The souls-like genre has exploded in popularity since the dawn of From Software’s Souls franchise, with multiple companies taking a stab at the format–and some companies taking multiple stabs. Bandai Namco, who publishes FromSoft’s Souls games as well as Elden Ring, dropped an anime-style version of the genre in 2019’s Code Vein, and now it’s back for more in Code Vein II.
We spent a few hours with the next Code Vein adventure during The Game Awards week, and we came away impressed with its improved combat system and a new and interesting take on the genre’s “summon” mechanic, but what surprised us most was an original story that carries some emotional weight. The original Code Vein was a solid first effort, but Code Vein II shows that the franchise may have, pardon the pun, cracked the code.
A new code
Code Vein II takes place in a world on the edge of ruin, and where humans and Revenants, a human-like species of beings with vampiric abilities, live amongst one another. Our demo picks up in the present, as the effects of the Resurgence–a cataclysmic event that slowly morphs Revenants into mindless beasts–are wreaking havoc on the world.
