Lost Soul Aside has been on the minds of both developers and gamers for a decade. The brainchild of Yang Bing through UltiZero Games from as early as 2014, the IP intrigued players through a style promising unique action-RPG gameplay. Fast forward to 2025 and we’ve now had the opportunity to play through the game, testing its combat in comparison to a raft of other titles focused on substance and flash. Does the game showcase the passion and promise of its developer? Is there enough here to separate Lost Soul Aside from the pack, forming its own identity? Read on.
My playthrough of Lost Soul Aside was one of big swings, heavy hits and conflict. The gameplay is fast, colour-filled and precise in its purpose to make the player feel capable of pulling off wild combos to whittle down enemy health bars. The range of different weapons, abilities and buffs continued to expand across the 30 hours of play, fully customisable and lighting up the arenas with elements such as fire and ice to create distinction between loadouts. The boss battles were a blast, especially when timing that perfect blue-ringed parry or dashing with L1 from under the enemy’s nose (only to return from behind with a powerful slice). An example of a large-scale boss battle is about 4 hours into the game, with a long-clawed dragon dwarfing the player like a God of War set piece. The absolute size of the beast means the arena is gigantic, as AoE attacks cover much of the platform. The player must cut all the nails off the dragon to cause a stagger and then use the strongest combos to bring down as much health as possible before it wakes up and fills the screen with projectiles again. The battle takes time, precision, patience and all the skills learned up until that point for victory. Fail? The game provides buffs that boost stats if you choose to apply them. Think of these offerings as an easy mode if wanting to progress faster or struggling with a particular boss. I conquered this boss without the buffs, a level of accomplishment in some of my combos showcasing the game’s ability to make you feel masterful if played right.
When the moves connect and click, the combat is exhilarating and addictive – especially when causing the stagger. I enjoyed playing around with the different abilities that could be applied to the weapons, which is at its best later in the game when the options fully open up to really put a personality stamp on approach. The time spent outside of battle was where the conflict started to arise. Moving through the linear levels, collecting bright items and double-jumping over pits operated like most other third-person action games. The running motion needs improvement, but otherwise this served its purpose to ensure the game was not only emphasising set-piece combat even though combat is its signature and strength. The light puzzles and mob enemies provided opportunity to practice moves and traversal, which assists in the larger fights, though is utilised as time for your companion to talk about the game world. The next topic is where improvements will assist in any future content from this IP and developer.
Story and combat are at their best when they complement each other. Entering a fight with high stakes by protecting a beloved character and desiring the next story beat means time is often lost in those late nights of play. Lost Soul Aside has a story to drive momentum, an original world, a band of characters and a plight. These are the staples of all plot-driven games. This title really tries to create a brooding lead and a companion acting as a guide to the world, but the method of storytelling attempts to achieve too much too early. Establishing world themes before using them as carrots to move forward would have benefitted the early hours, as many will solely focus on learning the exciting combat. The English voice dub was not as polished as the original voice; therefore, I swapped and used the intended voices to help with the emotive focus of the story. The game offers a range of customisable options such as this to play your way, working extremely well in parts. The story just needs a greater base and entry into world themes/history, a challenge for most new IPs trying to find their place amongst IPs that have been around for nearly 30 years. With further attention to character and place, the potential to craft more stories in this world remains high.
The soundtrack in this game is a highlight. The menu screen song reminded me of Final Fantasy XVI, while the children chanting track also provided an edge when used. This again shows an emotion focus tied to the game and its development, with the clear attempts to drive hard with themes and characters between moments of action. While this is not always realised as a package, the wide assortment of ingredients again adds interesting facets that urge continued play. The soundtrack is up there with the best of 2025 in both the story and combat scenarios, with only minor performance dips. Any lovers of game tracks will find plenty to add to their Spotify list here. Graphically, the game ran well on base PS5 performance mode and kept up with the fast-paced combat.
Lost Soul Aside is a combat-focused game that succeeds in its efforts to create powerful and entertaining fight sequences that can be constructed by player preference in attack. My time with the new IP was enjoyable whenever my sword was drawn to slice an enemy, and there is potential there for future games if the combat connects with the masses. While story and character are not as memorable as the action, the soundtrack is sweeping to create enough positives for a solid 30+ hour playthrough. This game is not a souls-like, more connected to Devil May Cry and the latter Final Fantasy games in stylised action. If this is your field, Lost Soul Aside may be your next action-RPG addiction.
Pros
- Deep combat mechanics with heavy customisation
- Fantastic soundtrack, powerful songs
- Good level of content and appropriate length
- Potential remains for the IP
Cons
- Story and characters are not as memorable as combat
- Movement outside of combat can be jarring
