It’s usually the dogs. Ask any Souls fan and they’ll tell you how infuriating the dogs are. Hiding around corners. Interrupting combat. Hunting in packs. They’re secretly one of the trickiest enemies.
But in Lies of P? They’re practically harmless, docile even. Not once while playing the recently released demo have I had trouble destroying these mechanical mutts. This can’t really be a Soulslike, can it?
Dogs aside, Lies of P wants to be a real Souls game – just as the puppet Pinocchio longs to be a real boy. It’s certainly comparable – and enjoyable – yet while imitation is flattering, from what I’ve played of Lies of P it doesn’t quite find its own identity, its own…soul.
Lies of PPublisher: NeowizDeveloper: NeowizPlatform: PC, PlayStation and Xbox consolesAvailability: 19th September
It’s there in the setting, though. Its city of Krat is an elegant fictional Belle Époque metropolis void of humanity. Players take the role of twinky Timothée Chalamet-alike P, the lifelike puppet who explores the aftermath of a puppet invasion. They’ve seemingly gone mad and taken over the city, the rain-soaked streets now empty beyond buzzing technology and suitcases and carts strewn haphazardly – presumably as people scrambled to escape.
And while enemy puppets generally take the form of smartly dressed gentlemen (sometimes without heads), round-helmeted policemen, and those aforementioned pups, the bosses have a wonderfully clunky, clockwork feel. The Parade Master sports a terrifying clown face, while the Scrapped Watchman’s cute curly moustache belies its lurching and awkward gorilla-like movement and powerful electrical discharge.
P himself, while distinctly human by comparison, is a machine to tinker with. His internals can be upgraded with new parts, there’s a skill tree unlocked later on amusingly called P-Organs, and his left arm houses different additional weapons like a grappling hook or electric shocker. The build options aren’t as vast or varied as a Souls game, but P is a plaything to be customised to your liking.