September just won’t stop getting better, will it? As we approach the Autumn season of game releases, more and more fantastic titles get closer to their launch. For Bandai Namco’s Code Vein, we are lucky enough to experience a good chunk of what the game has to offer thanks to a recent demo release. With so many titles looking to sell among the busiest time of the year for the industry, what does Code Vein show us that separates it from the pack?
Code Vein is Bandai Namco’s take on the Soulsborne sub-genre, created and popularised by From Software. Code Vein’s developers were previously known for creating the God Eater games, which in-turn followed many of Monster Hunter’s mechanics. Given that they were able to build a successful franchise using a popular format as a base, what’s stopping them from doing the same a second time around with Code Vein? From finishing the tutorial, it’s clear that Bandai Namco have worked hard to give Code Vein its own identity, utilising a plethora of strong abilities and absurdly anime flourishes, alongside the emphasis on fighting as a pair. These additions are visually awesome, as the vampire-esque setting paired with the blood magic and extreme parry/riposte attacks make for ultra-satisfying presentation, with enough anime edge to fuel our guilty pleasures. Hell, I’ve had the opening song Underworld on loop as I write this. Not a single regret.
In practice, the gameplay mixes familiar Soulsborne mechanics while adding new ingredients to the cooking pot. Let’s start with the similarities. Gameplay has a heavy focus on sluggish attacks, patiently watching your opponent as you dodge under heavy strikes and reply with your own barrage of attacks. Blocking and parrying are both present, with ripostes being some of the most brutal and satisfying I’ve ever seen in an action game. Players will earn a currency similar to Dark Souls’ souls when they kill opponents, which can be spent upgrading your character and buying new gear. When you die, your currency remains at the spot of your death, which can be retrieved if you reach it without dying again. Familiar stuff to any fan of Soulsborne games, but that’s where the similarities end. Players are outfitted with a choice of three classes (though this number could easily go up in the full game), suited for different gameplay styles. Your choice of class will dictate your stat distribution while also opening up different abilities for use, with the option to switch classes on the fly. While many of these abilities are focused on raw power, many others emphasise cooperative action, which plays into the heavy use of multiplayer (not surprising from the God Eater devs). While the demo was offline only, the sheer focus on support abilities goes a long way in showcasing how cooperation will play a large part in Code Vein. If you plan to be a solo player when the full game launches, that’s perfectly fine, as Code Vein provides players with an AI ally, who was of great assistance throughout the demo. Whether these same allies will be present during a multiplayer game is to be seen, but thanks to their strength here, support abilities found a comfortable home. The only concern I have here (and it’s easily my largest concern with the demo as a whole) is how the AI allies felt a little too strong. Now this could easily be the early stages of the game being easy in general, as there were rarely times where I felt challenged, but it’s something that I’ll be keeping an eye on when the game launches. During moments when paired with an AI ally, I noticed something that is bound to divide potential players and the Dark Souls faithful. Thanks to an ability to share health with an ally, players on zero health can be revived, given the other player has enough health to share. While this will undoubtedly make the game easier, there wasn’t enough in the demo to truly test these support mechanics. The full game may very well have a high difficulty that has these cooperative features in mind, which would result in the revive mechanic being of great use. I can see this being fantastic, yet I could also see it making an already easy game even easier. Only time will tell.
Visually, Code Vein is fantastic. Something that’s almost expected with any anime game is a decent character creator or customiser. Here in Code Vein, Bandai Namco take it to an entirely new level, as the game gives you nearly every tool you could ever want to create your perfect edgelord hero. Seriously, Code Vein surprised me with how extensive it all was, and every drop of it is available to try here in the demo. I can already tell that it’s going to take me a straight week of creating characters before I can settle on one, and that’s just the way I like it. The only minor flaw in this so far is how many items will clip through each other, leading to a need of being rather smart with your customisation. Still, there’s enough workarounds where this is hardly a serious issue. If you like anime character designs and you fancy yourself as the creative type, then the character creation alone will be enough to warrant a purchase, but thankfully it doesn’t end there. From what we’ve heard of the soundtrack so far, it is absolutely superb. From the odd flourishes during battle to the orchestral madness during boss fights, the soundtrack fits the world like a perfect puzzle piece, and I can’t wait to hear what the full soundtrack has to offer. Bandai Namco have nailed the overall presentation and I don’t feel like anyone will be left wanting in this regard.
From the demo, you can already tell that Code Vein is its own beast. While mechanics born from the Souls series are present, Code Vein has no qualms in straying away from the preset formula and building a much more action-oriented game with a heavier narrative focus, full of edgy anime style and heavy use of cutscenes. The AI allies are nice to have around and they pull their weight in the heat of a battle, but it’s currently impossible to tell whether the game’s overall difficulty will support the sheer power that the player can wield. While the demo was strictly offline, the support features displayed here give a real vibe that this game is best enjoyed with human allies, and I can’t wait to try this out when Code Vein releases on the 27th this month. My only legitimate problem here is how the game launches so close to The Surge 2: another Soulslike game I’m looking forward to. How I’m going to juggle both games, I have no idea. No matter though, as I’m certainly going to try my best.
Ages on Saturn 