Resonance: A Plague Story Legacy evaluate

Revealed: August 26, 2026

Who would you kill to avoid wasting the world? A good friend? A stranger? The one you like? The one you hate? May you even do it? May you plunge the dagger in; watch the sunshine fade? That wrestle – that humanity – is one thing that each one of Asobo’s Plague Story video games have grappled with. Do the troopers that hunt you should die, should you’re the rationale a whole lot are dying? Does it matter if it is a baby that is carrying the plague, even when they’re harmless? It is heavy stuff. No, I lie: it is downright miserable.

Should you’ve performed A Plague Story: Requiem, you will know that the post-credit cutscene leaves issues in an attention-grabbing spot – no spoilers right here, don’t be concerned. I have been trying ahead to that sport post-Requiem, avidly watching each showcase, praying that it seems. I can truthfully say I used to be barely disenchanted after I noticed Resonance: A Plague Story Legacy; I beloved Sophia, but it surely wasn’t that sport that I have been ready for.

I used to be doubly frightened about its action-heavy presentation, which, in some ways, flies within the face of the stealth-focused gameplay we’re used to with Plague Story. Will we simply get one other hack-and-slasher with out the identical narrative gravity? Is there a world the place one among my favourite franchises turns into extra mainstream and generic? All ideas that crossed my thoughts.

I’ve by no means been so joyful to be flawed.

In Resonance, you play because the aforementioned Sophia, a wistful plunderer with spectacular fight prowess and a pointy tongue. We begin out in her childhood, the place a mysterious order of nuns are injecting her with an eerie, black liquid. Stated fluid induces visions of a long-forgotten, Grecian-looking island, supposedly dwelling to plenty of treasure and the occasional minotaur. Saved by her father and his pirate buddies, the crew instantly goes in search of the island, utilizing Sophia’s hand-drawn, messy pocket book as a information. It goes about in addition to you assume it does.

Sophia’s father dies mysteriously on the island, and his second-in-command’s obsession with the place implies that he is blind to the truth that the group is slowly being slaughtered. Then, somebody betrays them; the Venetian fleet raids the band’s makeshift city, burning it to the bottom. Sophia and her associate in crime, Leni, set off to the island, watching as their dwelling burns. It is instantly apparent this is not going to be a cheerful story, if the ‘Plague Story’ half hadn’t provided that away already.

The island is a mix of puzzle gameplay and motion sequences. Outfitted with a spherical key, you are tasked with realigning mirrors to open doorways, exposing invisible ink to seek for clues, and enjoying with varied beams of coloured mild. Puzzles get progressively more durable as you enterprise deeper into the island, and you will typically have to make use of Sophia’s pocket book to maintain monitor of every thing. All in all, it is nothing we have not seen earlier than, however there are a few intelligent methods alongside the best way that maintain you in your toes.

I am pressured to filter a troop of petrified humanoids who’ve, one way or the other, managed to regain sentience. They’re blocking my path, however appear intent on consuming the glowing blue path that Sophia leaves when she runs by way of completely different areas of the island. I dash, they usually instantly shamble in the direction of the gooey blue goodness. I then drop right into a crouch, seemingly invisible to them, with the best way now clear. It is a intelligent trick, and one which’s straightforward to overlook if you have not paid consideration to the dialog.

The complete theme of the island is its reliance on mild to maintain the vicious, smog-like monster that haunts the place at bay. Gentle puzzles make sense, then, however there are an terrible lot of them. I spent loads of time shifting and realigning mirrors, and whereas the puzzles themselves do change, they’re largely variations on the same theme. Every of the sport’s primary ‘Trials’ would have been higher with fewer puzzles – possibly drop three or 4 over the course of the entire sport. It might have made issues really feel rather less bloated.

It is a comparable story with the motion sequences. I actually loved the fluidity of Resonance’s fight; Sophia fights quick and arduous, and the power to toss dropped knives and damaged bottles to stun and injury enemies provides some further dynamism. You possibly can improve your talents utilizing Resonance Factors, that are nicely distributed all through the degrees, and accumulating varied trinkets and jewellery items will increase your chance of parrying and dodging. It is a intelligent system that rewards you for exploring the world (there are some extra linear sequences, then larger, extra open areas), and the upgrades actually allowed me to hone my distinctive fight type.

Equally, the sport’s parrying and dodging is not notably punishing, however unblockable assaults can are available thick and quick, and can catch you off guard. There are a number of late boss fights that I discovered surprisingly troublesome; they’re hardly Elden Ring stage, however they do require a little bit of sample recognition and understanding.

It did generally really feel like Asobo was throwing enemies at you for the sake of it, nevertheless. The Trial sequences typically grew to become a sample of mirror puzzle, combat troopers, repeat, and in the direction of the tail finish of the sport there have been myriad imaginative and prescient sequences that slowed down my development by way of the island’s underground Labyrinth. Very similar to with the puzzles, I really feel like the sport did not want as many fight encounters, and would have felt somewhat extra streamlined with out them.

