I recently discovered your channel from the SoulsBorne retrospective videos and was excited to see tour take on Forspoken. It can be hard not to focus hard on negatives or vice versa, have blinders on to everything except what you found positive. You do an excellent job of balancing the 2 honestly.

[@DownwardThrust]

Thanks. Probably will put some more From content this year as well

[@Namons]

A very based review. Understanding that you can enjoy something and still be fully critical of it is how one remains objective and unbiased when doing a review. Well done!

[@smurfie8412]

It's because she's black

[@ZerkyP30]

@@smurfie8412 always that one bum in the comments.

[@Struggler12349]

@@ZerkyP30 still, once the game flops you can bet your ass they'll blame the low sales on sexism and racism from the players instead of blaming the actual game

[@ZerkyP30]

I'm already knowing. Like bro it's a female lead with a darker skin tone. Not a black panther movie or something like that. If people don't like the game why is that the first thing to come from their mouths. Makes us look bad honestly.

[@fluttzkrieg4392]

@Smurfie Your point? Resident Evil 5 and Deathloop were divisive at best, Assassin's Creed Liberation is completely irrelevant and forgotten. Having a female black protag doesn't automatically make your game good. Although some great games happen to have characters that fit the bill like Alyx and Clementine.

[@steadyrow]

this is what happens when cryptocurrency sucks up the budget for your big ip.

[@RoastedJustice]

Downward Thrust with one of the first reviews. Get them views boy!

[@igoonx15]

Tbh i think this game can be fun, my problem from what i saw and heard is the main character 😂 like it feels like she came from a poorly written teen drama, which is unfortunate because to me if the characters are good i'll enjoy the game even if it wasn’t what i wanted. But the weirdness of the game is what made me interested because i'm all for weird and interesting stuff it’s just unfortunate that the MC is not likable “for me” It feels like one of those games that one or two months and it will be forgotten, which is a shame tbh i was interested to see what the game has to offer but with time my excitement slowly went down.

[@zappodude7591]

Open-world over-the-shoulder "realistic" bare-bones beat-em-up with crafting and awkward stunted mocap "cinematic" cutscenes featuring a "strong and diverse" (expressionless) main character. The "speedy and fluid" movement ends up being a four-way dash. Is anyone surprised?

[@berserkasaurusrex4233]

You forgot that the character talks like she's in an MCU film, but can use actual swear words. In fact, that's 90% of her character right there.

[@S3Cs4uN8]

@@berserkasaurusrex4233 She feels like a Millennial designed by committee working with nothing but stereotypes.

[@corvus8638]

@@S3Cs4uN8 She’s a zoomer

[@pavelowjohn9167]

"reluctant hero" I've learned to dread that phrase when I hear it in a review or preview. Please god, not another mean-spirited nihilist as the protagonist.....

[@captainsavvy07]

I was afraid that there would be only one town hub with NPCs in it :( It's one of the biggest issues I had with FF15 so I'm sad that the Luminous team did the same thing again in Forspoken.

[@stevejones8550]

Damn! I was very excited about this. I probably won't buy it at all. Definitely not at full price.

[@spugelo359]

For sure never going to pay that full 80, don't want to normalize that for PC.

[@stevejones8550]

@@spugelo359 I want to buy it actually. But... I haven't heard a single good review. Plus I recently bought Calisto,evil west and Gotham knights. My pocketbook can't take another shit game lol

[@LovingJill]

Welp...goodluck to those getting this game, hope you guys have fun.

[@tyleroutland435]

Thank you I'm sure I will tomorrow when I pick it up from the Gamestop I shop at

[@ghostlyargonaut7988]

not everyone's cup of tea, but that's okay

[@Macheako]

I don’t ❤ I hope people are miserable playing this garbage

[@R3TR0J4N]

70$ AA title that was a ripoff as it was as par as an AA title, not like the scale was worth telling enough compare to Dragons Dogma or ELEX 2. gotta have the buzzword "next-gen" and PS5 badge as a scapegoat i guess.

