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WEREWOLF: THE APOCALYPSE - EARTHBLOOD (PS4)
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Publisher: Nacon.
Developer: Cyanide. Released: February 2021. Genre: Action. Other versions: PS5; XSX; XONE; PC. Posted 24th June 2022. By Shane Battams © 2022 |
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Werewolf: The Apocalypse would endured a cursed time attempting the jump to video games. A PC adventure from the late 90s would sink following its developer’s bankruptcy; Capcom would announce a brawler, only for the project to vanish completely and it wouldn’t be until 2020 that an adaptation would finally release. Now, Earthblood arrives in the awkward crossover-point between generations, as Cyanide Studio would put a natural action-RPG spin on the tabletop game. Unfortunately, the Wyrm seem to have corrupted the process during development, as this stealth/beat ‘em up hybrid recalls AA releases from generations before: showing occasional moments of quality, through middling execution.
In the world of Werewolf, three key elements are in balance to keep Gaia – or Mother Earth – alive. But the Wyrm, a force of corruption, has gained incredible power with humankind’s advancing technology and the resulting destruction of nature. Cahal, a member of a werewolf pack who returns from a half decade of exile after his rage leads to the death of his kin, fights against this force as a technological company Endron looks to run his pack out of the woods they live in. The story eventually snowballs into bigger, save-the-world affairs. While Cahal’s badass gruff is compelling and a genuine attempt to analyse the continuing technological growth of humans and the consequences is admirable, the narrative loses steam due to bland writing, paper-thin characters and some terrible villains. It doesn’t shy away from its source material, but it’s not enough to elevate the thread.
Werewolf has plenty of potential, but it's weighed down by patchy visual design and bugs
Earthblood is a real hodgepodge of elements. As players guide Cahal through a handful of lengthy levels, each bears a semi-explorable hub between which lets you perform side quests for the governing spirits, find story details through dozens of collectibles and stock up for the next stage. Spirits can also be absorbed which rewards experience, letting you upgrade Cahal and his many abilities which aide in exploration, combat and stealth. Despite this, you could probably blow through this one in 12 hours, which on the one hand means it doesn’t outstay its welcome. But on the other, it feels rushed, with the narrative suffering from choppy pacing as a result. Characters get set up, only to have their arcs finished pronto, like visiting a museum only to have the tour guide rush you through everything. And as you’ll see, there’s very little incentive to return.
While the beautiful hubs offer a brief excursion to nature, almost all of the levels take place in the same dreary, linear facilities that lack dynamism. It becomes an exercise in boredom as you start experiencing déjà vu as early as the third level. As you sneak around these facilities while opting for either stealth or combat, neither path opens up unique opportunities to shape or alter the course of the mission. Characters stress about staying undetected, but conveniently never chastise you for raising the alarm. So much of Earthblood feels like an unwelcome blast from the past, with dull greys colouring every scene, a general lack of refinement with visual bugs like awkward animations and a certain monotony that recalls dull seventh generation games from the early 2010s.
While the beautiful hubs offer a brief excursion to nature, almost all of the levels take place in the same dreary, linear facilities that lack dynamism. It becomes an exercise in boredom as you start experiencing déjà vu as early as the third level. As you sneak around these facilities while opting for either stealth or combat, neither path opens up unique opportunities to shape or alter the course of the mission. Characters stress about staying undetected, but conveniently never chastise you for raising the alarm. So much of Earthblood feels like an unwelcome blast from the past, with dull greys colouring every scene, a general lack of refinement with visual bugs like awkward animations and a certain monotony that recalls dull seventh generation games from the early 2010s.
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Stealth is completely rote, a lightweight system that offers little incentive to try. Cahal remains in human form during these moments, but can also enter his Lupus wolf form that offers a bit of extra speed. You can takedown guards behind walls and from behind, but the system lacks any depth such as being able to move bodies. You can also sabotage reinforcement doors during these phases, which damage enemies that spawn should you get caught. It never grows into a satisfying routine, seeing you sleepwalk around these areas even with cameras that can be disabled or destroyed. Worse still, certain large foes cannot be taken down and sometimes you have to kill these goons to open the path forward, rendering any sort of sneaking almost pointless. Some abilities do help, such as unlocking a brief moment of slow motion before detection so you can react, but it’s not enough.
When it’s time to become the big bad wolf, things improve only slightly. Once engaged in combat, you can swap between an agile and heavy stance, which offers alternative approaches to dealing with the myriad of copy ‘n’ paste goons including shield bearers, larger chain gun wielders and even mech suits. There’s quite a novelty to the carnage here, with blood splatter painting the floors with odd satisfaction. The problem is that combat never really evolves, as while abilities and upgrades add new moves, you often can mash through most foes with ease. Frenzy, an ultra-powerful state, rips through foes like butter, and feels very easy to gain. The only challenges come from boss encounters, requiring you to utilise dodging and healing more often. But even these cannot spice up combat, which while showing promise initially, becomes tiresome like the rest of the game.
When it’s time to become the big bad wolf, things improve only slightly. Once engaged in combat, you can swap between an agile and heavy stance, which offers alternative approaches to dealing with the myriad of copy ‘n’ paste goons including shield bearers, larger chain gun wielders and even mech suits. There’s quite a novelty to the carnage here, with blood splatter painting the floors with odd satisfaction. The problem is that combat never really evolves, as while abilities and upgrades add new moves, you often can mash through most foes with ease. Frenzy, an ultra-powerful state, rips through foes like butter, and feels very easy to gain. The only challenges come from boss encounters, requiring you to utilise dodging and healing more often. But even these cannot spice up combat, which while showing promise initially, becomes tiresome like the rest of the game.
Earthblood’s presentation is just as mixed as the rest of the game. The Unreal Engine visuals lurch between high quality and underwhelming, with the brighter outdoor stages contrasting with the dullard offices and labs you repeatedly enter. Cahal looks solid visually, but his companions often look ripped from the PS2 era, showing woeful animation and a stark lack of detail. Performance is inconsistent on PS4, often alternating between a full frame rate and slowing to half speed during intense moments. The only real constants are solid lighting and reflections which add a nice tint to environments. The audio consists of uneven voicework that ranges from bland to acceptable, heavy metal music that fits the game but becomes a touch repetitive and sharp sound effects that admittedly add a bit of weight to the hacking and slashing.
Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Earthblood is one of those mixed bags that doesn’t do anything particularly offensive, but equally doesn’t excel in any single element. Cyanide squanders the potential of the source material by repeatedly shoving you into rote scenarios that lead to the same loop of unsatisfying stealth, repetitive combat and poor story advancements. The structure and environments crush any potential the game has and some parts of the experience feel ripped from two generations before. While those with a craving for bloody carnage might be able to scrap some enjoyment out of this one, the more discerning gamer will likely tire of Earthblood before you’ve finished the first quarter of the campaign.
Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Earthblood is one of those mixed bags that doesn’t do anything particularly offensive, but equally doesn’t excel in any single element. Cyanide squanders the potential of the source material by repeatedly shoving you into rote scenarios that lead to the same loop of unsatisfying stealth, repetitive combat and poor story advancements. The structure and environments crush any potential the game has and some parts of the experience feel ripped from two generations before. While those with a craving for bloody carnage might be able to scrap some enjoyment out of this one, the more discerning gamer will likely tire of Earthblood before you’ve finished the first quarter of the campaign.
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VERDICT
"Earthblood squanders its source material by shoving you into rote scenarios that lead to the same loop of unsatisfying stealth, repetitive combat and poor story advancements" OVERALL: 5/10 |