Lies of P is the sleeper hit of 2023

Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. It’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more.

I honestly couldn’t blame you if you haven’t heard of Lies of P publisher Neowiz. I wouldn’t even be surprised if you haven’t even heard of Lies of P.

When I asked the KnowTechie editorial team, I knew the big boss had no idea. So I’m here to tell you about this fantastic game and advise you to play it.

Neowiz is a South Korean publisher probably best known for their Bless series. They had an online MMO and also an action-focused spinoff. I’d argue that the fact I had heard of Lies of P before the game was about to release says a lot.

Mostly because everyone that caught wind of the game was absolutely enamored with the idea. What is that idea? Oh, you know I am about to tell you!

Lies of P says, “I got no strings to hold me down”

Lies of P is a “Soulsborne” game that takes the story of Pinocchio and turns it into a Steampunk retelling of the classic story with twists. All the key points of the old fable (with a few Disney-inspired touches) are in the game.

The Black Rabbits, Red Fox and Black Cat, Gepetto, and even Gemini (pronounced Jimminy), who is your cricket-like guide. Your puppet even gets to use a submarine at one point that resembles a monstrous whale.

The name Pinocchio is never explicitly mentioned, but the Truth or Lie system makes it clear who the puppet you control is.

I mentioned “Soulsborne” earlier, so I’d like to start there.

Where a “Soulslike” game takes a lot of inspiration from Dark Souls and Demon Souls games, a “Soulsborne” is supposed to take a lot more inspiration from the PlayStation hit and one of the best games ever, Bloodborne.

Weapons are super important in Lies of P.

While most games with that moniker tend to all fall into the “Soulslike” categories, Lies of P clearly takes the ideas of the original Bloodborne and improves upon them in many ways.

You don’t get to carry a shield, and defensive equipment is limited to the trinkets and puppet parts you acquire as the game progresses. The game quickly and intuitively explains that different element effects hurt different enemies efficiently.

Puppets tend to be weak to electrical damage. Carcass enemies are weak to fire damage. Human enemies don’t do well against acid damage.

Instead of finding a weapon I liked, I found at least two that could deal with whatever enemies I would be dealing with.

Bring the right tools for the job

Like Bloodborne, weapons also are multifaceted. Some weapons in Lies of P can transform and do other things.

For example, there is an electric saw blade that starts spinning after a few hits, when it gets going, it becomes charged with electricity. There is also a great sword that turns into a glaive.

Almost all the weapons can also be taken apart and assembled in ways that allow you to get the most out of them. Like the swing of a weapon, but don’t like the damage type or weight? Attach the handle to a weapon head you prefer.

Your puppet also has a replaceable arm that can allow you to change your playstyles immensely.

The grimdark story world of Lies of P is both fantastic and mysterious as well. If you are familiar with the original story, it’s awesome to see reenvisioned characters come to life.

There is an arm that allows you to fire a grappling hook to pull you to enemies. There is an explosive shield that defends against attacks and hurts the enemies with recoil.

You can fit a flamethrower to your arm and just toast enemies in your way, or get a crazy electric arm that lets you charge and release deadly bursts. Your puppet can spray poison all around them or shoot explosive darts.

I found myself switching regularly to whatever boss I was dealing with. It’s awesome.

While puppets in the game are more like robots and are supposed to follow the “Grand Covenant” (see Asimov’s 3 Laws of Robotics), your character isn’t bound to these rules. It means that you can lie, steal, and hurt humans when prompted to.

Of course, as you progress in the story, you gain more and more humanity based on your decisions as well. All of this will culminate in one of three endings before you get to begin a new game plus.

The “P” stands for punishing

It wouldn’t be fair to recommend Lies of P without warning that the game is VERY difficult.

My first playthrough nearly totaled 80 hours. My second was under 10. I spent the bulk of my first run throwing myself against difficult bosses or going back and grinding enemies to grow stronger and improve weapons.

There is a boss fairly early in the game that I must have died at 30 times or more. I actually had to step away and play something else for a bit just to avoid the frustration. That is the type of game that Lies of P is.

The combat in Lies of P is unforgiving. The key to survival is perfect blocking, if you can’t do that, dodging is the next best thing. I’m not good at blocking, but had to improve for the last boss because dodging is laughably sad in some fights.

However, when I did beat that boss, victory was sweet, and I was immediately chasing down the next endorphin rush.

While Lies of P is considered an “AAA indie game,” you can find it for the very fair price of $59.99 on Steam, PS5, and Xbox. If you have Microsoft Game Pass, you can actually play it for free.

Which is how I played the game. If you have that, play it, even just to give it a try. It’s awesome.

Editors Recommendations:

• A Steam Deck refresh is likely on the way, says new report
• Diablo IV makes its way to Steam on October 17
• Review: TCL Q7 65-inch QLED TV
• Review: XGIMI Horizon Ultra projector

Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. It’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more.