There’s a moment early in Beast of Reincarnation that perfectly encapsulates the entire experience. Looking up at a high ledge, every RPG instinct screams that something valuable awaits at the top. The journey upward is genuinely engaging—leaping to a lower platform, using the protagonist’s unique hair-bridge ability to cross gaps, making a daring jump, and deploying a hookshot to climb ever higher. After mastering several clever platforming mechanics, the summit is finally reached. But there’s nothing there. No item, no enemy, no reward whatsoever. This wouldn’t be the first or last time the game would set up expectations only to disappoint, and it serves as an apt metaphor for an experience that promises far more than it ultimately delivers.
Key Takeaways
- Combat relies almost entirely on parrying, with a companion ability system that devolves into spamming two moves repeatedly
- Boss encounters repeat up to six times throughout the 25+ hour campaign, creating severe fatigue despite solid parry mechanics
- Exploration rewards are frequently absent—beautifully designed platforming sections often lead to nothing
- The NieR-inspired soundtrack maintains one emotional register throughout, becoming exhausting over the full runtime
- Supporting RPG systems like skill trees and food items feel irrelevant since parrying dominates all encounters
At first glance, Beast of Reincarnation appears to be a dream project for fans of action RPGs with deeper narrative ambitions. The game combines beautiful musical compositions with striking environmental design, parry-focused combat interwoven with turn-based strategic elements, and a story premise that evokes comparisons to beloved titles like NieR: Automata mixed with the fantastical sensibilities of Studio Ghibli films. On paper, this should be an absolute triumph—a game that synthesizes beloved elements from multiple genres into something fresh and compelling. Unfortunately, like those tantalizing platforming sequences that reward skillful navigation with empty ledges, Beast of Reincarnation proves to be a collection of unrealized promises and derivative concepts that never coalesce into the masterpiece its individual components suggest.
Parry-Focused Combat Grows Stale Fast
Of all the game’s promising aspects, the combat system initially shows the most potential. The developers clearly studied the parry-focused design philosophy that has become increasingly popular in action games since FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice revolutionized the approach in 2019. The basic premise is straightforward: parry or die. Nearly every enemy attack can and should be deflected, and doing so successfully builds up a stagger gauge that allows for immediate kills against regular enemies or creates vulnerability windows against bosses. The timing feels fair and consistent, even if the parry window activates slightly earlier than veterans of similar games might expect. For players who have mastered the rhythmic combat of Sekiro or the more recent Lies of P, the fundamentals will feel immediately familiar.
The twist comes through the Florescence Points system. Each successful parry fills an FP meter that enables players to slow down time and command their canine companion, Koo, to execute special abilities. This turn-based interruption of real-time combat initially seems like an innovative fusion of genres, adding strategic depth to moment-to-moment encounters. However, the execution falls dramatically short of the concept’s potential. The most effective strategy quickly becomes apparent: alternating between just two of Koo’s abilities to rapidly inflict status effects on enemies. Any attempt to experiment with other approaches proves inefficient, reducing what should be a dynamic tactical layer into rote repetition. Combined with a shocking lack of enemy variety and boss encounters that repeat a minimum of three times—sometimes stretching to six encounters with the same foe—the combat grows monotonous far too quickly for a game demanding over 25 hours of playtime.
Stunning Environments Hide Empty Exploration
| Element | Beast of Reincarnation | Genre Standard (Sekiro/Lies of P) |
|---|---|---|
| Parry Window | Activates slightly earlier than expected | Tighter, more precise timing |
| Enemy Variety | Limited types repeated across all zones | Diverse enemy rosters per area |
| Boss Reuse | Same bosses fought 3-6 times | Unique encounters with minimal repeats |
| Companion System | Two abilities dominate, others inefficient | N/A or balanced skill options |
The impact of the parry-dominant combat design ripples outward to affect every other system in Beast of Reincarnation, particularly exploration. The game features approximately a dozen distinct zones, and several of them are genuinely stunning to behold. Each area is populated with items to collect, Elite enemies to challenge, and occasional platforming sequences that showcase the game’s more creative movement mechanics. However, the level design trends toward excessive linearity, and the repeated use of the same handful of enemy types across all zones creates a sense of déjà vu that compounds the combat’s repetitiveness. Perhaps most frustrating are the numerous invisible walls placed in locations that defy logic, blocking paths that appear completely traversable and undermining any sense of organic exploration.
The supporting systems that typically add depth to action RPGs—food items, experience-based leveling, skill trees—exist within Beast of Reincarnation but feel largely irrelevant. Because parrying so completely dominates every combat encounter, these supplementary mechanics become afterthoughts rather than meaningful progression choices. The difficulty curve suffers as a result, becoming progressively easier as players master the parry timing rather than presenting escalating challenges that demand engagement with the full breadth of available tools. This design philosophy transforms what should be rewarding exploration into a series of largely pointless detours, with item collection feeling like busywork rather than meaningful preparation for future challenges.
