Forspoken, the game from Luminous Productions and Square Enix, was launched on January 24, and the press reviews and players are very mixed. There are many problems, whether in the storytelling of the open-world action-RPG or in the technical aspects. Gamers with big PCs also seem to be disappointed, as indicated reviews on Steam.
On Steam, Forspoken has nearly 2000 reviews, of which only 55% are positive (as of January 28). The number of players is quite high, peaking at 12 players. For a price of 80€, players expect a well-made game, so it is not surprising that the negative opinions are numerous. The comments also reveal the main causes of this dissatisfaction.
Some users complain about the camera spinning uncontrollably, others describe Forspoken as a cutscene simulator. These sequences seem not to appeal to many users. There are also reports of crashes, performance issues despite powerful hardware configurations, and graphics falling far short of current AAA game standards. There are too many gray areas for a title sold for €80. Players would probably have been more forgiving if the price was halved.
However, there are also positive reviews that indicate that Forspoken works well. Tastes and colors in open world graphics and design vary from person to person. For me, the picture is black. After buying the game at full price, I had to download the 2GB installation twice, without fiber, with an ADSL connection in the countryside. After this cold shower, the first game session seemed endless. The game is ugly (yes, I'm not beating around the bush), the scenario as flat and empty as the setting, the protagonist has no charisma and will be quickly forgotten (we are far from Prince Noctis of FF97), and technically, I had to get used to playing a PC game at 15 fps on a good configuration. And it is without doubt this last point that marked me personally the most. Where is the 30 GB of data? There is nothing on the technical side that can justify that. Scenery assets are poor, textures blurry even in standard mode, and only particle and clothing physics hold up.
For 80 euros, I will probably come back to this game to finish it, then forget it. But I will wait for an optimization update from the developers, if there is one, because for the moment nothing has been communicated. In short, we turn the page.