No Rest for the Wicked Early Access Review – A Wicked Game

You’ve probably heard the song, “Ain’t no rest for the wicked.” That’s also true for Ori developer Moon Studios’ No Rest for the Wicked, its first action RPG that just entered Steam Early Access. You’re a monster hunter, a forager, and the backer for a collapsing town, sourcing everything necessary to improve and upgrade it. However, your innate survival and managing that is also key. There’s a “???” third step leading to profit somewhere, eventually – this is early access, after all.

However, there’s no denying the sheer friction that results from all the elements and genre mashes or the questionable design choices and lack of quality-of-life features. Thanks to multiple hotfixes – the most recent going live on April 23rd – the experience is somewhat smoother, but the base needs some more work before there’s money to be made (and I don’t mean in terms of early access copies sold).

"The characterization and voice acting are well done overall, whether it’s the manipulative yet solemn Seline or the weary but determined Governor Ellsworth (who also happens to be Harol’s brother)."

The story posits you as a Cerim, a warrior devoted to wiping out the Pestilence in a medieval fantasy world that leans closer to Game of Thrones in overall tone and presentation. You’re on the way to Isola Sacra, which has quickly become overrun by the plague’s horrors, but the ship carrying you is attacked and scuttled. Washing up on the beach and dealing with bandits and wild animals gives way to an enormous Torn boss that’s your first taste of the Pestilence’s challenge.

In the background, another game is afoot. King Harol is dead, and his son Magnus has taken the throne. He thus sends Madrigal Seline and her forces to Sacra to liberate it from the Torn infesting its ranks and the local rebels, known as the Risen.

There’s more going on than meets the eye, but when is there not? Your role is bigger than claimed, but given where the plot stops in early access, it’ll be some time before it’s fully resolved. At least the player seemingly has a role in all of this, instead of remaining a bit player while important events unfold before them.

The characterization and voice acting are well done overall, whether it’s the manipulative yet solemn Seline or the weary but determined Governor Ellsworth (who also happens to be Harol’s brother). From the bandit leader Darak, who seeks to assault the town, to the turncoat Rattigan, even the villains have some appealing traits. While Odessa, the governor’s daughter, looks to have an interesting arc – what led to her joining the risen, the conflicts with her father and so on – it’s still too early to judge how it pays off.

"Did you find a Claymore that’s noticeably better than the current one? Unfortunately, your Equip Load has gone from Medium to Heavy, so better luck next time."

Moon Studios has nailed the narrative vibe for No Rest for the Wicked, offering just enough to guide players and flesh out the world while maintaining the freedom to go your way. It’s also done exceptionally well with the presentation. The aesthetic is painterly, with muted colors and a gritty style. It allows effects like fire, lightning, rain, and so on to stand out, but these can get a little too heavy-handed, sometimes affecting visibility. Having a sword that’s perpetually alight with streaks of flames dancing about with each swing is pretty cool, but not when it mingles with everything else, making it harder to read an enemy’s next move.

No Rest for the Wicked is a Souls-like at heart. You have the standard Light Attack, held down to unleash a Heavy Attack. There’s a stamina bar that governs your movement and actions in combat; Runes for executing special abilities that consume Focus; and consumables, from food and weapon oils to explosives and potions. You and your enemies also have a Poise meter. Breaking that stuns either for more attacks. The usual attributes and their scaling; weapons with certain attribute requirements; Equip Load, which influences your rolls; and the ability to parry attacks to momentarily stun enemies – so far, so good.

However, that Stamina meter is also used for climbing, like in Monster Hunter World. This is odd enough, but then you start collecting weapons and notice that they can drop with random stats and, to my utter dismay, different weights. Did you find a Claymore that’s noticeably better than the current one? Unfortunately, your Equip Load has gone from Medium to Heavy, so better luck next time. Since Equip Load isn’t tied to any other stats, you need to forego them to equip more than a haggard piece of cloth for body armor.

A rare Azure Blade will have suffixes, which can slightly increase damage and attack speed, stamina usage on attacks, stamina recovery, etc. It also carries over to repair costs. When you die, items need repair lest their effectiveness drops. This is a Souls-like game – dying is more or less a given, especially when fighting bosses, which means spending money continuously to repair your equipment.

"Some areas, like the Nameless Pass and Sewers, are designed pretty well in that regard – certain sections are out of the way, which can be annoying to notice at times, but they’re extensive and require some degree of exploration."

While it isn’t such a major issue in the current “endgame” – where you can sell off excess loot and garner more than enough Gold and Silver – it’s irritating in the mid-game, especially with the constant porting back to town. At least enemies don’t immediately respawn if you clear out an area once, so that’s a plus.

Repair powder alleviates this a bit, and Moon Studios reduced the overall repair costs, but doesn’t pair well with a Souls-like mechanic. Of course, there’s even some crafting thrown in because of how the rarities work. Blue is Rare, while Purple is Cursed. Yes, “Cursed,” which is effectively a debuff, like reduced experience gained, more damage taken, Equip Load reduced (thus making you heavier), and – my favorite – damage taken reduces stamina, preventing you from fleeing or fighting back.

It’s not like these Purple items are just drops – they can also be obtained by enchanting a Rare item. You could thus take an item that served you well throughout a journey and effectively brick it. Is it that much difficult to find an item of the same type? Not particularly, though there’s no real target farming outside of the bounties and challenges, but why this mechanic is on top of what’s essentially a Souls-like, where upgrading and improving your weapon is essential, outright baffles me.

