Bound by Flame

 PlayStation 4
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
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  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 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 uncomfortablyBound 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.… Expand
  2. TheLeogryph
    Sep 19, 2015
    7
    I don't necessarily think Bound By Flame is a bad game. I think these sort of games are important for the experimental/daring ideas they add to the over all conversation of video games nowadays. The world of dark fantasy they present is well researched with regards to the genre it plays in in most of the party members you get in your group are pretty well fleshed out. The ones that aren'tI don't necessarily think Bound By Flame is a bad game. I think these sort of games are important for the experimental/daring ideas they add to the over all conversation of video games nowadays. The world of dark fantasy they present is well researched with regards to the genre it plays in in most of the party members you get in your group are pretty well fleshed out. The ones that aren't are pretty cookie-cutter when it comes to generic party building.

    Moving away from subjectivity, the game play rewards you if you put enough grit into learning all of the kinks and bugs. Crafting your armor is really exciting and it's refreshing to play a hero who literally questions out loud to people why no one is mention his/her demonic transformation.

    The first portion of the game is decent, but the last act is really depressing. The dungeon is OK but the story development and character building don't even take a back seat. They're still packing their bags for the trip. What's even more depressing is when you realize the bag full of promises you were given comes up about half short.

    It's not a terrible game. It's just not epic. I sometimes think we're all so used to these kind of epic experiences that we've forgotten that sometimes, a short linear adventure can be a pretty fun way to experience the weekend.    … Expand
  3. jacksonk12
    Oct 8, 2014
    10
    J'espère que les gens ne s'attarde pas au critiques. Bound by flame ne mérite aucunement des mauvaises notes.

    Franchement ce jeu est très bon. Graphisme, ambiance/univers unique et stylé que j'oublierai jamais. J'ai pris tous pleins de photos, vidéos de mon aventure sur ma PS4 :) Une fin épique. Gameplay mélange de Dark Souls et Dragon Age. Excellente trame sonore. Ne vous fiez    J'espère que les gens ne s'attarde pas au critiques. Bound by flame ne mérite aucunement des mauvaises notes.

    Franchement ce jeu est très bon. Graphisme, ambiance/univers unique et stylé que j'oublierai jamais. J'ai pris tous pleins de photos, vidéos de mon aventure sur ma PS4 :)
    Une fin épique.
    Gameplay mélange de Dark Souls et Dragon Age.
    Excellente trame sonore.

    Ne vous fiez surtout pas au mauvaises critiques sur ce jeu et essayez-le !!!

    Bravo à l'équipe qui a réalisé le jeu.    … Expand
  4. 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 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 outi 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.    … Expand
  5. ProtoCaster
    May 27, 2014
    8
    First things first, the graphics and presentation are mediocre at best. Terrible even by PS4 standards. The voice acting can be quite laughable as well. Once you get past the looks and dig into the meat of the game, you'll find a rewarding Action RPG with a good amount of depth and a very rewarding combat system. This is difficulty done right, to progress through a battle, even with minorFirst things first, the graphics and presentation are mediocre at best. Terrible even by PS4 standards. The voice acting can be quite laughable as well. Once you get past the looks and dig into the meat of the game, you'll find a rewarding Action RPG with a good amount of depth and a very rewarding combat system. This is difficulty done right, to progress through a battle, even with minor enemies you need to be on your toes. The three classes you can switch to on the fly are varied and make combat signigicantly different depending on how you perfer to play. The crafting system is simple but effective, allowing you to create your own potions and traps on the fly even in the heat of combat. If you're like me and just want a satisfying fun Western style RPG to play on your PS4 to fill the void until later in the year, this will keep you entertained for at least 15 hours if you like to explore every nook and cranny.… Expand
  6. insloanwetrust
    May 9, 2014
    7
    Bound By Flame Is a good game. It's not a AAA game, It's more a B tier game. That's just the size of their team and the budget they have. It's a mixture of other RPG's you will have played before. I actually like the writing it's funny and different from the rest of the RPG's. The combat tries to be somewhat Witcher meets Dark Souls and the game tries to have some Dragon Age influence butBound By Flame Is a good game. It's not a AAA game, It's more a B tier game. That's just the size of their team and the budget they have. It's a mixture of other RPG's you will have played before. I actually like the writing it's funny and different from the rest of the RPG's. The combat tries to be somewhat Witcher meets Dark Souls and the game tries to have some Dragon Age influence but it's not any of those games. It's a good solid RPG in it's own right that's not trying to compete with those games as they have said themselves. The upgrading your weapons, armor and abilities is good, crafting is good and combat once you get the hang of it is good. Voice acting is meh, lip syncing not great and graphics are OK. Characters are hit and miss some good some forgettable. World is OK and boss battles can be really good. If you're looking to pick up an RPG before Dragonage or The Witcher there is no reason why it shouldn't be Bound By Flame.… Expand
  7. Langor
    May 9, 2014
    8
    Story: If you are into lore and a good story with twists in the plot this game is for you. I would say the story is on par with Dragon Age 1/Witcher 2. You will not be able to see any of these twists or make choices that effect your world until chapter 2 of the game. With that said, it takes a bit to really start the story. The characters scripts are adult themed with cursing. TheStory: If you are into lore and a good story with twists in the plot this game is for you. I would say the story is on par with Dragon Age 1/Witcher 2. You will not be able to see any of these twists or make choices that effect your world until chapter 2 of the game. With that said, it takes a bit to really start the story. The characters scripts are adult themed with cursing. The interactions between hirelings interrupt and talk to your character occasionally during dialog moments with NPC's. Choices you make effect your hirelings and can also change the story. 9/10 for the lore junkies.

