Spoiler level: the main review contains no significant spoilers. At the end, you will find a section about the story with spoilers, hidden by default.
Before I started
The reason I bought Beast of Reincarnation is probably the same as it was for much of the community: it is the new game from Game Freak, the studio behind the Pokémon series.
It also helped that everything shown in the promotional trailers appealed to me. Its world, the tone of the adventure and, above all, its approach to combat sparked my curiosity from the start.
However, the first reviews published ahead of launch made me doubt whether I should buy it. Those opinions ended up shaping my first few hours, while I was still trying to work out what kind of experience the game had to offer.
The promise
Beast of Reincarnation promised to show what Game Freak could do beyond the usual boundaries of Pokémon. I did not expect something that could compete with the most spectacular productions on the market, but I did expect a game capable of building a more ambitious world and combat system around its ideas.
For me, the studio delivered on that promise.
The result has a level of visual quality far beyond what we normally see in its other games. It is not a game that tries to show off, but it is one that, at least during my playthrough, ran without major issues or bugs that affected the experience.
The story also does its job. I would not call it the game’s strongest element, but I did find it deeper and more interesting than most of the stories Game Freak has told within the Pokémon series.
The journey
My first few hours were marked by the doubts those initial reviews had left me with. I needed time to find the rhythm of the combat and understand what its systems allowed me to do.
Fortunately, as soon as I discovered a few mechanics that suited the way I play, I became fully invested in the adventure.
That was the moment Beast of Reincarnation started working for me. The combat stopped being just a succession of encounters and became a space where I could experiment, tailor my style and find combinations that I genuinely enjoyed using.
It is not a particularly demanding game. I would describe its difficulty as low to moderate and it certainly does not offer the sort of challenge someone expecting a Soulslike might be looking for.
But that lack of difficulty did not stop me from enjoying it. I was less interested in overcoming an enormous challenge than in discovering new ways to use its abilities.
Combat was ultimately the element that drew me completely into the adventure.
The friction
The aspect of Beast of Reincarnation I would most like to see improved is the technical quality of its cutscenes.
The problem is not limited to one particular element. The staging, animation and, especially, the characters’ expressiveness fall short of what the story needs. At times, it even feels as though the script leans on the nature of its characters to justify their blank expressions and disguise these shortcomings.
I would also have appreciated a wider variety of enemies. If adding more types of opponents was not possible, I think the game would have benefited from being a few hours shorter, with some of its stages trimmed down. Repeating enemies for so long gradually diminishes the impact of each encounter and makes some areas feel longer than necessary.
These issues did not ruin my experience, but they did stop the overall package from reaching a higher level.
The memory
What I will remember about Beast of Reincarnation is its combat system and, in particular, the freedom offered by its two skill trees.
The protagonist and her companion have separate trees, and both have a direct impact on the way you play. They are not simply a collection of passive upgrades: the choices you make can significantly change your strategy and the tools you use in combat.
The game also lets you reset your skills whenever you want to try a different build. What I like most about the system is its breadth: after completing two playthroughs (the second in New Game Plus), earning the platinum trophy and spending several hours grinding, I still had not unlocked every skill.
That means there is always room to experiment with other combinations or approach another playthrough differently. The system never forced me into one particular approach; it allowed me to find the mechanics that suited me best.
The verticality of its levels also deserves a special mention. It is not a particularly original idea, but Beast of Reincarnation executes it better than other games in the genre. Its environments make good use of different heights and make exploration more interesting than I expected.
Of all its elements, build crafting and the flexibility of its combat are what made me want to earn the platinum trophy.
The verdict
Beast of Reincarnation is an enjoyable game that stands out primarily because of its combat system and does a solid job almost everywhere else.
I would not include it on a list of the year’s best games, nor do I think it comes particularly close to that level. Its limitations in the cutscenes, enemy variety and story pacing are too obvious to ignore.
Even so, I enjoyed it more than its initial reception had led me to expect. Once I found the mechanics that worked for me, the combat carried the adventure for 45 hours and convinced me to complete a second playthrough in New Game Plus to earn the platinum trophy.
I recommend it if…
- You enjoy hack-and-slash games and experimenting with different builds.
- You value games that let you tailor your skill set to your preferred playstyle.
- You play a lot of games each year and want an entertaining entry in the genre.
- You do not need high difficulty to enjoy a good combat system.
- You enjoy completing games and exploring different skill combinations.
It might not be for you if…
- You are looking for a Soulslike or a particularly demanding challenge.
- You place a lot of importance on cinematic presentation and cutscene quality.
- You need a wide variety of enemies to stay interested.
- You only have time for the year’s standout releases.
- You expect the story to be the central element of the experience.
Beast of Reincarnation is not one of the year’s essential games, but I am glad I gave it a chance beyond those early reviews.
After the credits: spoilers
Show my spoiler-filled thoughts on Beast of Reincarnation
A world better than the story set within it
I like Beast of Reincarnation’s lore far more than the execution of its actual story.
The idea of discovering this dystopian world and understanding what happened to it is compelling, but the pace at which the information is delivered does not always allow those ideas to have the impact they could have had.
Twists that are far too predictable
Some of the story’s plot twists feel forced and far too predictable, a problem compounded by the small cast.
With so few significant characters, practically every event, revelation and conflict has to happen between them. This severely limits the possibilities and makes it easy to anticipate who will be behind each twist before the game reveals it.
The setting had the potential to support a more complex story, but its execution and pacing never quite live up to that world.
My playthrough details
Show my playthrough details
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Game | Beast of Reincarnation |
| Developer | Game Freak |
| Completion | Platinum trophy earned |
| Date finished | Tuesday, 1 September 2026 |
| Time played | 45 hours |
| Playthroughs | 2; the second in New Game Plus, plus several hours of grinding |
| Platform | PlayStation 5 Pro |
| Format | Physical |
| Edition | Beast of Reincarnation – Standard Edition for PS5 |
| Purchase | Xtralife · €52.95 |
| Difficulty | Normal |
| Voice language | Japanese |
| Text language | Spanish |