Ashen

🎮 Steam ⏳ 20 hours ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4/5)

Haunting Soulslike World #

This title is an atmospheric action-RPG that takes strong inspiration from the Souls series while carving out its own identity. Its muted art style, faceless characters, and minimalist world design create a haunting tone that fits well with its themes of light and rebuilding in a ruined land. Exploration is a highlight, as the semi-open world is filled with interconnected areas, secrets, and dungeons, while the settlement you help grow over time adds a rewarding layer of progression.

Limited Combat Depth #

Combat is deliberate and challenging, but it can feel shallow compared to other Souls-likes, with limited weapon variety and some balance issues that make lighter weapons far more practical than heavy ones. Particularly I dislike the fact that there are very feel weapon variety on this game, no heavy two-handed weapons for example, dual-wield ones, or even swords, which are my favorite type of melee weapon. And this is by design, the developers have some kind of issue surrounding swords in videogames, because they are too generic, so instead, they decided to completely remove them from this experience.

Companions and Coop #

The AI companion system often undermines tense moments due to poor pathfinding or unreliable support, though coop with another player can make the journey far more enjoyable. Unfortunately I never experienced the coop side of this, but I can assure that the single-player lone experience is more than enough if you like the other elements. While Ashen offers memorable moments of discovery and atmosphere, its uneven pacing, sudden difficulty spikes, and limited replay value hold it back from true greatness.

Distinct Yet Flawed #

For those who enjoy exploration and world-building as much as combat, it’s a distinctive experience worth trying, but players looking for deep mechanics and polished systems may find it lacking. I highly recommend not skipping this if you like Soulslike games, it is definitely a high quality one, even more so if you have a friend that can join the coop experience, since a lot of it’s mechanics are focused on this kind of experience first and foremost.