Forspoken Reviews

The Forspoken reviews are starting to come in, and as many predicted, it's not looking great for the open world action RPG. Initial coverage is divided to say the least, with the title currently sitting at a 66 on Metacritic. Not outright bad, but certainly not the hit that Square Enix would have wanted.

Generally speaking, reviewers have been critical of the game's story, writing, and general tone. However, it sounds like the gameplay's actually decent once you dig into it, providing flashy combat and fun traversal.

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It's also worth noting that review code was not made available to everyone — Push Square included. As such, you can expect more reviews to be published over coming days and weeks.

Right now, though, these are the kinds of critiques we're looking at:

RPG Fan - 8/10

"Forspoken is a far better and more compelling game than I had feared, but it also doesn’t reach the heights I dreamt of. There is a lot of fun to be had exploring Athia and the main quest keeps things interesting even when you get bored with the open-world checklist. But at the same time I can’t help but be disappointed with how safe Forspoken plays the open world, and I am unlikely to go back to clear out all of those rote points of interest."

IGN - 6/10

"Forspoken is the sort of game you’ve probably seen before – from its stereotypical fish-out-of-water fantasy story to its giant open-world map full of repetitive optional tasks. Its combat is flashy and fun enough to entertain across its comparatively short RPG campaign, with fights that do a good job of pushing you to shake up your use of elemental powers even when the overall variety of enemies isn’t particularly impressive."

GameSpot - 5/10

"Forspoken is a tricky game to recommend. The lore of its world is interesting but delivered in a stilted expository manner, and the freeing sensation of taking off across the landscape in a magically-propelled sprint is sullied by the knowledge that there's nowhere to go or anything fun to do. Combat is visually impressive but not all that engaging, and the excellent sound design and the catchy musical score are regularly undermined by unfunny quips from an unlikable protagonist."

GamesRadar - 2.5/5

"Forspoken shines brightest when its protagonist is dipping, ducking, and diving along the generally striking world of Athia while casting a variety of spells, but the standard fish-out-of-water fantasy story of Frey only subtracts from the experience."

Eurogamer - N/A

"This story takes time to get going, and while the writing doesn't always land, there's plenty to enjoy even if the numerous ups and downs make Forspoken hard to universally recommend. Still, thanks to its robust character development, detailed worldbuilding, and stylish combat, there are elements here that are still worth a look."

So, how do you feel about Forspoken's initial reception? Have these reviews enticed you, or have you been put off? Sling some spells in the comments section below.