Lies of P: A Soulslike Game Inspired by the Tales of Pinocchio
A new action role-playing game called Lies of P, inspired by the tale of Pinocchio and resembling souls like games such as Bloodborne, is due to be released on September 19, 2023. The game puts a dark twist on the classic fairy tale and features a unique system that takes advantage of the character’s lies. Who would have thought that a game would be made that is based on the story of Pinocchio? Read on to learn all about this intriguing new title.
Lies of P
Lies of P tells the story of Pinocchio as never seen before. You play as the iconic marionette in search of your maker Geppetto in a fictional French city inspired by the historic Belle Époque era—a time of abundant affluence in France. The once flourishing city, Krat, has long since fallen. In bygone years, the denizens of Krat had invented mechanoids, thinking they could be used as a replacement for human labor, but at some point, the mechanoids had rebelled against their makers and turned the city into what is now a gritty and violent hellscape.
As Pinocchio, you wind your way through the streets of the ruined city, crafting weapons from various materials you discover along the way and interacting with the remaining few who are managing to survive there.
“Inspired by the familiar story of Pinocchio, Lies of P is an action souls-like game set in a dark Belle Époque world. Guide Pinocchio on his unrelenting journey to become human,” reads the game’s Steam page. “Play as Pinocchio, a puppet mechanoid, and fight through everything in your path to find this mystery person,” the Steam page continues. “But don’t expect any help along the way and don’t make the mistake of trusting anyone.”
Although based on a well-known tale and featuring several familiar Pinocchio characters, such as Geppetto, Pinnochio’s creator and father figure, and Gemini Cricket, Pinocchio’s guiding conscience, Lies of P promises intriguing twists through a dark reimagining of the story.
Lies of P is being developed by Round 8 Studio, which previously created the MMORPG Blessed Unleashed. Lies of P will be the developer’s first single-player title. Round 8 Studio is a subsidiary of Neowiz, a video game publisher in South Korea.
Lies of P gameplay and mechanics
Lies of P features profound narrative choices and deeply customizable character progression to round out its RPG features. Here are a few of the features you can expect:
Lying quests
In the popular tale, Pinocchio dreams of becoming human and is a compulsive liar. To achieve his dream, he is told he must first change his lying nature and demonstrate genuine honesty. By contrast, Lies of P features a mechanic where Pinocchio will accumulate Humanity points by lying; these points will affect Pinocchio’s journey and how his story ends. When not in combat, Pinocchio can speak with faceless citizens locked behind their doors and windows. The NPCs question Pinocchio and send him on quests depending on his answers. During conversations, Pinocchio only has a few seconds to pick his answer, and one (or both?) of his choices is seemingly a lie. As of yet, how his conversation choices manifest is still unclear, but the game’s Steam page states these lying quests “play out depending on how you lie” and factor into which of the multiple endings you experience.
The main effect on gameplay is that the more lies Pinocchio tells, the more human he becomes, with all the advantages and disadvantages being human entails.
Legion arms
Pinocchio appears humanoid in the game, but he is a doll, and his body can be modified for different gameplay effects. A swappable extremity called a legion arm exists in the place of Pinocchio’s left arm. This can be used to equip Pinocchio with various weapons, including a grappling hook, a flamethrower, and even an electricity weapon. The legion arms system should help players dial in their strategies and play styles beyond what would be possible with standard equipment.
Pinocchio defaults to wearing the Iron Fist, a hardened extremity capable of strong punches, but at least nine augmentations offer a bevy of additional abilities. For example, the Puppet String is a Hookshot-like gadget that Pinocchio can fire toward enemies to reel them in or vice versa. Once upgraded, the Puppet String possesses an ability called Falling Chase, which is a potent acrobatic attack that launches Pinocchio into the air before he comes crashing down. Other legion arms include:
- The Fulminis, which unleashes a charge of electricity.
- The Flamberge, which spews a violent cone of flame from its barrel.
- The Falcon Eyes, a hand cannon that deals heavy damage.
Heavy weapons have extensive wind-up animations that leave Pinocchio vulnerable to quick strikes but feel incredible when they contact an enemy. Light, thin-bladed weapons unleash a flurry of strikes and can be combined with legion arms to inflict copious damage. Dodging and parrying are essential to survival, with the latter opening up opponents to visceral strikes with precise timing.
Overall gameplay
Pinocchio can equip two weapons at a time that alter things like attack speed and skills. The official Twitter boasts of 30 different weapons and 100 different “combinations,” and not all of these differences will be mechanical.
Further customization can be found in the P-Organ, where players spend Quartz (an upgrade material) to upgrade abilities and activate various skills. Pinocchio can also be customized for noncombat actions, such as breaking down a door. Accessing the customization menus pauses the game, so players can take as much time as necessary when customizing Pinocchio.
Most aspects of gameplay in Lies of P, such as dodging, parrying, and countering enemies, are similar to what you would expect of a souls-like title. However, player and enemy movement in general reflect the mechanical nature of the world—enemies approach with almost doll-like attacks, making it difficult to predict their movements.
Lies of P graphics and design
Lies of P has been built from the ground up using Unreal Engine 4. Although the aesthetics seem to take inspiration from Dark Souls, the game’s steampunk setting in the fallen city of Krat is reminiscent of the plague-ridden Dunwall of Dishonored.
Enemies are almost all mechanical, so they blend into the environment and wait for you to get close before making their move. Lies of P has many different types of enemies, so as soon as you get comfortable with one enemy type, a new one will suddenly appear and force you to adapt.
Souls-like titles tend to be extremely challenging, and a distinctive aspect of this genre is that games typically lack settings for adjusting the overall difficulty level. This often turns players away from progressing and discovering new aspects of the game. With Lies of P, Round 8 Studio appears not to be concerned about how hard the game is. The game looks to be very difficult and one that puts players’ skills to the test during each and every encounter within the gothic world.
Lies of P release date
Developer and Publishers of Lies of P, Neowiz, announced in the Summer Game Fest 2023 that the game is coming to PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on September 19, 2023.
In addition, a brand-new trailer was showcased to the fans, and even more excitingly, starting June 8, 2023, a public demo is available for players around the globe to experience!
Lies of P will be on Xbox Game Pass as a Day One launch title. Be sure to check out this and other fantasy RPGs and see why Acer is an official sponsor of Game Pass.
Ashley is a technology writer who is interested in computers and software development. He is also a fintech researcher and is fascinated with emerging trends in DeFi, blockchain, and bitcoin. He has been writing, editing, and creating content for the ESL industry in Asia for eight years, with a special focus on interactive, digital learning.
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