The recently released demo forLies of Psolidifies what many had assumed based on months of preview coverage, that Round8 Studio’s new Soulslike is as close to aBloodbornesequel as fans could have hoped for. In addition to art direction and tonal atmosphere that immediately call to mind the blood-soaked streets of Yharnam,Lies of Pproudly wears itsBloodborneinspirations in its encounter design and preference for aggressive combat over defensive posturing. While the title does have plenty to help set it apart from FromSoftware’s cosmic-horror masterpiece, the comparisons toBloodbornemight beLies of P’s greatest strength and its greatest weakness.
Since its release in 2015, perhaps no other title has had a more-requested sequel or remaster thanBloodborne. After the changes thatDark Souls 2introduced to the franchise under its new direction, fans were eager to get their hands on Hidetaka Miyazaki’s next game, andBloodbornewould go on to become arguably the most popular game in the entire FromSoftware library until the release ofElden Ring.Lies of Phas already proved to be a crowd-pleasing demo and the early impressions provided by this slice of gameplay have fans wanting more. Hopefully it has more under its hood to help elevate the subgenre forward rather than rest on its laurels asaBloodborne 2replacement.
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Lies of P Gets Bloodborne’s Fundamentals Down Just Right
Bloodbornerepresented a significant departure from FromSoftware in terms of its design and gameplay. Coming from a lineage of high-fantasy ARPGs with brutal and methodical combat,Bloodborne’s switch to a Lovecraftian gothic-horror setting while also adopting more aggressive combat was a near opposite of its predecessors despite retaining much of theSoulsseries' core DNA. The first and most noticeable way thatLies of Pbenefits from itsBloodborneinspirationsis in its dreary horror aesthetic, and already the small portion of the story on display in the demo promises a unique take on author Carlo Collodi’s classic fairy tale.
The art direction and tone ofBloodborneare mixed ever-so-slightly with a steampunk aesthetic that calls to mindBioShock, butLies of Phas more up its sleeve fromBloodbornethan just visual presentation.Bloodbornefamously encouraged players to be aggressive and utilize an offensive playstyle rather than parry or dodge-roll, including theimplementation of the Rally systemthat rewarded pressing the enemy in encounters.Lies of P’s borrowing of this Rally system immediately makes the visceral combat more satisfying while also providing a bit of a salve for the game’s lack of a smooth dodge mechanic.
Why the Soulsborne Genre Needs to Step Out of FromSoftware’s Shadow
As the studio responsible for the subgenre’s creation, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the best games in the Soulsborne category are all FromSoftware releases.Dark Souls' impact on video gamesis one that is still hard to articulate properly to this day, but it established a brand-new approach to combat-heavy ARPGs where an immense challenge gave way to greater feelings of accomplishment. Since its release, plenty of other studios have taken a swing at creating their own Soulsborne titles, but with very few exceptions these titles mostly fall short of the intangible quality of greatness that FromSoftware’s releases retain.
Lies of Pis already shaping up to be one of the better-quality Soulsborne titles not developed by FromSoftware, but in order for the subgenre to move out of FromSoftware’s shadow it will be necessary for studios to elevate their games beyond being mere imitations or re-skins of the developer’s library of classics. TheBloodbornecomparisons both help and hinderLies of Pby limiting it to a very specific framework of criteria for its success. Either way,Lies of Pis one of many excitingSoulslikes to look out for in 2023.
Lies of Plaunches on Jun 22, 2025, for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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