Lost Soul Aside Review – Combat Triumphs, but Everything Else Stumbles

Lost Soul Aside positions itself as a flashy character action game in the tradition of Bayonetta, Devil May Cry, and modern Final Fantasy, but the experience is far more uneven than its polished trailers might suggest. While combat delivers some of the best moments of the adventure, much of what surrounds it feels like padding, leaving the final product split between dazzling encounters and uninspired connective tissue.

The setup of Lost Soul Aside is instantly familiar. In a sci-fi/fantasy world where alien energy fuels a powerful empire, players follow protagonist Kaser, a brooding figure who teams up with his dragon-like sidekick, Lord Arena, to resist tyranny. From the outset, the story draws heavy comparisons to Final Fantasy VII, with its underground resistance group striking against an empire in a grimy capital city. The resemblance is so strong that Charlie Wacholz, writing for IGN, noted:

“Sound familiar? If it doesn’t you should play Final Fantasy 7 instead, because it’s done better there and this retelling doesn’t do anything interesting or original with it.” — Charlie Wacholz

Over the course of its 16-hour runtime, Lost Soul Aside introduces a constant stream of new proper nouns, factions, and side characters, yet very few leave an impression. The dialogue, delivered through stiff cutscenes or basic over-the-shoulder exchanges, rarely elevates the material. Wacholz criticized the game for leaning on clichés, from its scantily clad, centuries-old teenage archetype to its boyband-styled lead who carries the air of a discounted Noctis. Any potential for campy fun or melodramatic flair is smothered by half-hearted execution and flat voice direction. By the time Kaser and Arena’s banter begins to show some charm, the story has already exhausted much of its goodwill.

If the narrative falters, combat comes to the rescue. Lost Soul Aside thrives when Kaser is in motion, slicing through waves of Voidrax enemies with a variety of weapons. Players have access to four main weapon types—sword, greatsword, poleblade, and scythe—each with distinct skill trees and combos. The ability to swap between weapons mid-combo adds depth and flexibility, giving players freedom to craft their own fighting style. Additional mechanics like Burst Pursuit finishers, parry systems, and a Witch Time-inspired dodge mechanic further layer the action, creating encounters that feel dynamic and rewarding.

Boss fights in particular highlight the best of what the game offers. Whether clashing with massive enemies that dominate the screen or engaging in duels against agile, human-sized opponents, these encounters are staged with flair. Each one culminates in stylish finishers that feel earned after carefully whittling down an opponent’s stagger meter. Wacholz described these fights as “dosed with just the right amount of toothy challenge,” capturing the balance between spectacle and player skill.

Lost Soul Aside™ on Steam here.

Still, the combat is not without its blemishes. Feedback can feel inconsistent, especially against smaller enemies where Kaser’s health drops unexpectedly without clear visual indicators. The result is a lack of clarity in tense moments, though audio barks from Kaser and Arena often compensate once health dips into dangerous territory. Despite this flaw, combat remains the highlight of the experience and the primary reason to see the game through.

Outside of battle, however, Lost Soul Aside struggles to maintain momentum. Levels are structured as mostly linear corridors punctuated by occasional open areas, padded with basic puzzles or treasure chests that rarely reward meaningful progress. The environments are visually detailed, but the underlying design is barebones. Wacholz described these sections as “boring and simple paths where you mostly just walk forward until the next fight,” reflecting how little they contribute beyond spacing out combat encounters.

Platforming proves to be the weakest component of the package. Jumping sequences are plagued with floaty physics, imprecise controls, and a limited field of view, resulting in frustrating trial-and-error gameplay. Wacholz compared these moments unfavorably to some of the most infamous Mario levels, noting that the poor design and lack of feedback made progress feel more like a chore than a challenge. Optional or not, these segments drag down pacing and highlight the game’s lack of polish outside of combat.

Crafting and resource gathering add little to the loop. Chests and pickups scattered throughout levels yield materials, but upgrades rarely improve stats enough to justify the effort. This system feels tacked on, existing more as a genre checkbox than as a meaningful mechanic. Similarly, puzzles fail to inspire, often reduced to shape-matching exercises that feel more like filler than thoughtful design.

It is clear that Lost Soul Aside wanted to be more than just a combat showcase. Its visual style is flashy, its world is dressed in high-budget aesthetics, and its systems nod toward role-playing depth. Yet when stripped of presentation, the game struggles to establish a distinct identity. Instead of carving its own space within the genre, it borrows heavily from Final Fantasy XV and VII Remake without offering the same narrative or structural strength. Wacholz suggested that the game feels less like a passion project and more like a product assembled to mimic popular trends in action RPGs.

For players who can tolerate the downtime between fights, the combat remains reason enough to explore what Lost Soul Aside has to offer. Its expressive combo system, weapon variety, and stylish finishers capture the thrill of character action games, even when wrapped in derivative trappings. For others, the repetitive story, uninspired level design, and painful platforming may prove too much of a hurdle to enjoy what shines underneath.

Lost Soul Aside is ultimately a story of contrasts. It showcases a combat system that could rival some of the best in the genre but shackles it to a narrative and design philosophy that drags it down. If the developers focus more tightly on action in the future—perhaps even leaning into a boss-rush format—they could turn a flawed but promising system into something remarkable. For now, it stands as a game best remembered for what it does in the heat of battle, not in the quiet moments in between.