Review - Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn

A generic, fun at times, game that didn't meet expectations

Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn

• Kepler Interactive, A44 Games

• Derek Bradley

• July 18, 2024

• PC, PS5, Xbox Series Consoles

• Played on Xbox Series X

Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn is a game that sold itself as a “soulslike” that mimics some of the aesthetics of the renowned From Software titles, although it goes for a more focused story and even offers an easy mode. The reviews have been pretty mixed, and I’ve seen many people saying they stopped playing it after an hour or two. For me, while I never hated the game, and I do think it can be really fun at times, by the end, I felt like I played the game version of a generic straight-to-streaming film.

NOTE - I briefly moved away from my original review system of going by how much I would recommend a game to try out scoring, and I never was that happy with it. Since this is a hobby, the chances of reviewing games I don’t like are low, as I have limited time. So, I’m doing a basic letter grade from A to F. The chances for an F or even a D game will be low, but you never know what happens in the future. I plan to stick with this from now on. I apologize if any long-time readers have been confused by the changes.

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Plot and Characters

You play as Nor Vanek, who tries to make up for her mistake of letting out vengeful old Gods. She’s accompanied by a mysterious fox-like creature named Enki and gathers companions to help. The voice cast for these characters does a surprisingly tremendous job, and I want to give them their flowers when it comes to their performance. The setting and world in the game I liked from the onset. I wanted to explore the areas as much as possible and learn more about this world, even though it didn’t do a good job of fulfilling that need. Unfortunately, that’s pretty much the best points I could say regarding the plot and characters.

While the voice cast tries hard, connecting with or remembering many characters is tough. Nor has a backstory explained through her conversations with Enki, but I feel the only reason she’s memorable is because you play as her. I wouldn’t say she doesn’t have personality, but I felt Enki was the one who seemed to show more personality and gave you a reason to keep playing. The plot itself came off pretty generic to me. As much as I liked the world they built here, its plot was as basic as a straight-to-streaming film you put on because you’re bored, and you have to justify that Netflix subscription cost. It doesn’t help when you reach pivotal moments in the story; it feels like it just passes quickly. Most side characters are just introduced to offer side quests and upgrades, but you don’t get to see them have any character arc. I’m not a fan of how the Souls games deal with side characters, and I would say they do a better job than this one.

It’s safe to say that this was one of the more disappointing parts of the game for me. I’m not saying it’s a completely terrible story or that the characters are bad, but it isn’t something you’re going to be putting down in all-time great stories or moments lists.

Gameplay and Fun Factor

I’m really mixed on this one, but I do think I had a lot of fun overall with it. I wouldn’t have dealt with the mediocre story if it wasn’t for the fact that the gameplay was fun for me. Now, at first, the game does start out pretty basic, and it feels like it’s missing some basic actions you would expect. But as you collect reputation, the game’s “souls” type of collection, you’ll be able to expand your skills, and that’s when combat starts to feel a lot better. The game allows you to play it similar to a soulslike title, or in story mode, turn it into more of a God of War, at least a more basic version, type of action game. I played around with both modes, and I personally thought the game worked better in the easier mode, as playing it as if it was a third-person action game made it more fun for me.

Actually, I think this game suffered for giving gamers an expectation of being another addition to the growingly popular soulslike genre. In my opinion, it fails to feel like a solid game in that genre because it feels like it doesn’t take the steps to get there. The combat and movement can feel “floaty” and don’t have the weight those games tend to have. You can try to explore every nook and cranny, but you’ll be collecting almost the exact same items, and the new weapons you acquire don’t have much variety. The reputation you collect, while interesting in the addition of your chance to get more as you hit certain attack patterns or even traverse through rifts, is only there for a skill tree, not the different leveling systems that soulslikes have. Instead, this game works best in more of an action role.

I didn’t go back after putting this on story mode. Yes, it made the gamer easier, and yes, they gatekeep and don’t reward you with achievements (which I hate as a design choice), but it made the game work for me. I ended up liking it more as an action title instead of trying to see it as a soulslike game. But, as I mentioned, the problem is that the game feels like it's punishing you for going that route, and that’s a shame. I was a big fan of the traversal. The rifts are somewhat disappointing in that they tend to be shortcuts for the way back, but traveling through them feels natural, and using them makes you feel like a bit of a badass. I wish they were used for more than just shortcuts; sometimes, they were for more than that, but mostly shortcuts. I also didn’t like how to get to the map or inventory screen. For whatever reason, I constantly pressed the wrong direction or button prompt to interact with he menu's UI, and that got old fast. I don’t think they thought out the best way for players to access those.

Lastly, I noticed quickly that the game’s main objectives started to feel very similar. You have to find these small areas with people and villages to act as a central hub for your area. The problem is that the process gets boring quickly as you have to liberate each area and take down its leader. After a while, it starts to get a rinse-and-repeat type of feeling. While there is still plenty outside of these areas to explore that don’t feel the same, these are such a big part of the game that you can’t help but feel like it’s a chore as you keep playing.

Overall, I found the gameplay fun enough to keep me going. I would personally advise playing this in story mode and seeing it as an action title instead of thinking you’re playing the next Lies of P because it doesn’t stick that landing. I also feel that the enemies are dull and the bosses never felt special outside of one sidequest boss that was the closest they came to feeling like a solid souls type of boss. But, if you’re willing to deal with no achievements and temper your expectations, there is still some fun to be had here.

Graphics and Presentation

I’m a sucker for new styles, as gaming has started to feel very similar. I really liked the art style and overall graphical presentation of this game. It’s not mid blowing like a Final Fantasy XVI or Hellblade II, but it looks good on the eyes and is one of the reasons I liked the world despite the weak plot. That said, some areas start to look similar, but not enough to become a distraction. The lighting and particle effects came off well. The performance was mostly good for me, but sometimes, it did feel a little off, and I found myself stuck a couple of times in the wall. So, yes, some bugs I ran into, but nothing game breaking.

Soundtrack and Score

This is as generic a score as you could think of. While the bosses and some battles kind of kicked it up a notch, nothing in here was really memorable. As I said regarding the plot, it felt like a quickly put-together score for a streaming-only film on a low budget. I hate being so harsh because I know people work on this stuff, but I have to express my honest feelings. Easily my least favorite part of the game.

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Grade - C

Average

I feel mixed about this one. On one hand, I wasn’t a fan of the plot, and the music was extremely forgettable. Characters are performed well, but lack anything to make me remember them or care about where the story is going. Even worse, the ending wasn’t all that satisfying for me. I also feel the game works best in easy mode rather than playing it as a soulslike title, which is a problem because that’s what it was sold as. On the other hand, I did start to have fun with the actual combat mechanics and the fights. When I realized the plot was basic, I got over it because I liked the gameplay enough to keep going. It’s a short enough game that you can do that. This is a game that’s all about expectations. If you know that this isn’t going to blow your socks off but need an emergency game to play while waiting for something, check it out. At least try it because you may end up liking it more than me.

Pros

+ Traversal

+ World and Areas

+ Combat

+ Art Style

+ Story Mode

Cons

- Menu UI

- Generic Plot

- Forgettable Characters

- Soundtrack and Score