AI Limitis a game that’s not at all shy to admit that it’s a genuine, full-fledgedSoulslikeexperience. If you’re a fan of the genre, it won’t take long at all to see just how inspired Chinese indie studio SenseGames seemingly was by several different titles in theFromSoftwarecatalog.
10 Best AA Soulslikes You Need To Play
Mid-tier budgets, top-tier punishment
In addition to the easyDark Souls,Elden Ring, and evenBloodbornecomparisons you’re sure to make while working through this18-or-so-hour main story, it’s also not a stretch to be reminded of similar anime-esque games in the genre likeCode Vein, and even some elements of more straight action-focused titles likeNieR: AutomataandScarlet Nexus.
While I personally am a huge fan of most of the above-mentioned games, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t at least marginally concerned thatAI Limitwould lean too hard into the influence of previous titles without really carving out a spot for itself in the genre.
Thankfully, after completing a playthrough ofAI Limit, I’m happy to report that while there isplentyof shared DNA with games that have come before it,AI Limitstill deserves a spot in the ever-growing list ofnon-FromSoftware Soulslikes that are fun, worthy additions to the genre. It’s not perfect, but there’s a ton here to enjoy regardless.
Let’s dig into the details of this post-apocalyptic, science-fiction take on the Souls formula.
[Related: AI Limit Wiki]
A Familiar Setup
For better or for worse, every single game from now until the sun explodes that fits into the Soulslike genre will be compared to FromSoftware titles.AI Limitis a game thatclearlyunderstands that, and as a result, leanshardinto accepting this reality and is not afraid to very obviously wear its inspiration on its sleeve.
There are branches spread throughout the game that are the substitute for bonfires. Skills are leveled up as you acquire crystals (souls) from defeating enemies. Ladders are kicked down for shortcuts. Elevators have a square pressure panel in the middle. Your life dew (estus) heals damage and has limited use between resting at branches.
Deaths result in runbacks, though checkpoints are typically very generously placed in comparison to older FromSoftware titles. There are items that function asrings inDark Souls. Even item placement around each level feels entirely second nature if you’re an experienced Soulsborne player.
The list truly could go on, and the examples really can get pretty granular. We’ll get into some more of it in the later sections of this review, too.
It’s ultimately up to you how you feel about this. I could see an argument from someone who spends a couple of hours withAI Limitand writes it off as a bit too derivative of things they’ve already played.I think that would honestly be a fair critique.
It’s been a while since I’ve had this much fun playing a Soulslike title.
For me, while it was absolutely impossible to go through this game and not have thoughts like, “Cool, here’s the token poison swamp area,” the similarities also didn’t really bother me.It’s a fine line between homage/inspiration and simply being an imitation of something else, butAI Limitdoes vary itself enough in other ways to stay on the positive side of this tightrope act.
In addition to some formula switch-ups thatAI Limitdoes thankfully bring to the table,the game is also just ablastto play. It’s been a while since I’ve had this much fun playing a Soulslike title. Influences aside, you’re going to ultimately win people over if the game you put in front of them is one that’s simply a joy to work through. That’s whereAI Limitreally shines, despite any concerns it’s not creative or different enough in other regards.
In-Sync Combat
At its core,AI Limitwill also feel familiar in its combat style right from the start. It’s your usual mix of light melee attacks, chargeable heavies, weapon abilities, spells, dodge rolls, and parries. Thankfully, all of these things are completely nailed in execution, sovets of the genre won’t miss a beat right when they jump in.
Other games have used this same combat formula before, but I truly struggle to find another example that really feels just as clean and satisfying as the groundwork eternally laid for the genre previously by FromSoftware.
10 Best Soulslikes With Short Runtimes
All the difficulty, less of the time commitment
Often times as a Souls vet myself, I’ll find that other attempts at this style of combat will just feel… off. The speed of attacks will feel wrong, the dodge unresponsive, the movement too floaty, and so on.AI Limithas none of these issues, and really handles like a dream. This is critically important for a new entry to the Souls party, and it’s impressive that SenseGames nailed it so well.
While the skeleton of combat and gameplay feels right at home,AI Limitdoes also bring new ideas and features to the table that remix the Souls gameplay loop enough to make the game feel unique in its own ways too.
The big thing here is the Sync Rate meter, a sliding percentage right above the player’s health bar that adds a crucial layer of balance and thought to every encounter. The damage you’ll deal to enemies directly correlates to what percentage number your Sync Rate is at.
For example, from 100% to 80%, main character Arrisa will deal full damage. From 79% to 40%, her damage will be decreased slightly. From 39% to 0%, damage output is affected greatly, spells can no longer be cast, and Arrisa can eventually be frozen in place entirely, now a free target for any attacker.
