Bound by Flame

 PlayStation 4
Metascore
53

Mixed or average reviews - based on 40 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 26 out of 40
  3. Negative: 12 out of 40
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  1. Cheat Code Central
    May 13, 2014
    46
    It’s not a horrendous travesty that all action RPG players should avoid, and similarly it’s not a stellar blockbuster that all Dark Souls addicts should pick up. It just feels very mediocre and generic. Nothing stands out about the game and nothing really holds it down aside from its graphics at points.
  2. Kill Screen
    May 13, 2014
    45
    So much of Bound by Flame induces boredom or irritation that it seemed the best recourse to seek out a style of play that facilitated, if not outright enjoyment, at least an absence of hostility.
  3. Games Master UK
    Jun 7, 2014
    44
    With lofty ideas way above its station, this schlocky action-RPG is a well-meaning mess. [July 2014, p.76]
    All this publication's reviews
  5. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    Jun 29, 2014
    40
    Juddering. [July 2014, p.93]
    All this publication's reviews
  6. NZGamer
    May 22, 2014
    40
    Bound by problems and suffocating great ideas.
  7. RPGamer
    May 20, 2014
    40
    It's difficult to justify players paying full new game price for Bound by Flame, particularly for the premium cost PS4 version. Ultimately, the game has an interesting premise and selling points that on the face of things are worthy of attention, but the scope aimed for is such that the resources and timescales devoted to it sadly had no hope in achieving.
  8. Level7.nu
    May 20, 2014
    40
    With inspiration from several other fantasy role-playing games Spiders Studio try to mix the best of different worlds. As a consequence the game never feels unique nor mindblowing. The combat is sometimes satisfying but soon becomes repetitive and boring. In addition, the is horrid and the voice acting even worse. For a role-playing game Vulcan's adventure ends quickly and abruptly and never becomes more than a game in the genre soon to be forgotten.
  9. GameCritics
    May 16, 2014
    40
    After putting my time in with Bound By Flame, I'm left with the sense that the Spiders team has badly overreached. There are some superb ideas on display here, but none feel like they even begin to tap their full potential, and the experience overall feels rushed and incomplete.
  10. Eurogamer
    May 13, 2014
    40
    Simply by staggering across the finish line first, Bound By Flame may seem to be an attractive proposition for PS4 RPG fans, but don't be fooled. With its shonky cut-scenes, its outdoor sound effects that play indoors and its linear maps, this is in no way a current-gen experience. It's a budget offering at a premium price - and a poor one at that.
  11. Gamereactor Sweden
    May 20, 2014
    30
    Avoid Bound by Flame at all costs, this is really not a game worthy of your hard earned money.
  12. Metro GameCentral
    May 11, 2014
    30
    A Frankenstein’s monster of other people’s ideas, that if not for the sleazy script would be laughable in its desperation to include every fantasy cliché imaginable.
  13. Slant Magazine
    May 13, 2014
    20
    The game appears to be a product of magical thinking, as if throwing together watered-down tropes from games like The Witcher might somehow yield a finished product.

Awards & Rankings

42
#42 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2014
38
#38 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2014

