Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is an action role-playing game developed by Team Ninja and published by Koei Tecmo, the team behind Nioh and Nioh II—both of which are considered Soulslike.
Soulslike is a term used to describe a subgenre of action role-playing games in which the combat is difficult and unforgiving and requires players to identify patterns in enemy movements and act accordingly.
There’s also an emphasis on checkpoints, respawns, and resource management, and the story tends to unfold as one progresses through the environment rather than through cutscenes and chapters. These are qualities inspired by the core mechanics in the Dark Souls series, hence the name.
But even though Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty was developed by a team known for making crucially-acclaimed Soulslikes, does it fall within the subgenre itself?
Is Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty a Soulslike?
In short, yes—Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a Soulslike game. It has most of the qualities that define the subgenre. Enemies are difficult, it uses a health flask system, and has checkpoints. The combat is also similar to Sekiro, another Soulslike title with a similar theme and setting. Combat is fast, with a stronger emphasis on blocking and parrying.
There are, however, some minor differences to the usual bread-and-butter Soulslike formula. For example, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty doesn’t include stamina or any restrictions based on it. Instead, it features a poise system—encouraging players not to attack recklessly.
It also has a different approach to punishing players by weakening them every time they die, which is another integral part of Soulslike titles. Rather than lowering health or weakening attacks upon death, the developers implemented a Morale system that increases with each kill. The higher it is, the more damage a player deals, and the less they receive.
At first, it starts at zero for each mission but can be increased up to 25. It will, however, drop each time an enemy lands a successful strike. Enemies have their own Morale rank, too. Whoever’s is higher will deal more damage.
Morale also ties into Fortitude, another system used to determine how low Morale can drop. It can be increased by planting Battle Flags and Marking Flags. If a player’s Fortitude in any given mission is 10, their Morale cannot drop lower than that.
So, while Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is Soulslike at its core, the devs have implemented new ideas and features to build on the formula and, in turn, make it a unique title.
