Forspoken Review

In the wake of the success of the MCU, we’ve been inundated with Marvel’s gallery of notable icons, from Eidos-Montreal’s Guardians of the Galaxy to Firaxis Games’ Marvel’s Midnight Suns. With Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League focusing on characters that just graced the Silver Screen and Gotham Knights having left a bad taste in our mouths, the market was screaming for a new face to fill a superhero-esque role.

Enter Alfre “Frey” Holland, a quirky, down-on-her-luck New Yorker and protagonist of Forspoken, an action RPG developed by Square Enix subsidiary Luminous Productions.

Though Frey is far removed from the MCU or any other superhero property, Luminous Productions very clearly took inspiration from the cinematic successes, crafting its take on Marvel’s version of the “hero’s journey,” complete with an unexpected transformation, a mystical companion, and the expected highs and lows.

Since it’s a narrative structure we’re all-too-familiar with, Forspoken struggles to break new ground, especially in its depiction of its minority hero and its all-too-familiar open world.

Another Cliche Comic Book Story

Forspoken opens on orphan Frey as she finds herself once again entangled with the law. In a rather uninspired opening, we follow Frey as she receives a third chance from a charitable judge and then almost immediately finds herself thrust back into trouble through her ties with a local gang.

Some fancy footwork and impressive parkour later, and she’s back at her hovel, a dingy apartment that serves to manifest the difficult upbringing and unfair life Frey has been living before we joined her.

It’s marginally lazy storytelling at best, using common tropes and stereotypes to set the stage for what winds up being a Marvel-infused version of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Frey parallels characters like Spider-Man, Shazam, and even Alice as she awkwardly stumbles into her role as saviour of the oppressed land of Athia, fumbling early on as she gets accustomed to her newfound powers.

Unfortunately, Forspoken suffers the most for releasing when it did. The MCU and DC’s jumbled web of TV shows and movies have all covered the same ground, weakening Frey’s journey for those worn out on the typical beats. Strong writing could have salvaged the character some and given her a unique personality, but it’s all so reminiscent of things we’ve seen and heard before.

Along the way, Frey quips with the charm and sass we’ve come to expect of modern superheroes, just without having to put in the effort like Tony Stark and Peter Parker had to in order to earn our admiration. Thankfully, it’s an issue that rectifies itself in the late game, which is when Forspoken and Frey truly shine.

Yet Another Open World?

When Forspoken isn’t busy replicating a story we’ve been told a thousand times, it struggles with a format that has become very common in gaming. The open world of Athaia is beautiful and features some truly stunning locations, made possible by high-end gaming PCs and the PS5, but when you really break it down, there’s nothing new about it.

Open-world fatigue is quite real, and Forspoken is yet another game that thrusts players into a massive map to hunt down quests, scour for items needed for craftables, find collectibles, and target groups of enemies just to break up the grind.

Luminous Productions had every opportunity to craft a truly unique and engaging world but delivered mostly more of the same. To the developer’s credit, though, the more fantastical elements do punch up the intrigue, but it’s possible the game would have benefited from a little more linearity and structure.

The Saving Graces

For all of its qualms, Forspoken does avoid being a completely forgettable experience. Among one of its best features, to the point where it’s the shining star, is Frey’s parkour mechanic. Not only is it fun to manoeuvre through the world, as drab as it may be, but Luminous Productions also mastered the art of particle effects. Navigating Frey through the open environment and over obstacles is whimsical and fun, and a lot of that fluidity does carry over into combat.

Many of Frey’s spells could have used a little punching up, but some of her elemental attacks are true showstoppers. Her assortment of water, fire, light, and earth-based magic are one of the game’s stronger points, especially as you unlock more devastating spells.

Frey has access to attack and support spells, which can be carefully used to dominate battles and take down the rogue’s gallery of nasty foes. Like any RPG, new attacks are unlocked as Frey levels up and progresses in the game, so expect some of her best attacks, support, and ultimate abilities to come later down the line.

Blocking Frey’s path is a collection of beasts corrupted by “the break.” Violent and driven wild by the infection, each fiend is a new challenge for the newcomer to Athia. Luminous really excelled at giving a great variety of enemies for Frey to battle, and you won’t find yourself dulled by the occasional encounters. Early bouts aren’t nearly as exciting as when Frey starts to unlock her true potential, but the stronger she gets, the more dangerous her encounters become.

The PS5’s Swan Song?

Before its launch, Forspoken was clearly meant to be the game that helped market the PS5 in the first quarter of 2023. Unfortunately, the game takes a few too many missteps and instead teeters on the edge of mediocrity.

Frey’s voice actress, Ella Balinska, works with an often corny script to deliver a heartfelt and enthusiastic performance. It helps keep players engaged as they slog through the early hours of her adventure until things start to really unravel.

Smooth parkour does a wonderful job of making an otherwise beautiful-but-boring environment worth exploring while shimmery and showy combat fills in the gaps between forgettable exposition.

What was an opportunity to break new ground, both thematically and mechanically, winds up being a retread of old ideas. However, with just enough flair and panache, Forspoken is entertaining enough to warrant a full playthrough.

With that said, you should grab a PSN Gift Card from OffGamers here to start experiencing Forspoken for yourself!