Lies of P: Overture Review

Since the Souls series formula has become popular among players, countless games have tried to recapture what makes FromSoftware’s hardcore action role-playing games so engaging, but only a few have managed to even get close. Among these is NEOWIZ and Round8 Studio’s Lies of P, which still stands, a few years since its release, as the game that got the closest to recapturing the haunting atmosphere of the beloved Bloodborne.

Launching almost two years after the base game’s release, the Lies of P: Overture DLC promised, before its release, to provide more of the same solid experience players have been enjoying since late 2023. Those who didn’t expect anything else will find the expansion a worthy addition to the experience, but those who expected something more will inevitably be disappointed to see how the expansion doesn’t push the formula past the boundaries set by the base game.

The Lies of P: Overture expansion is set in the past, in a time before Krat was overrun and then destroyed by the terrible Puppet Frenzy Outbreak that players deal with in the base game. Starting with the Krat Zoo, which was burned down in the main timeline, players get to explore a slew of different locations which are no longer standing in the post-outbreak Krat, get to meet characters who are only briefly mentioned in the main adventure, and fight tons of powerful enemies to learn more about the world’s lore and the chain of events that led to the Outbreak.

When it comes to the story, there’s no doubt that Lies of P: Overture fully delivers. The main characters of the expansion may be fewer compared to the base game, but they are endearing enough and add quite a bit to the experience. Same with the new information on the world, which better fleshes out the story of the city of Krat. If you wanted to learn more about the setting, then the DLC is definitely a worthy purchase, even if you aren’t too keen on dealing with high difficulty, thanks to the two new easier difficulty settings that have been added to the entirety of the experience with the free update that added support for the Overture DLC.

Even if you pick the easiest difficulty setting, however, you should be aware that the Lies of P: Overture DLC expansion is not a walk in the park, and you won’t be able to mash your way to victory. As the expansion can only be accessed after reaching the end of Chapter IX, it is meant to be a late-game experience that expects players to possess a certain degree of skill, properly upgraded weapons, and effective builds. As such, the expansion is challenging from the get-go.

Possibly a little too much: enemy HP pools are generally high, as is the damage they can deal at the base difficulty, so expect to die a lot as you get reacquainted with the experience and some of its quirks, such as perfect blocking, which is more important than ever before to leave the enemies open to powerful critical attacks, if you haven’t played the game in a while like myself. The difficulty of the expansion is so high that even the developer has promised to look into balance changes down the line. If you are coming to the expansion straight from the base game, you will likely have far less trouble, but you will still need to be on your toes, as it’s not just the enemy stats that make them challenging, but also their placement, which, at times, gets really, really unfair. The enemy placements, alongside some locations that resemble each other a little too much, somewhat impact level design, though they are minor issues that most of those who liked the base game will have no trouble looking past. For the rest, expect to explore some fairly intricate locations, unlock shortcuts, and discover all sorts of secrets, including some new gear.

Though the Lies of P: Overture experience is the same Souls series-inspired action RPG experience seen in the base game, the expansion offers plenty of new tools to play with. Some really change the way the game is approached, such as the Royal Horn Bow, which provides a solid ranged combat option, but the other weapons are similarly well designed and can really shake up how combat is approached. The Pale Knight greatsword, inspired by Final Fantasy VIII’s gunblades, is a persona favorite of mine, but every other new weapon and Talisman in the expansion is a worthy addition to the experience.

With these new tools at the player’s disposal, it’s no surprise to see enemy design take them into account to prevent some options from being too powerful. Some of the new enemies, for example, are quite aggressive, so don’t expect, for example, to be able to use the Royal HornBow from afar too much. Other than this, however, enemy design isn’t too different from the base game. Bosses, on the other hand, are the highlight of the experience, and are rather well designed, except for a couple that are, in my opinion, more frustrating than fun. Even this, however, is entirely in line with what is seen in the base game, so if you have spent 40 hours going through the streets of Krat already, you will feel right at home spending 20 more in the Krat of the past.

At the end of the day, Lies of P: Overture is an expansion in the true sense of the word. Opting to deliver more of the same, Round8 Studio plays to the game’s strengths, offering an experience every bit as enjoyable as the base game, even with some unfair difficulty that will likely get toned down in time. As such, the DLC is a worthy purchase for those who loved the original and still want more. Those who feel they’ve had their fill or struggled with the game’s quirks the first time around won’t find much to change their minds here, however. For better or worse, it’s more Lies of P.

PlayStation 5 version tested. Review code provided by the publisher.

8.0

WCCFTECH RATING

Lies of P: Overture