[@thomasov2004]

I think I'll buy it in 2 years time when it's on sale for like $5

[@mcdonaldtrump228]

This game definitely feels like an unfinished project that looks like it contains hard work but no interest

[@ryanburdette17]

this was the review i needed, thank you! the lack of outer city NPC characters is exactly why there is no good side missions. I needed someone to break down the game and you did it in a "for dummys" type was that spoke to me, i couldnt imagine playing an open world rpg and having the fights be non existent and the fact enemies dont give sufficient xp ruins "the grind" i grew up loving when it came to RPG games

[@BigSleepyOx]

I agree, this is the best review I've seen of this game.

[@DownwardThrust]

Thank you for that, nice to hear

[@FortexVize]

This really breaks my hearth.. as I waited for this game since it was first shown. Was so extremely hyped about an open world with parkour and magic. (I loooove magic) The trailers were soo incredibly promising. The graphics the magic, the gameplay. Everything was spot on in my fantasy of the perfect "RPG" game, honestly. While I am playing the game I notice that I am not being really hyped looking forward to play it. And this just makes me sad. It is a disappointment and there are sooo many aspects in which the game is disappointing that I don't believe they can fix that with updates.

[@DamonInferis]

Magic isn't real, read a book.

[@FortexVize]

@@DamonInferis You know we are talking about a game homie?

[@Orain88]

$60 would be a hard sell for this game, and here they are charging $70 on PS5 aaand PC. They're in for a rude awakening.

[@Chad6o]

Wow, that's cheap...I'm Canadian....they want a hundred bucks for this tripe, 125 for the deluxe addition...So ya, I'll be playing it on the 12th of Never.

[@Orain88]

@@Chad6o If it turns up in a humble bundle or something it might end up in my steam library.

[@asdergold1]

@@Chad6o Brazilian here. It's over 400, and we get paid far less and monthly than all those rich americans that don't live in the more socialist states. Of course, buying a PS5 isn't a thing for most people here. What was it, over 6k? Something around that.

[@Walamonga1313]

Ikr lmao

[@Orain88]

@@asdergold1 so about 76 usd, yea that sucks too. Here in France it's 80€ new, so about 450 Real if I went to buy it new here. Video games are too expensive at launch in general these days. Just wait for sales.

[@celfhelp]

my hope is that this was someone at Square's ploy to convince higher ups and shareholders that creative collaborations with Western/English companies is a fucking horrible idea great review though!

[@DownwardThrust]

Ty

[@reilley26]

This really reinforced that I definitely want to try this game but will probably wait for it to go on sale.

[@holonaut]

Same. Actually after this video I'm pretty sure I would enjoy this game, but it's clearly not worth 80 bucks. They should have made it 40. Building half of a game and then shamelessly overpricing it seems to be a trend with Square Enix lately

[@arthurdent9281]

Definitely going to wait for at least 50% off, but it would probably be fun to play through once. Seems like they just phoned it in on the story and writing for the characters. Doesn't really even make sense. Why is she wanting to go back to her shitty life in NY rather than having magic powers and being able to basically fly around the landscape? Pretty lazy writing.

[@hiyasuamv9776]

@@holonaut Valkyrie Elysium got a quick 50% off maybe it'll be the same here

[@DownwardThrust]

Ya definitely give it a shot if it interests ya.

[@sukamadik5983]

This was one the games of all time. Future Generations will exist after this game came out.

[@SSJ2Phenom]

Can't argue with that. This was definitely one of the games of all time.

[@Lock2002ful]

What?

[@johnbrackettii9468]

@@Lock2002ful yea totally confusing but if they're saying this is one for the record books I have to guess they're feminist but they're not wrong there will be people in the future and this game will be remembered but I don't believe for good things

[@Lock2002ful]

@@johnbrackettii9468 Why feminist though? Because the main char is a woman? There’s nothing feminist about this game from what I’ve read.

[@S3Cs4uN8]

@@Lock2002ful The 'This was one of the [insert thing] of all time' is a joke about how mediocre the game is, a play on the more expected 'This is the best/greatest [insert thing] of all time' comment. It's basically just saying 'Yes, this is a game that exists' as its only defining quality.

