What every Souls fan needs to know about the Lies of P demo

lies of PThe gameplay reveal at last year’s gamescom got fans excited about it souls series sit up and take notice; Despite the unexpected focus on Carlo Collodis Pinocchio, aspects of this upcoming action RPG remind us of the following: Bloodborne And Dark Souls in a very sensible way. Now you can try it yourself, courtesy of lies of Pis the new summer demo (download here)! It’s a hefty helping – it’ll take you at least a couple of hours to complete, even if you play through it quickly – enough for players to get a feel for the combat, story, and gameplay ahead of its September 19 release.

After spending five hours playing through every available corner of Krat City, fighting through the demo’s three main bosses and a handful of mini-bosses, and hitting level 30 along the way, I now have a good sense of what’s happening lies of P evolves into something. As a souls Vet, elements of his design language are immediately familiar: Stargazers are campfire-like save/regen points, XP and currency are one and the same, the challenge ranges from massive bosses to simple mobs. But there are enough notable differences worth noting: These are 8 things that lies of P changes from the souls You are used to.

Armed and ready: In every clip released to date, it is made clear that P’s left arm is not only armed, but interchangeable. The lies of P The demo gives you a taste of three of these Legion weapons: Players start with the Steel Left Arm, which can throw a powerful Haymaker when you draw LT. The use of Legion weapons is limited; This will get you around 8 hits before you need to reload on a Stargazer or with a consumable. I found it best to save for key moments that I knew I wouldn’t miss; Hammering the left arm of steel inflicted significant damage on the parade master during phase change.

Upon arrival at the Hotel Krat, you will receive your next legionary arm, the Puppet String. As the name suggests, with a precise shot you can pull a puppet enemy towards you and beat them up – use the lock! This can be used to good effect when pulling a chrysalis from a pack to avoid being overwhelmed, which is not uncommon. The Puppet String can also be used to safely land a powerful punch from outside the swipe range of some bosses, and played a key role for me in tougher fights where every hit counts.

The demo boss drops an item that allows the crafting of an electrified legionary arm called the Fulminus, which discharges a short circuit. Electric burst range. A nice touch is that the demo allows you to roam the map after getting the Fulminus to get a feel for this stunning addition to your arsenal.

A word on guns – All that metal-on-metal clinking can’t hurt a finely honed blade, and you’ll actually watch your weapon’s durability diminish after multiple encounters. Luckily, that doesn’t mean you have to go back to a dealer for repairs –– In contrast to the souls In games you may have played before, you can almost always restore your weapon’s power by switching to the grinder and sharpening your blade well. Just make sure the coast is clear! During the demo, you can also find or buy special grinders that add an element to your weapon for a short time. Try picking up an electric grinder and giving your blade a shock before challenging the Parade Master if you find you need an extra spark to win.

Familiarize yourself with handles: lies of P‘s weapons are not measured solely by the business side of a blade. Each weapon allows P to perform two special Fable Arts attacks once a special meter is charged. Blade Mythcraft, which is activated by pressing Y, is controlled by the head of the sword, mace, etc., while Grip Mythcraft (press Y while guarding) is governed by the grip.

Once you get the Enigma Assembly Tool, you can detach the grip from your weapon and attach it to another, allowing you to mix and match and customize your favorite Fable Art attacks.

A different kind of stealth: As a souls For players who prefer a sneakier approach, I’ve had to get used to the lack of a “stealth button” that allows crouch walking. That doesn’t mean you can’t play stealthily, though. Many of lies of PHis pupae aren’t particularly alert, and if you sneak up behind them at a gentle canter, you’re able to unleash a deadly hurricane. When you see red slashes on their back, tap RB and you’ll unleash a combo that takes out most mobs at once. This tactic also works for the demo’s second main boss, and is key to making short work of him.

As powerful as this storm of swords is, the whole action with the blade and bucket of bolts creates a din that’s likely to get others moving. Considering your enemies are metallic monstrosities, many of them are surprisingly mild-mannered; I was surprised in several encounters. You’ll soon learn to be careful when taking on an opponent, panning the camera around to make sure it’s actually a solo encounter. With many enemy puppets slumbering on the road, the coast is rarely as clear as it first appears.

be the boss: Boss fights in lies of P are events of heightened tension and awareness, and souls Fans will rightly be looking for patterns and clues to predict what’s coming next. But do take an important look at the game’s UI every now and then: if you see a white border around the boss’s health bar, then it’s vulnerable to staggering. A charged attack (hold RT) puts them in position and then a tap with RB knocks them down with a critical hit that makes P appear just as deadly as any boss.

No health, no problem: No matter how many health flasks you have (you will finish this lies of P demo with four rejuvenating pulse cells) it can sometimes feel like you only need one more in a boss fight. Luckily in lies of P Zero is not zero. If you keep attacking after you’ve used up your last cell, that 0 will gradually turn back into a 1, making risky behavior with low health a more viable strategy than pure risk aversion. At the end boss of the demo I charged the last pulse cell twiceand it was absolutely the difference.

You live, therefore you will die: All in all, death is a part of life lies of P, but it doesn’t have to be intimidating. When P dies, he immediately drops Ergo (the combination of currency and experience resource) as “Death Ergo”, which is displayed in the upper right corner of the screen. Luckily, dying against a boss (and you will!) will drop the Death Ergo *Outside* of the arena, so you can restore it if you are unexpectedly overwhelmed with a lot of unspent XP. As in souls In games there is a risk of dying before receiving death back. Ergo, but it’s not as punishing – if you’re killed before you can regain it, the amount you get back will just decrease instead of being reset to zero.

lie or die: What do we know about the story of Pinocchio? He lies, and the results are as clear as the nose on his face. We knew lies would play a role; the game is called lies of P finally. Your game doesn’t have a “Loading” screen, it’s “Now Lies” and the progress bar grows during P’s hilariously prolonged schnozz. After passing the demo’s first real test, the Parade Master-Boss, you’ll meet the Lie mechanic for the first time – it’s the easiest way to get to your destination, the Hotel Krat. According to the game’s lore, a puppet can’t lie… but you’re no ordinary puppet. I decided to lie a few more times in the demo at key points, noting that P’s nose stayed the same. It will be interesting to see how these actions play out throughout the game’s release.

These tips should help you lies of P‘s demo, probably in less hours than it took me to do it. The demo is available now, so enjoy your first taste of the world of lies of P and hope it lasts until September 19th when the full title is available in Game Pass for console and PC. Pre-orders and pre-installs are available starting today. Learn more about pre-order bonuses, including 72-hour early access Here.