Man... Capcom is going for the hat trick, this feels like yet another certified banger :
- Buttery-smooth controls. They're so smooth you can almost feel butter oozing out of the controller.
- The animations? Amazing.
- Hit feedback + haptics/vibration = heaven. I don't know what the dude a couple of posts above was smoking, but good lord, the combat and swordplay feel incredible. You can literally feel the blade sink into enemies. This is some of the best vibration/haptic feedback I've ever experienced in a game. Amazing job, especially after RE Requiem and Pragmata where the hit feedback was solid (Pragmata especially), but the rumble felt somewhat lacking. Not here.
- Gameplay: thank the fucking heavens, this is NOT a Souls/Sekiro clone. Yes, there's parrying (in fact, the entire combat system seems built around it), but it feels very generous, smooth, and satisfying. For those who hate parry-heavy games, don't worry: this isn't Lies of P, The First Berserker: Khazan, or even Sekiro.
It's hard to put into words, but the combat somehow feels familiar while still managing to carve out its own identity.
Camera sensitivity feels good, although the camera itself sits a little too close to the player.
Difficulty-wise, it's unfortunately the usual modern Capcom affair where it's almost impossible to die on Normal difficulty, with bosses and sub-bosses being the only real exceptions.
The cutscenes are fantastic. Hell, even the English voice acting is great (can't believe I'm typing that). THIS is how you balance cutscenes and gameplay, not like that God of War Ragnarök Faye bullshit where it felt like I was trapped watching a goddamn boring movie.
My only real criticism is that, while it looks great and plays great, the whole package feels a little too familiar. Weird thing to say, I know.
Oh yes, typical of Capcom. the HDR is yet again shit...
That said, September is STACKED and I'll probably have to skip this one. I've been waiting for Phantom Blade Zero for years, and Capcom games usually drop in price fairly quickly anyway. I spent €90 on RE Requiem and €80 on Pragmata, so this time I'm actually going to be patient and wait.
www.playstation.com