Going back to the repair costs on death, let’s assume you solo Malenia, the Blade of Miquella, as a hobby and don’t have much trouble with dying. Good news – No Rest for the Wicked is also an action-adventure platformer. You’ll climb up cliff faces, forts and mountains, reposition platforms to hop across, and tight-rope walk across beams when you’re not retrieving keys or pulling switches. Some areas, like the Nameless Pass and Sewers, are designed pretty well in that regard – certain sections are out of the way, which can be annoying to notice at times, but they’re extensive and require some degree of exploration.

"While there’s plenty to dislike about No Rest for the Wicked, the feel of combat isn’t one of them. Each weapon, whether it’s the quick, stabby daggers, the well-balanced swords, or the hefty claymore, feels great."

Then you fall because you meant to sprint into a jump instead of a dodge-roll since they’re tied to the same button on the controller. Maybe you’ll die with how fall damage works. Maybe it won’t happen again, and you won’t need to repair your items, or you picked up a Rune that repairs durability. I’m not saying there aren’t many ways to deal with it, but considering there’s so much causing friction with the mechanic already, you have to wonder if it should go away entirely. Also, despite a heavy exploration focus, movement can sometimes feel janky – too many times is the number I accidentally clambered on top of a pillar with fire while trying to walk past it or leapt off a ledge while trying to climb down its vines.

Finally, if all that wasn’t enough, No Rest for the Wicked also wants to be a survival-lite game, with resource gathering, mining, fishing and digging. Many of these materials go towards crafting and upgrading weapons or partaking in town projects, like upgrading vendors, the Blacksmith and whatnot. Do well enough by the town, and you can purchase housing (no freebies for saving lives, unfortunately) to further refine materials.

You can also purchase additional chests for storing consumables and other items, which is great. Not having all that many slots on your person? Certain items stacking at only 20 apiece? Not so great. Sure, you could – once again – make a trip back to town and sell off any excess loot and whatnot, but the crafting and upgrade materials? The ingredients? The fish? Before hotfixes, gathering materials was a tedious exercise, especially with how long they could take and the durability of tools. Both now feel better, enough to excuse the sparsity of some materials obtained.

While there’s plenty to dislike about No Rest for the Wicked, the feel of combat isn’t one of them. Each weapon, whether it’s the quick, stabby daggers, the well-balanced swords, or the hefty claymore, feels great. Each impact is weighty, and seeing an enemy cleaved in two with a final strike is satisfying. Getting into the rhythm of boss fights can also be as enjoyable as it is nerve-wracking.

"Certain enemies feel inherently all over the place in balance, like the crossbow/sword bandit, who can seamlessly switch between the two at the drop of a hat."

Sadly, some of the fundamentals of combat, especially against regular enemies, could use some work. You could bear down on a foe with a charged claymore hit, and foes with moderate shields will block like it’s nothing while taking no damage. Meanwhile, blocking feels borderline useless for the player, with the only advantage being parrying without consuming stamina.

All the good that parrying does, as enemies recover too quickly after your first hit. Several of your hits feel like they barely tickle while they’re constantly staggering you with theirs. Add the dire lack of Stamina in the early game, and it feels like an unnecessary struggle. Even by the mid to late game, you seemingly need to put some points into the stat and have enough Stamina regeneration on your gear to stand a chance.

Certain enemies feel inherently all over the place in balance, like the crossbow/sword bandit, who can seamlessly switch between the two at the drop of a hat. It also feels like others can knock you down super-easily and follow up with attacks without any delay while you’re still recovering on the ground.

There was one fight against three bandits – two that kept staggering me out of attacks, while the other continuously parried anything that did go through. Despite being over-levelled, I accepted the skill issue and just left. In many fights, it felt like I was trying to face-tank things using a perk that heals on damage dealt and the copious amounts of food prepared rather than relying on raw skill.

Once you clear the story content and complete some side quests, the end-game dungeon, Cerim Crucible, opens up. This rogue-like activity features ten random floors and enemy arrangements to fight through before ending with a boss. It’s a good concept, and given the diverse level layouts with water, different elevations and whatnot, they can make for some interesting encounters.

"I have some hope that No Rest for the Wicked will turn into something special, maintaining its difficulty while ensuring all of its genres hum together in unison."

I’m unsure how Moon Studios will add to this in the future besides potentially having other bosses at the end of floors, but hopefully, there’s more to it as early access proceeds. There are also bounties and challenges to complete, though you can only track one bounty at a time. The automatic world scaling could use some work – the island becoming more dangerous and having new threats is all well and good, but when it jumps straight up to “Dangerous” with enemies that tank hit after hit, it feels like a needless difficulty spike.

Given all these complaints, it is worth noting that No Rest for the Wicked is in early access. So many issues have already been improved, like the shoddy performance (which still feels iffy in places). However, there are still a few bugs, from French dialogue while playing in English to missing interaction text. The isometric perspective also has some issues, where objectives in the foreground occasionally don’t fade out. Then you have basic features, like customizable keyboard and mouse controls or proper graphical options outside of quality presets, render scale, motion blur and framerate cap, that are missing.

I have some hope that No Rest for the Wicked will turn into something special, maintaining its difficulty while ensuring all of its genres hum together in unison. Right now, Moon Studios needs a lot more time to fix or outright overhaul several systems, refine the combat and tune its enemies, optimize performance, and dozens of other things.

This game was reviewed on PC.