Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a new souls-like game with some interesting combat mechanics. It starts with a hard boss battle that acts as a rite of passage for the rest of the game. Players will get to experience their skills in the game mechanics pretty early. It forces players to adapt to souls-like combat. This feeling of hard combat dissipates the further you progress besides a few spikes. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a more approachable souls-like game in a challenging genre. There are some good boss battles but not on par with other games from the same genre.
The first boss of the game is at odds with the rest of the things that the game has to offer. It set expectations that are sometimes completely sidestepped. The ability to summon AI or play in CO-OP reinforces its approachable nature. It has fun combat that can reach close to the level of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice but not quite up there. The approachable nature of Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty makes it a good entry point for newcomers to this challenging genre. Stylish animation of attacks and their feedback creates a solid foundation of combat.
Plot and Setting (Spoiler Free)
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty starts with decent character creation. The character creation is flexible with sliders for different parts of the body. There are other features that you can edit as well. It can end up a weird-looking character if you get too wild with customization. Even though the story is not the focus, it still has a decent presentation.
The story takes place during the Han Dynasty of the three kingdoms. It adds a spin of dark fantasy with monsters, dragons, and stuff like that. Similar to what the developers did to the Japanese setting of Nioh. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty uses Chinese mythology and fantasy to interpret the story.
There are different warring factions with some historical characters being part of the story. You will fight alongside historical characters. One or Two NPCs will join you depending on where you are in the story. The constant presence of AI tunes down the difficulty as well. It has a loose story since combat is the main focus. There are some cool and stylish cut scenes. Some of the characters are memorable.
Level Design
Levels are not as big as Nioh and levels are aesthetically different than each other with optional sub-battles. Arenas of sub-battles usually take place in areas that you have already visited. Sub-battles are not long and they will reward you with XP and loot.
Rather than being long round levels most branching paths leads to a dead end. Higher-level enemies will drop more loot that can incentivize exploration. The game lacks a proper sense of exploration and wonder due to its different approach to level design. Most areas in the Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty game are open and simple. Clear a few rooms, face off against a wave of enemies, or take on a boss.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a leaner game with straightforward levels. There are occasional selectable sub-missions. In the side missions, you face off against enemies that eventually lead to a boss. So sub-missions are mostly about fighting extra bosses. Levels are not as compelling and have a simple layout with not much memorable stuff.
Combat
Players can see the influence of Nioh and Ninja Gaiden in the combat and general feel of the game. The combat is more lined and stylish. There is an emphasis on attacking and breaking the opponent’s stance and attacking them when vulnerable. Enemies can also unleash powerful and unblockable attacks. You have to time and deflect attacks with a single button press. There are simple attacks or grab attacks that require techniques to counter or avoid. So there is a lack of depth in evasion. The time to deflect critical blows is generous compared to other souls-like games.
The challenge is knowing which attack is coming and when to deflect an attack. You cannot be too early or too late. You can deflect attacks or dodge the dangerous attacks that are harder to tackle. Mastering deflect is the optional way of playing Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty. Deflect is satisfying as the spark flows and steel clashes with steel.
Dealing with multiple opponents at the same time can be difficult due to the nature of its combat style. Combat is mostly designed to take on one enemy at a time which makes it difficult to deal with multiple enemies at the same time. There is not much stealth and stealth can only be used on small enemies when the game wants you to.
Spirit Gauge
Souls-like games have stamina meters that usually depletes with offensive and defensive moves. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty has a spirit gauge system instead of having a traditional stamina bar. Spirit Gauge decreases and increases depending on your action. You will gain spirit energy by striking enemies, and deflecting their attacks. Dodging and mistiming deflection, and taking damage will deplete it.
Using spirit energy will allow you to do weapon-specific attacks and cast spells. These attacks do a lot more damage than normal attacks. At full negative, you will become defenseless for a short period. It creates a balance in which you need enough positive energy all the time.
Enemies also have a spirit gauge and fights are focused on weakening your enemy’s defenses, not just their health bar. You can lower the spirit energy of enemies by attacks, special moves, and deflections. Parrying critical blows will deplete more spirit energy of enemies compared to other attacks.
Once their spirit gauge is depleted, they will enter a stunned state. While the enemies are stunned, you will have a chance to land powerful attacks. The spirit gauge system is a good addition to Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty game.
Enemy Type and Combat Style
There are a variety of enemy types that makes combat diverse. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasties is a game that does not have a steep learning curve. The game has implemented a good step. Combat revolves around stylish deflection and quick bursts of over-the-top action. It takes different liberties to ease players in. Learning the attack pattern of different enemies is relatively easier but at times it presents surprise attacks. Players also have the option of summoning divine beasts. Divine beasts will either attack enemies or bless you with different buffs.
You have the choice to dodge, parry, deflect, or use powerful attacks that can one-shot small enemies and do a lot of damage to big ones. Enemies have red critical blow attacks that can be devastating if not deflected. Deflecting blows is the key to combat but sometimes deflecting bows is not that smooth. You might miss the deflection despite timing it so there is a certain lag issue.
Deflection will leave enemies vulnerable to attack. The feedback of weapon lading on enemies is satisfying. At times, there might be button lag which can result in death. Dodges and rolls also feel less responsive than other games from the genre. Evading attacks and landing blows is the core loop of the combat.
Weapons
Players will have different types of weapons at their disposal. From straight saber and dual blades to pull arms and big hammers. The move set of different weapon types is different but two weapons from the same weapon type will have the same move set. However, the martial arts of each weapon you find are different. Such a strategy makes each weapon unique that feels different than all the others.
