I'll be upfront, I'm not a "soulslike" fan, and I was hesitant to try Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, but I did play it, and I wasn't too disappointed.
Wo Long initially drew my attention because of its ability to depict a Chinese lore. It isn't exactly a beautiful game, but it does have flaws, mostly because they're introduced just to provide a new combat situation and disappear when their objective is accomplished. The narrative gist is a standard power struggle between two kingdoms.
Because of the gameplay, the game makes up for it by focusing on the curveball thrown at you in terms of difficulty. With each explanation, you gradually move up the enemy tree and utilize the new rewards, but within the first chapter you're stuck against your first major boss.
The game consists of a stamina system that must be utilized very cautiously in order to progress. Attacks and blocks take away your "Spirit Meter," and if you don't do anything, you'll be left out of the game. Doing so reduces your Spirit Meter, and sometimes even increases it.
Personally, this was the worst turn off. Heavy action-oriented games are enjoyable and Wo Long is a lot of fun when combat slows down, requiring more strategy (and luck). Flaws in Wo Long result in severe blows that wipe you out pretty quick.
Team Ninja has been working on a "Souls-like" experience for several games now. I can't say enough good things about the game, because it does give you an exceptional experience in that regard.
The game does a fantastic job of allowing for variety in enemy patterns, but this lends to a sense of accomplishment when dealing with difficult areas. Enemies have weaknesses which allows you to enchant your weapons for greater damage, which leads to a risk/reward strategy when you lose a battle.
It's all of these features that made me enjoy Wo Long more than a typical "Souls-like" title because I never felt cheated out of losing. Usually in these games I hit a wall and have to restart a bunch of gameplay to see if I've made any progress. Then you can test weaknesses and spirit attacks to see if you've got an advantage.
Are there victories on the morale?
The Morale tiers work by restarting you to zero at the beginning of each chapter, while you increase the morale tiers by using special moves and finding flags.
On the one hand, it's interesting because every level resets the Morale meter, so you start with the basic enemies and gradually advance toward the tougher battles. So instead of an overall game ramp up where you're stuck faced with tough enemies for the later half of the game, you basically build up every chapter and gradually improve into the tougher battles when you return.
On the other hand, it is an economical way to extend the gameplay in a straightforward manner. Enemies with higher Morale do more damage and are stronger than you, meaning you can't speed run your way to the boss battles and ignore the lower tier ones early. Rather you're forced to fight higher tier ones early.
The main weakness of the games is its simplicity.
Wo Long has a very extensive back-end strategy built in, with many systems working flawlessly alongside each other. What Wo Long lacks is variety in the face of these systems. For example the loot system isn't that great, but for me it was just directing all my stats towards specific goals, with no real negative effect.
Another issue I encountered is that while you are learning the game's core mechanics, it's fascinating to observe the enemies and their variations in combat. By the mid-game, however, it feels like old news. So, the game boils down to figuring out what type of fight you got yourself in, and remembering the best method to get out of it.
Overall, I think this is a good thing.
Wo Long is perhaps the best entry level game for those who like "Souls-like" games. It throws a tremendous difficulty curve early on, but once you win, the game opens up some of the more intricate mechanisms that allow you to craft a thrilling adventure. The "reset" technique allows you to take the foot off the gas before diving headfirst into more dangerous monsters.