Polished Visuals Can't Mask Repetitive Design
The audio-visual presentation of Beast of Reincarnation represents both a genuine strength and a missed opportunity. The musical score initially evokes immediate comparisons to the work of MONACA, the acclaimed studio behind the soundtracks for NieR: Automata and Stellar Blade. The soft choral arrangements and ethereal atmospheric qualities create a compelling mood that perfectly complements the game’s melancholic themes. However, this singular aesthetic approach never evolves or varies throughout the experience. Every track maintains the same emotional register, and while that register is genuinely beautiful, it becomes exhausting over a 25-hour campaign that desperately needs occasional tonal shifts to maintain engagement.
Visually, the game fares somewhat better. The zones feature crumbling architectural remnants set against environments ranging from expansive verdant fields to atmospheric mountain caves. Character models and boss designs are crisp and well-rendered, with battle animations that convey satisfying weight and impact. Perhaps most importantly for a game so dependent on precise timing, the frame rate remains stable throughout the vast majority of the experience—a technical achievement that shouldn’t be taken for granted in the current gaming landscape. While nothing in Beast of Reincarnation will leave players stunned by visual innovation, the presentation consistently meets professional standards even as it fails to transcend them.
Strong Narrative Premise Undercut by Execution
The story of Beast of Reincarnation almost breaks free from the pattern of underachievement that defines the rest of the experience, but ultimately falls victim to presentation choices that sabotage its emotional potential. The game opens in medias res, dropping players into action before flashing back to establish the world’s history. One thousand years before the game’s events, humanity attempted to eliminate emotions entirely, a catastrophic decision that spawned the “Blight”—a corruption that infects human souls. Every century, the titular Beast of Reincarnation returns to threaten the remnants of civilization. The protagonist, Emma, serves as a “Purifier”—an emotionless individual with the unique ability to absorb Blight and continue functioning. She is chosen to pursue the Beast when it inevitably returns.
The narrative structure undermines these intriguing premises through confusing chronological jumps between flashforwards and flashbacks that obscure rather than illuminate the lore. Critical exposition is frequently delivered during combat encounters, forcing players to choose between paying attention to the story or surviving the fight. By the time the plot fully reveals itself in the final act, the damage is done. The story’s trajectory proves so derivative of its obvious inspirations that it borders on imitation rather than homage. The intended character arc—Emma gradually developing genuine emotions and humanity—takes too long to establish momentum, leaving players emotionally detached from outcomes they should care deeply about. Flat voice performances in both English and Japanese audio options provide no salvation for the struggling narrative.
Despite these substantial criticisms, Beast of Reincarnation isn’t a bad game. The core concepts are genuinely appealing, and even imperfect execution of compelling ideas can produce an enjoyable experience. The 25-plus hours required to complete the game aren’t torturous, just disappointing in light of what might have been. Like that climb to an empty ledge, the journey itself provides moments of satisfaction even when the destination proves hollow. For players who can temper their expectations and appreciate flawed ambition, there’s an acceptable action RPG here. But for anyone hoping that Beast of Reincarnation would fulfill the promise of its remarkable premise and polished marketing, the reality falls substantially short of the dream.
A Case Study in Unrealized Potential
Beast of Reincarnation represents a frustrating category of game: one with clear artistic vision and competent fundamentals that never assembles its pieces into a cohesive whole. The parry system works mechanically, the environments look professional, and the soundtrack evokes genuine emotion—yet none of these elements elevate each other. Instead, the game’s reliance on a single combat mechanic creates a cascade of problems that flatten progression systems and make exploration feel pointless.
The comparison to NieR: Automata is instructive. Yoko Taro’s game similarly blended action combat with deeper themes, but constantly reinvented its mechanics and tonal register to maintain engagement across its runtime. Beast of Reincarnation commits to one approach and never deviates, which works for a 10-hour experience but becomes punishing at 25+ hours.
For prospective players, the question becomes whether solid fundamentals justify the repetition. Those who loved Sekiro’s parry rhythm may find comfort in familiar mechanics, but should expect none of that game’s encounter variety. The invisible walls and empty platforming rewards suggest a development cycle that ran out of time to populate its world—a pattern increasingly common in ambitious indie projects.
Common Questions
How long does Beast of Reincarnation take to complete?
The main campaign runs over 25 hours, though the repetitive boss encounters and limited enemy variety may make this feel longer than intended. Completionists exploring every zone should expect additional time.
Is Beast of Reincarnation similar to Sekiro or Lies of P?
The parry-focused combat clearly draws from both games, with timing windows that feel slightly more forgiving. However, it lacks the enemy variety and boss design innovation that made those titles compelling throughout their runtimes.
Does the companion ability system add strategic depth?
In theory, the Florescence Points system lets you slow time and command abilities. In practice, two abilities dominate so completely that experimentation feels punished, reducing tactical variety to repetitive patterns.
Expert Opinion: Beast of Reincarnation represents a growing trend in the action RPG space where developers combine proven mechanics from successful titles without understanding what made those elements work in their original contexts. The game’s failure to integrate its parry system with meaningful progression choices suggests a fundamental misunderstanding of how Sekiro balanced difficulty with reward. Future titles in this emerging subgenre would benefit from more original mechanical identity rather than attempting to synthesize existing formulas, as players increasingly recognize—and reject—derivative design even when technically competent.