Beast of Reincarnation Review (PS5, Xbox Series X/S, & PC)

I must admit I quite enjoyed Beast of Reincarnation way more than I thought possible. Coming from Pokemon devs, Game Freak, I wasn’t sure whether they’d step up to the mantle of delivering a showstopping action RPG. But they have, oh, they sure have delivered on all fronts, giving you the exhilarating fantasy swordsmanship experience of your wildest dreams.

Every 100 years, the Beast of Reincarnation returns, and it’s the job of a young girl to defeat post-apocalyptic Japan’s most dangerous adversary. Beside you is your loyal wolf companion, aboard a two-legged giant robot. Around you are exquisite flora and fauna, almost like they don’t suffer from a scorching blight.

This is the haunting yet strikingly beautiful world you brave yourself for and enjoy a satisfying 20-hour or so run. However, some of it won’t be up to par. Though ultimately, never daunting enough to tarnish your experience as a whole. Like always, I’ve walked so you can run, summing up my thoughts for you in my Beast of Reincarnation review below.

First Things First, the Blight

Everyone’s talking about it. Everyone’s worried about it. The blight has latched itself onto civilization, draining the life out of what once was. It has turned greenery into scorched, flowery things and animals into mutated, hostile beasts. Only you can deal with the blight’s problems, saving your people from annihilation.

But there’s one problem. Emma, the young heroine whose saving the world is placed upon her shoulders, is also affected by the blight, along with her loyal wolf companion. Together, they are shunned by the world. They have each other to rely on amid the grueling journey ahead of them. 

Before defeating the Beast of Reincarnation, they have to face many of his underlings, a mission that won’t be like taking a walk in the park. But brave as you are, sword in hand, and a particularly violent wolf by your side, you set out into post-apocalyptic 4026 Japan, putting every hostile creature you come across out of their misery.

Family is Bond

It’s an all well and good story and setting. I’m not mad at Emma, the main character you control. Her lack of emotion and any recollection of the past makes her seem like a ghost in a shell. She’s unsettingly stiff and awkward in her interactions with people, and almost feels non-human. 

Yet, it’s part of the story (I later on understood). How she learns to feel and process emotion, and she does so in one of the most emotional ways gaming is mastering these days, with a loyal companion by your side. Koo, the giant wolf you fight beside, teaches you friendship and family. In the end, Emma reveals layers beyond her initial aloofness that brought me to tears.

It goes on to say that the story itself can be surprising, especially during character interactions. You have other companions: Kagura, your personal chef who bolsters your gear and health, among others. While other NPCs don’t always receive the same layered treatment as the relationship between Emma and Koo, they still help add intriguing plotlines to follow.

Not Particularly Original

Perhaps I held on too strongly to the interpersonal relationship between characters because the story itself lacks ingenuity. You’ve heard Beast of Reincarnation’s story before, in one shape or form. A young heroine, infected by the blight and thus the only one able to cleanse the world of it, is a thread I must have played through before in Wuchang: Fallen Feathers.

The mutated creatures I face are striking in design. And so is Emma’s own vine-like hair that she uses as a grappling hook, a launch pad to spring up into the air, and as a platform bridge to close gaps. The design choices in Beast of Reincarnation are a huge plus that gives the story and exploration a distinct identity. 

However, it doesn’t take away the familiarity of the story arcs. How predictable the story gets. It doesn’t help either that the writing is straightforward, leaving nothing to the imagination and theorization of possible endings. I gotta warn you also that the cutscenes can be rather long and tedious. Twenty minutes is simply too long to be watching and listening to cinematics whose animations aren’t always the most exciting. 

With Smooth and Flair

That doesn’t apply at all to the action sequences. Just as it was in the trailer, Emma moves gracefully and flamboyantly. The visual effects of her flowing braid and the kill animations will spike a generous hit of dopamine through your bloodstream. Even when Koo tags in to take a bite out of the pie, it all looks fantastically slick and brutal.

This is where Beast of Reincarnation shines brightest, when the action picks up against the infected creatures roaming about. Hardly exploration, when meandering a bit off from the main path might reveal hidden chests and rewards. These rewards are nice to have, but they’re generously given so that they lose their excitement down the road.

No, combat is where the fun is, as it should be. Emma is primarily a swordswoman, wielding different swords that have varying abilities and elemental effects. However, she can wield a ranged bow and crossbow, too, if you prefer a ranged build. The beauty in Beast of Reincarnation’s combat system is that you can tailor it to any number of instinctive playstyles. 

Parry, Stagger, Kill

The number of builds here is hugely varied, thanks to a consistent stream of abilities to upgrade and unlock. Your skill tree branches out deeply and strategically, allowing you to experiment widely to your heart’s content. Even after beating the game for the first time, you can still unlock new abilities to further diversify your run.

Enemies can be challenging when you’re still learning the ropes. However, you can always lower the difficulty if parrying proves too taxing. I emphasize parrying because it’s the skill that’ll take up the most of your time to master. Even with a relatively generous parrying window compared to more brutal Soulslikes like Lies of P and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, you still have to nail the timing if you’re to successfully break an enemy’s stance.

Only then can dealing damage to enemies become easier, going in with devastating combo strikes and a brutal finisher. The stagger meter is your way out, to open an enemy up for multiple attacks, and will be your saving grace from elite enemies and bosses. The Nushi, as they are called, are more vicious and prepare you to face the inevitable Beast of Reincarnation.

Buddy Koo

Otherwise, the combat system is pretty standard. But what makes it exciting is how fluid and responsive your strikes feel. Game Freak has done a great job of implementing weighty attacks and precise parries, which all come together pretty nicely in the end. If only they also varied the enemy types, because after the first half, you start to fight the same bosses. 

Enemies and bosses pop up frequently in the first half. However, they show up even more religiously in the second half, and it’s disappointing when you realize that their attack patterns and phases are similar to the ones you’ve seen before. But it’s in these moments that the strong aspects of Beast of Reincarnation remind you to be more lenient.

Aspects like Koo’s vitality during exploration and combat. Your wolf buddy doesn’t wait to be told to pick up resources. They sniff out goodies for you and even alert you to nearby enemies. They distract enemies for you, buff your health, and can directly impact battles. You won’t have to control Koo’s attacks. 

However, you do build their Bloom Arts and prompt QTEs for your chosen Bloom Arts to take effect. Often as elemental effects that boost your own attacks or the final push you need to put down a boss for good.

Verdict

I think it’s fair to say that Beast of Reincarnation is worth the trouble. You’ll have moments of respite when the cutscenes are too damn long. When Emma is a shell of herself, barely showing any emotion. And the animations hardly do a good enough job to make the characters believable.  

Beast of Reincarnation fails to deliver a compelling story, with its strongest moments leaning too heavily on the interpersonal relationship between Emma and Koo. Those two are a gem, carrying you through the endearing parts of the story and the exhilarating parts of the gameplay.

Indeed, combat is where you’ll have the most fun. It’s simple enough for any gamer to enjoy, even with a few similarities to Soulslikes. The parry system is a focal point of mastering combat. Yet, it’s smooth, responsive, and precise, allowing you to enjoy a satisfying and rewarding exchange of sword slashes and incoming attacks.

While the enemy variety is lesser in the later stages, you still go head-to-head against fairly challenging mutated creatures with striking design. In fact, Beast of Reincarnation is pretty beautiful, in spite of the blight sweeping across its biomes. Perhaps that’s the sentiment I have about this one: a fun game in spite of its story blemishes here and there.