![]() It doesn’t help that the Challenger Edition is not exactly an ideal way to jump into the game. Not bad in any particular way, but also not particularly memorable. Maybe the story might get better later on, but what I saw of it was just… adequate. The Challenger Edition does not include the full campaign, but it does have the opening cutscene and a lengthy, story-heavy tutorial. And nothing else about the game really stands out, either. Personally when I want this style of combat I’d more likely continue my seemingly never-ending playthrough of Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla. There are a lot of other games offering this style of combat with equal or greater quality. Still, the combat doesn’t really feel like enough to sell the game on its own. You can lean into this playstyle with your build if you like, with a valorplate that increases soulshatter buildup and a passive skill that adds a destructive AoE to soulshatter kills. Each of your hits builds up a soulshatter charge, visible on the enemy’s health bar, and hitting them with a heavy attacks consumes the charge to, uh, shatter their soul, dealing high damage. ![]() The highlight of Godfall‘s combat for me was the unique “soulshatter” system. On the other hand, when things do go right, taking down enemies can be quite satisfying. There’s too many cases where I need to twist my hands into a knot as I hold down one button to change the functionality of another. Godfall is not even close to the worst offender I’ve seen in this area, but the control scheme falls just short of intuitive on a keyboard and mouse. The PC controls also suffer a bit from being clearly designed for a controller first. Block and dodging every hit is possible when facing only one foe, but less so when facing seven. It’s especially frustrating in a game that frequently throws large squads of enemies at you, leading you to be surrounded on all sides. This is also one of those games where pretty much any hit by an enemy will stagger, knock back, or knock down your character, which isn’t a design I’m overly fond of. Some enemies can be truly obnoxious, such as one type with shields that seemed almost unkillable even on the rare occasions I managed to out-maneuver them and hit their unshielded sides. There’s also a skill tree that unlocks various new combo abilities and other means to cleave your way through the endless enemy hordes. It’s pretty much what you’d expect from a modern third-person action game: light and heavy attacks, blocking, parrying, dodging, and the occasional special ability with a cooldown. The combat, for example, is mostly good, but not really good enough to carry the game. ![]() It’s one of those frustrating games that seems to have all the right ingredients for greatness but just never quite comes together. Unfortunately, beyond those rich inspirations and a very unique and striking art style, Godfall doesn’t do a whole lot to set itself apart from the pack. Even if this game isn’t officially set in Roshar, there is definite appeal in donning Shardvalorplate, grabbing definitely-not-a-Shardblade, and playing as “for legal purposes not Dalinar Kholin.” ![]() I’m not as big a fan of Stormlight as a lot of people I know, but it does have a lot of neat ideas and has huge potential as a video game setting. It would not be unfair to say this is effectively “Shardbearer: The Game,” and that’s probably the coolest thing about it. Godfall is heavily inspired by (but not officially affiliated with) Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archives novels. Otherwise, it’s exactly the loot-grinding, action-oriented gameplay you’d expect from any other looter shooter. In place of robotic bodies, players don enchanted “valorplate.” In place of guns, the emphasis is on melee combat, with weapons taking the form of swords, polearms, and war hammers. Godfall is a “looter slasher” in the vein of games of like Warframe and Anthem, but with a fantasy twist. My chance to try the game without financial risk came at last. Normally retailing for $14.99 USD, the Challenger Edition was offered as a temporary freebie on PlayStation Plus and the Epic Store. I didn’t want to take a chance on a game from a new franchise with a triple-A price tag without some way to try it first, but the idea intrigued me.Įnter the new Challenger Edition, a funky not-quite-demo that boosts you to max level and grants you access to Godfall’s endgame modes… but not its story campaign. I’ve been keeping one eye on Godfall for a while.
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