• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Lords of the Fallen |OT| Not that one. The other one.

Where are my Pyro spells? That NPC I found only sells one though I summoned her in battle and she was going off like a true witch of Izalith, sell me that shit! lol Thought maybe after cleansing the light pillar after the swamp boss new inventory would open up but nope, the search for flame continues, my starting Fireball continues to do a lot of heavy lifting 😆

Performance is back to being rock solid after the swamp area and the further I get the further enamored I become with what they have created. I take back what I said about the combat not having the kind of weight and heft we'd expect from Souls, it really depends on the weapon. First 2-3 hours I was using my starting staff which didn't feel great but since then (12 hours in now) I've been using an axe that feels fantastic, favourite thing is 2-handing it and using the heavy attack for a series of overhead chops like I was a deranged lumberjack 🪓

Much like Lies of P I think Lords has the potential to be the next great series in this genre, sort out the performance and if we do eventually get a sequel make sure it's polished to perfection before releasing it.
 

DavidGzz

Member
Where are my Pyro spells? That NPC I found only sells one though I summoned her in battle and she was going off like a true witch of Izalith, sell me that shit! lol Thought maybe after cleansing the light pillar after the swamp boss new inventory would open up but nope, the search for flame continues, my starting Fireball continues to do a lot of heavy lifting 😆

Performance is back to being rock solid after the swamp area and the further I get the further enamored I become with what they have created. I take back what I said about the combat not having the kind of weight and heft we'd expect from Souls, it really depends on the weapon. First 2-3 hours I was using my starting staff which didn't feel great but since then (12 hours in now) I've been using an axe that feels fantastic, favourite thing is 2-handing it and using the heavy attack for a series of overhead chops like I was a deranged lumberjack 🪓

Much like Lies of P I think Lords has the potential to be the next great series in this genre, sort out the performance and if we do eventually get a sequel make sure it's polished to perfection before releasing it.


Exactly, I have been wondering what the hell people are talking about the whole time but I also never used a staff. It feels meaty and I LOVE hit 3-5 dudes all around me with a wide seep, so satisfying! swing_harder swing_harder , thanks for the heads up on ammo, I also wondered and now with my 23 endurance and 23 vitality, my ammo bar is thicc.
 
Last edited:

GymWolf

Member
For people who want to use framegen:

DLSS Frame Generation Manual Activation
Yesterday, we globally deactivated DLSS Frame Generation after discovering through Sentry that it was one of the main causes of crashes on 40 series GPUs for the vast majority of its owners.

However, some community members have requested that we reactivate it because they were not experiencing issues and preferred the higher framerate it offers.

While we won't be activating it by default until the issue is fully resolved, we've added a way for you to manually activate it if you wish by adding in launch options "-DLSSFG"."


I kinda wanna try but i swear the game already runs perfectly on my end and i don't want to break things...
 
Last edited:

GymWolf

Member
Pro-tip, you can use l2+r1 to suck the souls with the lamp, onimusha style.

Also, the game has its own P-organ system like lop.
20231015-115509.jpg
 
Last edited:
Finally far enough where I'm finding runes to socket into my upgraded equipment, good times! Calrath area is god-tier, probably my favourite level so far and it's filled with my fire loving kin, I'm getting lots of goodies for my build 💯

It's funny I went from mixed feelings in my first 3 hours to now being absolutely in love with the game (despite it's technical issues). Every idea they implemented to differentiate themselves within this genre works beautifully, lamp is so fucking cool, Umbral is menacing but enticing, tons of build possibilities and the game seems massive. I've only purified 1 beacon and I'm 20+ hours in now, guess these reviewers rushed through it to write their reviews, no way this is a 40 hour game lol.
 
Last edited:

Gaiff

SBI’s Resident Gaslighter
I can't be the only one finding the Umbral mechanics tedious and annoying.

Also, are there no tooltips on the stats screen? I wanna know what stats like Inferno do.
 
Last edited:

GymWolf

Member
I can't be the only one finding the Umbral mechanics tedious and annoying.

