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The Soulslike genre – challenging action games built on the formula established by FromSoftware’s Dark Souls series – is a common sight these days, but in 2019, when the first Code Vein game came out, they were few and far between. Code Vein has the notable description of being a “Soulslike anime” thanks to its unique art style. The sequel, Code Vein II, expands on the story and gameplay of the original, but like its predecessor, it simply doesn’t rise to become one of the best Souslike games.
Second vein code It is a sequel in name only and is not directly connected to its predecessor, with the exception of the return of the vampire-like Revenants who make up most of the cast – excluding the player. As an unnamed Revenant Hunter, players are eventually tasked with traveling some time to save the world, befriending heroes in the past and then striking out in the present for the greater good.
While this makes the story more interesting, this part still doesn’t have enough substance to satisfy fans of the Soulslike genre and bring non-fans into the mix.
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Did he hit a vein?
Code Vein II uses the traditional RPG formula found in most Soulslikes. You equip weapons such as one-handed swords, giant swords, dual swords, hammers, and halberds, and proceed to slaughter enemies with combinations of light and powerful attacks. At your disposal are Forma items that can be added to your weapons, act like abilities or spells, and use Ichor, your character’s mana pool. There are also cool finishers called Jails that can be used to deal some serious damage to enemies when they stumble, or drain Ichor when deployed at any other time.
Combat has the same feel as other Souslikes, relying on tight timing to dodge enemy strikes and counterattack, but it’s sometimes difficult to tell what type of attack is coming your way, which is a glaring flaw. Harking back to the originator of the genre, Dark Souls made sure that enemy animations telegraphed the upcoming attack method, giving players plenty of time to get out of the way.
Where most of these problems become noticeable is with bosses. As with the Soulslike game, Code Vein II has some big bosses with powerful attacks that require players to go into battle with some strategy, as just pressing the attack over and over again won’t be enough. However, it never fails to spawn some attacks that deal damage in battle without any visual indication. Additionally, not every boss is unique, as you’ll see weaker versions of them later in the game roaming around the map.
What’s even more frustrating is that, apparently due to the post-apocalyptic sci-fi setting, some enemies have attacks that you can’t predict. There is one field boss who is designed like a four-legged tank and can fire from dual turrets, but the bullets can barely be seen before they hit the player. This means you are stuck blocking attacks. Other bosses have similar issues where it’s difficult to know the range of an enemy’s attack, making it easy to mistime a dodge and get hit anyway.
The most unique addition in Code Vein II is the partner system, which is a different take on the computer ally summon options found in other Soulslike games. Players meet other characters throughout the story who will join them as partners, usually after earning their friendship through quests and trials. These allies will have a portion of the player’s life bar assigned to them, and will act alone in battle using their abilities and attacks. Not only does this partner help with damage and tank hits from the enemy, but they can also revive you when your health drains, though they’ll disappear for a certain amount of time – a neat last-minute survival mechanic that gives players enough time to land the final blow.
If you don’t want to deal with a partner or are having trouble with your boss and want to try a different strategy, you can try accommodating, or accommodating your partner. By doing this, your character gets the entire life bar to themselves as well as improved stats, but you’re on your own. I found myself struggling against a certain boss when my partner was with me, but when I went solo, the fight seemed easier. It may be useful to have another objective for some bosses, but there will likely be players who prefer to absorb reinforcements and deal with enemies themselves.
Speaking of stats, each partner offers their own Blood Token, which are equippable artifacts that improve the player’s stats and provide other pros and cons to their abilities. Equipping them and defeating enough enemies will level them up to improve their boosts, and wearing the matching blood token given to you by your partner will increase your additional boost.
If this sounds a bit complicated, it is. The systems in Code Vein are significantly more complex than other Soulslike games that focus on a few primary stats for your character and a bunch of other secondary stats that determine other attributes, like how many hits you can take before you’re stunned or how fast you can cast a spell. There are a lot of explanatory pages that appear when exploring your character’s stats page within the menu, and it gets exhausting after a while. I’m not saying it would be better to just see the absolute minimum of character stats, but there comes a point where a screen full of numbers is too much.
Can someone decode this?
While Code Vein II’s basic system is a bit complex, the story feels convoluted and scattered. In the world of Code Vein, humans coexist with Revanants, a humanoid species with vampiric powers, in a post-apocalyptic future that is about to be destroyed. A catastrophic event called “The Return”, which was prevented by the sacrifices of several heroes who sealed themselves in cocoons, has returned to threaten to destroy the world once again.
The player takes on the role of a human who dies trying to save innocent people, and a returnee named Lou revives them by donating half of her heart. She is part of an organization called MagMell that is trying to use time travel to save the world. These former heroes of the Revenant who once sealed the evil need to be defeated to stop the renaissance.
However, for the time being, they are locked in their cocoons and cannot be touched. So it is up to the player to travel back in time 100 years to the time when these heroes were thriving. Each one has their own personal story and motivations, and players will have to help them eventually learn what is needed to defeat them in the present.
The addition of time travel provides some emotional moments in the game, especially when it relates to the heroes in their past, knowing that they will end up failing and corrupted in the present, but there is still a lot going on in terms of returning and the world. However, none of this subtle character growth had any real weight or added to the story – it felt like I was emotionally connecting with the partners through their tragic stories and then getting over their eventual versions, only to never see their impact on the plot again. The world itself changes dramatically when you go back in time, but there simply isn’t enough of that narrative material to chew on.
Environmental storytelling is minimal, and aside from the basic cast of characters, there’s nothing really interesting to explore – mostly just item-filled areas, enemies to fight and a handful of optional dungeons. Typically, Soulslikes offer a vast world filled with small details that help piece together a wide-ranging backstory filled with legendary events and fateful battles, just as they did with the Dark Souls games, but that’s not the case with Code Vein II. After some time passed, I found myself playing on autopilot, not caring about every nook and cranny of the world, and only caring about getting levels, completing quests and getting loot. The game world is huge, but there is no world building. There is no explanation about some of the buildings being filled with monsters other than one character saying that monsters have taken over this building. The world is very empty of context for the protagonist and his quest.
You’ll never be truly alone in Code Vein II.
As for Code Vein II’s presentation, it’s neat, but not really exceptional. The character and enemy designs include some delightfully gruesome designs and satisfy the “anime” aesthetic that the series is known for, but the world is rather bland and boring – a standard post-apocalypse that nature is slowly reclaiming. The English voice acting works well, and the music is good but not really memorable.
When it comes down to it, Code Vein II improves on the original game for a better experience, but the original was lacking in the beginning. Soulslikes fans will be satisfied with a quality title, even though it will be frustrating at times. However, casual players who aren’t looking for the challenging experience of these types of games will find little reason to try Code Vein II.
Code Vein II will be released on Friday for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series