I’ll admit that I’ve never been a fan of soulslikes. But I had to jump on this bandwagon at some point. It seems like this relationship only goes one-way, though, because as much as I try to show a soulslike some love, I got my rear-end kicked. Maybe that’s just how soulslike games show affection. I did start off Deathbound, developed by Trialforge Studios and published by Tate Mulitmedia, with an open mind. Unfortunately, Deathbound shows itself to be a pretty generic addition to the genre. It tries really hard to be Dark Souls without really understanding what made Dark Souls work for its audience.

Dark Souls was designed with subtlety in mind. Little things, like the enemy placement, and the items; everything felt very deliberate in Dark Souls. In Deathbound, everything feels kind of like it was placed for frustration’s sake. There’s no online multiplayer. If I have to go to the bathroom in the middle of a long boss fight, can I pause the game and continue after a break? Nope. Dark Souls didn’t have a pause button, so neither shall Deathbound. You’re responsible for a few bladder infections, Deathbound!

Story in a Soulslike

It’s also more deliberate with its story as well. There’s a war going on between the powers of Life and Death, with the armies of Death acting like violent killjoys who kill anyone who enjoys living. So naturally, the first character you play is a joyless zealot who wants nothing more than to kill everyone who doesn’t follow his order’s puritanical rule. I really wasn’t feeling particularly motivated to continue his quest, if you get my meaning.

There are other characters that are much more fun. However, they all feel dragged down by Mr. Misery Guts who has to complain about each one. There is a nice playable introduction with each character, watching the major points of their life. You get the feeling that nobody in this game has clean hands, adding to the oppressive atmosphere. I can see now why the story in Dark Souls was in the background. It’s a lot more difficult to keep a consistent narrative going when you’re frequently dying and having to restart an area over.

The visuals, however, are very well done. Each character has a distinct visual style that manages to stand out without being too distracting. The environments are very oppressive and intimidating with each level has a distinct color scheme and style that helps build a foreboding atmosphere.

Speaking of gameplay…

The main gimmick that separates Deathbound from its inspiration is its party system. You can switch between different characters who have slight differences in gameplay. You can even switch in the middle of an attack for bonus damage to your opponent. They have different stats and bonuses, and even talk to each other – which is weird because only one can be on screen at a time.

It’s also missing much of the exploration that soulslike games tend to have, with straightforward level design that sometimes lack direction. I wasn’t fifteen minutes into the game when I got stuck because the game wanted me to attack a blob that didn’t move or indicate that it was whackable. There’s an option to have important objects glow and I cannot recommend that feature enough. Otherwise, everything just fades into the background.

The gameplay is essentially a copy and paste of Dark Souls gameplay. You have a slow attack and an even slower attack, both of which take stamina that needs time to rebuild. Each action you take has to be deliberate, since even the simplest enemies can kill you if you aren’t careful. This creates a tense atmosphere where you have to plan your next move while being aware of everything around you. And knowing how to dodge is mandatory.

A lot of the design seems more antagonistic to the player, as if the designers don’t want you to continue. For instance, if you use your healing items it doesn’t simply heal you, it takes health away from your other party members and gives it to you. Your stamina is tied to your health, so on top of getting closer to death you’re also unable to attack as often. Reloading your crossbow takes a five second animation that you can’t move from or cancel out of, so if you try to fire and forget you need to reload in a tight situation you’re completely screwed.

Conclusion

So, I really didn’t like this game. A big part of that may be my disdain for the soulslike genre. If it wasn’t so antagonistic, if it wasn’t so in love with being impenetrable, there could be something to like. But as it is, it’s not very fun for me.

What did you think of Deathbound? Let us know in the comments below.

Deathbound is out now on PC, Xbox, and PS5 for $29.99. Review key was generously provided by Tate Multimedia.