User Reviews

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User Score
5.9

Mixed or average reviews- based on 260 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 108 out of 260
  2. Mixed: 70 out of 260
  3. Negative: 82 out of 260
  1. JPoppaWUSC
    May 9, 2014
    10
    Bound By Flame doesn't deserve a perfect score, but I'm going to give it one anyway to offset the spamming of terrible scores that it's havingBound By Flame doesn't deserve a perfect score, but I'm going to give it one anyway to offset the spamming of terrible scores that it's having to endure. In truth, BBF is about an 8.5, but even placing a number on the review is difficult for a few reasons. The game is awkward, in much the same way as Mars War Logs felt awkward. From inconsistent characterization and uncomfortably cynical dialogue to bad lip-syncing and amateurish voice acting, the presentation is going to rub a lot of players the wrong way. The question is, how much importance do you place on cinematic presentation? Because if you're the type of gamer who enjoys gritty real-time combat and a serious level of challenge, BBF may still have enough to offer that aesthetics don't matter anymore. If you like, say, Dark Souls or The Witcher for their strategic and deliberately-paced combat systems, you will want to give BBF a spin. If you thought Dragon's Dogma was a good first entry into a new IP in spite of some glaring flaws, you'll easily overlook the worst of BBF's issues. Just don't expect Skyrim. While you could compare chunks of BBF to a lot of its action RPG peers, it holds the least resemblance to Elder Scrolls. There's some DNA from Dragon Age, Witcher, Amalur, Dark Souls, Fable, even War in the North, and of course Mars War Logs -- but practically nothing about the game suggests that Spiders was trying to compete with Skyrim. As long as you set your expectations accordingly, you'll be just fine, especially considering it's only a $50 new release on a brand new console, on which there is very little selection right now and NO other RPGs to speak of. BBF actually manages to deliver on much of its gameplay mechanics, and I genuinely enjoy the music and art style. Crafting is deeper than expected for both equipment and expendables, as you can change out modular parts of weapons and armor easily or craft items like traps on the fly, even in the heat of combat. Mission objectives and combat conditions are varied and often very fun to figure out, even if you die a lot in the process. Things like target lock-on and parrying work just fine (contrary to popular belief), but heaven forbid, you actually need to learn the game's system to be effective with them. I appreciate that this isn't a paint-by-numbers RPG, and even though it borrows some inspiration from plenty of big-name IPs, the resulting whole feels almost entirely original. It just won't be the kind of original that everybody likes. Personally, I'm getting everything out of it that I expected and maybe then some, so I respect what Spiders did with their first retail game. I look forward to seeing what they do next, and I wouldn't mind getting some DLC for Bound By Flame. We've got quite a while to wait on games like Dragon Age: Inquisition and The Witcher 3, so I hope players don't write this one off too quickly.… Full Review »
  2. robotnist
    May 9, 2014
    8
    i have the game on PS4, its nice to have an actual RPG to play along with the MMO FF14. so here's the deal, i'm a huge RPG fan, so take myi have the game on PS4, its nice to have an actual RPG to play along with the MMO FF14. so here's the deal, i'm a huge RPG fan, so take my score with a grain of salt. my fave RPGs are PSO, elder scrolls franchise, dragon age origins, basically anything bioware etc. i came to metacritic to check out a review right after my girlfriend bought me a copy today and was freaked out to see a 4 out of 10 from one of my fave sites, Polygon. (but they also gave ESO a 6/10 so guess i'm not surprised).

    i immediately thought to myself, "maybe i shouldn't open the packaging and take it back?"

    im so glad i didn't!!!!

    BbF is a great RPG!!! the GFX don't "scream" next gen, but they're def NOT old gen!!! in fact i'm very anal about frame-rates and textures/lighting/anti-aliasing, what have you, and i'm very happy with all of the above. it also needs to be noted i'm not one of those RPG, or to be precise, "JRPG" fans who complain about western localization/voice-over as opposed to having the japanese voices that are ultimately the most obnoxious aspects of all RPGs, ever, lol. meaning as long as voices are semi-professional i have NO issue what so ever with them. i mean japan INVENTED obnoxiousness, come one. i say that lovingly, it was japan who delivered me to my love of RPGs in my childhood with the likes of dragon warrior, phantasy star and final fantasy!!!

    the story works great. let me elaborate... when i say works, i'm not a story snob as far as games go. so many people hold their nose up at stories that aren't the next "memento" of games... i feel as though if the story has interesting lore, and it supports the game play, it "works". i play games for the fun of the gameplay, the story works for me if it doesn't interfere with the fun i'm having.

    the combat in BbF is so good. i was, again, blown away at how well this aspect of the game was handled. and the way you advance your character lets you choose whether you want him to be a warrior, ranger (rogue) or mage. and depending on how u spend your points, 2 skill points per level and 1 feat per level makes tweaking your character fun. it kind of reminds me of dragon age here, where in DAO ur skills kind of handle some of the esoteric features of gameplay.

    there are so many times i played this game and felt references to RPGs that have come out in the past few years, and here they are, i hope this helps u make a decision to purchase this game if this is what you enjoy.

    i sensed the new game of thrones RPG right off the bat, now i agree that game isn't as good as it could be, but it had great ideas with simply poor execution. where BbF shares any similarities here i said to myself "this is what GoT the RPG, SHOULD have been".

