110°
4.0

GameSpot - Bound By Flame Video Review

Down in flames.

Kevin VanOrd: When you first start playing Bound by Flame, you're asked to enter a name for your character--a name that is then summarily ignored by the game's supporting cast, which always refers to your hero by his or her known name: Vulcan. Given Bound by Flame's shallow similarities to The Witcher, it's hard not to wonder what the latter game might have been like if you were asked to name the protagonist, only for everyone to call you Geralt anyway. This identity crisis may seem a minor detail, but it is a head-scratcher of an issue in a role-playing game full of head-scratchers, each one more stymieing than the last. Bound by Flame is the kind of game you might hear people describe as having "a lot of heart," and the game it tries to be is certainly one worth celebrating. Yet by the time this frustrating adventure comes to a close, it's clear that there's a wide gulf between the game you just played and the vision that inspired it.

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gamespot.com
ArchangelMike3633d ago

Shame, another disappointing RPG. This game is getting very mixed reviews. I guess I'll wait for Dragon Age 3 and Shadows of Mordor (although I'll be waiting for reviews before I get Shadows of Mordor).

TheRocksStrudle3633d ago

Random disagrees....anyway have you played the souls games yet? They can fill the void easily

ZodTheRipper3633d ago

I rememember getting 20+ disagrees a few weeks ago when I called this a bad attempt at a "casual Souls game". Funny how it all came true.

starchild3633d ago

@ZodTheRipper

It didn't come true. This is just one guy's opinion. Lots of us, regular gamers and reviewers alike, think it is a good game and are enjoying it quite a lot.

thricetold3633d ago

Except the souls games play the exact same way combat wise. So it's ok to hit and strafe enemies over and over in the souls series, but now its a flaw for another similar game?

Bet if they had used some lame gimmick like the souls series with the same gameplay they would be praising it's "challenging" gameplay.

ZodTheRipper3632d ago

It's not about "challenging gameplay", it's about the complex combat system in Souls (Poise, Agility, Stamina, many different Animations, Combos, etc.) and the much better hit feedback / collision detection that makes it much more interesting and rewarding than here. Combat is the center of these games and it seems like one is fun, the other not so much. And this review also mentions a lot of little flaws that are not present in the Souls series so I still stand by my statement.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3632d ago
showtimefolks3632d ago

playing it loving it, go of the review and you may miss a very good game. Look on youtube reviews and this game has gotten bunch of 8's and mid 7's

this is by no means a 4/10

and since this is a rpg expect some patches to come to fix some of the minor issues. overal i say this is easily a 7.5-8/10

DrJones3633d ago

It looked generic and turned out to be generic. No surprise.

starchild3633d ago

It's not generic. It has a lot of character, an interesting narrative, lots of cool monster designs, a great combat system and a nice visual style.

MeteorPanda3633d ago

that name thing..dude, that's the same thing with mass effect?!?

My Shepard was called assface...

I'm pretty disappointed in this review, Indie games are given scores different to triple A games however the middle games are treated like triple A's and that's sort of wrong. they put as much heart into it as indies put into theirs and yet it's given a 4/10? The games lighting is beautiful, the gameplay, ignoring the slightly off animations is actually quite fulfilling.

the comment made by Damazig reflects my thoughts about this review completly. It's in the comments if you scroll down.

AKissFromDaddy3633d ago

Agreed.

Personally, I dislike with great intensity whenever Kevin VanOrd reviews games because he's the pickest reviewer on staff at GS. He's the exact opposite of me.

I'm not picky. A game has to truly be horrible more than 50% of the time for me to dismiss it. Nonetheless, Kevin is giving his opinion on his value system. As long as you can separate where you disagree or agree with him, then placing your own score is even easier.

However, I always give video reviews some leeway because the flaws are visually demonstrated. So, Bound By Flame seems Bound By Budget. I know Spiders Studios doesn't have Bioware's, Bungie's, or even FromSoftware's budget, and that's the difference when publishing with Focus Home Interactive vs. a bigger publisher. Great games are expensive when broken down cost by cost.

I understand your notion, nonetheless.

MeteorPanda3633d ago

yeah, like...if l can play the game and not wince and turn it off, that should be a pass right? the reviews for this game sound so pretentious, reviewing it for things out of the company's control. They are lacking in raw talent in some areas and they probably couldn't spend heaps on professional voice actors/tresses...however...was that worth giving it a f'ing 4? damage them in reviews so the company struggles to make a profit and make a sequel where they learn from the first game?

it plays well from what l'm seeing on twitch, when l get the cash l'm supporting this game..

fOrlOnhOpe573633d ago

So far for me, it hasn't caught fire. It really confirms how good the combat and menus were in Kingdoms of Amalur imho.
Well, lets see if I can get a bonfire going under this.

kewlkat0073633d ago (Edited 3633d ago )

Guys play the game then judge it...

kingdom183633d ago

If it came with a demo I'd be more than happy to. Really want to like this game, but lots of mixed reviews.

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