Martial Arts are flying moves and special attacks that are stronger than regular attacks. Using martial arts consume spirit gauge. Some of these moves are good against groups some are good against a single enemy and others help you close the gap. Martial arts can do major damage which incentivizes you to use it more often.
The feedback of attacks is good and has satisfying vibrations to it. Combat feels good with the satisfying impact of each click. The push, pull, give, take, and clash of swords is good. Memorizing enemy attacks and then going offensive accordingly is a good aspect of it. The combat loop revolves around striking, parrying, and dodging.
Morale and Spells
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty has a morale system that can have a major impact on combat. Both you and your enemies have a morale rank that will rise as you defeat enemies. The higher the level of an enemy the more morale will it grant once you defeat them. Harder enemies have higher morale which results in gaining higher morale upon defeat. You have zero morale at the start of each level and it rises as you defeat enemies.
Higher moral grants access to more powerful spells. The higher your morale is the more will be the spells at your disposal. These mystic arts (spells) can be unleashed using spirit enemies. Spells are divided into five different categories water, wood, fire, earth, and, metal.
Some of these spells are self-explanatory while other needs some time to get used to. Wood spells can result in lighting, metal in poison, and things like that. You can equip up to four spells at a time. The use of spells adds an extra layer of depth to the combat. Spells are not all about offense but defense as well. Some spells grant health by damaging enemies, coat yourself in rocks to take less damage, and so on.
Combo and Morale of Enemies
There is even a combo system that follows the concept of rock, paper, and scissors. Wood overcomes Earth, Earth will overcome water, and so on. You can even deflect elemental attacks of enemies with a sword. Casting rift is not necessary but it can give you breathing room. There is a good variety of spells that can influence different aspects of combat.
The rank of the enemy’s morale shows their strength. Some paths in a level will have enemies with higher morale. Defeating them will grant you high morale but one wrong move can result in death. It is a risk-and-reward situation.
Enemies with higher morale receive less damage. Landing critical blows will also increase morale and death with drop morale. Such combat mechanics incentivize the grind. Find enemies with low morale defeat them, gain morale, and then defeat tougher enemies. You can farm for morale and get ready for what lies ahead. It can be either distracting or good depending on the type of player you are.
General Gameplay
The colors are not that good and the lights are a blend. Everything is too stale and there is not much saturation which does not sit well with the setting of the game. Some performance issues can have an impact on the gameplay. Wo long: Fallen Dynasty has fun combat that lets you fight your way around enemies. Combat is not always brutal as there are stale moments as well. The combat system is good and it is the main focus of the game everything else is just there to support it. The game will take you 20 to 40 hours to complete depending on your skills and the number of side quests you do.
Ease of Battle
Compared to other souls-like Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a more forgiving game. Different small changes make it a softer experience. Battle Flags which are the bonfires will replenish all your health and healing items. On top of that, the first time you find a Battle Flag you will not need to sit and rest. So interacting with a flag for the first time will not respawn all the enemies.
The game has the option of summoning up to 2 allies. You can go at it without summoning any as the choice is up to you. These AI companions don’t do much damage and can get stuck in an area as well. It has its uses as they can distract enemies giving you a chance to attack. You can replace them with your friends while playing in Co-Op. The game difficulty will scale up accordingly. You can even summon random players to help you with the game. The characters you summon have sub-progression. You can give them better gear and weapons.
Dying will result in losing only half of the XP points. You can earn the remaining by killing the enemy that killed you. Bosses are relatively easier but there are some hard bosses occasionally. Some bosses are screen-filling monsters that can fill up the entire area. Others are generic small ones that ramp up the challenge. The one-on-one duals with small enemies are pretty decent. All of this has an impact on difficulty and makes exploration easier.
Upgrades and Progression
The upgrade system of Wo Long; Fallen Dynasty is traditional. Use XP to level up stats like health and damage. There is a special ability for every weapon, blacksmith, and full weapon upgrade system. It feels nice and adds more tools to the game. There is a special ability for every weapon and a blacksmith that offers a full weapon upgrade system. You have the option of both throwable and ranged weapons.
The game has the option of putting resources in one of the affinity pools. You can bring resources and put them in one of the affinity pools. Such an upgrade system makes it easier to progress the character as per your play style.
Get What You Try (Mostly)
The demo of the game is a perfect representation of what you will find in the game. The demo contains the initial part of the game and you can carry saves from the demo to the full game. The first battle is difficult and defeating the first boss is quite hard. It is also part of the demo which sets higher expectations of difficulty. The rest of Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty game is not that hard. It has parry base combat that makes combat fun. Team Ninja has brought smart changes to keep the game fresh.
Verdict
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a souls-like game by the creators of Dynasty Warriors. It takes inspiration from Sekiro but leans more toward being an RPG. There is a lot of emphasis on parry mechanics during combat. The influence of Dynasty Warriors is also prevalent through its setting. It is a souls-like game with decent combat that makes it a fun play. Wo Long presents a souls-like game during the three kingdom era while also adding fantasy to it.
The setting and combat sit well with each other presenting a good experience. If you are a fan of souls-like games then Wo Long is one of the best in 2023. The inspiration that it takes from Sekiro and Nioh makes it a good blend of both. Level design has its problem and the sudden degradation of difficulty is set back. Overall the game provides a good experience despite having some hick-ups.