    Hack and slash: Well, if your main focus is a Diablo like game you wont like it. There are plenty of monsters to fight but it is story driven. The monsters do respawn over time in zones and reset when you zone. But it will get very repetitive if you are a person who skips the dialogue and just want to run through quests and kill monsters. 3/10 I just want to kill ♥♥♥♥.

    Strategist: If you like playing the game on the hardest difficulty this game is for you. It is very bland if you play on normal or below. When you up the difficulty when you get hit, you get hit hard. Soon you will have to learn how to counter each attack and have to learn what each monsters attacks are. The bosses are unique and have unique attacks also and will take a few retries to figure out how to kill them. If you are a person who spam attacks you wont make it in this difficulty. How you spend your skill points will matter here. 8/10 I will analyze your every attack and figure out how to counter you or your group.

    Combat: There are plenty of attacks and class swaps to keep you busy on the hardest difficulty. But if you play on easy none of this is needed. The controls feel very fluent and smooth. Most of it makes sense. You can lock view on targets but it is not required to hit them in melee. Animations are decent and feels polished but nothing ground breaking. 7/10

    Explorer: The game is extremely linear at the first chapter minorly opening up in chapter two. You are following a story line. In chapter two starts to be many side quests which lets you go back into zones to finish them following the main story lines quest. In chapter two I think its about 3 or 4 zones big. If you want to explore far off distances and run around in an open world this is not for you. 2/10 for my explorer's.

    Character: There is only one of me is not the case in this game. Character creation is very vague and doesn't give you many options. But you can be a male or female. Along the tree line there is only three skill trees with not soo many skills inside them. Most of the points you get will be you upgrading these skills instead of unlocking them. It only really matters what you do towards the beginning of your journey. After that, it is more forgiving to putting points into something you are not specialized in. 6/10 I want to be a unique play style ranger or warrior.

    Loot ♥♥♥♥♥: If your main focus is running around and finding new armor sets and weapons you will find your self getting bored quickly. There are a varity of items but you come by them slow. Most of these are from merchants, quests and crate finds. The uniqueness of these items come from how you imbue them, which they call crafting. Most of the loot you find off mobs are ingredients to imbue your items to make them more powerful. These imbues are not unique like Elder Scrolls, they have preset stats and names for each imbue type. But each piece you imbue does in fact give the item a new unique appearance on that spot of the item. 5/10 for items.

