Of Ash and Steel Review – Gothic at Home

by

The first hour of Of Ash and Steel doesn’t quite grab your attention. The lip-syncing feels off, the character movements are awkward, and the way scenes are cut together is strange. It also starts with a slow opening section where you control the main character, Tristan, and mostly just walk around doing simple tasks. To top it off, the sound mixing is problematic – NPC voices can be surprisingly loud even when you’re far away.

Despite the game’s rough edges and somewhat outdated feel, there’s a glimmer of potential. This shows up in the writing, particularly in how characters react to events like injuries or betrayal during quests. Even the combat, though initially slow, has some redeeming qualities. However, it’s debatable whether these strengths are enough to make Of Ash and Steel truly stand out, or appeal to fans of games like Gothic. It’s a step in the right direction, but the game needs significant improvements to reach its full potential.

The story unfolds in the Kingdom of the Seven, a group of islands enjoying a time of peace and prosperous trade. This tranquility is disrupted by whispers of islands declaring independence. You play as Tristan, a cartographer who sets out with soldiers from the Order to map the island of Greyshaft. However, shortly after arriving, their camp is attacked by bandits who kill everyone. Tristan is the sole survivor, though he’s gravely wounded and left for dead.

Adding to the challenge, many of the enemies on the island are quite dangerous, and fighting more than two at once is usually a bad idea, particularly when you’re starting out. For the first hour and a half or so, I found the safest strategy was to lead enemies towards friendly characters who could defeat them for me.

After being found and partially healed by a local, the protagonist starts to explore the island, and that’s when things become more open-ended. Of Ash and Steel doesn’t push you down a specific path; it wants you to discover the world at your own pace. However, you start with limited guidance – no maps or clear directions. This makes sense within the story, but it means you’ll have to rely on your own memory and exploration skills. If you’re on a quest to find someone, the game won’t simply point you to them. Success depends on thoroughly investigating the island’s caves, old mines, farms, and other locations, and remembering what you find.

Similar to Hell is Us, Of Ash and Steel is a challenging game, but it offers much less guidance. It’s significantly more difficult, as your character, Tristan, is surprisingly weak despite being physically fit. He’s terrible at fighting and gets winded easily, and he lacks basic survival skills. You won’t automatically improve as you play; instead, you need to find NPCs, pay them with gold, and meet specific stat and skill requirements to learn. Even equipping weapons has requirements – you’ll need 15 Strength just to be able to use a greatsword, for example.

The game features a lot of details that make the world feel real, like needing to eat and drink. You’ll have to cook food to stay healthy and find liquids to quench your thirst. Be careful what you cook, though – eating bad meat can weaken Tristan. You can also get hurt, and those injuries will get worse if you don’t treat them. Even something simple like building a campfire requires gathering supplies. All these details can make the beginning of the game feel a bit slow and challenging.

Many of the enemies on the island are quite dangerous, and fighting more than a couple at once is usually a bad idea, especially early in the game. For the first hour and a half, I mostly survived by leading enemies toward friendly characters who could defeat them. Once my character, Tristan, became stronger and had more stamina (and with a couple of rings to boost his stamina), I felt more confident in fighting them myself.

Although some of the dialogue is sweet, much of it isn’t, and that comes down to the main character, Tristan, who isn’t very interesting. He seems like a stand-in for the author, and while that’s okay at first, it quickly gets old.

Don’t expect a game quite like Dark Souls or Kingdom Come: Deliverance, even though stamina management is important in Of Ash and Steel. Combat feels slower and more weighty – following up on attacks can feel sluggish. While this creates tense moments, particularly when fighting human opponents and timing parries, the game doesn’t always register hits accurately, for either you or your enemies. Targeting can also be a problem, as fast-moving enemies might dodge your attacks before your character even finishes swinging.

The AI is incredibly frustrating. I had a fight with a spider that was clearly more powerful than me, and instead of letting me finish it, the AI just made it escape without a trace. Then, it magically reappeared back at its lair, completely healed. I won’t put up with that again. Also, Tristan’s constant slipping is ridiculous. It happens occasionally, but every time, even multiple times during critical moments? I’ve had enough.

I don’t mind the traditional way the game handles exploration, but the world can often feel empty. Towns are good because they have people to talk to and quests to do, but the wilderness itself isn’t very interesting. Sometimes areas are full of useful items, and other times, like the cave with the dangerous spider, they’re completely empty. While that might be realistic, the environments sometimes feel so basic that it doesn’t really make me want to explore them.

Although some of the character interactions are sweet, many aren’t, largely because Tristan, the main character, is rather unremarkable. He seems designed to be a stand-in for the player, but his appeal fades quickly, and he lacks depth. Even when bad things happen to him and he’s forced to survive on his own, it’s hard to feel sorry for him—you mostly just feel like he deserves his misfortune, especially when he keeps stumbling into trouble.

While this could be good if its flaws are fixed, even then, the story, main character, world, and gameplay are only a little bit better than okay.

If you’re looking for a challenging, no-frills adventure and aren’t too concerned with a polished experience, Of Ash and Steel could be worth checking out. However, the game still has noticeable issues, like objects glitching or imprecise combat. There are also a few bugs, such as repeated dialogue lines and a campfire that wouldn’t work, despite others functioning correctly.

The game looks decent overall, but the stiff facial animations really break the feeling of being there, especially since characters talk a lot. The music is okay – it’s not groundbreaking for this type of game, but it works well enough, though sometimes the dramatic music doesn’t quite fit the slower pace of the gameplay.

Players who enjoy games like Gothic, where strategic character building is key, might find something to like in Of Ash and Steel. While it has potential, it needs improvements to address several flaws. Even if those issues are fixed, the game’s story, main character, world, and gameplay only feel a little better than average.

This game was reviewed on PC.

Read More

2025-11-25 20:48