Also, are there no tooltips on the stats screen? I wanna know what stats like Inferno do.
I was ready to hate the whole gimmick but i think it's ok overall.

It can be annoying but what it brings to the table in term of exploration make up for it.

I think the use in combat is less good because of the high number of enemies at any given time so playing catch the souls-shield with the lamp can be hard to do.

If you don't care about finding every single shit in the game you can just use it when you are forced to do so for progression reasons.

Inferno is a requisite to wield weapons like str and agy, and it probably improve the fire damage of fire weapons and throwables.
Also i think it improve mana quantity like radiance but i'm not sure.
 
Last edited:
Just had one of the coolest boss battles in *any* Souls game, FROM included 👌

My Pyro is rolling now, got 2 rings to augment my fire damage, rune to increase Inferno scaling on my weapon, Catalyst at +6, Axe (which was hidden) at +5, estus at +4. This game has *tons* of secrets, lots of hidden back alleys, doors, ladders, umbral walls, platforms, places to drop, places to break through, your exploration *will* be rewarded.
 

GymWolf

Member
This game level design is basically dark souls 1 but bigger.

Also lol at the wallmart wilhelm scream when you get hit sometimes :lollipop_squinting:
 
Last edited:

Arsic

Loves his juicy stink trail scent
I am one beacon left with the game, then I assume final boss or final boss area ?

I basically have cheesed most bosses simply by walking backwards and dodging while throwing projectiles. I have a hammer that does 800 damage a chuck, but on bosses it’s like 600-700. Just stack up ammo satchels and it makes short work of every challenge so far in game.

I imagine they’ll nerf this soon enough because the second best throwable I’ve found is in the 400s.

—-

Worst part of the game for me as just a fundamental design choice/mechanic is the fake treasure being a moth that kills you instantly. The treasure can change location in room, and I’ve had areas where this cheep shit gimmick is in every other room 3 in a row. There’s no way I’ve found to sniff it out via lamp or attacking the treasure unlike a mimic chest in souls.

Doing this is just a giant middle finger to the player and a fuck you. You get the cheapest fucking kill possible and give the player no way to skillfully avoid it.

The majority of my deaths in this game have all felt like cheap shit, and not skill issue related. Think the only “good deaths” I’ve had were the Thancred boss and the big Titan from attack on titan boss.
 
Last edited:

Lux R7

Member
—-

Worst part of the game for me as just a fundamental design choice/mechanic is the fake treasure being a moth that kills you instantly. The treasure can change location in room, and I’ve had areas where this cheep shit gimmick is in every other room 3 in a row. There’s no way I’ve found to sniff it out via lamp or attacking the treasure unlike a mimic chest in souls.

Doing this is just a giant middle finger to the player and a fuck you. You get the cheapest fucking kill possible and give the player no way to skillfully avoid it.

The majority of my deaths in this game have all felt like cheap shit, and not skill issue related. Think the only “good deaths” I’ve had were the Thancred boss and the big Titan from attack on titan boss.

maybe you know it but
the "tail" of the fake item wags a lot more than normal
so you can tell
 

Arsic

Loves his juicy stink trail scent
FINALLY unlocked the blacksmith. I like that ranged weapons are actually useful in this game for more than just pulling aggro.

You can and I have, Mained throwable. Chucked javelins, then an axe, now a hammer.
 

Ogbert

Member
I am one beacon left with the game, then I assume final boss or final boss area ?

I basically have cheesed most bosses simply by walking backwards and dodging while throwing projectiles. I have a hammer that does 800 damage a chuck, but on bosses it’s like 600-700. Just stack up ammo satchels and it makes short work of every challenge so far in game.

I imagine they’ll nerf this soon enough because the second best throwable I’ve found is in the 400s.

—-

Worst part of the game for me as just a fundamental design choice/mechanic is the fake treasure being a moth that kills you instantly. The treasure can change location in room, and I’ve had areas where this cheep shit gimmick is in every other room 3 in a row. There’s no way I’ve found to sniff it out via lamp or attacking the treasure unlike a mimic chest in souls.

