Known for being the developers of the prolific Pokémon series, Game Freak has dabbled in different IPs and projects over the years, but none of those non-Pokémon games have made waves like Beast of Reincarnation has. Published by Fictions, Beast of Reincarnation is a brand-new action RPG that shatters notions of what people thought Game Freak is capable of developing. Game Freak is efficient with Pokémon, but when given the opportunity to develop something fresh and new on their own time, the result is an excellent action RPG with depth in its gameplay, storytelling, and features.
The story of Beast of Reincarnation is set in the year 4026 in the ruins of Japan. It’s been many centuries since humanity was driven to the brink of extinction by the blight, which contaminates human and robotic beings into insanity and brings about monsters known as “malefacts.” The “Beast of Reincarnation” itself is linked to the blight’s appearance on Earth, and Purifiers, people capable of stopping the blight’s greatest monsters have since appeared to attempt to put an end to the chaos. Emma, a tainted and emotionless Purifier who was born with the ability to seal the blight within her, is forced into action by the remains of human society to put an end to the beast. With her tainted canine Koo and a few other companions, Emma must vanquish great monsters known as Nushi and head for the “Capital,” humanity’s last major city where the beast is headed.
Beast of Reincarnation Surprises with its Story
The overall premise of Beast of Reincarnation intrigued me from the very start with the initial reveal, but the lead-up to this game’s release really doesn’t do it justice. Beast of Reincarnation’s story is captivating, and the game’s world is very immersive with worldbuilding that keeps you interested as you explore it. Emma grows as a character and gains a better understanding of what its like to be human through her interactions on Bauera, the “cleanse walker” transport that takes her and her companions along to various locations in their journey.
There’s a great emphasis on emotions and enjoying the small things in life. In Emma’s case, she’s learning about what those things are outside the chaos of battling monsters and corrupted Golems, which are robotic beings housing the souls of humans. This is all while discovering the truth of the world she lives and fights in and searching for answers behind the many memories she and Koo experience together. Whether she really understands it or not, Emma is soul-searching as she begins to understand what makes someone, and herself, human.
From the very first minute of the game, Emma is joined by Violet, a strange spirit in the form of a young Japanese girl. Only Emma can see Violet, almost as if she’s an imaginary friend. Violet also helps Emma realize what being human is, despite Emma mostly being human herself. Since Emma is practically emotionless at the start, a lot of her dialogue seems monotone and awkward, especially with her young friend Kagura and Bauera’s pilot, Brad. However, this isn’t bad dubbing or voice acting—it’s intentional and meaningful in its direction.
The Japanese voice-overs are brilliant with voice acting stars like Yui Ishikawa, Akio Otsuka, and Akira Ishida among its ranks, but the English dub is just as great. Either option conveys the fragility of humanity in a futuristic, ruined world full of danger and mysteries. Death reigns supreme, and you feel it in all the dying Golem NPCs you come across. Despite that, there’s beauty in the world through its lush foliage and the surprisingly calm music and vocals. I would like to avoid comparisons further on, but I haven’t experienced a game that nails a futuristic and ruined setting quite like this since NieR: Automata.
Satisfying and Punishing Gameplay
Although the story did surprise me, the gameplay of Beast of Reincarnation was probably the most surprising to me. This game can actually be very tough on its Normal difficulty, and it does share some light Soulslike-inspiration in its design. You’ll be navigating vast “Zones” as Emma in order to fulfill objectives, such as finding more information, entering new areas to investigate, or going after a Nushi. The world is full of lush scenery, ruined infrastructure from our modern era, and just a great sense of nature taking over where technology once prevailed. There are plenty of points of interest and loot to discover, with Koo being able to sense out and point out where key points are.
Emma primarily fights with an automatic crossbow and katana, but you can get some more weapons as you progress. You can perform combos and unleash Nushi Skills and Blade Arts on opponents by consuming her Entanglement Gauge, which fills up as you parry attacks and depletes as you block or get hit. The Entanglement Gauge also lets you slow down time for a very short duration in order to heal, avoid attacks, and reassess your situation quickly.
Koo is also under your command and can unleash attacks by consuming his respective gauge, which also fills up as you parry attacks and land your own. You can slow down combat and select one of Koo’s commands to perform as long as enough of the gauge has been filled up, similarly to the Final Fantasy VII Remake series’ command system. As you deal damage, you’ll build up the enemy’s stagger gauge, and once staggered, you can perform a lethal finishing attack.
