Steelrising Review

French developer Spiders has had some rather underrated — if a little unpolished — gems across the years, from GreedFall, to the criminally overlooked The Technomancer. This time they’ve left their comfort zone of action-RPGs and focused on a soulsborne-esque formula that is sure to turn a few heads with Steelrising. But was this shift in genres a good idea, or should Spiders’ have stuck to what they know best? Let’s find out!

Steelrising opens in 1789 with the Queen of France, Marie-Antoinette (yes, that Marie-Antoinette) terrified of the riots happening in the streets of Paris. The French Revolution is in full swing, although not quite as our history books tell it: by order of the king, automatons have been let loose to quell the rebellion, with no man, woman, or child safe from this ruthless machine army.

You play as Aegis, the magnum opus of the automaton inventor Vaucanson, created to protect the Queen of France. She tasks Aegis with escaping their chateau to reach the heart of Paris to find her creator, in order to put an end to the violent automatons. The setting and overall atmosphere in Steelrising was constantly impressive, and although this isn’t as narrative heavy as some of Spiders’ other titles, it does a decent enough job of telling this revolutionary tale with a twist.

Steelrising is an interesting-looking game, unlike anything I’ve seen before. The juxtaposition of the clothing, styles, and architecture of this period of French history mixed with the clockwork machines of media such as Syberia is captured perfectly by Spiders, showing just how well they can create unique and interesting worlds.

That isn’t to say the graphics are on par with AAA titles, because they’re not; in fact they’re fairly average. Characters and environments look noticeably improved if you opt for resolution or graphic quality in the options, but at the cost of a smooth 60fps framerate. I prioritised the framerate boost during my time with the game and noticed the occasional flickering textures and objects popping-in out of nowhere, but these were much less of an annoyance than the unstable framerate experienced in the other two modes.

However, as previously mentioned, it’s the details that really drew me into the world. The cogs whirring away on Aegis’ back, her subtle twitches that cause the complex mechanisms of her body to expand and contract (such as her weapon arm flicking open for a split second), even the deserted streets of the Parisian outskirts that subtly hint of the horrors that have taken place before your arrival: everything here made me want to know more about this world — which, thanks to the in game codex, I was able to learn more about.

The minimalist approach to a soundtrack felt quite appropriate to coincide with the tone of the game. Although this isn’t a horror experience by any stretch of the imagination, I still felt a sense of the unknown around every corner. Themes that play during boss fights are suitably grandiose and really capture the threat that these mechanical monstrosities pose to Aegis.

It’s instantly noticeable how Steelrising is similar to games such as Bloodborne or ELDEN RING just by playing for a few minutes, although I found my experience less enjoyable than those titles. Of course you have similar mechanics such as the bonfire system, this time in the form of statues called Vestals that allow you to replenish your oil burette (health potions), upgrade Aegis or her weapons, as well as purchase health recovery items, grenades and other consumables. Upgrading is done by simply spending the Anima Essence you collect from fallen foes, although dying will deplete all of your essence (unless you turn this option off in assist mode!) and, just like in the titles mentioned above, you’ll have to return to the place of your death to collect them.

Exploring the self-contained levels of Steelrising was fun, if a little confusing. Levels reward those who stray from heading straight to the objective marker, with branching paths and hidden areas making it feel much more open than the linear-looking levels would initially have you believe. It was nice to come across an unexpected quest (which usually just asked you to find a certain item or kill a specific enemy) whilst out exploring, with each reward aiding you in future battles. Traversing the levels becomes even better later on as you find a grappling hook, which lets you explore the rooftops of Paris, giving added verticality to the exploration.

What a shame it is then that the combat is where I felt things fell apart a little. Your basic light and heavy attacks work as expected, with a stamina bar being tied to every action, making each fight a tactical experience akin to other games of this ilk. I liked that heavy moves can be charged up to perform an especially hard-hitting attack, although this was a game of chance as an enemy can strike at any time!

Combat just doesn’t feel very fluid, and though the animations are smooth and stylish, it felt quite clunky to play. The “active reload” style of regenerating your stamina quickly sounds good on paper, but I found myself rarely running out as I needed to dodge away from an encounter whilst an enemy took a swing at me. The staggering mechanic was also another interesting feature that ultimately didn’t lead to very much. Keep on attacking an automaton and a gauge will increase which, when filled, will cause Aegis to deal high damage on her next attack. There were very few times this mechanic triggered before I killed whatever I was trying to stagger, and it only really comes into play against an opponent with a large health bar in later levels.

Whilst the variety of weapons and the abilities that come attached to each are varied enough, I really disliked that the option to block is tied to certain armaments, especially since you can only cancel certain attacks into a dodge. This left me with always having a weapon with a block function equipped in one of the two available slots, as — especially in encounters with more than one enemy — it became a little unfair. Not every attack can be cancelled into a dodge, so as I was mid combo attacking one automaton, another could come up behind me and take me out in two or three hits. Add to this the melee-focused abilities, which you are unable to stop until the animation is complete, and you’re potentially facing instant death as you watch Aegis play out the admittedly flashy-looking moves. Although I tended not to use these during fights with more than one enemy, single opponents you’re attacking can also continue to strike you, so it’s often a case of frantically mashing the dodge button in the hopes that you’ll evade at the last second to ensure three quarters of your health bar isn’t instantly obliterated. Was it enough to stop me from enjoying the game? Absolutely not, it just took a while to take on board the lack of finesse during fights.

A very welcome feature, and something you don’t see very often in these sorts of games, is the Assist Mode, which lets players tailor the challenging gameplay to suit them. Things such as damage reduction, how quickly your endurance regenerates, and even keeping your Anima Essence after you die were much appreciated by myself. This allowed me to enjoy the game at a much gentler pace without wanting to break down in tears and throw my controller through a window.

In closing, Spiders has done a great job with building a world I want to know more about, and I truly hope they create another game set in this universe. Despite some sluggish controls, rare graphical issues, and a combat system that can feel a little on the cheap side, Steelrising is certainly worth a look for those of you that just can’t get enough From Software titles. Just don’t expect it to be anywhere near as polished. If however, you’re looking for your first foray into the soulslike genre, then the Assist Mode may just make this the game to get.