    another game i felt it resembled early on was DA2s weapon type attacks. but bound by flame has all active combat the really trumps DA2, even though i am a huge fan of DA2 (being a bioware game as well)

    and most importantly, i kept getting a nagging feeling about a game from my past that this game really felt like... i couldn't remember and then it hit me 3-4 hours in, this is a new age Jade Empire!!!

    it has map setups just like JE. now i know thats not the most promising aspect here, the maps in bound by flame ARE NOT open world. they're not even as large as Dragon Age Origins, but they are very fun to explore and find loot for upgrading, crafting. there's tons of nooks and crannies and the character/item/skill advancement is SO much fun, the maps don't detract AT ALL!!! in fact, they really are large enough in the cities and wilds to keep the combat to explore ratio perfect!!! and you never tire of either, that's probably the best thing i can say about bound by flame!!!

    so for those of you who made it this far, i just wanted to say, i wrote this HUGE obnoxious review because so many times i have been curious about a new game, and i have come to metacritic and been disappointed by a lack of info in the areas I'M interested in. i don't care how the story of a new game starts, how reviews are so apt to talk about them for paragraphs, i want to know how the game "feels" in my hands.

    hopefully, if your an RPG fan like me and your on the fence, you will have enough info to decide if Bound By Flame is the game for you. either way, i hope this all helped, cheers.    … Full Review »
  3. snooginzz
    May 9, 2014
    10
    SOLID RPG. KEEP AN OPEN MIND AND ENJOY THE GOOD IT HAS TO OFFER.

    I again feel the need to write a good review to support a game that I    SOLID RPG. KEEP AN OPEN MIND AND ENJOY THE GOOD IT HAS TO OFFER.

    I again feel the need to write a good review to support a game that I VERY much enjoy, because the critic reviews are not doing it any justice. This review is being specifically directed at those of you who are here for some additional feedback because the critic reviews have left you unsure if you want to pick this game up. go ahead and grab it, if you are a true RPG fan you will be pleased.

    It's not perfect; to the masses, I'd say it should be about a 7 or 7.5 in terms of average rating. To me, this game is easily a 10, because this is the kind of RPG that I love, and become so absorbed in. I tend to favor those off-beat, off the radar titles (think two worlds or kingdoms of amalur: reckoning- if you enjoyed either of these, you will love bound by flame), because they do their own thing. Just about every review or comment I've read on this game says it's a poor version of the witcher, or dark souls. I've put many hours into those ones, and they're great. I assure you though, this game is not a copy.

    combat is awesome, nuff said. there are a good bit of different weapons and armor to pick up, and each piece can be further customized with upgrades that are crafted with mats you'll pick up around the world and dropped my mobs. the skill tree is TIGHT. if you enjoy min/maxing and tweaking your guy to the fullest, again, you'll fall in love. each tree (warrior/ranger/fire) is very thorough, and offers quite a few choices for active talents and passives. If you get off on this stuff, believe me, it's all there.

    the story is what you'd expect in a budget rpg; cheesy humor and a dark story, but that's what I love about it! I've been gaming since I was about 4-5 yrs old, and I'm 26 now. the best way I can express what I mean would be an analogy regarding moves; some flicks are not well received by critics, but have those cult followings... tropic thunder anyone? you just have to keep an open mind and accept it for what it is. if you can do that, you can get sucked into the story, laugh at the character dialogue, and really have a good time here.

    all in all, solid combat, great skill upgrade/feat upgrade system, deep crafting for a single player game, fun story, and it's very pretty. this is the first full retail release RPG for ps4; it's not the second coming of world of warcraft, but I enjoy it very much. I want games like this to keep coming out. I like them because they are *different*, and I hope that the game devs continue to bring us new and original content like this.

    don't make your purchases based on critic reviews; they are fat guys that get paid money to hear themselves talk about their opinion of a game. they are OPINIONS; not the end all be all. in some instances, critic reviews are a good guideline of what to expect, but this game is an exception to that. if you are on the fence about this one, go for it and make your mind up yourself, don't let others make the choice for you. this one *will not* disappoint.

    10/10    … Full Review »
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