A soulslike gem reimagining the tale of Pinocchio as a dark fantasy set in the Belle Époque city of Krat, blending elegant parry-driven mechanics with a haunting narrative about the nature of lies and humanity.
Game Characteristics
Dystopian Setting
90%
Action
85%
High Difficulty
85%
Graphics
85%
ダーク
85%
Story Depth
75%
Existential Themes
70%
Emotional Story
70%
Multiple Endings
65%
Target Audience
Recommended for: Intermediates to Advanceds (scores ≥ 50 indicate a good fit)
A Metacritic 90-rated sword-fighting action game set in Sengoku-era Japan, where pinpoint deflection and posture-breaking create an intensely rhythmic dance of blades — aggression is not just rewarded, it is the only path to survival.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
75%
Action
95%
High Difficulty
95%
Graphics
80%
ダーク
70%
Story Depth
70%
Existential Themes
0%
Emotional Story
70%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
FromSoftware's gothic horror masterpiece set in the cursed Victorian city of Yharnam, demanding relentless aggression and counter-recovery in a Lovecraftian nightmare of beasts, blood, and cosmic dread.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
95%
Action
90%
High Difficulty
95%
Graphics
85%
ダーク
90%
Story Depth
70%
Existential Themes
80%
Emotional Story
50%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
A Metroidvania masterpiece set in the decaying insect kingdom of Hallownest, demanding precise platforming and soul resource management as you uncover a haunting, lore-rich world of extraordinary depth and beauty.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
80%
Action
85%
High Difficulty
85%
Graphics
80%
ダーク
75%
Story Depth
70%
Existential Themes
65%
Emotional Story
0%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
The definitive conclusion to the Dark Souls trilogy, depicting the final twilight of a dying world with Metacritic-89-rated precision and uniting the themes and characters of every prior entry in a devastating final chapter.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
90%
Action
85%
High Difficulty
95%
Graphics
70%
ダーク
90%
Story Depth
70%
Existential Themes
80%
Emotional Story
0%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
A hard sci-fi action game set on a ravaged Earth, following Eve's fight for humanity's survival against the alien Naytiba — with precise parry-based combat, stunning visuals, and a narrative that rewards careful attention.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
70%
Action
85%
High Difficulty
70%
Graphics
75%
ダーク
60%
Story Depth
65%
Existential Themes
80%
Emotional Story
65%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
The pinnacle of FromSoftware's vision — a Metacritic 96-rated open-world action RPG co-created with George R.R. Martin, delivering the ultimate soulslike challenge across the merciless Lands Between.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
85%
Action
90%
High Difficulty
80%
Graphics
85%
ダーク
70%
Story Depth
70%
Existential Themes
70%
Emotional Story
0%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
An action epic depicting the Norse apocalypse through the evolving relationship of Kratos and Atreus, delivered in an unbroken single-shot presentation that sets a new cinematic standard for the medium.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
60%
Action
85%
High Difficulty
60%
Graphics
90%
ダーク
65%
Story Depth
90%
Existential Themes
60%
Emotional Story
90%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
A beautiful action game from Devolver Digital following warrior Alba and her wolf companion Neva — from vulnerable pup to powerful guardian — blending fluid swordplay with a wordless story of loss, resilience, and unbreakable bonds.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
50%
Action
85%
High Difficulty
65%
Graphics
90%
ダーク
40%
Story Depth
70%
Existential Themes
50%
Emotional Story
80%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
A first-person horror RPG trapping Ethan Winters in a gothic village ruled by grotesque nobility — blending tense resource management with monster-movie spectacle and a surprisingly rich mythology.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
75%
Action
80%
High Difficulty
65%
Graphics
85%
ダーク
65%
Story Depth
75%
Existential Themes
50%
Emotional Story
70%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
The 19-years-overdue 2D continuation of Samus' saga, pitting her against the relentless robotic E.M.M.I. hunters in a sleek, fast-paced Metroidvania that ranks among the series' finest achievements.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
50%
Action
85%
High Difficulty
80%
Graphics
80%
ダーク
40%
Story Depth
70%
Existential Themes
55%
Emotional Story
60%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
A sci-fi psychological thriller blending third-person bullet-hell shooting with roguelike structure, trapping Selene in a time loop on the alien planet Atropos while layering a fragmented mystery onto every death and rebirth.
Tag Similarity
Dystopian Setting
80%
Action
85%
High Difficulty
90%
Graphics
85%
ダーク
75%
Story Depth
65%
Existential Themes
80%
Emotional Story
70%
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
Chart tags: Dystopian Setting / Action / High Difficulty / Graphics / ダーク / Story Depth / Existential Themes / Emotional Story
About "Lies of P"
▸Game Composition (GPA Analysis)
Lies of P（ライズオブピー） leads with its Action RPG identity, anchored by the core feel of "A soulslike gem reimagining the tale of Pinocchio as a dark fantasy set in the Belle Époque city of Krat, blending ele…." The headline profile reads Dystopian Setting 90% / Action 85% / High Difficulty 85%, making it a strong pick for fans of Dystopian Setting and Action. Oriented toward experienced players looking to push their limits.