    Crafting: Crafting is very linear. Every mob you kill has a chance to drop components. These components you use to make imbues for your items. You will have to combine these components to make different components for your imbues. If you do not have the components you can automatically buy the base ones from your inventory with gold. It is much easier and cheaper finding them. You can not craft weapons or armor, you can only imbue them to change there stats. You can also craft things like bolts for your crossbows or traps you may lay out and have your enemies run over. Or you can buy them from a merchant, along with potions you can craft. The only real unique thing about the crafting is that each piece you imbue on an item changes its looks. You will not be able to create a unique imbue. Each item as a preset of imbues you can choose from. You only need to find the ingredients or buy them from your inventory and make them for the imbue. If your looking for something like elder scrolls crafting system look away. 3/10 I just upgrade my items when I need to whether it be instantly purchasing the ingredients or finding them.

    Graphics: I will say this is not ground breaking. It is much, much better than Dragon Age 2 but quite a bit less than Witcher 2 (for pc). It doesn't feel like you are playing an old game but it definitely is not going to awe inspire you. 8/10    … Expand
  8. fuwaneko
    May 9, 2014
    7
    It's nothing special, but it's not THAT bad as many journalists say. And it's quite challenging in a good way. Because, you know, Dark Souls showed us that a game should actually kill you, and do it often.
  9. phishhippy
    May 9, 2014
    8
    It's not perfect by any means, but in a drought of rpgs on ps4 I am really enjoying this game. I started on the 2nd hardest difficulty and I think it's made it much more enjoyable and long lasting. It is incredibly difficult on this setting, almost dark souls difficulty. I've died more than I can count but most of the time it's my fault and not the AI or design of the game. I'm on hourIt's not perfect by any means, but in a drought of rpgs on ps4 I am really enjoying this game. I started on the 2nd hardest difficulty and I think it's made it much more enjoyable and long lasting. It is incredibly difficult on this setting, almost dark souls difficulty. I've died more than I can count but most of the time it's my fault and not the AI or design of the game. I'm on hour 23 right now having done all side quests and am about to face the final boss. The story is cliche but it's enjoyable none the less. I've managed to stay human even though I've made a lot of immoral decisions at other points in the game. It's deeper than people are making it out to be with a mass effect like dialogue/morality system. The character customization is in the middle of the road. Upon creating your character there are only 4 or 5 choices for male/female along with some hairstyles. The gear is fun, allowing you to switch helmuts, gloves, breast-plate, etc. although in the end there are only maybe 7 of each with about 30 total weapon choices. You can collect materials to add both visual and statistical bonuses to them which is fun. The visuals have a cool slightly cell-shaded look that resembles some of borderlands town textures with an eos4 vibe. I will play through this game again on the hardest difficulty and so that I can see the demon side of things, so I will have probably spent 50 hours with the game when it's all said and done. Well worth it in my opinion, especially right now in the current drought of games on ps4.… Expand
  10. cryocore
    May 11, 2014
    5
    This is not a review. I have scored this a 5 as that is what it deserves imho. Can the idiots on here stop spamming 10's and 0's to "offset" other users. Utterly moronic all you're doing is proving just how pointless this site has become.
  11. Axlehead
    May 12, 2014
    10
    I can't believe this game is getting trashed on. While it is not a 10, I certainly won't sit here with it hovering around a 6. This game is easily an 8. Yes it has it's flaws, but it is a very well done game. Keep in mind the developers only have about 50 employees. This small development team has managed to make a game that is less bug ridden then that of any Bethesda game. Give it a shotI can't believe this game is getting trashed on. While it is not a 10, I certainly won't sit here with it hovering around a 6. This game is easily an 8. Yes it has it's flaws, but it is a very well done game. Keep in mind the developers only have about 50 employees. This small development team has managed to make a game that is less bug ridden then that of any Bethesda game. Give it a shot it's not perfect, but it's certainly worth a play!… Expand
  12. nitefighter
    May 9, 2014
    9
    it may not be the best rpg ever but its by no means as bad as the reviews are depicting. I've been playing for about 4 hours and i am enjoying it very much
  13. Untouchable763
    May 9, 2014
    8
    Its not a great game but still it has to be considered at least a good game for the resources that were used to make it. There is no way I would rate this game below a 7/10 so I have no idea what these reviewers were playing. I could see reasons of rating this game anywhere between a 7-8. The combat is hard and a challenge but its really well done. I love how talents work as well asIts not a great game but still it has to be considered at least a good game for the resources that were used to make it. There is no way I would rate this game below a 7/10 so I have no idea what these reviewers were playing. I could see reasons of rating this game anywhere between a 7-8. The combat is hard and a challenge but its really well done. I love how talents work as well as crafting too so I see no real big flaw with this game.… Expand
  14. Makaveli
    May 11, 2014
    5
    I don't see how anyone can give this higher than a 7 and the people giving this game a 10... really? You think this is a perfect game and you can say that with a straight face? I would ignore reviews that give the game a 8,9, 10 and ignore reviews 0,1,2,3..... Getting so you cant trust user reviews anymore......

