It feels like every genre of game is getting the love it deserves these days. This is especially true of the Souls-like genre. A crucible of death-respawn-memory-evolve (or, as some call it, ‘getting good’) has captured the most hardened of gamers everywhere. Enter Archangel Studios with Bleak Faith: Forsaken, a Souls-like affair that burdens the player with branching paths, an interconnected world, a myriad of enemy types to spell your doom and, of course, the certainty that you will die many times before the credits roll.
Bleak Faith: Forsaken gives off the same vibes as its name. The entire experience takes place in the Omnistructure, a bleak atmosphere with large swaths of empty space (possibly on purpose for players to admire the surroundings). It’s evident that whatever has happened here has eliminated almost all signs of humanity and replaced it with fearsome monsters and enemies that want to break your spirit.
The Omnistructure exudes atmosphere. It’s almost as if the player is facing the giant setting itself rather than the enemies inside of it, and it provides a very overwhelming feel. This is Heracles’ 7th trial. Artchangel Studios bowled a strike with the setting, and it might just be the strongest part of Bleak Faith: Forsaken.
Before I continue, Bleak Faith: Forsaken isn’t a traditional Souls-like experience. Archangel Studios thought better of their development and decided to axe the game mechanic that forces the player to drop their experience after death. This is a step in the right direction for the non-FromSoftware Souls-inspired games (especially with a smaller studio).
“Bleak Faith: Forsaken’s biggest triumph (the Omnistructure) is also its biggest flaw.”
It’s very easy to get lost in the Omnistructure, and seeing as how the player doesn’t have a map of any kind, finding your dead body could prove challenging. As FromSoftware has virtually mastered the genre, Archangel Studios is humble and provides a good innovation to the genre, with a nod of respect towards the player’s time in the game. While there are some flaws with overall gameplay, the devs don’t punish the player for dying over and over, and I dig it.
With the overall focus on the setting and atmosphere, the small Archangel Studios has taken a step back gameplay-wise. There’s no other way to put this: the in-game jump function feels wrong. In titles such asElden Ring, jumping is an excellent way to remove hazards that attack south of the player’s centre mass, but in Bleak Faith: Forsaken, the jump is loaded with jank and is, at most times, more trouble than it is worth in a fight.
I’ve jumped many enemies with broad strokes just to be met with damage. Even exploring the Omnistructure’s many lush biomes (and jumping off pipes to locate secrets in the Sewers) feels sluggish and poor. This problem is compounded by a general lack of letting the player know where to go next.
Bleak Faith: Forsaken’s biggest triumph (the Omnistructure) is also its biggest flaw. I spent most of my time thinking, ‘What now?’ Locked doors activated by idle levers litter the landscape, and because each biome blends in with itself, every corridor in each biome appears as if you’ve been here already.
Homunculus litter the landscape as save points (Bleak Faith’s version of a Bonfire or Site of Grace), and Bleak Faith: Forsaken allows players to drop blue, more useless, variants of the save point like its inspirations before it. Instead of using this as a save point in a cinch, I used it as a breadcrumb to mark where I’ve been before, and it works pretty well. But you are only allowed one, so even Hansel and Gretel themselves would find difficulty finding their path.
There is a scan function that makes the Omnisphere look like you are loading into Assassin’s Creed’s Animus for a brief moment, turning the bleak atmosphere into a bunch of blue lines. I found no utility in this function. While it does sometimes reveal hidden world lore, the appearance is rough on the eyes, and it refuses to highlight the aforementioned levers, which are virtually everywhere unless you are standing on one.
“Bleak Faith: Forsaken does a phenomenal job of balancing the game.”
But how is the combat? Bleak Faith: Forsaken does a great job at making it seem like the odds are in your opponent’s favour. There are basic light attacks, heavy attacks, blocking, dodging, dodge rolls, the basic Souls-like bread and butter of survival. Instead of refillable potions, the player is strapped with perishables that are one-time use. The sheer amount of these assures that you will always be with heath recovery, but during each combat, only a few are usable at a time, ramping the difficulty into the Souls territory.
Hitting a ‘perfect block’ against any of the Omnistructure’s enemies feels powerful and emits a stunning red flash as if the game is clasping your back like a comrade in arms. This is infectious. Blocking enemy strikes feels powerful, and with the Dualsense haptic feedback, your wrists shake with the weight of your opponent’s blows. This is sorcery. Bleak Faith: Forsaken also brings a myriad of enemy types to contend with, and their own battle animations ensue. Although Bleak Faith: Forsaken does carry flaws, it is a fun time when embroiled against opponents.
The worst thing about Bleak Faith: Forsaken is its over-reliance on ladders. There are so many ladders in the game that it reminds the player of climbing up the fountain in Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater every time. There are too many to count, and they’re often used as kick-down shortcuts to avoid the hordes of the Omnistructure when you have to respawn and start again. I almost wanted to keep facing the horde instead. Ladders are a plague.
“Exploration is wondrous in the Omnistructure, with hidden items boosting the player’s confidence with each step, only to be shattered by a tough encounter.”
Bleak Faith: Forsaken does a phenomenal job of balancing the game. Using ranged weapons (like a bow or magic) doesn’t feel too powerful or cheap, and it offers a different type of gameplay to the melee-weary. There’s a character called ‘The Handler’ who helps you upgrade your equipment, and there’s a lot of it. Juggling which stat to improve is the lifeblood of Souls-like and Bleak Faith: Forsaken walks this tightrope impeccably.
Of course, like any Souls-like, there are ways to break the game, but Archangel Studios lets you do it, almost as if they’re asking you to find out. There are also a plethora of secrets and weapons to find—all with their own combo sets—that can really shred your opponents.
Bleak Faith: Forsaken is a spectacle. Archangel Studios is led by only three developers, and they insisted an interconnected souls-like is their best option debutante. The atmosphere bleeds character, and the game’s overall balance feels solid. Exploration is wondrous in the Omnistructure, with hidden items boosting the player’s confidence with each step, only to be shattered by a tough encounter. Lore is found on dead enemies and in the landscape, giving the player clues as to what has happened here, but this is a shortcoming, as Bleak Faith: Forsaken might as well have no story at all.
Despite its many flaws, starting with the ladder climbing and descending and ending with the worst jumping mechanic of any Souls title, Archangel Studios is constantly updating and improving the title so that fans can have a smoother experience when diving into the Omnistructure. However, if you have never played a Souls title before, this should not be your first. The Omnistructure is a maze of paths that feel far too similar, and this can turn players away from the genre entirely. All in all, Bleak Faith: Forsaken is a solid title and a must-try for the Souls faithful.