The meter goes up and down based on hits dealt and consecutive hits taken. Additionally, every spell or special ability at your disposal also drops your percentage with each use, resulting in a delicate dance between overpowering your opponent with specials and leaving yourself vulnerable to punishing low Sync Rate penalties.
For me, this balancing act fundamentally changes everything about combat and adds a super-smart layer to how you’ll approach every single enemy in the game.
This also removes the ability to simply spam long-distance spells to keep a safety buffer from danger, anddemandsthat you go on the offensive sooner rather than later to keep your Sync Rate in good standing.
For me, this balancing act fundamentally changes everything about combat and adds a super-smart layer to how you’ll approach every single enemy in the game. While it takes a second to wrap your head around, it’s a system that I think works incredibly well, andI came to love the idea by the conclusion of my playthrough.
Melee weapons are fun to use and varied enough to stay interesting, each scaling with your Strength, Technique (Dexterity), and Spirit (Intelligence) stats for bonus DPS. Each can also be leveled up with consumables, much like titanite shards or smithing stones from games you already know.
Additionally, most of the spells and buffs you’ll find throughout your journey are extremely useful, though I personally mainly stuck with two for the whole experience. One is a long-range laser shot that you can use to deal some damage while interrupting your opponent’s move when timed well (think firearms inBloodborne), and the other, a temporary buff to deal extra damage in a pinch at the expense of a large percentage of drained Sync Rate.
The last thing to mention are four separate, special abilities that Arissa’s prosthetic left arm can cast as you unlock them throughout the game. These include a shield, a parry, a quickstep, and a ghostly claw that works on timer and self-inflicts damage when used, but also swings along with every single melee weapon slash to deal double damage to your target.It’s slightly OP, but man, is itfun.
Slight Inconsistencies
Overall,AI Limitfalls on theeasier endof the difficulty scale when compared to most other games in the Soulslike category. This, however, is notnecessarilya bad thing. I think there’s definite merit and value in being a decent entry point to the genre for newcomers, and for most of its runtime, there’s a case thatAI Limitcould’ve been that.
The issue here is that while most of the game won’t pose much of a threat to genre veterans, there are a handful ofmassivedifficulty spikes that, contextually, feel out of place with the vibe of the rest of the game.
Most lower-level enemies can be stun-locked and mowed down. The overwhelming majority of bosses (including the final one in the game) were defeated on my very first attempt. Interestingly as well, there is no stamina bar to manage, nor equip load to think about, which all factor in to a more accessible design overall.
To an extent, difficulty is subjective and how tough you want a game to be is preference, buta solid 85% of this game is pretty breezy.
That other 15% belongs toa smattering of mid-to-late-game boss fights that will surely be brick walls for many playersthat otherwise aren’t having any trouble getting through the rest of the game. Conversely, I’m not totally convinced that these three or four difficult bosses will be enough to satisfy those seeking a tough-as-nails Soulslike experience.
10 Best Soulslikes Currently On PS Plus
If you want punishing gameplay, but don’t want to pay for a game outright, these are great options for Playstation fans.
This leaves AI Limit in a bit of a no-man’s land. I think it really could’ve thrived as a nice entry point for newcomers to the genre, but it ultimately isn’t a slam-dunk recommendation due to a few critical path boss encounters that I’m not sure a newbie will be able to power through (especially with no ability to summon a friend for a hand if you’re stuck).
All the more challenging bosses are stillextremelywell-designed, fair, and feel amazing to learn, and I always knew it was my own fault if I died in an attempt and how I could improve next time.
To be fair, I’m personally glad the harder fights are there, as these particular bosses are easily my favorites in the game. One in particular stands out asthe most rewarding moveset to learn and conquer since my first time defeatingArtoriasinDark Soul’s DLC. All the more challenging bosses are stillextremelywell-designed, fair, and feel amazing to learn, andI always knew it was my own fault if I died in an attempt and how I could improve next time.
At the end of the day, I really enjoyed aneasier Soulslikewith random skill checks throughout the experience, but I still can’t help being concerned thatAI Limitwill ultimately land right between what two large player groups would actually want from a game in this genre and won’t land with enough of an audience overall.
I hope I’m wrong, however. Despite this difficulty inconsistency, there’s still so much to enjoy throughout the entire game. Yeah, a lot of bosses and levels are easy and straightforward, but they’re also all cool as hell, interestingly designed, and fun to blast through.
I reallylovedlearning and conqueringAI Limit’s toughest challenges, and they prove that the team absolutely has the chops to create a larger roster of brutal but fair experiences for fans of the genre.
