Like an above-ground swimming pool, Beast of Reincarnation is one of those things that feels like it should be great in theory, but leaves something to be desired once you actually spend some time in it. On a surface level, everything from the aesthetics and otherworldly apocalyptic setting to the battles against giant, diseased creatures has the makings of something really special. In practice though, this awesome collection of ideas only rarely approaches realizing that potential, as nearly every aspect proves to be quite shallow. Combat against both minion enemies and bosses alike is extremely one-note, the story succeeds much more at collecting tropes than evoking any kind of emotion, and there’s an overreliance on indistinguishable areas and enemies throughout the adventure. There’s still a decent action RPG in here somewhere, because when it occasionally does shine with a neat wrinkle in the story or a particularly cool fight sequence, it’s very easy to see how this could have been every bit as awesome as it looks at first glance, but highlights like those are certainly the exception to an action game that’s largely just okay.
Combining elements of a soulslike with a more traditional JRPG, this fast-paced action game feels like what you might end up with if you tried to combine Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice with the Final Fantasy VII Remake. Across the roughly 35-hour campaign, you’ll split your time between exploring levels of ruined buildings reclaimed by wildlife, parrying and dodging in tense combat encounters, and learning about the convoluted backstory of the world and characters that surround your protagonist, Emma. There’s loads of potential in that formula, and in its best moments, Beast of Reincarnation is both beautiful to look at and incredibly badass, as your katana-wielding elemental mage absolutely overloads the screen with over-the-top melee attacks, sending bolts of lightning and fire flying every which way to complement the artful swordsmanship.
That potential is only realized every once in a while though, as you’ll spend a lot of your time fighting the same handful of enemies far too often, plowing through even the most daunting encounters without much friction due to incredibly forgiving parry windows, and quickly mastering every opponent you come across owing to the fact that they all have just two or three attacks they repeat ad nauseum. Conceptually, ninja-dueling your way through this beautiful, destroyed world and its massive monsters should be sick as hell, but it only takes a couple hours for it all to feel quite skin deep, like how in its opening chapter you’re forced to fight the same giant elk boss multiple times, as it assails you with the one attack it seem to know over and over again in a fight that lasts much longer than it should.
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