Forspoken finally released in 2023, and despite some of its successes, there were missed opportunities throughout the title. It's clear that the game was incredibly ambitious and definitely delivered in of its visual innovation, alongside its use of the new Luminous Engine designed by its titular production company. Its magic is imaginative and the movement of protagonist Frey is one of the best aspects of the title.
However, even more could have gone into the production to make the most of the potential that Luminous had crafted. There are moments that could have been polished and while many of the exciting aspects of the game came to fruition, there are elements that maybe didn't live up to the hype. There are plenty of video games with dark backstories fueling their leading men and women. But whether narratively, graphically, or mechanically, Forspoken set up these opportunities without fully capitalizing on them.
Protagonist Personality
Forspoken introduces audiences to a brand-new protagonist, who should, in theory, be leading the franchise into the future. The leading figure is so important, with some of the biggest series currently boasting significant heroes like Kratos, Jin Sakai, and Ellie - all names that will strike a chord and thus illicit an emotional response. But Frey Holland doesn't have that same effect.
As one of the few young Black protagonists in the medium, Frey's arc should have been given more to work with, but her unique point of view was never displayed on the screen. Frey is given all the trademarks of a classic out-of-their-depth millennial figure with plenty of quipping and self-doubt. She could have been genuinely unique in her narrative but ended up being a missed opportunity.
Unique Dialogue
Some of the best games like Forspoken ensure that each conversation is memorable or says something extra about the characters involved. Quipping is just one of the overwhelming elements many might notice when playing. The script could have been so much more, but there are numerous instances of the dialogue getting bogged down by many of the tricks and tropes of modern Hollywood. Random repetition, weak jokes, and silly asides plague the conversations throughout the title.
Very few of the NPCs have been given personalities that truly shine, with their dialogue never saying much about them as individuals or what they bring to the story. Indeed, Frey's own characterization is lacking here too. The potential of the story would have been elevated had the opportunity not been missed.
An Accessible System
All video games with the best melee combat hold the hand of the player as they take their first steps, and one area in which Forspoken cannot be criticized is its gameplay mechanics. There is a flow to the way that Frey travels across the open world landscape: the movement systems and combat design work together to craft a graceful and beautiful display of what the game can offer the medium. However, there is a steep learning curve to picking up Forspoken.
Forspoken largely throws Frey and the audience into the adventure, but actually getting to grips with the system takes some time. It might be an innovative display of how to structure a title, but it feels slightly less accessible to master and thus misses an opportunity to thrive.
Running At Full Power
As many Redditors might have predicted for Forspoken, there are three options to choose from visually, and unless the has an incredibly high-end system to run the game on, it's more than likely going to be played at 30fps. That's a real shame, as the use of Unreal Engine 5 in the title's development should have helped to boost it on all systems. But with PlayStation, it's a slightly different story.
Performance, Quality, and Ray-Tracing all bring something different to the game, but ultimately, it's unfortunate that with next-gen technology on display, a combination of elements couldn't be crafted to truly make the most of the image. In spite of the hard work, some options leave Forspoken looking flat and undefined.
A Detailed World
There are multiple exquisite open-world video games that feel alive in their construction, but Forspoken isn't one of them. The premise of Athia is interesting, with wide spaces of the open world deserted of human life because of the monstrous takeover. That means that a lot of the landscape is pretty barren, with few secrets to uncover and no NPCs or proper side quests to interact with.
A fantasy title should feature the kind of world-building that uncovers all kinds of facts about the lore itself, with recognizable landmarks helping to travel across the plains and that will forever be associated with the game. The natural elements of Forspoken might be gorgeous, but Athia doesn't impress as much as it could.
Limited DLC
While there are many important facts to know about Forspoken, limited DLC details definitely hamper any enthusiasm for the future development of the game. The DLC for Forspoken is titled In Tanta We Trust. But with the mainline game already taking a great time to explore Tanta in detail, there isn't a lot of narrative room to build DLC from.
What's more, when it comes to preorder bonuses and the additional content that fans can expect in the future, there isn't much to get excited about, and a clear roap hasn't been painted yet. With very few narrative threads to pull from for other installments, there is simply a limited range of opportunities to explore additional content.
Character Animation
One element that cannot be criticized is the attention to detail in the character animation for Frey, as she travels across Athia and involves herself in the magical conflicts of the realm. But perhaps some improvements can be made within the video game's post-campaign content when it comes to cut scenes.
There are some graceful and inventive displays of how to move the protagonist and the studio should be commended for its work here. But in each interaction, outside of action set pieces, Frey stands awkwardly with almost no movement. Her personality cannot come across when she is treated like a statue in each scene, the sequences demonstrating a massive missed opportunity in the animation department.
Unique Narrative Premise
Narratively, Forspoken could be critiqued for jumping off of many famous fantasy franchises without bringing any new ideas to the dance. The story starts off with Frey, an orphan, randomly getting transported through a portal in New York to this mystical world, where she becomes a prophesied chosen one within a coming-of-age tale.
Video games with the best lore will always find a way to involve their protagonist in the narrative premise in an organic manner. Here, the major tropes of the genre are followed to a tee. As the story develops further, the potential of Forspoken becomes apparent, but that initial setup is certainly a missed opportunity that largely relies on what came before.
Modeling Details
Frey is a great character model that does a good job at helping to emote during some of the significant cinematic sequences. While her animation might be limited, the detail of the visual design of the figure help tell her story, while the costume design brings Frey firmly into the fictional world.
But just like many expensive video games that flopped, Forspoken fails to properly craft NPCs that are just as well-designed. The character models of those that Frey meets along her journey, the ing cast, are sometimes hard to even fully identify. Unfocused in their imagining, the beasts that the protagonist also faces feel like a missed opportunity, with it becoming difficult to fully understand what's on the screen. Finite details are largely lost.
Bringing Back For More
The sign of a brilliant title is whether it has replayability: whether audiences are going to return to Forspoken time and again to journey through that same story and its twists and turns while attempting to learn new secrets of the lore of Athia. In truth, Forspoken's biggest missed opportunity is in its ability to bring gamers back.
The action video games with the best storylines also have so many other gameplay elements that become irresistible. Forspoken's combat and travel mechanics might be entertaining, but when combined with some of its other flaws, it just doesn't feel like enough to draw fans back in after a single playthrough. Forspoken could have been a franchise builder, but right now it might not seem like one.