Ultimately, though, I do think SenseGames needs to look at these more challenging fights and see how they can apply this same level of design to an entire game in the future.I reallylovedlearning and conqueringAI Limit’s toughest challenges, and they prove that the team absolutely has the chops to create a larger roster of brutal but fair experiences for fans of the genre.
One other area of inconsistency to touch on is with regard to performance. In my 18 hours, I had four hard crashes, one level that loaded improperly causing me to fall to my death infinitely, an AI teammate doing absolutely nothing during a boss, an occasional minor frame rate dip, and some screen tearing on my PS5 in the later levels of the game when the on-screen visuals got a little more intense.
None of these things ever lost me much progress or caused too much frustration, but just know that they exist. This isn’t a AAA game, and it shows a bit in a general roughness around some of its edges. If you have the exact same performance experience as me,these things shouldn’t ruin the game for you, but results will likely vary.
A Striking Setting And Abstract Narrative
AI Limitis set in apost-apocalyptic,sci-fi-inspired world where humans are largely wiped out from existence. The few remaining survivors are thrown into a desperate attempt to endure while surrounded by hostile robotic beings, alien-like lifeforms called Necros born from a consciousness-filled substance simply called Mud, and a dangerous religious cult filled with terrifyingly eerie, god-like creatures.
…the lore packed into the location descriptions specifically isawesome, but you’ll need to make sure you’re taking the time to read and learn along the way.
All of this combines to make a world that you’d assume to be dripping with weird and interesting lore, and to a point, it is. Like FromSoftware titles before it once again, however, a lot of the finer details regarding all of this are drip-fed in item and location descriptions, notes and computer logs found in the world, and environmental story telling.
What’s here is extremely cool, but you should expect to do a little bit of work on your own to fully piece everything together. Even so,the lore packed into the location descriptions specifically isawesome, but you’ll need to make sure you’re taking the time to read and learn along the way.
That said, there are still a smattering of traditional storytelling devices implemented here, too. Flashback cutscenes give you some clues about Arissa’s existence at certain checkpoints, NPCs loop you in on their own struggles in the world, and there aren’t any major loose ends on the table once you’ve completed a playthrough, assuming you’ve explored and interacted with everything around you as much as you possibly can.
It’s not ultimatelyquiteas abstract asDark Souls, for example, but it’s clear that there was a similar approach taken here overall.
Regardless, there are plenty of interesting themes present here, including existence, the plight of humanity, the possibility of AI takeover, religion, and the will to simply survive and find a purpose.
Voice acting and overall story presentation feelslightlyawkward on occasion, reminding you at times that this is a budget title that’s releasing for $35 USD. While there are clear story-related reasons for this, Arissa, your standard main character that can’t be customized at the start of the game, is pretty one-note and flat overall. She’ll endear herself to you more as she learns about the world throughout the game, but there is a certain level of “generic AI character that doesn’t have emotions” present here as well.
…striking sci-fi infusions that truly getcompletelyweird and out-there by the end.
The music is pretty minimalistic, opting for more of an ambient, unsettling vibe instead of a full-on score or soundtrack. This works well as a mood setting, but never reaches the truly memorable musical peaks of similar games.
The levels and locations themselves, however, really stand out and create a more interesting post-apocalyptic vibe than usual. I was a bit concerned that I’d never get out of areas that are mostly brown, gray, depressing, and desolate. While there are still plenty of areas like that, they’re highlighted along the way by striking sci-fi infusions that truly getcompletelyweird and out-there by the end.
The level design is fairly linear overall, but I still enjoyed searching every nook and cranny of each section of the map, and was rewarded by this plenty of times with a hidden optional area, boss, or story device that added even more to the already impressive vibe and atmosphere of the game.
Closing Comments:
AI Limit is a blast to play, and is worth checking out for fans of the Soulslike genre, especially at the low cost of admission. It doesn’t necessarily reinvent the wheel, but there’s enough remix to the formula here to keep the game feeling fresh and exciting as you explore its excellent post-apocalyptic world. It’s typically pretty easy compared to most of its contemporaries with a few contextually out-of-place difficulty spikes, which could ultimately hamstring its staying power overall. This inconsistency, combined with some minor performance issues, holds it back a bit, but it’s still a rewarding journey worth taking, and a worthy addition to the growing catalog of quality non-FromSoftware Soulslike experiences. It left me wanting more, and interested to see what this studio can do next.
10 Soulslikes With Minimal Grinding
Soulslikes like Sekiro and Hollow Knight place a greater emphasis on skill and optimization than raw stat building.
