Godfall

I’m enjoying Godfall, even if it’s not doing much to wow me and the repetition of its missions is wearing a bit thin. It’s got some fun and satisfying combat, a few genuinely novel mechanics, and graphics that range from absolutely gorgeous to a little over the top – but unless its thin story morphs into more than an excuse to go stab stuff, the grindable action-looter structure doesn't seem like it has enough variety to sustain its otherwise expansive customization.

Godfall's monotonous structure is held together by punchy combat that can't bear the full weight.

Godfall offers obnoxiously stylish next-gen spectacle, but its appeal only runs skin deep.

A pleasant, samey slasher that may bore your digits while making your GPU sweat.

Then, about three-fourths into my playthrough, I found a legendary warhammer with an unbelievably powerful perk. Whenever I used a Weapon Technique, it created an enormous bubble that slowed any enemy within it to a crawl. It didn't rely on a trigger, ailment, debuff, a percentage, or anything. When it dropped, I read the description in bewilderment. Was this thing for real? It was so out of line with anything else the rest of the game had given me that I doubted it'd be useful. But it was. It made tough encounters a breeze. It destroyed bosses. The rest of the game went by in a flash. It was the most fun I'd had with Godfall, and I held on to that warhammer even after it was one of the weakest pieces of loot I had, just because of that one perk. I wish I'd found more items like it, because it was a welcome change of pace.

An enjoyable hack and slash looter that plays well despite a sparse, repeating structure

Fun to play solo or with friends, but both avenues are filled with monotonous level design

It's a shame this had to be $70 out of the gate on PS5 (it's $59.99 on PC) and that it has to be tethered to an always-online system. Whoever made that decision doomed this project's reputation, at least in the short term. Godfall is going to go down as one of the most divisive games of this generation's launch: a relic to some, a wild whispered-about gem to others. Make sure that before you get it, all of your action-junkie boxes are checked.

If everything Godfall had to offer was as good as its satisfying combat system, we would be looking at a darn good PS5 launch game. However, in reality, that's the only thing it has to boast about. An inconsequential loot system, recycled environments, and a frustrating mission structure thwart any sort of enjoyment the game might offer. It's not god-awful, but Godfall is going to be very quickly forgotten about.

If you want a fairly mindless RPG experience that offers some different weapons and gear to mess around with, then Godfall will give you at least a few hours of fun. Just don’t expect a fantasy story worthy of its inspirations, or a world that fully explores its potential and you’ll be fine.