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Mortal Shell Review Thread

Dancrane212

Dancrane212

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,989

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Releases digitally tomorrow on PC (EGS), PS4 and XB1 for $29.99 USD. A physical version will release on October 2nd in Europe and North America.

Metacritic
Xbox One | PC | PS4
Opencritic

TheOuterHaven 4.5/5
It's still hard to believe that Mortal Shell is Cold Symmetry's first game, as this game rivals many AAA games. Everything in the game screams quality, from the gameplay to the art and sound direction. As a long time fan of Soulslike games, Mortal Shell has shot to the top of my favorite game lists and I can't wait to see what the devs do next. If you enjoy these sorts of games like I do, I recommend giving Mortal Shell a try.
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Gameskinny 8/10
Far from being a pretender, Mortal Shell is a sometimes exceptional entry to the genre. Its stumbles are noticeable only because there is so much to enjoy.
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Godisageek 7.5/10
More attention to the story would have gone a long way, but Mortal Shell is an intriguing adventure, and an accomplished addition to the Soulslike genre.
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GamerGuides 3.5/5
Mortal Shell is an excellent first game from Cold Symmetry and although light on content, I cannot wait to see more of Mortal Shell down the line.
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Tech Raptor 6/10
Mortal Shell boasts responsive combat and gorgeous visuals, but it's let down by rote level design, poor storytelling, and a general unfinished feel.
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PushSquare 8/10
With beautiful environments and plenty to discover, Mortal Shell is a compelling world to explore. After a steep learning curve, its combat is challenging but fascinating, and with a great sense of reward once you master it. It might be a little too similar to Dark Souls in terms of overall tone and style, but it brings enough new ideas functionally to make it stand out from the crowd. Ultimately, this is a great entry into a demanding sub-genre that fans won't want to miss.
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thesixthaxis 8/10
Mortal Shell is just an incredibly satisfying experience. It'll punish you constantly, but if you can master the mechanics it lays out in front of you then you'll have an incredible time of things. The lore is a little more obvious that in other soulslikes, and the story it tells and the world it puts you in are both rather enthralling. This is definitely a game that fans of dying a lot will enjoy, but it's probably not for everyone.
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SP1ST 8/10
Mortal Shell brings a lot of new ideas to the Souls formula and while it doesn't quite succeed in all of them, the things it does are more than enough to give a promising start to what I hope becomes a franchise.
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PSU 6/10
Unfortunately Mortal Shell just feels like a bad Dark Souls game, while I enjoyed it initially, the more I played the more it wore away my enjoyment. The few unique features it has do make the game feel slightly unique but its world-building, combat and enemies pale in comparison to its inspiration. The bad AI and other small issues do little to complement what could have been an enjoyable title. There are far better games in the genre.
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Gamespew 6/10
There's some good to be found in Mortal Shell; its world is interesting and generally well designed, it looks lovely, and some of its boss fights really are exhilarating. But there are just so many aspects of it that will leave you frustrated, underwhelmed or disappointed. It's a shorter, more focused Souls-like experience that demands you go toe-to-toe with your aggressors, but its combat and surrounding systems just aren't good enough for you to feel wholly fulfilled by it all. It'll no doubt have its fans, but Mortal Shell could have been so much better with more polish and some tweaks here and there.
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Critical Hit Gaming 7/10
Mortal Shell is an excellent entry in the Souls-like space with some fantastic ideas around character progression and combat, but is unfortunately let down by a health system that discourages exploration and an element of tedium that unnecessarily pads out encounters.
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PCGamer 80/100
Enjoyably tough and esoteric, if a little uneven, Mortal Shell is a decent debut from Cold Symmetry.
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wccftech 7.7/10
More in line with From Software's Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice than a traditional Soulslike, Mortal Shell offers a short and sweet take on the hardcore action RPG formula by focusing the player to harden up and push the offensive in order to create the perfect defense.
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Karak - "Buy"



SweetJohnnyCage - "Loved it, but wish it was way longer and had better enemy diversity. Some great ideas at play."


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KOfLegend

KOfLegend

Member
Jun 17, 2019
1,795
Reception seems kind of similar to the first The Surge, no? That was a pretty fun but flawed game. I'll check this out for sure!
 
Alek

Alek

Games User Researcher
Verified
Oct 28, 2017
8,542
More than anything, the name and art style puts me off. It just seems like it's trying so very hard to be dark and edgy, to mimic souls I suppose. But I'm willing to give it a chance, I can see they have some original ideas in the gameplay. I'll pick it up later in the year if I have a gap in games to play.
 
Uzupedro

Uzupedro

Banned
May 16, 2020
12,234
Rio de Janeiro
AntiMacro

AntiMacro

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,158
Alberta
I really liked it, amazing atmosphere and some really fun boss battles. The desperation as you get knocked out of your shell and have to try to get back in without taking a hit is pretty intense, and I really like the 'parry, riposte, heal' mechanic.
 
benzopil

benzopil

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,158
Surprised to see so many 9s and 8s, the game is very short and I'm not sure that $30 is a resonable price. But the game is fun at least. It's a shame that it ends right when you are getting started.
 
