Lies of P: Overture Review – A Link to the Past

The last time we spoke about Lies of P at length, we found it to be a great game even then. Two years and plenty of updates later, our thoughts on the base game haven’t changed much. In fact, anticipation for a sequel is quite high thanks to the fact that the ending gave us a great sequel hook. In the meantime, however, developer Neowiz has released the Overture DLC, which doesn’t really set up new plot points as much as it tries to give us more context for the story we already got in the base game.

Before we go further, let’s address the proverbial elephant in the room first. Overture is meant to be a late-game DLC for Lies of P. In fact, you can’t even access it until you’ve hit up the base game’s ninth chapter. This means that, while Overture largely revolves around an entirely new cast of characters in a different zone entirely terms of both location and time, there might be some accidental spoilers that pop up every now and then. In fact, even Neowiz goes as far as recommending at least one complete playthrough of the base game before you hit up the DLC.

With this approach to DLC, Overture does come with a few issues. The biggest one being the fact that, to get the best possible enjoyment out of the DLC and its fun story, you’ll have to be fairly familiar with the overall plot of Lies of P. The DLC being meant to be played through during the final parts of the base game also means that you’ll have to start all over again if you’ve already kicked off a New Game Plus run, since there are also some issues with how difficulty works in Overture. We’ll get to that part soon enough, however.

"Thankfully, the shorter length of Overture when compared to the base game means that things quickly start ramping up again before too long."

Overture being a late-game DLC also means that the story’s pacing becomes strange again. Where in the base game, by the time you get the ability to start the DLC is essentially the start of climactic act for Lies of P, starting Overture at that point will once again grind the story back to a halt as it slowly introduces its new characters and setting to you. Thankfully, the shorter length of Overture when compared to the base game means that things quickly start ramping up again before too long.

With that out of the way, Overture is, generally speaking, a fun addition to Lies of P. Rather than looking forward to set up more groundwork for a sequel, the DLC is instead more interested in looking at the past of the game’s primary setting of Krat, giving us a better look at the city right as it teeters on the brink of the collapse we get to fight our way through in the base game. Even the first time you see one of the major buildings of Krat before its destruction – the Krat Zoo – is definitely a fun moment early in the game.

Seeing Krat Zoo from a vantage point on a cliff and actually getting to it reveals one of the few problems that Overture faces. The first being the fact that there is definitely an element of checkpoint starvation, especially in the DLC’s earlier parts. In the base Lies of P, this doesn’t really feel like much of an issue since the game features some excellent level design that often has you unlocking new shortcuts. However, these elements, while still present in Overture, have definitely been scaled back. In fact, you better hope that you don’t die in the earlier parts of Krat Zoo, because the closest checkpoint is all the way back at the top of the cliff, which means a long walk back.

"There is definitely an element of checkpoint starvation, especially in the DLC’s earlier parts."

Speaking of which, now would be as good a time to talk about the balancing and overall difficulty as any. With the release of Overture, Lies of P also got an update that brought with it a pair of easier difficulty options, while also letting those looking for a challenge keep the game at its original level of difficulty. While this works out great for the base game, the DLC feels like a different story entirely. Some of the newer regular enemies in Overture definitely feel like they might be a bit overtuned, with attacks that can disintegrate your health bar in a matter of just a couple of hits.

Incidentally, this problem doesn’t seem to have affected the new boss fights, which complement the ones we fought in the base game quite nicely. While we don’t really get anything revolutionary, the boss fights are still a lot of fun. The zoo, for example, pits you against a gigantic alligator quite early on. There are also plenty of puppets to fight, including one of the new antagonists, Markiona, who you get to face off in a dual-boss fight. Generally speaking, the boss fights in the DLC feel a lot better balanced than the standard rank-and-file enemies you tend to face along the way.

As for regular enemies, Overture makes brings with it some new varieties of foes to fight, including plenty of berserk animals. However, the DLC also makes heavy use of repeated enemies from the base game, like zombie dogs and humans.

"Overture is exactly what Lies of P needed to begin with – just more Lies of P."

The most important thing to note about Overture is that, much like the base game, it isn’t doing anything revolutionary. Sure, it builds on the style of combat and weapon crafting that Lies of P first introduced to us, but other than that, we aren’t getting any grand plot exposition that will affect your future playthroughs of the base game. The story told, while interesting, is largely self-contained, and ultimately doesn’t affect much in the base game.

Rather, Overture is exactly what Lies of P needed to begin with – just more Lies of P. Its new locations and boss fights are downright fantastic, and the only major issues with the entire DLC can be easily fixed with a balance update or two.

There is something to be said about a developer that understands exactly what made a game good, and decided to just add more of the good stuff to the game and make it bigger. Lies of P: Overture may not be the grand, epic DLC you might expect like Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree or Bloodborne’s The Old Hunters. However, it is still a downright excellent way to spend a weekend, at least once you get back into the groove and stop dying to regular enemies early on.

This game was reviewed on PC.