Doing this is just a giant middle finger to the player and a fuck you. You get the cheapest fucking kill possible and give the player no way to skillfully avoid it.

The majority of my deaths in this game have all felt like cheap shit, and not skill issue related. Think the only “good deaths” I’ve had were the Thancred boss and the big Titan from attack on titan boss.
I’ve uninstalled.

Too many good games out to waste my time with this drivel.
 

stickkidsam

Member
Holy monkey on a stick, this game has me by the balls lol

The first day of playing I was a bit worried about stability due to co-op, but I've been playing alone since then and the game is smooth as butter. The further I get the more I want to see and find! I feel like there's just so much to love here. I just got to (what I think is) the end of rainy scaffolding section, and now I'm in the mines. Lots of surprises in there, like enemies with increased health, snipers above cantankerous pits, and a MASSIVE FUCK OFF MOTH that ate me when I tried to get an item.

Here's some first impressions:

Combat
  • It feels pretty great fighting multiple enemies, even with snipers far away. The sound design makes it easy to tell when an attack is coming from far away.
  • Movement is smooth as butter, and being able to side step AND dodge has saved my ass so many times.
  • Stamina depletes very slowly compared to Souls games. It feels great when fighting groups.
  • The mana/ammo system might be my favorite in any soulslike. Since they share different pools you can swap between them on the fly in the menus and shooting enemies feels smooth.
  • Parries being merged with Bloodborne's rally system feels like a really cool spin on the mechanic. Really makes it feel like you've earned that critical hit if ya can keep your health up.
  • Combos feel as cool as they are varied. Swords have weighty and broad strikes while daggers are quick and close.
Enemies
  • Enemy variety so far has been alright. Between the worlds I think I've seen 11 or 12 different types.
  • Encounters feel really varied. Often times I come across a large group of enemies I'll get a chance to plan out how I'll attack but sometimes I'll just fall right into the fire lol
  • Attacks are telegraphed really well. It feels fun to take on both the malnourished masses and grass fed beefcakes.
  • There's some standout enemies in this game that have scared the shit out of me. Especially in Umbral. That ambush from the 2 reapers in skyridge was NUTS.
World
  • Environments are god damn GORGEOUS in this game and it's cool seeing places you'll soon go to. I hope there's some more areas with inclement weather because I've been loving the rainy scaffolding section.
  • Item descriptions offer some neat clues into the lore and making it so you need to upgrade certain stats to unlock more information adds a fun mystery.
  • The characters are designed very well, each with a distinct feel and look. The voice acting has been enjoyable to me too, ham and all.
  • Exploration is really rewarding. This game feels like it looked at Dark Souls 1 and thought, "Bigger".
  • Level design is amazing with lots of use of verticality, even in more enclosed environments.
Sound
  • Sounds feel balanced overall, though at times things feel too quiet.
  • Ambient sounds in the starting area felt too quiet but have improved as I've progressed in the game.
  • Menu sounds are satisfying, though they don't play in some menus?
  • Music so far has been good with the hub area being a standout. Just waiting for that song that really grabs me.
  • Attacks sound wet and visceral, with some crunchy sounds here and there. I've not used blunt weapons yet, so maybe that's why.
  • Enemies sound great, with all sorts of moans, groans, and grunts. Some angry yelling too. It really helps telegraph their attacks.
Performance (Playstation 5)
  • The game has been running smooth as butter ever in performance mode. Quality mode is playable with some noticeable improvement to draw distance, but the framerate can chug at times.
  • Co-Op is pretty buggy, with enemy aggro being fairly hit or miss and minor rubber banding. I am unable to host Co-Op with a download of 55/mpbs and an upload of 11/mbps.
  • Loading times are great, maybe 5 seconds to refresh the world.
  • No game breaking bugs like stats being reset, so I'll consider myself lucky lol
  • Occasionally the Umbral realm will bleed into the living realm via dust kicking up from footsteps or a health bar sticking around on the screen.
All in all, I'm having a great time with the game. The mechanics all work well together, Umbral doesn't feel tacked on and is even useful in combat, and the presentation is just beautiful. There's some little areas the game could improve on, mostly in the UI department. Maybe resize the dialogue boxes? An explanation button for the menus would be nice. I wish more games had encyclopedias. Makes me miss the little manuals games used to have. ANYWAY!

