10 years later, Final Fantasy-like RPG Lost Soul Aside launches to mixed reviews

Final Fantasy-inspired RPG Lost Soul Aside has finally arrived after a decade in development. However, it's already gotten off to a rocky start on Steam, with players lambasting its poor performance and lack of fluidity in multiple areas. I had a feeling that it was in for a rough landing based on the absence of review access; it's often a clear marker that a game will launch in a suboptimal state. Though players have found a workaround for choppy frames, developer Ultizero Games is working on a more substantial fix, among other optimization tweaks.

Lost Soul Aside is one of the most impressive RPGs I've seen. It's not because of its flowy gameplay and impressive visuals - there's plenty of that about - but because it represents the unwavering vision and indomitable persistence of a single developer. In 2014, Yang Bing began what was then a passion project after being mesmerized by Final Fantasy 15 (me too, bestie). Over the past decade, that vision has seen the developer start up a whole studio, after the game was picked up by Sony's China Hero Project. It's a story that makes you want to root for the impassioned team, but unfortunately, it looks like Lost Soul Aside won't be slotting into our best action-adventure games list for now.

As of writing, Lost Soul Aside has a 'mixed' rating on Steam, with 342 reviewers weighing in on Kasen's epic. The major point of criticism surrounds its performance, which encapsulates "wildly inconsistent" frame rates and choppy cinematics. When it comes to the former complaint, turning ray tracing off has been a major boon for some, so give that a go if you're also suffering from choppiness. As for the latter, Ultizero is already working on it.

"We have received your feedback regarding the performance of certain cutscenes in the prologue of Lost Soul Aside," the studio says on X. "Currently, some of these cutscenes are pre-rendered 4K/30fps videos, which may cause occasional stuttering during playback. […] The Lost Soul Aside team is actively working on optimizations, and future updates will address this to deliver a smoother gameplay experience."

Though everything appears to be in hand, the qualms don't end there. One reviewer highlights "disorienting, disengaging" traversal, "heavily restricted" exploration, and pacing issues when it comes to cutscene placement.

Conversely, other players are having a blast. "The game is W, I miss this feeling of fantasy," writes one player. Another notes its "AA feel" is "enticing and harmless," and harkens back to a bygone era of gaming. It was always going to be difficult to flawlessly execute such an ambitious project with a small team; Expedition 33 developer Sandfall Interactive is a freak in that regard. So I feel that, if any studio deserves a chance to iron out the creases, it's Ultizero. A demo for Lost Soul Aside is available on Steam, so give it a go if you'd rather get a feel for the game yourself.

If you're holding off on Lost Soul Aside for now, check out more of the best RPGs you can be hacking and slashing away in instead. Or, if you do plan on diving in, read up on the Lost Soul Aside system requirements to make sure your rig's ready for the adventure ahead.

If you've taken the plunge into Lost Soul Aside, let us know how you're finding it over in our community Discord server.