Whereas Resonance diverges from the bottom Plague Story video games with the motion focus, there are some acquainted strands right here. As you delve deeper beneath the island’s floor, you encounter an eerie, black, mist-like monster, with an enormous, Triffid-esque mouth that may successfully suck the life power out of you. It would not like the sunshine, but it surely does just like the aforementioned blue path that you just depart behind you if you stroll or run. Consequently, you will spend loads of time crouching and stealthing round it a la Requiem and Innocence, with the island’s glowing, fiery beacons supplying you with some respite.

It is value noting that you would be able to’t assault this creature, and it might probably come from wherever. A later improve to your sphere can assist fend it off for some time, but it surely retains coming again. This factor – no matter it’s – is relentless in its pursuit of loss of life, and if it catches you, you are pressured to run. There is a cat-and-mouse aspect to it that I loved; realizing {that a} single slipup would lead to both fast loss of life, or an Indiana Jones-esque chase sequence that would additionally finish in your premature demise. Encounters towards it are largely sluggish and methodical; there is not any working screaming from the scary man with a hatchet, simply cautious character placement and intelligent terrain administration. There’s an overarching sense that this monster is the predator, you’re the prey. That, in itself, makes it all of the extra terrifying, and in some ways, distinctive.

This sense of worry is amplified by Asobo’s intelligent use of setting. Resonance is a stupendous sport, and its darkish, tight areas really feel claustrophobic and hopeless. Sophia coughs as black particles swirl into her lungs; they float gently within the air till they’re disturbed. The aforementioned Petrified, people who’ve been claimed by the monster, swarm choke factors and hallways, however not all of them can transfer. I discovered myself sneaking by way of each hall, simply ready for one among them to pounce on me. An eerie click on behind me would set off a squeal, and the randomness with which dwelling Petrified appeared made each state of affairs really feel tense. You possibly can’t predict it; they’re all the time there, watching by way of ashy eye sockets.

None of this horror feels low-cost. Whereas the Plague Story video games do have horror components (particularly should you do not like rats), Asobo’s method with Resonance is intelligent. The burden of the ambiance – the rising density of the particles, the darkness – is suffocating. Sophia spends most of her time alone; it is isolating, it is scary. Resonance really is a masterpiece in atmospheric horror.

The place Resonance actually shines, nevertheless, is in its narrative. Asobo has confirmed that it might probably constantly damage your day, even if you assume you are secure. From the onset, you notice that nobody is secure on this sport; not your pals, not your loved ones, and positively not your foes. Loss of life, just like the plague itself, is all-consuming. This is not a cheerful story; there is not any victory, no triumph. There’s solely crushing silence.

Whereas I am not going to spoil something right here, Resonance is successfully a gut-punch simulator, with twist after twist. It makes you query who the ‘dangerous guys’ are; is it the monster? Is it the troopers? Is it an historic king blinded by greed, or a traitor frightened in regards to the destiny of their associates? There is no black and white right here; within the darkness there’s mild, and within the mild there’s shadow. Narratively, Asobo continues to excel, with Resonance nonetheless feeling like a Plague Story sport, regardless of the heavier deal with fight and new characters.

You may see strands of Innocence and Requiem woven in right here, too. Typically Sophia is not alone, and even a few of her dialog and interactions really feel just like Amicia’s. The Macula, as anticipated, may be very a lot current, however differently to what we have seen earlier than. There are themes of affection, loss, and self-sacrifice: Resonance has Plague Story DNA, but stands robust as its personal expertise. It is spectacular, and precisely what I hoped for.

I did, nevertheless, encounter a big array of bugs and efficiency drops. Throughout early cutscenes, a t-posing model of little Sophia went flying throughout my display earlier than loading in totally, and through a dream sequence she spawned each on high of the mattress after which beneath it. Transferring between areas typically prompted important lags, particularly as textures popped out and in. My PC can simply run the sport, and paradoxically, areas with numerous floating particles did not appear to be a problem. If something, that is the place the gameplay was the smoothest.

There have been a few game-breaking points, too. Throughout one combat sequence, I bought caught inside a wall, and regardless of enemies attempting to assault me, they could not. I needed to reload the save then attempt once more. I additionally encountered an odd subject that prevented me from leaping in a tunnel, however after squeezing myself out of the crack I would are available from, then again once more, it appeared to repair itself.

I additionally struggled with the sport’s keybinds. On mouse and keyboard, I discovered the selection of ‘alt f’ for Sophia’s particular assault to be somewhat unwieldy in fight, and ‘caps lock’ for the sphere to be somewhat clunky when combating among the light-based enemies additional into the sport. After I tried to bind these to my aspect mouse buttons, it merely did not work. This can be as a result of I used to be enjoying a evaluate construct of the sport, and that rebind performance merely wasn’t working. My mouse, nevertheless, is not notably unique (Razer Viper V3 Professional), so it appeared somewhat odd that the modifications simply did not undergo.

I used to be frightened that Resonance would ‘mainstreamify’ Plague Story. I’ve seen numerous, action-oriented variations of my favourite videogames come and go, and I have never actually discovered one which I’ve really appreciated. Resonance, nevertheless, blends the core Plague Story spirit with fashionable motion gameplay to create one thing that’s enjoyable, but genuine to the supply materials. Is it something we have not seen earlier than? No – it is an motion sport with parkour components and puzzles. Is it nonetheless value enjoying? Completely.