[@mikehawknballs434]

I find the problem with alot of modern games is they prefer to show us a story rather than have us engage with it. Like cutscenes used to be exclusive to integrate between scenes now its used as a plot device take halo you get cutscenes after a main objective the cutscene is nothing more than moving to the next scene or stage now with games its a way to tell a story

[@DownwardThrust]

Absolutely

[@S3Cs4uN8]

This isn't even a quality in modern video games. Cutscenes being the sole, or primary, source of storytelling goes back as far as the games I used to play as a kid in the late 90's and early 00's, to say it is only a 'modern' problem is somewhat disingenuous.

[@monchicruz8278]

You would think that it being an open world they would realize that open world design and quests/objectives are things that they need to focus on.

[@Gakusangi]

Not gonna lie, I forgot this game even existed until you brought it up here.

[@aalberto4961]

15 hours with mild exploration. I'm skipping this. Thank you for the honest review!

[@diegosolis9681]

If this game runs so poorly in performance mode for a PS5 I don't want to even imagine what the performance will be on PC...

[@samnope7344]

Min requirements are an R5 1600, (reasonable IMO), a 5500xt and 16GB of RAM... To play 720p 30fps. 6700xt to play at the "recommended" 1440p 30fps. Seriously, I don't get the Devs obsession with only handing out 30fps requirement specs.

[@tresicario984]

I cant wait to see steam reviews 🤣

[@TheENDEVOUR]

You nailed with this review 🎉. I’ll wait till it’s free. Which it will be 👍🤣

[@buffedappetite]

This game is way to good of a game to be a free game?🤣You sound delusional kid

[@personaenthusiast2020]

I think this might be the most accurate review I've seen so far. It's presented in organized an objective manner. Bravo.

[@D4Gamerz]

Literally Final Fantasy 15 all over again, Square never learns. It's a wrap for Square-Enix, you can only fail so many times before people lose all good faith.

[@lloganm1234]

Nah

[@toothfairy7765]

How many times have I heard this rhetoric, sorry cause I’ve lost count.

[@Tenchinu]

copuim inhaling fanbase, fantasia addicts, and special edition simps beg to differ

[@_CrimsonBlade]

i tried to warn people but they didnt want to listen watch ff16 is gonna be the same shit square enix sucks

[@bmagada]

They're just the publisher and not the developer. That's Luminous Productions. However it is made up of people who worked on FF15 so you aren't too far off.

[@StickNik]

Seems like a game I may try the PC port for. Less camera and auto-aim issues from mouse control, possibility of modding to remove some of the restrictions you were mentioning of locking gameplay in conversations and the fade to black stuff.

[@DownwardThrust]

100% going to be easier with M&K for targeting

[@kolo5141]

Skill traingle should be a square and after using one skill you can use only adjucent one and you can change only one that is not adjucent to one you just used. It could build your combo by using adjucents in a different ways. You could change all skills outside combat.

[@1223optimus]

I think the writing was on the wall after that second trailer. However i want people to remember this game as an example of just because a game is pushed back, delayed or whatever else excuse the development team comes up with. Doesn't mean the game will be better because of it. You can polish a turd but its still a turd. So when i hear delay i dont run to well its for the better.

[@garrnk]

Seeing this game it makes me wonder how bad was it before they had to delay it. This game especially the gameplsy mechanics have so much potential. To hear that potential waisted makes me sad. The demo was super fun but hearing the story is lackluster makes me a bit sad.

[@larrybraham4884]

Damn I was hoping we would start 23 off with a decent game. I like your review you got my sub.

[@mravg79]

Well the first game I played and finished in 2023. Was Saints Row (2022). But on the other hand, I did this to myself. I would not pay for this game but since it was a part of Xbox free play days I played it. I agree with most of the reviews I do not recommend this game. And more on what you said. Look at your games backlog, check some older games you might have missed and they were on your radar. I hope you will find something to enjoy instead of Forspoken. I might give this game a chance but when it drops in price significantly, I have more than enough games in my backlog. Have a nice time gaming!

