"Beast of Reincarnation": The "Pokémon" studio surprises with a post-apocalyptic hit
4.8.2026
Translation: machine translated
Pictures: Domagoj Belancic
"Beast of Reincarnation" is a beautifully melancholic action RPG with fresh gameplay ideas and an unspent setting. Without the technical weaknesses, Game Freak's experiment would have deserved the title of masterpiece.
The "Pokémon" developer Game Freak doesn't just produce games with the cuddly creatures. The Japanese company also regularly releases smaller experiments – most recently, for example, the horse card game "Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On" or the role-playing game "Little Town Hero".
With "Beast of Reincarnation", Game Freak ventures into its most ambitious and largest title to date outside the "Pokémon" world. For me, it's the company's best game in 20 years. The unique action role-playing game impresses with a special symbiosis of gameplay and storytelling, an innovative combat system, and a post-apocalypse that feels refreshingly different.
It's just a shame that Game Freak also fails to deliver a clean technical implementation with "Beast of Reincarnation".
What a beautiful, creative, and fresh world
I love post-apocalyptic settings. But even as a fan, I have to admit that many end-of-the-world settings in games, movies, and books are very similar. "Beast of Reincarnation" manages to stand out from the uniform mass of destroyed civilizations with fresh ideas.
The game is set several thousand years in the future in a destroyed Japan, plagued by a mysterious plague. It infects all living creatures, transforming them into plant-overgrown mutants – or killing them.
Humans live in isolated civilizations – if you can even call them "humans" anymore. With the help of modern technology, they have managed to completely suppress negative emotions. But with the loss of sadness, anger, and fear, empathy has also disappeared.
Humanity has lost what once made it human. Some have even transferred their souls (or what's left of them) into robot shells, called Golems.
I slip into the role of Emma. She is infected but has learned to live with the disease. More than that: the plague gives her superpowers. As an outcast, she is condemned to hunt so-called "Nushi" on behalf of a settlement. These are giant plant mutants that pose a great danger to the remnants of human civilization.
In the course of the story, Emma receives an even more important mission – she is to kill the titular "Beast of Reincarnation", which is responsible for the plague. And so begins my epic adventure through devastated Japan.
The game takes me to countless incredibly creatively designed places that fill me with awe and wonder. The combination of modern technology, ancient ruins, and the plant plague feels wonderfully fresh and unspoiled amidst all the uniformly looking AAA games.
And because pictures say more than a thousand words, I'll leave you with some favorite photos from my melancholic journey. Sit back and enjoy the view.
I'd kill for you, Kuu
I'm not alone on my quest for the Beast of Reincarnation. By my side is a giant wolf (dog?), also afflicted by the plague. Emma affectionately calls him Kuu.
Throughout the story, a close bond develops between the two. Game Freak manages to build the relationship between human and animal piece by piece in cutscenes without dialogue. Emma lovingly cares for the dog – even if the concept of "love" is initially foreign to her. She showers him, cuddles him, feeds him. When I see them peacefully falling asleep at campsites, my heart melts. And when Kuu nudges Emma's lifeless body after a lost battle and whimpers desperately, I shed a tear.
When I'm not on foot, I let myself be driven around by a huge vehicle reminiscent of an AT-ST from "Star Wars". The machinery is operated by Brad – a mysterious pilot acting on behalf of the government.
Also on board is Kagura. A little girl Emma rescues from one of the settlements. The strange cast is rounded off by the ghost girl Violet, whom only Emma can see or hear.
The dialogues are interestingly written, the quirky characters have depth, and the mysterious story surprisingly develops with each chapter – including exciting cliffhangers.
It's just a shame that the storytelling suffers from an uneven pace. It takes several hours for the story to pick up speed. In return, later in the game, I'm served exaggerated lore dumps where the story suddenly progresses at light speed. However, those who are patient and stick with it will be rewarded with an exciting and emotional finale full of twists.