▸Characteristics & Analysis
Our editorial team scored "Lies of P（ライズオブピー）" by using its feel of ソウルライク, ベルエポック, and ピノキオ as the primary lens, weighting Dystopian Setting and Action most heavily. Top similar titles include "SEKIRO: SHADOWS DIE TWICE（隻狼）", "Bloodborne（ブラッドボーン）", "ホロウナイト（Hollow Knight）".
Lies of P — A Dark Pinocchio Soulslike Built on Brutal Combat and Weapon Crafting
GPA Analysis | Decadent Setting 90% | Action 85% | High Difficulty 85% | Dark 85%
Welcome to Krat — blood, oil, and broken puppets
Lies of P (Round8 Studio, 2023) reimagines Pinocchio as a Belle Époque dark fantasy. Puppets turn on humans, petrification spreads through the city of Krat, and you wake as the special puppet P searching for Geppetto. GPA tags it at Decadent Setting 90%, Action 85%, High Difficulty 85%, and Dark 85%.
If you are considering a purchase: this game is very hard — among the stiffest recent soulslikes. But unfair difficulty is not the whole story. Weapon assembly gives beginners a strategic escape hatch, and the decadent world pulls you in before the bosses beat you down.
GPA score overview — Lies of P
Decadent Setting ◀
90%
Action ◀
85%
High Difficulty ◀
85%
Graphics
85%
Dark ◀
85%
Target player scores (50+ = recommended fit)
Beginner20
Intermediate55
Advanced90
Beginner 20 is low. Intermediate 55 and Advanced 90 mark the main audience — read this if you are unsure you can finish the game.
1. Dodge, guard, perfect guard — no single button solves fights
Dodge feels safe until red-glow Fury Attacks ignore i-frames. Guard blocks reliably but never at 100% — guard regain lets you punch back during the white flash to recover lost HP. Perfect guard avoids chip damage and builds stagger, but knocks you back — deadly on narrow cathedral beams where a perfect read still kills you by falling off the ledge.
2. Where it clashes with SEKIRO, Bloodborne, Elden Ring, Wo Long, and Nioh
SEKIRO pushes perfect deflect without a stamina tax — Lies of P recommends the same reads but drains stamina so hard you often cannot punish a stagger you earned. Bloodborne pairs regain with gun parry openings; here, hyper-armor enemies keep swinging through your windows. Elden Ring rewards over-leveling in open fields; Lies of P's linear progression resists stat brute-forcing. Red attacks in Wo Long and Nioh 2 telegraph counters clearly — Lies of P's red swings delay unpredictably and home in after you dodge.
Parry difficulty on the editorial scale
Our Top 15 Parry & Soulslike Games article tracks parry-focused titles where both Action and High Difficulty sit well above the site average (roughly 40–50%). The chart below is that article's editorial "parry difficulty" rating — not GPA's official High Difficulty score.
Parry difficulty rating — editorial scale (10-point converted to %)
Lies of P lands at 88% — below SEKIRO (95%) and Nioh 2 (92%), above Elden Ring (80%), and well above Stellar Blade (65%) and Expedition 33 (75%). The mechanical friction described above sits behind that number.
3. Weapon assembly — the system that saves the game
Blades (damage, guard efficiency) and handles (moveset, scaling) swap freely at the hub with zero material cost. Pipe-wrench power on rapier speed is not a cheat — it is the design. Fable Arts on each part add another build layer. Mismatch blade/handle types and damage drops; overweight blades slightly slow light handles. That puzzle is why the game stays compelling even when combat feels cruel.
4. Before you buy
Summoned puppet allies help early but charge into unblockables mid-game and die fast. Solo final-boss clears hit harder than Elden Ring's anticlimactic trades — and feel better for it if you want earned mastery. Japanese localization is readable but uneven in tone.
Who should buy this — and who should start elsewhere
From hands-on play: if you are new to soulslikes and have not cleared one yet, start with Stellar Blade and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 on Normal difficulty before jumping into Lies of P. Stellar Blade (65% parry difficulty) lets dodge carry you; Expedition 33 (75%) teaches reactive defense inside turn-based pacing — both have lower entry walls than this game.
Intermediate players and above — comfortable with action games and actively seeking high-difficulty payoff — should look at Elden Ring (80%) and Lies of P (88%). Elden Ring offers open-world leveling outs; Lies of P is linear and punishes stamina-and-parry mismatches harder. Both reward patience over shortcuts.
Buy Lies of P if you want decadent atmosphere, weapon-crafting depth, and punishment you are willing to learn through repetition — not if you need forgiving co-op or easy leveling outs.
GPA similar titles
1. SEKIRO: Shadows Die Twice
Match 79%
Shared: deflect-first combat, high action and difficulty. Different: SEKIRO's stamina-free tempo is cleaner.
Similar tag snapshot (top 5)
Action
95%
High Difficulty
95%
Decadent Setting
75%
Graphics
80%
Dark
70%
2. Bloodborne
Match 78%
Shared: decadent horror, regain flow. Different: gun parry and poise breaks are more readable.
