Vraki Pinocchio. Is Lies of P another clone of Bloodborne or a new word in the genre?

At the beginning of the story (or the whole game) we go in search of Geppetto, Pinocchio’s father. The nice old man even appeared in the trailer, indicating his important role in the plot. There is an untruth in the image and behavior of the father. Given the main theme of the project, it would make sense if the father turns out to be a villain.

geppettogeppetto

The blue-haired Fairy also lit up. The trailer gives the impression that the girl and Geppetto are two opposing forces, with the main goal of pulling the boy to their side.

and fairyand fairy

Another detail is a group of people wearing animal masks and a chest that reads “Liar”. In the original story, there were rabbits preparing a personal box for Pinocchio, who would not drink his medicine. In the game, the characters look very menacing. Interestingly, they wear the same attachments on their hands as Pinocchio himself on his prosthesis. Perhaps the main character is being hunted after a series of fake elections. But why and by whom? Unknown.

Although these are the most mysterious charactersAlthough these are the most mysterious characters

The plot of Lies of P looks like the most mysterious part of the project. This is a plus, because an unusual take on intrigues of fairy-tale characters gives hope for an interesting story.

It’s time to take out the land of fools

The gameplay will feel familiar to anyone who has ever played soul likes, especially Bloodborne. Pinocchio walks slowly past the Crate, methodically carving out dolls, opening chests, and occasionally dying. Instead of bonfires, there are unusual devices literally called “stargazers” (The Stargazers), and souls have been replaced by ergo substance.

Fortunately, this is not all the game has to offer. The combat system has been seriously upgraded. In addition to an iron prosthesis with various attachments, Pinocchio has a whole arsenal of sharp weapons, and each can be assembled with your own hands.

Inventory in the best traditions of “souls” – bulky and overloadedInventory in the best traditions of “souls” – bulky and overloaded

From enemies you will receive not only ready-made sabers and axes, but also spare parts: handles, blades, tips. If you want to combine the sharp part of a heavy spear with an ax handle, please. We decided to take the sword apart and make something new out of it – no problem. Although it is not yet clear how wide the possibilities for crafting will be. It is noticeable in the demonstration that not all handles are suitable for the selected tip.

Interestingly, after assembly, during the game, you will always see both components. This means the presence of such a parameter as strength. One of the pop-up tutorials revealed that with a successful parry there is a chance to break enemy weapons. If Pinocchio can do it, of course opponents can too.

Parry seems to be one of the main combat mechanics. In the commercials, the hero occasionally fends off the puppets’ attacks. Without equipment, the damage and protection of enemies is drastically reduced. Does this mean that bosses can only be defeated through parries, as in? Sekiro: Shadows die twice? It is not clear yet.

The second important feature is the prosthesis. You can attach various attachments to it, which seriously affect the battle. So far, only four options have been demonstrated: electric, incendiary, sniper, and harpoon. The latter is especially interesting in our opinion. At first, Pinocchio can pull small enemies towards him, but after leveling up he can pull himself towards them. The closest analogy to what’s happening is: Final Fantasy 15, when Prince Noctis flew across the battlefield and teleported to the magic sword.

This leads to another conclusion: the equipment is pumping. Pinocchio’s own skill tree wasn’t shown, but if each nozzle has multiple development options, the combination potential is huge. The fly in the ointment is that it is impossible to adjust the prosthesis along the way. Only when you get to the next “bonfire” can you change gear and rebuild weapons.

Pinocchio is quite mobile by default, so he can either jump sideways or roll completely. In this case, players have a choice of path: balance, agility or strength. Apparently this decision will have to be made at the beginning of the game.

Ergo hero collects in a special lamp on his belt. It’s funny that the object occasionally talks to the boy, but who’s in it is a mystery. Pinocchio will have a weight indicator forgotten by Souls fans. By default, the man can tow 76.4 kilograms. This decision seems controversial. Due to greater variability, FromSoftware has long given up on such hardcore limitations. In a recent Elden Ring, in the middle of the passage, the hero could easily equip a small army. It turns out that in Lies of P you have to constantly sell equipment. At the same time, the weight of the weapon in the hands does not seem to matter at all to Pinocchio.

In addition to the usual health and stamina bar, the man has a super strike scale. While fighting, Pinocchio can use his meter to perform many quick attacks and break through his opponent’s defenses. At these moments, the hero begins to glow with a bluish light.

Evil dolls also know how, by the way, but they turn red. Impossible to block enhanced attacks – only to dodge. It’s not clear yet if shell filling affects attack type, but weapon type certainly matters. In several shots in the trailers, Pinocchio wielded a heavy sword and the special attacks were very different.

Instead of estus, the hero injects himself with a pink liquid. The rest of the quick item switching isn’t much different from Bloodborne and Elden Ring.

What can go wrong

Unfortunately, all the benefits of Lies of P may not be enough. The main enemies in both trailers and gameplay demos were dolls. Despite their variety, many of the animations are painfully reminiscent of the movements of the townspeople of Bloodborne. There is also no “friendly fire” in the game. All opponents’ attacks and projectiles are completely ignored by their counterparts, which looks strange to say the least. The game is slated to be released in 2023, so there’s still hope for a fix for the issue.

Traditionally clunky camera in place. Pinocchio regularly finds himself in a situation where half of the enemies are simply out of sight.

Bugs complete the list. It’s worth noting that the game isn’t finished yet, so the situation will definitely change, but it’s hard not to get annoyed by what’s happening so far. Enemies teleport, hits don’t count, not to mention parry timings.

We really hope these are just temporary issues and that the game will fix them upon release.

***

Despite its seemingly secondary character, Lies of P captivates with its original setting, beautiful photo and clever combat system. And yet the game has a lot of Bloodborne, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice and a number of other well-known projects. Will Lies of P be another faceless soul clone, or will it take its place among the coolest games in the genre? We’ll find out in 2023 on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.