Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn Review

ign.com:

God killing has become a staple in games starring Kratos, Bayonetta, Terra Branford, and countless other characters. With action-RPG soulslike Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn, a new pair of god killers by the names of Nor and Enki joins their ranks. With a familiar tale about being wronged by the various gods of this world and becoming consumed by revenge, it never quite manages to reach the peaks of its peers, borrowing lots of elements from other genres without standing out in any of them. But while that keeps it from true greatness, Flintlock still continuously found ways to entertain me with flashy combat and swift movement across my 26-hour near-completionist run.

I was late to join the fan club that formed around developer A44’s previous game, Ashen, after its debut back in 2018, but it quickly found its way into my list of favorite soulslikes once I did, thanks in part to how enjoyable it was to vanquish its big bosses with a co-op partner. Six years later A44 is back with Flintlock, and while it may look vastly different from Ashen, a lot of the same foundation can be felt in its combat, storytelling, and overall design. That’s not to say it’s exactly the same, as efforts were clearly focused toward making the combat more brutal and cinematic with some really cool finishers while also introducing new mechanics like an experience multiplier that enhances the usual risk-reward tension of soulslike games.

Nor begins as a competent and headstrong soldier looking for glory that I would definitely classify as the “look before you leap” type, while her partner Enki is an adorable yet powerful god who has secluded himself from the world. He has his own reasons for joining Nor after her journey becomes one of revenge, assisting her with both his magical abilities and wisdom about his realm, and his an energetic and humble curiosity when learning of things he’s missed makes his part of the story by far the highlight. Unfortunately, Nor’s vengeful tale does occasionally