    First let me start by saying that there are a lot of bugs in this game,    I don't see how anyone can give this higher than a 7 and the people giving this game a 10... really? You think this is a perfect game and you can say that with a straight face? I would ignore reviews that give the game a 8,9, 10 and ignore reviews 0,1,2,3..... Getting so you cant trust user reviews anymore......

    First let me start by saying that there are a lot of bugs in this game, that can be said for a lot of games and then they patch it, so I will not be talking about the bugs it has as i'm sure they will be patched eventually.

    The music is very well done and I think it's great that they gave us a challenging game....however, the combat is just boring.. If you are expecting this to be on the same level as Dark Souls then you will be disappointed... The combat consists of hitting an enemy that does not even react to being hit, then you jump back, go forward, hit the enemy again, jump back, go forward, hit the enemy... It's boring.......
    The graphics are not going to blow you away but they are not terrible...
    The voice acting in this game is terrible and the voice synching is bad too...
    Sounds like the script was written by a 12 year old... There are times in the game where characters swear for absolutely no reason and it feels forced and lazy... Don't get me wrong I could care less about swearing in games but this game does it wrong..

    It's a mediocre game in the end, and if you read these 10s and 9s they are basically saying that this game is on the same level as Dark Souls and Skyrim..... Give me a break...    … Expand
  15. djwille88
    May 14, 2014
    8
    I'll tell ya what, screw the professional reviewers these days! While the game is far from great it doesn't deserve 2-3's. It's really a solid 7 if judged fairly. There really hasn't been any huge issues for me in the gameplay dept and most of it's minor in my book.

    I don't know it is about the game but I will say this, it's FUN! The combat is the strength of the game. You can't go    I'll tell ya what, screw the professional reviewers these days! While the game is far from great it doesn't deserve 2-3's. It's really a solid 7 if judged fairly. There really hasn't been any huge issues for me in the gameplay dept and most of it's minor in my book.

    I don't know it is about the game but I will say this, it's FUN! The combat is the strength of the game. You can't go in button mashing your way to victory. I like the 3 separate fighting system's or tree's that you have at your disposal and find it quite engaging.

    Other pro's..

    Great crafting system.
    Decent Story.
    Companion AI isn't that bad if you set them up right(on Rookie difficulty)
    Tough enemy's
    Interesting bosses.
    Dialog that actually can be pretty funny.
    Secondary quest's are pretty good.

    Con's

    Level design is very linear.
    Voice acting can be very cheesy.
    Not enough enemy variety.
    Transition's can be a bit jarring.
    Facial animation's is poor at times.

    I've really had a great time with the game and if you're keen on a fun little RPG with solid combat and interesting story well, this game might be up your alley.    … Expand
  16. DeusFatua
    May 9, 2014
    8
    Ce massacre de la presse à l'égard de Bound By Flame est incompréhensible.
    Spiders est une petite équipe travaillant dans des conditions difficiles, et chaque jeu qu'ils font et meilleur que le précédent, Bound By Flame est loin d'être l'exemption qui confirme la règle, il va bien au delà de ce que Mars: War Logs accomplissait il y a un an.
    Proposait à un prix très correct, BBF est un    Ce massacre de la presse à l'égard de Bound By Flame est incompréhensible.
    Spiders est une petite équipe travaillant dans des conditions difficiles, et chaque jeu qu'ils font et meilleur que le précédent, Bound By Flame est loin d'être l'exemption qui confirme la règle, il va bien au delà de ce que Mars: War Logs accomplissait il y a un an.