This games is really something special. Fingers crossed Hexworks can keep fixing whatever bugs are left! I wanna engage in some jolly cooperation!
 
No matter what I do this game doesn't feel smooth. 4080, 5800x3d. Just feels super stuttery.

Only way to not feel the stutter is to cap it at 30fps.
 
Last edited:
Co-op on Xbox is all over the place. I either get a super fast connect, or nothing at all.

If you're struggling early on, getting the blacksmith is a breaking point. I had enough mats by that point to upgrade a weapon to +5 and it damn near doubled my damage potential. I'll get a scaling bump at the next upgrade that'll kick it another 40 points or so.

Just in time for the poison swamp area, yay!
 

GHG

Member
No matter what I do this game doesn't feel smooth. 4080, 5800x3d. Just feels super stuttery.

Only way to not feel the stutter is to cap it at 30fps.

Odd, I'm not having any issues on the same setup but a 4090 instead of your 4080.

What settings are you running with? I'm using DLSS Quality and on average I'm getting 90-120fps.

Might seem odd but disable xbox game bar and any other framerate monitoring software other than steams inbuilt frame counter and see how you go. Previously game bar was causing all kinds of oddities and crashes for me.
 
Odd, I'm not having any issues on the same setup but a 4090 instead of your 4080.

What settings are you running with? I'm using DLSS Quality and on average I'm getting 90-120fps.

Might seem odd but disable xbox game bar and any other framerate monitoring software other than steams inbuilt frame counter and see how you go. Previously game bar was causing all kinds of oddities and crashes for me.
I'll give it a try next time I play it. But dlss quality and frame gen. Mostly ultra settings with a few settings turned down. The frame rate stays high but feels awful.
 

GHG

Member
I'll give it a try next time I play it. But dlss quality and frame gen. Mostly ultra settings with a few settings turned down. The frame rate stays high but feels awful.

That's the problem then.

Disable frame-gen. It's an issue known to the devs that it's causing all kinds of issues. In the last patch notes they referenced it and recommend disabling it:

DLSS Frame Generation Manual Activation
Yesterday, we globally deactivated DLSS Frame Generation after discovering through Sentry that it was one of the main causes of crashes on 40 series GPUs for the vast majority of its owners.

However, some community members have requested that we reactivate it because they were not experiencing issues and preferred the higher framerate it offers.

While we won't be activating it by default until the issue is fully resolved, we've added a way for you to manually activate it if you wish by adding in launch options "-DLSSFG"
 
Last edited:
That's the problem then.

Disable frame-gen. It's an issue known to the devs that it's causing all kinds of issues. In the last patch notes they referenced it and recommend disabling it:
I have, played for a while today with it off, still didn't feel good.
 
  • Surprised
Reactions: GHG

Arsic

Loves his juicy stink trail scent
I’ve uninstalled.

Too many good games out to waste my time with this drivel.

This is the last night I’m with it. Beat it or bust because tomorrow is the new season of D4, and I’ll ride that into Spider-Man 2. Ride spidey into Alan wake 2. Ride Alan into CoD and and Star Ocean 2R.

Think that’s it for the rest of the year.

I was going to uninstall it I think day one but then realized it’s either this or just play CS2 until Spider-Man and opted for this.

I currently can’t give the game more than a 6.5. I think Wo Long was better and that’s probably a 7.5 or 8. Then we have lies of p at a 9.5 for me for the year.

If you told me I’d like this less than wo long I would’ve called you crazy.
 

GymWolf

Member
After the last patch this stupid fucking game crashed 7 times in 2 hours and hard crashed my pc once just to put salt to the injury.

Fuck this.
 

GymWolf

Member
I am one beacon left with the game, then I assume final boss or final boss area ?