[@Walamonga1313]

Don't worry, March will be amazing. RE4 remake, Wo Long, Trails to Azure, Jedi Survivor and Fatal Frame 4

[@larrybraham4884]

@mravg79 Heck yeah I'll peep the backlog good idea

[@larrybraham4884]

@@Walamonga1313 Sweet. Half of these I didn't know about. Thanks

[@LordsOfSkulls]

Subscribed. I think this is first time in a while i ever heard, a proper Review of a Game in years. Thank You, and looking forward to more videos. ;p

[@Todestelzer]

They even did not get keys out for serval game magazines to manipulate us. PC Gamer a big magazine in Germany got no key before and after launch and they weren’t the only one. SE said it was a “mistake” and they would give out a key soon.

[@tcgreatwolf]

Ah another solid review , these are all very fair points. I think they may have bitten off more then they can chew with this game and maybe should have waited till they developed much more before even brining it to the light at all.

[@DownwardThrust]

Thanks

[@lucasgraeff5391]

wow this is my most anticipated game of 2007

[@tyleroutland435]

You mean 2023 not 2007 😂

[@honestbenny]

@@tyleroutland435 Didn't you get sarcasm? He said 2007 beasue game is so outdated.

[@tyleroutland435]

@@honestbenny it's not outdated

[@honestbenny]

@@tyleroutland435 It is. Bullet jumping ripped from Warframe but not as good, empty open world without anything, city with dead NPCs like from 2000s, icons and maps like from first open world Assassin Creed. Graphics like from PS4, fade to black cutscenes like from j-rpgs from 2000s. The game looks like it should have came out 10-15 years ago.

[@tyleroutland435]

@@honestbenny I respfully disagree

[@jekxel9000]

that parkour and jumping looked really cool, just wish it was in any other game lol. also the fast running really reminded me of warframe which is a game that can be really fun to traverse open world maps using a fast character

[@dtzyYT]

Well...looks like 2023 is the year I go back and play Skyrim. At least until the proper games come out.

[@619ver1]

Okay, after both GoW:R And Elden ring dropped, this game has no excuse being so...mid. Like honestly it feels a lot like an action rpg from the 2010's

[@thegreenguy3030]

$70 game lol when i played the demo i said this game should be 30 bucks if that

[@MrRegD]

So glad I was able to sample the demo and see the honesty of your review line up with my perception… thanks for the confirmation.

[@Whelp_imryan]

Good honest review finally. Thanks for laying out the info without too much personal embellishment.

[@andreasreinhardt8753]

Square is becoming the new Ubisoft.

[@Kernwadi]

"Comments are subjective." -Bilbo Baggins

[@PistolPoet]

I think they wanted to show the combat system more than anything. It's from Luminous Prod, they technically made the game (Square just published it)

[@Idiotic_mar]

Honestly after spending a few hours (unlocked Prav’s magic), I’ve skipped way too many dialogue/cutscenes although some are interesting. My main reason for exploring is to unlock fast travel and leveling up. Im enjoying combat but when I don’t wanna speed through the game I’m just running around an empty sandbox feeling like a magical badass combining spells. There’s not much more. Could be better but it’s holding my attention.

[@BlackStarrTurnsHeel]

I don't have the game but I feel I could come up with a better structured story and outcome. Not all African American people are struggling in America, it's a cliche approach to characters background if you ask me. If I worte Forspoken I would focus on Fey's skills at parcore and gymnastics and make it be an important part of her identity and the plot. She could be a reincarnated Goddess or Witch who was also physically capable which would explain her physical skills. Everything she does or ends up learning to do would stem from her background somehow as well as the world of the story. Last but not least ALL characters will be way better fleshed out than this garbage.

[@donaldn5798]

@@fantasyexplorergg indeed, the first red flag was how poorly this game was optimized. Shame, no one WANTS a bad game

[@DMT-ix9zj]

Woken i mean forspoken i see it coming after seeing trailers/vids before release i did like demo but decided to wait for reviews great honest review TY.

[@ej5677]

How is it ‘woke’?

[@Ancor_Vantian]

@@ej5677 Don't engage with these kinds of comments. You're just wasting your time and mental energy trying to understand what the f they mean.

[@ej5677]

@@Ancor_Vantian I know, I just like to play dumb and ask in the hope they actually say the quiet part out loud. Then everyone can see what a dipshit they are. It’s surprisingly effective

[@crispycrimps865]

I do hope there is a second game. The game has some cool ideas and I like the overall concept. It just doesn't take those ideas where they need to be unfortunately. Just my opinion

[@JonBlack413]

Square Enix is basically the Japanese Ubisoft now.