    Proposait à un prix très correct, BBF est un très bon jeu, qui montre que même sans moyen, et juste avec l'envie et la passion du jeu vidéo, on en arrive à de très bons résultats, et il suffit de jouer plus de dix heures pour se rendre compte de la qualité du titre.

    Bien sur ce n'est pas Dragon Age ou The Witcher 3, il n'en a ni les moyens, ni la prétention, et il est peut-être temps d'accepter qu'il existe autre chose que les AAA aux budgets faramineux et les jeux indé, il existe aussi des dév' sous l'aile d'éditeur qui ont moins de moyen et qui essayent d'avancer tout en offrant de bonne chose.

    BBF est un jeu qui mérite le détour pour tout fan de jeu de rôle.    … Expand
  17. 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 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    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    … Expand
  18. forcefullpower
    May 14, 2014
    8
    Just goes to show don't believe big review sites any more. This game is solid enjoyable experience. There are some quirks but for low budget team this is hopefully a return to good RPG this gen.
  19. Pho3nixBlad3
    May 10, 2014
    9
    Great game and well worth your time. It is clearly a budget title but not as much as you would expect. But the combat is vary much reaction based and that is what makes this game fun and with some many different ways to combat enemies it's enough to keep you invested. Whether you are laying down traps, using your crossbow to interrupt attacks or just hacking, dodging and blocking your wayGreat game and well worth your time. It is clearly a budget title but not as much as you would expect. But the combat is vary much reaction based and that is what makes this game fun and with some many different ways to combat enemies it's enough to keep you invested. Whether you are laying down traps, using your crossbow to interrupt attacks or just hacking, dodging and blocking your way through the game. Bound By Flame has just about everything in the combat department. The story did leave me with a what-am-I-doing-again vibe, though. Not a bad story by far though but a little hard to follow at times. There is a twist here and there to keep you guessing, too. Moving on, this game is HARD if you are playing on any of the higher level difficulties. But it's the good kind of difficulty where one wrong move will ruin your day! You will want to make sure you invest in health and mana potions as much as possible. I made the mistake of not doing that and had a painful time fighting the final boss, running around and not attacking waiting for my heath to regenerate. The characters, mainly your squad mates, specifically Mathras (He's British!!!!) are fun! Nuff said....Anyway Great game!!!… Expand
  20. Evarin
    May 22, 2014
    10
    This game is most definitely not a .... you know the rest.

    Spiders is a game company you'll either hate or love. They're the indie version of Bioware. If you don't mind a game that is rough around the edges, I think you'll find a place in your heart for Bound by Flame.
  21. DJPMTL
    May 26, 2014
    6
    Im going to cut out the BS i'm seeing in other reviews and just give it to you straight.
    The game retails brand new at $49.99.
    It's 10 bucks cheaper than games normally are which is a good indication that it isn't as good as it might look. it's good for a bit of fun if you like RPGs. If you don't like RPGs don't play it.
  22. PyongyangMayor
    Aug 17, 2014
    10
    Who the **** is giving this game 0s out of 10s? I'm going to give it a 10 just to even it out. It really deserves only a 7 or 8 but man, these **** are giving 0s out of 10s. Fun game though.
  23. xikipeke
    May 9, 2014
    10
    Best Game Ever!
    Dario gay.
    El juego es un rpg de corte clásico. Tiene detalles muy buenos como el combate , sus posibilidades de creación, la amistad con los compañeros, romances...etc.. Tecnicamente viene de una compañia muy humilde, no le podimos pedir más. Hay que perdonarle (como en todos los rpgs) algunas cosas, pero si lo haces, consigues una diversión clásica oldschool. Darle    Best Game Ever!
    Dario gay.
    El juego es un rpg de corte clásico. Tiene detalles muy buenos como el combate , sus posibilidades de creación, la amistad con los compañeros, romances...etc..
    Tecnicamente viene de una compañia muy humilde, no le podimos pedir más. Hay que perdonarle (como en todos los rpgs) algunas cosas, pero si lo haces, consigues una diversión clásica oldschool.
    Darle una oportunidad, aparte el catalogo de ps4 está por los suelos, no hay nada mejor...
    Dario es gay    … Expand
  24. erndaWORM
    May 9, 2014
    8
    Bound by flame is by no means the best game you will play in your lifetime but is is very worthy of a play through. Developer spiders is an aspiring game developer who never claimed to be releasing a AAA title, that being said I think they delivered a good solid game for no bigger of a company than they are. There are some issues with dialog and a the environment is a little to linear butBound by flame is by no means the best game you will play in your lifetime but is is very worthy of a play through. Developer spiders is an aspiring game developer who never claimed to be releasing a AAA title, that being said I think they delivered a good solid game for no bigger of a company than they are. There are some issues with dialog and a the environment is a little to linear but what it lacks in those areas it more than makes up for where it counts gameplay.… Expand
  25. partyintheback
    May 9, 2014
    10
    Bound by Flame is a nice and challenging RPG. Detailed graphics in 1080p, fun and strategic combat, and a good amount of loot and exploration to be had.
  26. Proelio
    May 9, 2014
    5
    A mediocre game in all aspects. Visually it is awful. The music is fine, although the voice acting is painful. The story is absurd, childish and poorly led, on the other hand, it seems that the script is written by a 14 year old boy, full of expletives and cheap swagger like something out of DmC. All characters have a cocky, shameless and sassy attitude, like stupid clones.