If you aren’t careful, you’ll die quite easily against enemies and return to your last-visited campsite on the map to have another go. However, there are no “souls” or equivalent items that you collect or lose out on, as all the items you obtain are on your person even after dying. In this case, there’s less risk, but the game certainly has its challenges. Nushi boss fights are tough and can have multiple phases, and “elite” enemies can be relentless with unblockable attacks, which flash in red. Correctly timing dodges will fill up your Entanglement Gauge to go on the offensive again, and being successful is all about being in the right flow, especially with parries.
While traversing the world, Emma can not only use her blighted hair to ascend to higher areas, but she can use it to make short bridges and take enemies by surprise with an aerial lethal takedown from above. You can also crouch and hide in tall greenery in order to perform stealthy takedowns, so the game does give you some options with how you want to approach combat scenarios. In many cases, being stealthy gives you the upper hand or even footing against a powerful elite enemy.
Overall, gameplay is very satisfying. Beast of Reincarnation offers challenges that are really tough but are still surmountable as long as you pay attention to attack patterns and nail down parries and dodges. If you want an even more brutal experience, you can take it up to Hard difficulty, and if you want to focus on the story, the Story difficulty is available. I definitely appreciate the difficulty options, but I think Normal hits the sweet spot in terms of balance and difficulty.
Safety by the Fire, Comfort in a Living Machine
There are plenty moments of calm in Beast of Reincarnation, despite the harsh expectations placed on Emma. The zones you explore are full of the aforementioned campsites, which Emma and Koo can rest at and manage their hunger by having a snack or small meal. As long as the hunger gauge isn’t at 0, Emma and Koo will continue to regenerate HP as they explore. The campsites are also where you can distribute Amber that you’ve collected and Skill Points you’ve earned from leveling up.
Amber is used to purchase items from vendor NPCs and upgrade your weapons and gear at campsites. Weapon and gear upgrades are really straightforward—upgrade them to deal more damage, withstand more damage from enemies, and gain stronger effects. You can also get additional effects and functionality through Spirit Stones for Emma and Charms for Koo. These items can bring stat boosts in battle that will give you an early upper hand, and in the case of Koo, he’s very flexible with his Skills and Items slots. Outside of the Skills and Arts he can learn, you can research additional items that give him skills that will activate under certain conditions in combat. He makes for a very helpful companion, and like Emma, he also has his own Skill Tree.
Skill Trees are quite literal in Beast of Reincarnation. As you level up, you’ll be able to allocate points toward Strength, Vitality, and “Floressence.” Each stat point allocated also unlocks more points on the Skill Tree to invest into. Nushi Skills, Blade Arts, and many other skills can be upgraded and acquired through the Skill Tree, and new branches and roots on the Skill Tree will be unlocked over time as you defeat Nushis and incorporate their essences.
Back on the Bauera, Emma can talk to Koo, Brad, Violet, and Kagura. In the case of Koo and Kagura, she can build rapport with them by talking to them directly and engaging in some of their exclusive features. For example, Kagura can cook food, incubate eggs, and grow vegetables and plants, and allowing her to do so will build her relationship with Emma. The Bauera itself is a very interesting safehouse with some interesting lore implications as well, but I won’t be spoiling that.
Aside from story and gameplay, Beast of Reincarnation is a pleasant case of great PC optimization. Beast of Reincarnation has a good amount of features supported at launch, including ray tracing, VRAM limits, upscaling, and much more. Essentially, any performance-based option you could ask for in a current-day PC game is in here. The game is really optimized fairly well already, and throughout my time with it, I’ve ran into virtually no bugs. Aesthetically, Beast of Reincarnation is one of the most beautiful games of the year, and its graphical fidelity is impressive.
Beast of Reincarnation is a Standout Title from Game Freak
I’m completely enamored with Beast of Reincarnation and its 30 hour+ runtime. The sense of exploration, fantastic combat system, and soul-searching narrative really make Beast of Reincarnation stand out, especially as a new IP from Game Freak. The game isn’t too long if you’re focused on the story, but it also has enough depth to entice traditional RPG fans. There’s a unique essence or charm that Game Freak pulls off with its games, and I think they’ve managed to transfer that over into Beast of Reincarnation—maybe through Koo since he’s a wholesome companion or even the worldbuilding. Beast of Reincarnation is a high-quality game that will remind players that Game Freak is serious and highly capable, and with this release, it goes to show that they’re more than ready to develop single-player story-driven action RPGs.
Beast of Reincarnation launches August 4 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Microsoft Store and Steam. Beast of Reincarnation is available with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate on day one, and a physical edition for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S will be available day-and-date.
Disclaimer: Fictions provided a PC (Steam) key of Beast of Reincarnation for review purposes.
