Lies of P: Overture review in progress — So Far So Grand

Surprise! The highly anticipated Lies of P expansion is finally here, shadow dropped today at Summer Game Fest. Overture is a substantial and exciting expansion for Neowiz and Round8 Studio’s acclaimed Pinocchio-themed Soulslike, offering a prequel narrative set in a wintry, chaotic version of Krat that predates the main game’s events. The DLC introduces expansive new areas such as the Krat Zoo and a wealth of fresh content, including new bosses, weapons, Legion Arms, and consumables that enhance both combat and exploration. Overture also introduces significant gameplay innovations, most notably the addition of multiple difficulty settings to make the notoriously challenging game more accessible to a broader audience. It’s a win all around.

One key strength is Round8’s commitment to deepening the narrative and emotional core of Lies of P. Overture is not merely a side story but is described as the “missing half” of the original vision, providing answers to lingering mysteries and spotlighting previously minor characters like the Legendary Stalker Lea and the real Alidoro. Despite the new content and narrative depth, the pacing in certain areas can feel uneven, with moments where exploration or progression slows down and the sense of momentum is lost. Entrance into the DLC is around Chapter 9 of the base game, and you should visit the Stargazer on the Path of the Pilgrim in the Malum District to access it.

We are going back in time to visit an older version of Krat. The setting is notably different from the main game, with environments that still cling to life rather than being a crumbling ruin, and actual living animals. The enemy design continues to be heavily influenced by body horror and mutation and further distinguishes Overture with grotesque, aggressive foes that challenge you in new ways. I’m a big fan of this type of theme, so it’s always a treat to see what the developers cooked up this time.

While the majority of new bosses and enemies are extremely creative and challenging, there are certain encounters, particularly those with extremely large bodies, that suffer from camera issues, making it difficult to track attacks and leading to frustrating moments. For example, the Anguished Guardian of the Ruins or even some of the brute sized mobs result in clunky camera angles, especially in corners or walls. This has been a concern with oversized foes for decades, and is no different here. The true final boss is indeed the camera!

Overture introduces a suite of new weapons and Legion Arms that significantly expand combat options and tactical depth. Among the most notable new weapon types are the Gunblade, Claws, and the game’s first ranged weapon: the Royal Horn Bow. The Gunblade, exemplified by the Pale Knight, functions as a greatsword in melee combat but features a unique twist: using the heavy attack button fires a shot at enemies in front, propelling you backwards for repositioning. A second press fires behind you, launching you back toward enemies and creating openings for follow-up attacks, which encourages an aggressive and dynamic playstyle. This is one of the cooler new tools up your sleeve, but not all of them feel impactful or necessary, resulting in some items being underutilized.

Most of the new weapons, aside from boss weapons, can be mixed and matched with blades and handles from the base game to create something entirely new to fit your preferred playstyle. Examples include the Maniac’s Pinwheel (my favorite during the preview), a massive and visually striking weapon effective against large foes, and the Flamethrower Lance, which deals fire damage and builds up overheat on enemies, making it particularly useful against organic targets. You can also expect to collect new costumes, such as the Winter’s Hunting Apparel, gestures, and musical records too!

As stated in my previous preview, there are new gameplay modes: Battle Memories (boss rematches with escalating difficulty) and Death March (a boss rush mode with limited resources). These are accessible only at the Hotel Krat Stargazer. Not only do these offer replayability but also provide new challenges, especially for genre veterans. However, the implementation of these modes, especially at the highest difficulty tiers (tiers 4 and 5), can feel overly punishing and may not appeal to every player. Bosses will kill you in 1-2 hits here so keep that in mind. You are rewarded with a Badge of Victory for clearing the hardest difficulty for each boss rematch.

Alongside the new modes are difficulty settings. The default difficulty remains "Legendary Stalker," which preserves the original, challenging experience that fans are familiar with. Alongside this, two new options are introduced: "Butterfly's Guidance" and "Awakened Puppet." 

"Butterfly's Guidance" can be considered an easy mode, and "Awakened Puppet" can be seen as a medium difficulty mode. After some extensive testing of the different modes on a single enemy type, I discovered you can tank 12 hits on the Butterfly difficulty, 9 hits on Awakened, and 5 hits on Legendary. Now you don’t have to worry about “gitting gud” to enjoy the game! And the est thing is that these settings can be changed at any time in the settings menu.

Lies of P Overture maintains strong technical performance all around, closely mirroring the stability and optimization of the base game. So far my playthrough has been done on PC running an RTX 3080 with 32 GB of RAM and the game runs flawlessly at a silky smooth 60fps. Load times are also quite respectable, taking about 10 seconds to load in, although the game does need to compile shaders upon booting up each time. Visually, the game is complemented by a detailed and polished presentation of beautiful environments and grotesque enemy designs.

The inclusion of new arrangements and the use of recognizable motifs from the base game’s gramophone offer a splendid auditory experience. Overture expands the musical palette of the base game with a wintry and melancholic tone that is fitting for Krat’s older days. After all, the music’s role is so significant that it is considered one of the three core pillars of the entire game, alongside combat and story.

We are still making our way through Overture, as only PC codes were available prior to the shadow drop release. Our main save files are actually on PlayStation 5, and we can’t wait to continue our adventures in Krat there. Look forward to our full review and coverage of Overture in the coming days.