A Review of Lies of P: Overture
6/15/2025
As a big fan of soulslikes and difficult games in general, I find it particularly interesting to find out what twists the next game puts on the genre. Many games have succeeded in that regard, notable standouts being Hollow Knight with its 2D Metroidvania focus and Sekiro's reinvigoration of the rigid core gameplay loop. Lies of P was always a game that stood out like a sore thumb to me because it successfully marks the cumulation of the genre up to its point of release, from its Belle Epoque aesthetic that is reminiscent of Bloodborne to its unforgiving combat system derived from the souls games of old. Even in the opening moments, it becomes very clear that this game is a hallmark title for soulslikes, one that they must envy and take inspiration from in order for the entire genre to flourish.
Lies of P successfully navigates its masterful art direction and foreboding atmosphere with customizable and engaging combat, cementing itself as one of the greatest soulslikes to come out this decade. This opinion was only further elevated by the shadow drop of the DLC, Lies of P: Overture, which serves as a critical point of clarity in the narrative as well as building upon an already complete gameplay loop by introducing even more vivid areas to explore and challenges to conquer. In this review, I hope to explore why Lies of P and its DLC is an incredible, unmissable experience for those who appreciate a challenge.
A World of Machines and Monsters
First impressions of any game are important, and the Belle Epoque vision for the world of Krat drew me in from the get-go. Round 8 Studios clearly had a lot of ideas on a single canvas, and they made sure to not exclude a single speck of color from the world. From the dreary and downtrodden streets of a ravaged city to a coastal tower bustling with arcane practitioners, Lies of P is the host of many different vistas that all contribute to a story about self-discovery.
On that note, the narrative is an incredibly well-told one throughout the events of the game, allowing the player to discover as much or as little as they want. As they find out more about themselves and the world around them, they gain a sense of humanity, which ultimately contributes to the possible endings of the game, which range from bitter to sweet in terms of effectiveness. There aren't that many notes I have on the story of Lies of P because it's ultimately one that is impossible to not spoil too much of, especially factoring the DLC which ties it all together, but overall, the story serves as a fleshed-out question and answer experience that complements the discoveries made by the player and ultimately ends with an apt reward for processing this narrative.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Lies of P's aesthetics is its music. At base, the tracks that play during boss fights are impressive. Great, but many of them are somewhat non-competitive. However, the songs made for this game are some of the best in modern gaming history, serving as beautiful arias and odes to a world long gone. Ranging from instrumental masterpieces to vocal perfection, these specific tracks, when encountered, have the potential to justify the bar of entry alone. On the whole, these serve as a contrast to some of the more intense tracks found while exploring Krat, and in synergy with a wondrous artstyle and a poignant narrative, Lies of P delivers on its premise of a ruined city brimming with newfound power fully and absolutely.
Deflect, Dodge, Die, Repeat
At the core of every good soulslike is exceptional difficulty and fairness. Luckily, Lies of P fully delivers on these expectations. With a combat system build upon both dodging and deflecting, it is up to the player to decide which approach is more effective for them. Dodging is safer but less aggressive, while parrying everything is riskier but leaves wider openings for attacks. Integrating both tactics into one system works towards the game's benefit, innately offering more variety in combat simply off the merit of having multiple options present; no need to sacrifice one for the other.
Building loadouts is key to this genre, and this is further exemplified by the ability to craft weapons. Using different blades and handles, players are able to explore various different avenues of power through their handheld weaponry or their literal hand with widespread levels of effectiveness. Legion arms can be selected to offer anything between a nice utility and a quick burst of mobility and damage, playing into the customizability of both the combat and the loadouts of the player. Amulets also contribute to success by offering unique arrays of benefits, and armor can be changed to provide passive damage resistance with item weight in mind, locking the player into choosing between the more powerful amulets or the more defensive armor pieces.