Kick my ass, I love it
Game Freak deserves special praise for the successful symbiosis of emotional storytelling and gameplay. The relationship between Emma and Kuu is strengthened not only passively in cutscenes but also actively in the gameplay. With every battle, the dog grows closer to my heart – not least because he often helps me out of a jam.
Emma attacks enemies with a sword, a crossbow, and a bow and arrow. With her plague superpowers, she can unleash devastating combos. She makes plants sprout from the ground, turns her hair into deadly root whips, magically whirls through the air, or slows down time to fillet enemies in bullet-time.
Kuu helps her in combat with automatically executed attacks and his own plant special attacks. To activate these, I press the triangle button. The game stops, and I can calmly consider which attack I want to start with Kuu.
The battles are ultra-fast and require maximum concentration. Kuu's attack selection allows me to take a breath and plan my next moves. During these short breaks, the game feels like a turn-based role-playing game (hello, "Pokémon").
After I've selected an attack, a short quick-time event follows. If I complete it successfully, Kuu's attack heals Emma. Honestly, I've never seen a companion in a game more useful than the white wolfdog. The constant interplay of the two protagonists in combat deepens their relationship more than any cutscene could.
Kuu's special attacks are limited. To attack with him, I first have to fill a special bar. I do this by perfectly parrying enemy attacks with Emma's sword. Fortunately, the timing windows for blocking are more forgiving than in comparable action RPGs or Soulslike games.
Nevertheless, a warning here: "Beast of Reincarnation" is no walk in the park. When enemies attack, they do so viciously. With some bosses, I have to fend off up to ten consecutive attacks before I can attack again. Parrying sometimes feels like a rhythm game where I have to perfectly memorize attack patterns. And because I need enemy attacks for Kuu's special bar, I'm in a constant balancing act. One small mistake and I'm out of the game.
Nevertheless, I never feel even remotely frustrated. If I die, I wake up at one of the many campfires scattered across the levels. The checkpoints work similarly to a Soulslike: there I regenerate my health, replenish my stimpacks, and improve my abilities. However, if I activate a checkpoint, the defeated enemies also return.
Unlike in Soulslikes, after my death, I don't have to spend minutes walking back to bosses. Nor do I lose progress or XP. I just get up and try again. And again. And again. I like this approach. It removes the most annoying aspects of Soulslikes but maintains the tension created by the checkpoint system.
Vertical levels and invisible boundaries
The level design is largely successful. Emma and Kuu roam open game areas where many secrets, items, and ultra-hard optional boss fights await them. Kuu guides me to exciting places with barks and whimpers. I'm telling you: the best companion ever.
It's incredibly fun to explore the beautiful landscapes – not least because of Emma's movement abilities. The infected heroine can tie her hair into an improvised bridge. This allows me to easily cross ravines or approach enemies from above and kill them with a stealth attack.
Emma can also float upwards for a short time with conjured roots. In addition, she swings herself up at certain anchor points with her hair. This way, I can reach even high towers, where cool rewards usually await.
The levels are designed vertically to match Emma's abilities and invite me to explore on multiple levels. All the more annoying are some invisible walls that I notice especially later in the game. This rarely happens, but it stands out all the more negatively compared to the otherwise great freedoms.
Panic attacks with the progression system
Game Freak went a bit overboard with the progression system. As the game progresses, I sink into a confusing sea of skills, items, equipment, and upgrades.
Emma and Kuu absorb the abilities of defeated enemies after each boss fight. Actually a cool idea – this way I get new attacks and special abilities with every boss killed.
Unfortunately, these are integrated into a confusing skill tree that raises more questions than answers. Why do I have identical attacks that are displayed once as a "Move" and once as a "Finisher"? What is the difference between "Level" and "Stages" for my attacks? Because of what fucking ability has my character been glowing yellow for half an hour (I still don't know)?
Aargh.
The desire for systematic upgrades diminishes with increasing complexity. I focus on a few understandable skills and ignore the overwhelming rest.