[@thacoolest13]

After spending a crap ton of time making epic magical effects, they suddenly remembered that the rest of the game also had to exist along side it...

[@TheLateral18]

How can a studio make a game for years and come out with this?

[@nalcarya]

This is the first review of this game I found that actually deserves to be called that. Most people reduce their "review" to memeing on the awkward writing.

[@voltzx1040]

NYC in this game just reminds me of heavy rain cause of the dull colours, some areas look so empty as well like as if the game is still in testing or something

[@TheCrusaderBin]

Nothing in here worth 80€ for sure.

[@kenny42069]

It's so disappointing because I really wanted this game to be good. It's such a great concept and it looks beautiful, but the more I heard about the less interested I became. Maybe it'll be worth buying after a few patches and a price cut or two, though.

[@DownwardThrust]

Same

[@Me_Caveman]

Comprehensive and presented very well. Easily worth a subscription and time spent watching/listening if the rest of your content is anywhere near the same quality.

[@michaelkreitzer1369]

Thanks! This was very informative. Altho, pausing at the peak of a huge AoE spell to complain about not being able to see is a bit of a cheap shot in an otherwise excellent review.

[@DownwardThrust]

To be fair, there are lots of spells like that. It can be very flashy at times.

[@silverwing5254]

This is a good review. It's a shame to see just how much of a mixed bag this game is, but I am glad that you actually put effort into reviewing, unlike some reviewers who only picked at the most petty complaints, like the number of quips the characters make, without mentioning any of the more serious ones, like poor framerate and clunky controls.

[@DownwardThrust]

Thanks; I put a lot of effort in to my reviews as I don’t always get review codes.

[@antman1672]

It's a shame the story and characters are so bad, because everything else looks good. I'll probably end up getting it because there are so few action RPGs that aren't souls-likes, JRPGs, hack and slashes, or MMOs.

[@Needler13]

Wait for Hogwarts legacy then

[@exultantblade50]

@@Needler13 do you have recommendations for Hogwarts Legacy combat videos? I personally found Forspoken more appealing, but that might be because I feel like Firspoken has more potential in manipulating the game system, whilst Hogwarts will remain balanced so that you can do pvp.

[@shadowweaver1599]

This is exactly what I was worried about and the demo like balins wonderland was a red flag that said wait for a sale or pass.

[@igotdembombs]

I was looking around youtube for an opinion on this game. Saw a guy squeaking like a seagull when he saw the narrative difficulty setting. Saw Dunkey's video, that's self explanatory. Then came here. Subbed.

[@blenderalien]

I got this in an AMD GPU bundle. My only question is: Is this worth my time?

[@DownwardThrust]

Depends if you dig the gameplay. At least give it a shot

[@DenDGLegionhardhouse]

I watched a 3 hour walkthrough, actually like Frey and the sarcasm in dialogues. Im still interested about getting this but not at this time, at the current price

[@geroffmilan3328]

In terms of timing, yours is the 3rd review I've seen of this - nothings personal!; it's a top-quality review 👍 If only you - or those other reviewers - were able to say anything remotely like that about this game. I doubt I'll buy it, even on sale - or would even install it if it was in Game Pass for that matter.

[@imperialshroom]

This was a well written and spoken review. Great job! First timer here and a new sub.

[@DownwardThrust]

Thanks and welcome to our small corner on YT ❤

[@cheekmuncher]

Forspoken

[@aceofspades6520]

Thank you for the review. You're the first person that isn't just shit talking the game. Thank you again, I subbed

[@DownwardThrust]

Welcome!

[@Don_terrenos]

Just about what I expected

[@califrag8]

Thank you! Excellent review that provided answers to many questions I had. I now know this is a 'wait for the first update, at least, before buying' as well as a 'buy on sale' advisory. But if it truly is 'empty' of NPC's and story...that's going to be a solid NO from me.

[@DownwardThrust]

U got it dude

[@kendrickpalmore4128]

Death Stranding is empty of NPC's in it's open world. Elden Ring is 2022 game of the year, yet it barely has any NPC's in the open world. You don't have people criticizing those games, on top of that, death stranding is a hideo Kojima game, while Elden Ring is a fromsoftware title, those games are going to get high scores anyway, people are just biased in their reviews.

