Wo Long Fallen Dynasty is headed to Xbox Game Pass (inc. for PC) on March 3rd, and for our money it’s shaping up rather nicely. Borrowing its lore from the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history, it shares a few common elements with Dynasty Warriors, but with a vastly different, dark fantasy twist to proceedings. It’s also a Souls-like, so players can expect a bleak atmosphere and punishing combat, but again with an added twist: a host of AI companions to help you on your journey. Wo Long coming do Game Pass day one, and being a high profile title from a very established studio, could make for interesting case study in what happens if a lot of people who aren’t into Souls-type games suddenly have access to one with a very low barrier for entry. For all of Elden Ring’s hype as being the most accessible Souls game to date, forking out seventy quid for it is still a daunting prospect if you’ve bounced off the genre before. But Wo Long could be a route into the genre for many, given that it’s not quite as daunting and can be accessed for a little as two Meal Deals. We’ll have to see. But, apart from its allure for those resistant to repeatedly getting the snot kicked out of them, Wo Long has plenty to offer the genre’s proponents too, as Sherif explains in the video above. What’s also clear is that Team Ninja is tweaking this thing until the last second to make sure it feels good to play, and that its systems and UI are easily readable or understandable, so the only barrier between the player and success is their own skill and not obtuse game design. Imagine that!
