Summary

  • Enotria: The Last Song exudes Dark Souls' jank, with sluggish combat, camera issues, and persistent clunkiness.
  • Dark Souls' dated mechanics are amplified by Enotria's similar flaws, failing to improve upon the original formula effectively.
  • Jyamma Games aims to address Enotria's jank with a patch focusing on character movement, but issues with camera and enemy behaviors persist.

At one point in time, Dark Souls was considered the best game ever made in its genre, and there is likely a remnant out there who still thinks as much. However, since then, significant "upgrades" to the Soulslike formula have been released, including Elden Ring and its Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, Bloodborne, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. By and large, any effort made to go back and enjoy Dark Souls would require all the nostalgia in the world, as it is painfully dated at this point. Despite that reality, Jyamma Games' Enotria: The Last Song doubles down on one of Dark Souls' most dated features.

Anyone who has played Dark Souls knows how janky it can be, and Enotria: The Last Song can unfortunately be just as janky. Whether it's the pointless dodging, haphazard camera, or sluggish character movements, Enotria is like Dark Souls in the worst way possible.

The Maskless One standing over a boss in Enotria The Last Song
Related
The Unwritten Rules of Enotria: The Last Song Explained

Players should be aware of several unwritten rules about Enotria: The Last Song's combat and exploration before diving into this saturated Soulslike.

Enotria: The Last Song Openly Embraces Dark Souls' Jank

Dark Souls Was Janky Then, and It's Still Janky Now

The concept and design of Dark Souls might have taken off fairly quickly for what it was in 2011, but the Soulslike genre as a whole has really only risen in popularity due to Elden Ring. Much of Elden Ring's widespread success is due to its increased accessibility, which opened the door for more casual players to give it a try, despite the challenge it still offers. Since then, the Soulslike community has grown immensely, and it continues to grow as more Soulslike games grace the stage. Again, however, it wasn't always this popular, and the current state of Dark Souls is a perfect example of why.

When Dark Souls launched in 2011, it was largely challenging because its combat was sluggish and weighty, not like Elden Ring's smooth movements and animations. Dodge rolling in Dark Souls was limited when locked onto an enemy, as the game would put a cardinal direction lock on rolls. There was also the camera to worry about, which, at times, was a tougher enemy than Dark Souls' bosses themselves. In short, going back to play Dark Souls today after so many improvements have been made to the formula is a rough experience, and yet Enotria: The Last Song seems to emulate that experience in many respects.

So Much About Enotria: The Last Song Emulates Dark Souls' Jank

More often than not, Enotria: The Last Song falls prey to its own jank, much like Dark Souls did and still does. Jyamma Games recently revealed an improvement roadmap for Enotria, seemingly aiming to improve some of that jank as best it could. However, the improvements seem to only target the movement of the main character — which, to be fair, is very sluggish and clunky — but not only is that one of the few contributors to Enotria's jank but the patch won't be implemented until January.

Enotria's issues extend far beyond the movement of the main character and impact things like the camera as well, similar to Dark Souls. Enotria's camera often seems to have a mind of its own, behaving erratically, and this is felt even more when locked onto an enemy. Additionally, locking onto an enemy will essentially cause the enemy to be locked onto the player, so if they attempt to dodge the enemy at any time, the foe will remain magnetized to the player, thereby negating the purpose of the dodge. Finally, some enemies are able to perform maneuvers that they arguably shouldn't, telegraphing an attack that looks like it will only extend a short distance, and yet launches them across the room.

These are only a few of the problems contributing to Enotria's jank, but they are the most noticeable. It's unfortunate that, while Enotria attempts to be like Dark Souls in a lot of ways, it chose to go this route as well. Hopefully, future updates will resolve these issues.