As the team responsible for Final Fantasy XV, it’s no surprise to find that game’s speedy combat echoed in Forspoken, but here it’s elevated by a heavy emphasis on parkour and an open world that allows players to make full use of the space in battles. Yes, the toys in Forspoken’s playset are well-worn, but are at least arranged into a compelling diorama in developer Luminous Productions new action RPG. Finding herself both immune to the Break and somehow possessed of magical abilities, the reluctant Frey is guided by Cuff – the gauntlet, now sentient and overly chatty – into uncovering the origins of the Break while searching for a way home. When she discovers a strange, glowing armlet in a derelict building, she almost gets her wish – but instead of somewhere in the American Midwest, Frey finds herself in the blighted world of Athia, where a horrific affliction called the Break has destroyed or corrupted everything but the city of Cipal, humanity’s last bastion.

Now a young adult who too often finds herself on the wrong side of the law, Frey dreams of escaping to somewhere calmer and quieter. In Forspoken, the outsider is Alfre ‘Frey’ Holland, abandoned as a baby in New York City.

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: modern day outsider gets mysteriously transported to fantasy world, where, after an archetypal hero’s journey, they turn out to be the last hope for an imperilled people.

Forspoken gameplay review