I basically have cheesed most bosses simply by walking backwards and dodging while throwing projectiles. I have a hammer that does 800 damage a chuck, but on bosses it’s like 600-700. Just stack up ammo satchels and it makes short work of every challenge so far in game.

I imagine they’ll nerf this soon enough because the second best throwable I’ve found is in the 400s.

—-

Worst part of the game for me as just a fundamental design choice/mechanic is the fake treasure being a moth that kills you instantly. The treasure can change location in room, and I’ve had areas where this cheep shit gimmick is in every other room 3 in a row. There’s no way I’ve found to sniff it out via lamp or attacking the treasure unlike a mimic chest in souls.

Doing this is just a giant middle finger to the player and a fuck you. You get the cheapest fucking kill possible and give the player no way to skillfully avoid it.

The majority of my deaths in this game have all felt like cheap shit, and not skill issue related. Think the only “good deaths” I’ve had were the Thancred boss and the big Titan from attack on titan boss.
There is a simple method to know if it is a mimic, just watch the candle light on top, if it moves a lot, it's a mimic, if it's pretty much straight it's loot.
 
Last edited:

DavidGzz

Member
After the last patch this stupid fucking game crashed 7 times in 2 hours and hard crashed my pc once just to put salt to the injury.

Fuck this.

Oh shit, I'm going to play at work tonight and stay in offline mode. I wonder if I can still play it. I'd think so.
 

ssringo

Member
So, I found my first chunk and fully upgraded a weapon. But it feels way too early in the game to have this. Like, I've still only lit a single beacon...
 

stickkidsam

Member
Anybody else notice that generic items dropped by enemies stick around even after you die die? Pretty cool if that’s a feature.

Also god damn they made fighting with your fists pretty fun lol I’m hitting for about 75 damage per punch with 10 strength and 20 Agility. Gonna have to see how it scales with more levels.
 

DavidGzz

Member
Anybody else notice that generic items dropped by enemies stick around even after you die die? Pretty cool if that’s a feature.

Also god damn they made fighting with your fists pretty fun lol I’m hitting for about 75 damage per punch with 10 strength and 20 Agility. Gonna have to see how it scales with more levels.


Yes, I have noticed that. Pretty cool. That's cool about bare fists being viable!
 

swing_harder

Neo Member
Anybody else notice that generic items dropped by enemies stick around even after you die die? Pretty cool if that’s a feature.
I first noticed this after the Pieta fight. Once I beat her, I went back to explore the area just before and there was tons of loot laying around up where the fire skeleton dude is. Apparently, he had been slaying the other enemies during my 50 attempts of fighting Pieta 😂 and they were dropping items the whole time. During the Pieta fight, you can actually see there health bars in the background. I recommend everybody that’s just starting out to go back and check that area again as there were lots of upgrade materials dropped. Depending on how long it took you to beat Pieta you may have a stockpile like I did 😂
 
Last edited:

DavidGzz

Member
I just beat a dude that kept healing himself, and it was so satisfying. Strength weapons seem the way to go for me so far. The stagger you can apply to interrupt attacks, even to bosses is so good. People are going to call me mad, even I think I am, but this game is up there with From software games to me. I never thought I'd say that. Dark Souls 1-3 and BB are my favorite games ever. I just love this so much. The easier parry system, the L1/LB plus right trigger combo attacks(and being able to mix one handed and two handed in the same combo), the easier to pull off and very useful kick, being able to press L2/LT+R1/RB to quickly and very accurately throw a spear from your back, and the regain system are just so good. I hope From steals some of these ideas for their next game. Add the dual worlds with puzzle solving and accessing the bottom of bodies of water and you have a winner in my opinion. I can't stop playing. I even made 2 more characters already. Also, I am happy that humanity/embering up isn't a thing.
 

tusharngf

Member
I was wrong about janky animations. Only power r2 strong attack is little janky. Rest of the animations are smooth.
 
Last edited:

Moses85

Member
I will buy it december 2024 when its fully fixed / patched.

Are this Bullshots or show these the PC Version?
 
Top Bottom