    Luckily, the    A mediocre game in all aspects. Visually it is awful. The music is fine, although the voice acting is painful. The story is absurd, childish and poorly led, on the other hand, it seems that the script is written by a 14 year old boy, full of expletives and cheap swagger like something out of DmC. All characters have a cocky, shameless and sassy attitude, like stupid clones.

    Luckily, the gameplay gets saved, thanks to a relatively interesting battleplay but burdened by a rough and robotic movements and animations, plus a bad control. The customization system by crafting is simple but interesting. Partners give a little sparkle to the fighting.    … Expand
  27. Vandral007
    May 23, 2014
    4
    It's hard to recommend Bound by Flame to anyone but the most starved RPG fan. The graphics are pretty poor, the soundtrack in spots is downright annoying. The scripting and dialogue is average at best to hilariously bad. The world is under-realised and generic. The combat, the big sell for this game could be decent with some polish, but most fights draw out far longer than they shouldIt's hard to recommend Bound by Flame to anyone but the most starved RPG fan. The graphics are pretty poor, the soundtrack in spots is downright annoying. The scripting and dialogue is average at best to hilariously bad. The world is under-realised and generic. The combat, the big sell for this game could be decent with some polish, but most fights draw out far longer than they should with a terrible ebb and flow of attack, block for a few seconds, then attack a few more times. Stay away for now, and if you're really interested, wait until this game gets dirt cheap.… Expand
  28. Plasmaneedle
    May 14, 2014
    8
    Bound by Flame is not groundbreaking in any way but there is a lot of fun to be had with its combat system. There is some interesting enemy designs and the crafting is great and the game world is interesting. If you're looking for RPGs on the PS4 then Bound By Flame is worth checking out.
  29. ArionLightning
    May 11, 2014
    10
    Me parece INJUSTA la puntuación tan baja que tiene este juego. Para ser un estudio pequeño el que lo ha desarrollado, el juego es sobresaliente.

    El sistema de combate, árbol de habilidades y profesiones es simplemente genial. Es un punto intermedio entre diablo 2 y neverwinter nights. Es cierto que no innova, pero esta muy bien y entretenido. Tienes un sistema de crafting con    Me parece INJUSTA la puntuación tan baja que tiene este juego. Para ser un estudio pequeño el que lo ha desarrollado, el juego es sobresaliente.

    El sistema de combate, árbol de habilidades y profesiones es simplemente genial. Es un punto intermedio entre diablo 2 y neverwinter nights. Es cierto que no innova, pero esta muy bien y entretenido.

    Tienes un sistema de crafting con muchas posibilidades. Pocos tipos de materiales (12 tipos) pero lo dicho, es un estudio pequeño.

    Es un juego que tiene un gran potencial, a partir del cual puede salir una saga muy buena.

    La historia es normal, no innova, pero tampoco aburre. Ademas tienes que ir tomando decisiones en las conversaciones, las cuales afectan en la relación con tu entorno y, por supuesto, en la historia.