[@RAV3NxGUARD]

My god it's been YEARS since I've seen a new video from you. I hope you're doing well sir!

[@qizeaqfile]

It seem like the game is 100% exactly what I expected. I can forgive the clunky gameplay and the cringe dialogue but the game is extremely empty and ugly(what happened to square enix? If only they made anime or Japanese aesthetics like they used to but this is the result of their misguided goals of trying to westernize their games, didn't they know that the most successful game for nearly 3 years now has Anime aesthetics. Even their most successful game right now, FF14 has anime/Japanese aesthetics) . I'll not buy a game that I don't like to watch.

[@heatherracho]

I was looking forward to this since they announced it my up because I'm just burned in anticipation to play it and then I got the demo and I was sad and I thought maybe they'll add more later but they didn't I don't know I'll probably end up getting it but I don't think I'll be paying $70 I think a problem that I have is I relate every game to The Witcher nobody has been able to beat The Witcher yet in the RPG world and that sucks but it makes all other games look like garbage

[@Needler13]

Hogwarts legacy

[@DownwardThrust]

I wouldn’t expect updates from this one, if I had to guess.

[@thaidanh]

Thanks for the review. Seems like the consensus of the game is gameplay is pree good but everything else is lackluster. Could be a good game to fool around when it goes on sale

[@DownwardThrust]

U got it bud

[@Swypebiz]

Imo the concept, the world, the movement looks amazing, my hope is that they take the feedback and add more content later on with more life to the game. Maybe more cities, more events, npcs. That’s qhat imo is missing only. Otherwise the game looks a lot of fun! Definitely would buy it at this price

[@DownwardThrust]

I do not think this game is going to receive updates like a live service game. It’s possible tho.

[@goliver9991]

didnt know this game even existed before this video, absolutely one of the games of all time

[@dsilverleaf4668]

Ur jus foolish

[@DownwardThrust]

When did this saying catch on? Seeing it a ton these days

[@goliver9991]

@@DownwardThrust its just something that I absorbed watching videos probably in the last 2 years, usually reviews of anything will have this when talking about something mid

[@Da_Shrooms]

The game can't be disappointing if you didn't expect much. When I first saw it I thought "the graphics look great and the magic is stunning, but why does it just feel...empty?" I have been skeptical from day one, but I somewhat enjoyed the demo. Turns out the demo was about all the game has to offer..

[@DownwardThrust]

The game is a lot more than the demo but yes, it is pretty indicative of the gameplay… which is fairly good

[@BingoRSA]

Thanks for this handy review, deffos only picking this up on special

[@DownwardThrust]

Ur welcome

[@PAXperMortem]

Novigrad is still the best open-world fantasy city in gaming, imo!

[@SSJ2Phenom]

Can't say I'm not disappointed. I was really hoping that this would land big. Sounds like the story is the biggest issue. Most agree that the gameplay is the real winner here though and I'm still getting it because I loved the combat and traversal in the demo. Luckily, I won't have to dwell on my disappointment for long. We have A LOT coming down the pike and it's coming fast too.

[@Needler13]

Hogwarts legacy is right around the corner. That is what I'm waiting for

[@R3TR0J4N]

gameplay lacks variety regards the shortcomings of close-quarters and they fail to implement verticality to utilize its fast-pace mobility to make the game more dynamically engaging. its lacking compare to a more comprehensive decade old game called Dragons Dogma which scale was as par as an AA title and it doesn't cost 70$. modern gamers do see eye candy visual effects and call it "gameplay". no wonder they ignore Ghost Of Tsushima identity for its composed movement as its visual direction for its interactive dynamic environment.

[@Walamonga1313]

A OOT? What's that

[@DownwardThrust]

Pretty much how I feel. Worth a play for a discount but not amazing by any means.

[@SSJ2Phenom]

@@Walamonga1313 A LOT. Sorry about that.

[@tyleroutland435]

I'm still buying Forspoken tomorrow I pre-ordered last month ps5 physical version at the Gamestop I shop at. It will be the first game I buy this year

[@ThatGuyThatGames24]

Have fun with it my guy!

