WARRIORS: Abyss Review for PlayStation 5

“Warriors: Abyss” is an ambitious experiment that seeks to blend the relentless, enemy-cleaving spectacle of the Warriors franchise with the strategic, high-stakes progression of a roguelike. On paper, it sounds like a match made in hack-and-slash heaven, but in execution, it’s a turbulent ride that wavers between exhilarating and exhausting. At its core, “Warriors: Abyss” still delivers that signature power fantasy the “Dynasty Warriors” series is known for. There’s nothing quite like running into a sea of enemies, unleashing devastating combos, and watching entire armies crumble under your might. The addition of over 100 summonable heroes introduces an interesting twist, allowing for customizable playstyles and unique combat synergies. Creating oaths with different warriors to gain access to their abilities adds an element of strategy that keeps each run feeling fresh. This was certainly a mechanic that was borrowed from “Vampire Survivors,” which did something similar, yet they did it simpler and easier to understand. When everything clicks though, and you’re slicing through hordes with an unstoppable momentum, it can feel absolutely fantastic.

But then the cracks start to show. The game’s rogue-like structure, clearly inspired by “Hades,” introduces persistent upgrades and a branching leveling tree, but the execution feels haphazard. Build progression often feels underwhelming, with many upgrades failing to provide a noticeable impact on your runs. If you’re unlucky, you’ll end up with a weak build that makes late-game fights feel like a tedious slog rather than an empowering challenge. The difficulty curve is steep, and while that’s expected for a roguelike, the game often leans into frustration rather than rewarding mastery. Koei Tecmo likes to stop the gameplay and give you a lot of word boxes to explain things, and it often really just feels like a buzzkill on my flow. The boss fights highlight some of the game’s most glaring design missteps. Their bloated health pools turn encounters into endurance tests rather than skillful duels, and as the difficulty ramps up, combat devolves into dodging wave after wave of massive area-of-effect attacks with limited movement options. Without invulnerability during evasion, certain encounters feel borderline unfair. The camera, another long-standing issue in Warriors titles, struggles to keep up with the chaos, making already punishing fights even harder to read.

Visually, “Warriors: Abyss” leans into a darker, more oppressive aesthetic, which fits its hellish setting but can also make prolonged sessions visually fatiguing. The lack of a strong narrative hook also diminishes the incentive to keep pushing forward. Unlike “Hades,” where the story threads keep you engaged even after failure, “Warriors: Abyss” offers little in terms of compelling storytelling to soften the sting of repeated defeats. I know I’ve been a bit harsh, but that’s not to say there isn’t fun to be had. When you hit that sweet spot and when your build comes together, your hero summons sync perfectly, and you’re effortlessly carving through enemies—it’s easy to see the potential of this fusion. The sheer chaos can be hilarious when you’re ridiculously overpowered, cutting through waves of enemies like a god of destruction. But these moments feel too rare, buried under layers of grind and questionable balance choices.

“Warriors: Abyss” is a fascinating but flawed experiment. The idea of merging Musou gameplay with roguelike mechanics is brilliant, but the execution leaves much to be desired. They borrowed ideas from some iconic modern games and the blend with this genre does seem like an ingenious idea, so I’m glad it exists. It’s a game that, with updates and balancing tweaks, could become something special. Perhaps if it gets a sequel and learns its lessons from this title, we may get something exceptional. As it stands, it’s an uneven experience, one that die-hards and roguelike fans might enjoy in bursts, but also one that too often stumbles over its own ambition. Luckily, its reasonable twenty-five-dollar price tag might still make it worth a shot for many players.

6.5/10

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