    Por ultimo, tiene ciertos bugs pero son pequeños y desde un punto de vista objetivo no molestan al jugador (salvo el de colgarse al guardar, pero solo me lo ha hecho dos veces) y seguro que en poco tiempo un parche los irá arreglando.

    Mi conclusión es que no lo compares con un "Dragon Age" o un "Skyrim", pero el juego cumple con las espectativas muy bien y te entretendrá muchas horas.

    Si te gusta el rol, cómpralo. No te decepcionará.    … Expand
  30. ch4meleon
    Jun 6, 2014
    8
    I've been hoping for a nice action RPG on the PS4 for a while and I think this really is a great offering. Good job Spider. I look forward to whatever it is you create next. I don't agree with most of the negative ratings this game receives.

    I'll start by telling you what I didn't like about this game. First, the graphics aren't going to blow anyone away. Don't get me wrong, the    I've been hoping for a nice action RPG on the PS4 for a while and I think this really is a great offering. Good job Spider. I look forward to whatever it is you create next. I don't agree with most of the negative ratings this game receives.

    I'll start by telling you what I didn't like about this game. First, the graphics aren't going to blow anyone away. Don't get me wrong, the cell-shading is a little strange, but it doesn't look awful. It's just not really "next-gen." I didn't mind it much.

    Second, the voice acting isn't very good, but it isn't as bad as most people make it seem. I mean, have you ever played Two Worlds? This voice acting is much better in this game than it is in Two Worlds (though the lip sync problems from Two Worlds is present).

    There is a lot more, however, that I love about the game. First, the music is quite well done! Not only did it set the mood depending on what sort of environment I'm in, but it really added to the world itself. Even the menu music was pretty good.

    Second, I think the story was well done. There weren't much in terms of story innovation, but I had no problems immersing myself in the world. I feel like the premise is a refreshing amalgamation of several popular styles of stories. It combines a post-apocalyptic zombie story with a medieval fantasy world. It's not the first time I've seen something similar to this, but the environments and story do a good job of helping you feel the desolation. That being said, the characters aren't exactly what I'd call deep and they mostly all just fit into your typical archetypes. This isn't necessarily bad as it makes it easier to understand each character, but I pretty much just picked my favorites and everyone else is just sort of... There.

    Third, I love the crafting menu. I think it is the most unanimously praised thing about this game. Crafting menu's always scare me because they can be so overly confusing and intimidating that I sometimes want to ignore them. That's not the case for Bound By Flame, however. Even though it's easy to use and not-complicated, it manages a good level of customization and sophistication. The crafting menu brings as much "RPG," to the table as does the Skill Tree (which is a decent enough Skill Tree, but nothing to write home about).

    Finally, my favorite part of Bound By Flame is the combat system. I've plugged around 13 hours into this game so far. I'm playing on the highest difficulty and I die a lot. I love that the tutorial doesn't tell you everything you need to know about combat and I love that when you make a mistake you get seriously punished (and very often killed). Especially early on in the game, I grew increasingly frustrated (in a good way) at my inability to kill enemies. Once I figured out a style that worked however, I came to really love the combat. I have to adjust my style of fighting based on different enemies too (some enemies secrete poison or frost and getting too close can prove fatal), and that's a plus. All in all, even though some enemies take an eternity to kill, I love the challenge. Most reviewers (it would seem) didn't enjoy the combat like I did, but part of me suspects that they just don't fully understand/appreciate it and thus give it a poor rating. It's a shame.

    At any rate, those are my thoughts. I think any typical RPG fan will enjoy this game and I hope you give it a try. Here are a list of my favorite RPG's. If you happen to like the same ones as I do, then I really think you should give this game a try. ES: Morrowind, PSO, Two Worlds 1/2, SW KOTOR 1/2, Dark Souls, LotR: 3rd Age, Diablo 2, Baldur's Gate, Nox, etc..    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

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

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
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
  1. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    Jun 29, 2014
    40
    Juddering. [July 2014, p.93]
  2. games(TM)
    Jun 28, 2014
    60
    The story, writing and the role-playing part of the game is distinctly previous-gen play, if not older.
    Read full review
  3. Play UK
    Jun 21, 2014
    62
    While never truly bad, Bound by Flame is rarely much better than serviceable either. [Issue#245, p.60]
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