Mr.Deadshot

Mr.Deadshot

Member
Oct 27, 2017
20,285
Sounds like a solid foundation that can be patched into greatness. Seems like an easy buy at the Xmas epic sales for 14.99€ - 10€ voucher :)
 
JudgmentJay

JudgmentJay

Member
Nov 14, 2017
5,287
Texas
Hmm, a bit better than I expected so far. I guess I'll give it a shot.

Oh, it's an EGS timed exclusive. Guess I'll play it next year then.
 
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Lightjolly

Lightjolly

Member
Oct 30, 2019
4,665
Looks like it'll score a bit better than Hellpoint, but soulslike receive the hardest criticisms now
 
dodo

dodo

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,017
GungJoe said:
More than anything, the name and art style puts me off. It just seems like it's trying so very hard to be dark and edgy, to mimic souls I suppose. But I'm willing to give it a chance, I can see they have some original ideas in the gameplay. I'll pick it up later in the year if I have a gap in games to play.
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what on earth is "edgy" about it?
 

Deleted member 16876

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
39,148
Sounds like a good time. Will get it later as I have to much on my plate right now.

The short length is fine. It will fit nicely inbetween big games.
 
KaiPow

KaiPow

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,120
Mine:

wccftech.com

Mortal Shell (PS4) Review - Shells Crack Twice

No longer known as Dungeonhaven, Mortal Shell is a brand new hardcore Soulslike that everyone should give a crack or two at.
wccftech.com wccftech.com

Watch me suffer against one of the main bosses because I sequence broke the game and never unlocked the parry ability (and got locked out of returning to the hub area temporarily)
 
Jedi2016

Jedi2016

Member
Oct 27, 2017
16,262
Kind of forgot this was coming out with all the fuss about Flight Simulator.

I do still have a coupon on Epic, and probably nothing else to spend it on for the time being, so I might as well pick this up.
 
SweetJohnnyCage

SweetJohnnyCage

Member
Nov 13, 2017
1,670
KaiPow said:
Mine:

wccftech.com

Mortal Shell (PS4) Review - Shells Crack Twice

No longer known as Dungeonhaven, Mortal Shell is a brand new hardcore Soulslike that everyone should give a crack or two at.
wccftech.com wccftech.com

Watch me suffer against one of the main bosses because I sequence broke the game and never unlocked the parry ability (and got locked out of returning to the hub area temporarily)
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ROFL I didn't pick it up for several hours as well, but never made it to any bosses without it.
 
OP
OP
Dancrane212

Dancrane212

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,989
KaiPow said:
Mine:

wccftech.com

Mortal Shell (PS4) Review - Shells Crack Twice

No longer known as Dungeonhaven, Mortal Shell is a brand new hardcore Soulslike that everyone should give a crack or two at.
wccftech.com wccftech.com

Watch me suffer against one of the main bosses because I sequence broke the game and never unlocked the parry ability (and got locked out of returning to the hub area temporarily)
Click to expand...
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Shells Crack Twice
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Haha, I have almost the same heading for the OT.

"These Shells Crack Twice"
 
Astraer

Astraer

Gamer Guides
Verified
Oct 28, 2017
636
NovaXz said:
How hard would you say it is in relation to Dark Souls/BloodBorne/Sekiro
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Hmm, I found it pretty tough early on while I was getting to grips with Harden mechanic especially but once I got the second shell, it was a bit easier. I only ever died once on one of the bosses outside of the final boss which I died on twice.
 
ghostcrew

ghostcrew

The Shrouded Ghost
Administrator
Oct 27, 2017
30,529
Haven't been keeping up with this and I'm definitely interested. It looks gorgeous!
 
Dust

Dust

C H A O S
Member
Oct 25, 2017
33,682
It actually reads like everything I was expecting after that beta/demo, definitely something I will play sooner or later.
If I played Lords of the Fallen, sky is the limit for Souls clones lol.
 
ezekial45

ezekial45

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,885
8/10 from GameSpot

www.gamespot.com

Mortal Shell Review

Developer Cold Symmetry's budget action-RPG is a love letter to From Software's work, but Mortal Shell's take on similar ideas feels aimed at those who struggle to get through Soulsborne games.
www.gamespot.com www.gamespot.com
 
SweetJohnnyCage

SweetJohnnyCage

Member
Nov 13, 2017
1,670
KaiPow said:
Oh wow.

I never actually figured out how to get to the hub area normally. When you get the
Baghead Ending
, it teleports you to the Sester there.
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A friend of mine, who started a few hours before I did, told me to 100% follow where the camera is telling you to go in the beginning. He missed the first shell entirely and wandered around the woods for several hours.
 
shadowhaxor

shadowhaxor

EIC of Theouterhaven
Verified
Oct 27, 2017
1,740
Claymont, Delaware
stn said:
Will this be releasing on disc or is it digital only?
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It was originally only-digital but is now getting a physical release but after the release date.

Update:

As manufacturing and distributing a physical edition adds to the production schedule, the physical version will release on Friday October 2 across Europe and North America, which is nearly two months after the digital release. We are confident the wait for this collector's item will be worth it."
 
Nuszka

Nuszka

Member
Oct 26, 2017
178
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