Ravenbound | PC Review
Ravenbound is a game of ambition. It boasts an expansive open world, roguelike elements, roguelite elements, Souls-esque combat, and lore taken more from Scandinavian folklore than Norse. It succeeds in some of this, struggles in others, but as a game, it’s still something of a mess.
It’s impossible to talk about Ravenbound now without also mentioning how it was at launch. On release, Ravenbound required you to sign into a proprietary online service to even reach the main menu (and to be clear, this is a single player game). Enemies were damage sponges, there was very little depth to each run, and the main gameplay loop was, in a word, boring. It was an inoffensive game, but also not a very fun one. While over the last couple months there have been a lot of quality-of-life improvements, issues remain.
The Basics
The main gameplay loop has you tossed out into the massive overworld in raven form, freely able to fly pretty much anywhere. Your primary objective on each run (and it should be pointed out each run is “roguelike” in the sense that you receive random rewards from chests) is to slay the Hatred. You accomplish this by clearing out camps filled with enemies, then flying over to the boss’s arena, killing said boss, and repeating until you free the land of Hatred.
The actual gameplay is an odd mix of Dark Souls-esque combat with light and heavy attacks attached to the shoulder buttons, but any Souls vet will immediately notice the lack of a stamina meter. Indeed, dodging costs nothing, comes with plenty of i-frames, and a successful dodge away from an enemy’s attack puts you in frenzy mode, boosting your attack speed. Enemies have pretty simplistic attack patterns, so combat boils down to smacking enemies until they attack, then dodging away to get your frenzy boost. Attack speed can vary based on the weapon you’re using, but overall it’s basically swing-swing-dodge-swing-repeat.
Rinse, Repeat
Once you’ve cleared out an enemy camp, you receive some soul fragments. Collect three to transform them into a selection of three cards with various effects, such as new equipment, money, or new effects on your attacks. Cards can’t be used without mana, a very limited resource, so spending mana on the right cards is key. Activate too many cards and you start accumulating too much Hatred, which is the game’s way of encouraging you to beat a boss so you can clear your meter and get stronger.
And that’s basically the game: clear camps, activate cards to get stronger, kill the boss, repeat. In the midst of all this you have to fly around the world, because camps are kilometers apart. You can turn back to human form whenever you like, but turning back into a raven requires finding a raven altar. Despite their necessity for travel, these are often placed well outside a camp, and not marked on your HUD besides. That can mean a not-so-brief jog away from the camp (assuming the altar is in an obvious place and you don’t have to search for one). The decision to not let the player simply transform back once all enemies are dead is a baffling one, because there’s nothing to do or see while you’re returning to the next altar. It’s an open world game, but bereft of the usual side attractions you might find in your Assassin’s Creeds or Cyberpunks.
Ravenbound Final Verdict
Ultimately Ravenbound feels like developer Systemic Reaction decided on the world and the lore before cracking into the gameplay, when ideally it should be the other way around. This shows in an overworld that is interesting to fly in until you realize there’s not much there to explore, enemies that are simplistic in design, combat that just feels boring, and a gameplay loop without much reward. That isn’t to say there isn’t potential there. With a more populated world, more varied enemy AI and design, and a fleshed-out quest system beyond killing X number of enemies, Ravenbound could be an engaging roguelike. As it is, it’s hard to recommend over better open world games like Xenoblade, better roguelikes like Dead Cells, or better Souls-likes like…well, Dark Souls.
To hear me talk more about Ravebound, be sure to listen to the April 19th, 2023 episode of The Gaming Outsider Podcast around the 1:13:06 time stamp.
This review is based on a PC copy of Ravenbound provided by Sandbox Strategies for coverage purposes. It is exclusive to this platform.
Ravenbound
$29.99
Pros
- Expansive Open World You Can Freely Explore
- Unique Setting and Lore
Cons
- World is Empty
- Combat Overly Simplistic
- Gameplay Loop Not Terribly Satisfying