[@dragon12333]

Have fun with a shit game lol

[@sor3999]

8:42 I never realized this was bunny hopping. I just thought it was a free burst of speed. I went back into the demo and tried it. Someone at Luminous played some FPS games where bunny-hopping was a thing. It's obviously a lot easier, with less strict timing and all, than exploiting an old Quake engine bug.

[@rayburr80]

I'm glad I pre-ordered Octopath Traveler II over Forspoken!

[@geons2130]

Thank you for saving my money and time. P.S. just to clarify to people who made very big assumptions, I subjectively and consciously decided that I agree with the reviewer and wish to spend my resources elsewhere, as simple as that. You are free to make your own decision too.

[@tyleroutland435]

Did you forget that video games especially single player games are subjective its different for everyone. Just because he didn't like alot of ascepts doesn't mean you would hate it. That's the problem with most people that sounds like you oh just because someone says the game is bad I'm not buying that's so pathetic. This is why I don't listen to reviewers if I'm interested in a game I buy it take my time and judge it myself which many people forget they can do. I know shocking 😂

[@gameguy301]

I will say this, this game has a magic system that makes the mage archetype exciting and creative in a way I havent seen since Dragons Dogma.

[@AzureRoxe]

That's one of the few truly good things about the game, the visual and feel of the magic is great and the way you level up the spells is how it should ALWAYS be done.

[@anti-roxas850]

6:18 THIS!!! This is the reason why I stopped playing Forbidden West. I just felt overwhelmed. Chaos & Icons everywhere. I would play the game for hours and feel like I accomplished nothing. Because every 10 steps I take, 20 more icons appeared

[@damienlockhart6288]

Least horizon forbidden west has the ability to take off what you dont want or need at the time. But yeah, it did get overwhelming fast af

[@damienlee1165]

It's a little sad how much they probably were trying to break out the Final Fantasy mold, but Final Fantasy is all they know.

[@michael0044able]

Nah I'll wait for Hogwarts legacy, thanks for the honest review

[@zappodude7591]

Not getting it on PC, I hope.

[@michael0044able]

@@zappodude7591 ps5

[@zappodude7591]

@@michael0044able The PC port of HL includes Denuvo, which is known to play havoc with performance. It's probably on the console versions too, but it's not so much of an issue there.

[@michael0044able]

@@zappodude7591 yeah I've heard of it anti crack software or something ,that sucks

[@sakinu5843]

Style over substance, sounds like FFXV all over again.

[@MinskUK]

On the upside, as it’s not that must play game that many were hoping for, that’s upgrades differed!

[@BushinRyuCat]

SE shouldve just given us the full story of Agnis, from that cool Luminous Engine tech trailer! In 4 min of the tech trailer 10 yrs ago i was *WAAAAYY* more invested that was Frey got going on.

[@razormaw6374]

We need more games with no map icons like Elden Ring being able to explore the world without hand holding is so much more immersive.

[@OrionDawn15]

Immersion doesn't necessarily mean good, after all... it's no fun if the world is difficult to navigate or you don't know where to go or what to do. You need to think of the players when making your game, no? And lets not pretend Elden Ring had *no* map icons, I'm pretty sure you could see and teleport to bonfires at the very least and see the general direction of where the game maybe wants you to go.

[@razormaw6374]

@Oriondawn yeah it has its own style of markers and subtle hints telling you where to go for the main story, my point being take Assassins Creed for example the map is littered with icons everywhere personally I'd just prefer to have nothing and leave it up to exploration rather then hand holding.

[@OrionDawn15]

@@razormaw6374 I'd personally just prefer it if the game gave me the option to toggle certain icons on and off so I can change the UI clutter to a more bearable level without making the world unnecessarily difficult to navigate.

[@razormaw6374]

@Oriondawn I guess it's just personal opinion but I didn't find ER difficult to navigate, I enjoyed all the hidden nooks and verticality just wandering about without a clue of where my exploration would take me it was quite refreshing and kept me wanting to more.

[@OrionDawn15]

@@razormaw6374 I would've probably enjoyed it... if I didn't find myself walking into areas that were most likely too high level for me and dumb parkour segments.