The research system is no less complex. To unlock certain items, Kuu and Kagura must first "research" them. How does a dog research? And how does a little girl? I aimlessly click through menus and hope for the best.
And hey, somehow it works. Karuga surprises me with her research in the form of ingredients she grows in the AT-ST (I'll just call the vehicle that now) – rice, strawberries, wheat. Yes, she even researches and manages a chicken coop. And with recipes I find on my travels, she conjures up delicious dishes that give me temporary buffs. After research, Kuu gives me items like bombs, fire traps, or healing potions, which he equips and uses autonomously in combat.
In contrast to these overly complicated systems, Game Freak inexplicably seems to have cut corners in other areas. Some abilities and upgrades reach maximum level far too quickly.
In the mobile base, I can, for example, have optional "conversations" with Kuu. This strengthens our bond and unlocks various bonuses for battles. It takes about 23 hours to reach the credits – but I reach the maximum relationship level after about ten hours.
The same applies to the expansion of our base, for which I need resources found in the game world. Shortly after maximizing my relationship with Kuu, all improvements there are also unlocked – this diminishes my motivation to continue thoroughly exploring the game world.
And while I'm complaining: I would have liked more options to upgrade my weapons. Cosmetic customizations for Emma and Kuu are also missing. All the armor I find changes my stats, but remains visually invisible.
Game Freak's Achilles' heel: the damn technology
Fortunately, the minor teething problems in level design and the progression system don't bother me too much. They fade into the background as soon as I'm back in the world, discovering mystical places and slicing nasty Golems in half.
What I cannot ignore, however, is the sometimes miserable technical implementation. But hey, that's somehow part of Game Freak. The fact that the studio worked with numerous external production studios for "Beast of Reincarnation" unfortunately doesn't seem to have borne any significant fruit – quite the opposite.
The framerate is a disaster, fluctuating unpredictably up and down. The resolution on my PS5 Pro is almost ridiculously low. And the best part: I see no differences between the three graphics options ("Performance", "Graphics", "PS5 Pro") – neither in terms of framerate nor resolution.
In the world, I constantly find areas with jagged objects and muddy textures. Almost as if the game hadn't finished loading yet. Most distracting, however, is the sometimes ugly lighting. Shadows are ultra-low resolution and flicker, as do light rays in dark environments.
It's a real shame. But: it speaks volumes for the fantastic art direction of the game that post-apocalyptic Japan looks so good despite its numerous technical weaknesses.
"Beast of Reincarnation" will be released on August 4th for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. The game was provided to me for testing purposes by Fictions for PS5 (Pro).
In a nutshell
A brave experiment with exciting gameplay ideas and technical weaknesses
"Beast of Reincarnation" captivates with a unique post-apocalyptic world and an emotional story. The bond between the protagonist Emma and her animal partner Kuu is masterfully deepened in both cutscenes and gameplay.
The addictive combat system is a lot of fun. The mix of real-time attacks and turn-based elements is challenging and refreshingly different. The difficulty level is high – yet the game never feels unfair.
I forgive the game its weaknesses in level design and the progression system. However, I cannot overlook the sometimes miserable technical implementation. Nevertheless, I recommend "Beast of Reincarnation" to anyone who wants to immerse themselves in an independent, melancholic game world far removed from the usual AAA monotony.
Pro
- excellent combat system with turn-based elements and real-time attacks
- unique symbiosis of storytelling and gameplay mechanics
- creative post-apocalyptic worlds with deep lore
- Moon
- Have I mentioned Kuu yet?
- just to be safe: Kuu
Contra
- numerous technical problems such as stutters, ugly textures, and faulty lighting effects
- uneven pacing
- unnecessarily complicated and limited progression system
Header image: Fictions, Game Freak
Domagoj Belancic
Senior Editor
Domagoj.Belancic@digitecgalaxus.chMy love of video games was unleashed at the tender age of five by the original Gameboy. Over the years, it's grown in leaps and bounds.
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