Lords of the Fallen

Most of what fans of Soulslikes want are at the maximum: masterclass-level design, unforgettable bosses, and extensive freedom toward build creation. The combat can feel rough at times, and there are way too many enemies in certain levels, but these downfalls don't negate the fact that Lords of the Fallen reaches for a spot in the highest tier among the genre's greats and finds itself right at home.

I feel compelled to say again - this has pleasantly become one of my favorite Soulslikes.

Lords of the Fallen more than meets our expectations offering a vast and intricately designed world in the same vein as the first Dark Souls. It doesn't reinvent the wheel but this doesn't stop it from being one of the best, if not the best, soulslikes not made by From Software.

Lords of the Fallen is a reboot done right. The experience as a whole immerses you in its unique dual-world system while capturing the essence of robust customization, challenging combat, and dark fantasy. Despite some technical flaws, this game takes on a challenge of its own as you reluctantly push forward into nightmarish battles. The highly detailed environments encourage you to press on, which is made easier thanks to responsive controls and unique enemy types that test your abilities.

I’d recommend waiting to bite on this one for a few more months until things are really ironed out and tuned. It’s not like we don’t all have a ton of other things to play anyway — but the state of LOTF right now is just too technically unsound to give it a glowing thumbs up. There’s still a great game undernearth all the mess if you can survive the bugginess, but give it a little more time to ripen for now and I think you’ll be glad you did.

Simply put, The Lords Of The Fallen beat the crap out of me. I languished, I lamented, but I lingered on, and as I'm sitting here now I am looking back fondly on what I did. The dual-world idea is phenomenal, even if it contributes to the game's worst technical tendencies. The mood set by each world, however, is downright creepy and gross, which serves as a strong foundation. Enemies can be bruising, while bosses aren't quite as difficult, which doesn't quite jive right throughout the game. As much as I wanted to toss my controllers around, I would be lying if I said I didn't have fun with The Lords Of The Fallen.

Lords of the Fallen may not be a game that will reinvent the wheel, but it is definitely a great Soulslike title that any fan of the genre will appreciate. Aside from minor flaws related to poor mapping and other easily fixable blemishes, this game still gets a high rating and our warm recommendation.

Lords of the Fallen could have been another accessible cookie-cutter souls-like. But with the addition of Umbral, the world of the dead layered upon the living, it breathes new invention into exploration, increasing tension, and unique combat, managing to cement itself as essential in an increasingly crowded and quality genre.

Lords of the Fallen is one of the best soulslike out there. It is very ambitious and great to play, but it is not perfect. Its technical problems makes it very irregular, but at the same time the game is essential for all Dark Souls fans.

Lords of the Fallen isn’t trying to be for everyone. This is a game for those who miss the ‘classic Souls feel’ and wish to return to an adventure on a smaller and more detailed scale. It’s for those who fell in love with Dark Souls or Bloodborne and now yearn to play something like that again with all the polish of a modern title – although it must be said, some technical issues hold it back...We didn’t miss the vast open world of Elden Ring and even found it refreshing to return to a smaller, but wonderfully interconnected map where danger lurks around every corner. We didn’t realize we had an itch to return to this era of Soulslike games until we played Lords of the Fallen. While we may never set foot in Lordran again, we’re hopeful that our adventures in Mournstead are just beginning.

Yet another soulslike, but this one is better than the average. Some technical issues are holding it back, but overall it is a very enjoyable game.

Lords of the Fallen has plenty of problems, but we loved the combination of the same old soulslike formula with something as unique and interesting as the "double world" exploration. If they manage to fix some (if not all) of the problems, this might be one of the hidden gems of 2023... and one of the best soulslike of recent memory.

Lords of the Fallen is one of the most interesting souls-like games of recent years, providing new ways to face exploration in the genre, as well as a superb artistic section. Even with its irregular technical section and its roughness at the gameplay level, it is a highly recommended game.

Lords of the Fallen is a solid entry in the Soulslike genre, and deviates from the recipe enough to craft its own identity.

Taking all of this into account, it's still safe to recommend Lords of the Fallen to anyone remotely interested in this genre, be it veterans or those looking for an entry point. When it comes to Soulslikes, this release is very accessible to new players to the genre and offers more than a good challenge to those with more experience. While it still has plenty of fine-tuning ahead, Lords of the Fallen is a worthy reboot of its predecessor that offers something new and lays a strong foundation for future adventures in Mournstead and beyond.

Lords of the Fallen is full of good ideas and has the qualities to be a great Soulslike. But, in order to reach its full potential, some enemy mechanics and technical issues must be addressed.

Lords of the Fallen copies Dark Souls so thoroughly it feels like game design plagiarism but, astonishingly, it's indeed worthy of being mentioned in the same sentence as FromSoftware's brutal dark fantasy classics. Anyone who's survived Lordran, Drangleic and Lothric will find a lot to love here.

Lords of the Fallen is a massive improvement over its namesake prequel, and it provides many highs, but there are lows to match. For the masochist action RPG fan, though, there’s plenty to love, and it’s all going to hurt.

Lords of Fallen is a solid Souls-like that goes beyond being just another genre copycat. Its combat feels fluid and has plenty of depth due to its nine starting classes and its dual-world concept literally helps to add another dimension to its combat and exploration.

There's a lot to enjoy in Lords of the Fallen, especially with its phenomenal dual-world reality that adds a layer to exploration. Slaying bosses and trekking ahead may not always be a delight but what's here is still very good nonetheless.

With incredible art design, challenging action, and a very innovative, dual-world mechanic, Lords of the Fallen is probably a must-play for fans of Soulslikes. But it’s hard to ignore the game’s issues, too, from sometimes unrefined movement and clunky combat to its many technical hiccups. While these can be frustrating or worse, ultimately the game’s ambition and dark fantasy vision are at least as compelling as its flaws.

If one can look past the technical limitations and lack of control customization, Lords of the Fallen is a strong addition to the soulslike catalogue. With solid combat and fascinating, multi-layered exploration, not only does Lords of the Fallen do enough to stand out from a crowded field, it manages to be a great game for those with a Dark Souls itch to scratch.