Enemy and boss design is also wonderful in Lies of P. Between the three different factions enemies usually fall into, I never found myself getting bored in between the areas prevalent with one enemy type. They each have their own sets of weaknesses as well, allowing for builds to capitalize on them for great success. Boss fights are also exceptional, offering the aforementioned apex of world design and give the player a sense of dread and courage to take on this new threat. Movesets of these enemies, however, is widely divisive, ranging from predictable and fair to delayed and cheap. This is what proved to be my main problem with the experience as a whole; difficulty usually stems not from a lack of trying, but rather a lack of memorization. It should absolutely be possible to get some of these movesets down on the first run-through, but sometimes that was not the case, and some enemies proverbialized brick walls while also dishing out ridiculous amounts of damage. This criticism doesn't escape the main bosses, either. Bringing some of them down felt like finally rolling a rock down a cliff rather than carrying it all the way up the mountain. Despite all this, the core gameplay of Lies of P is an absolutely brutal experience, rewarding those who are willing to trudge through the memorization games and push their skills to their limits.
The Grand Overture
The introduction of the DLC is significant for the narrative of Lies of P. Taking place in Krat before its collapse, the player gets a clear cut view of how the city fell by encountering new and incredibly dangerous enemies almost immediately. Seriously, the new additions are no joke; they do a lot of damage and have complex movesets that can very well take many attempts to truly master. To that end, the increased difficulty of regular enemies presents a unique challenge unlike most of the content in the base game. This challenge, much like before, is complemented by the introduction of new weapons and tools for the player to master on their journey through the past. Between the first pure ranged weapon in the game to a literal gunblade, it becomes apparent that Overture arms you with the tools to succeed, but leaves success entirely up to your skill.
As mentioned previously, the landscapes covered by Overture are a breath of fresh air from the cityscape of the base game. The player is immediately thrust into a ruined zoo, providing many navigation challenges and tightrope moments with its terrain. The coastal side of Krat is a welcome addition to the landscape, with bustling mines full of puppets, a frozen seaport, and a bloody mansion giving way to a diverse atmosphere that works well with the ongoing story beats. Once again, Round 8 succeeds in using their environs to build a dynamic and convincing narrative.
Going into the past of Lies of P means discovering new characters and new motivations. The narrative succeeds in delivering logical reasons behind the events of the present by bringing in familiar faces and worthy newcomers. Even then, said newcomers are integral to both the overarching story of the universe as well as the individual origin of the player character, which bridges the gaps in knowledge that may have been left within the original plot. Antagonists also prove their worth in the relatively short times they are around, having somewhat complex motivations that both drive the player towards putting them down and satisfy them when they eventually do. In the end, Overture succeeds in reworking the existing perception of the universe while bringing in interesting new faces that drive both mystery and excitement. A satisfying and emotional ending to it all sates the mysteries of the experience, proving the point that actions in the past do indeed have consequences in the near future.
Finally, this mini-review of the DLC would not be complete without mentioning the masterclass of boss design present. Even with the first boss encountered in the experience, it becomes clear that Round 8 gathered feedback and made these encounters less challenging because of delayed attacks and more so because of a perceived lack of preparation. Every boss was fair in terms of mechanics, and each one rewarded patience and practice over everything else. The main three bosses that reward the player with extra selectable rewards were also an incredibly welcome change of pace; there are some all timers in here! The final boss especially proved to be a major difficulty spike and rewards those who have the patience and mastery to overcome the rest of the game, like Malenia or Radahn from Elden Ring. These challenges were both brutal to master and satisfying to overcome, the mark of a well-made soulslike experience.
Conclusion
It's not very often that a soulslike such as this one comes around; many of them are not nearly daring enough to differentiate from what we know the genre to be. However, with jaw-dropping aesthetics and well thought gameplay combinations, Lies of P serves as a new benchmark for soulslikes of the future and as a reminder that taking risks within the gaming industry will almost always be a plus. Despite some personal gripes with difficulty and fairness in gameplay, I still feel comfortable saying that Lies of P is an amazing game, and that Overture is the perfect addition to elevate the entire thing.