Review: Code Vein 2 (PS5) – Repetitive Vampiric Soulslike May Still Sate Your Bloodlust

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Code Vein 2 is a new action RPG that tries to capture the magic of the popular Dark Souls games, but unfortunately doesn’t quite succeed like many similar titles before it.

Bandai Namco’s new action RPG, while mechanically sound and built on the success of games like Elden Ring and the Souls series, suffers from a lack of visual appeal and a repetitive storyline.

Code Vein 2, the follow-up to the 2019 game Code Vein, features a new story with only a slight connection to the first game. While it explores similar ideas and themes, it’s largely a fresh experience.

In a world shattered after a disaster, humans and vampires—known as Revenants—live side-by-side. They must unite to fight a terrifying event called The Resurgence, which turns living creatures into dangerous, mindless monsters.

Although the game has a few intriguing story elements, the excessive and slow explanations in Code Vein 2 will likely make players want to rush through the game to get to the action.

You play as the Revenant Hunter, a silent hero who feels strangely empty and unimportant – like a lifeless doll or a character from a video game with no personality.

One of the best parts of Code Vein 2 is its detailed character creator. Since the game doesn’t have multiplayer, you create your character purely for your own enjoyment.

As a player, I’m excited to hear that even though my Revenant Hunter character won’t have a ton of dialogue – mostly just nods and thumbs-ups – I’ll still be building relationships with a lot of interesting characters! The game boasts a 50+ hour campaign, and throughout it, I’ll meet named NPCs, some of whom will even become AI companions through what they’re calling the ‘Partner’ system. It sounds like a cool way to experience the story and have some allies along the way.

Honestly, the characters just weren’t grabbing me. Their backstories felt super shallow, and the way they tried to tell those stories was even worse – long, boring memory sequences you couldn’t even skip! It really pulled me out of the game.

Even so, these companion characters do add some excitement to battles and help the game world feel a little more alive.

A key part of any great ‘soulslike’ game is creating a unique character build, and Code Vein 2 offers a lot of exciting ways to do just that.

The game features seven different weapon types, each offering a unique way to play. You can customize these weapons even further with Forma, which come in three types – offensive, defensive, and support – to tailor them to your preferred style.

Forma are special abilities you can equip in the game, similar to Ashes of War in Elden Ring. You can find them while exploring or buy them from specific characters.

Forma are energized by ichor, earned by deploying Jails during combat. Jails are special gear – like gauntlets or scorpion tails – that also enhance your fighting abilities.

Code Vein 2 has a lot of different game systems, but they don’t quite come together well. Things like Burden, Boosters, Partner assimilation, and item synthesis aren’t explained clearly, which makes the complexity feel overwhelming rather than impressive.

Improving your Revenant Hunter’s level boosts core combat stats like health and stamina. However, what sets Code Vein 2 apart from other similar games is its unique Blood Code system.

Since you can’t directly improve stats like Strength or Dexterity, your Blood Code determines your character’s overall stats and includes special abilities, along with both benefits and drawbacks.

As you build relationships with companions in the game, you’ll unlock stronger versions of your Blood Codes. The closer you become with a character, the more powerful Codes they’ll offer.

For instance, if you prefer using large, two-handed swords – which work best with high Strength – you’ll want to select a Blood Code and Jail that boost your Strength. Also, choose Forma that supports a slower, close-combat fighting style.

The fighting itself feels good at first, but weak enemy designs and imprecise hits make it less satisfying over time. While boss fights have the usual multiple stages, they don’t feel as emotionally engaging or creatively designed as those in games like Lies of P and Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty.

As a player, I’m really loving how defensive Forma let you customize how you play. You can set things up so your shield takes the hit for your stamina instead of your health, or even get a bracer that lets you parry attacks and set enemies up for a powerful counter! There’s also an option to trade ichor for a super-fast dodge. It’s awesome because you can really tailor things to your preferred style.

We’d like to see melee combat feel more impactful, and enemies be more diverse and intimidating. Although you can choose to play without an AI partner (and gain a stat boost by absorbing them), we found the game more enjoyable and less challenging with a partner by your side – but your experience might be different.

The game truly shines when you’re fighting the challenging enemies in Code Vein 2’s large, interconnected world and complex dungeons, and you’ll spend a lot of time doing just that.

The game’s environments are somewhat bland and lack originality. Indoor areas feel particularly repetitive, featuring typical settings like ruined cities, a spooky forest, and a standard acid-filled area.

The game lets you summon a motorbike to get around the large areas faster, but the controls are a bit awkward, and we often found it more frustrating than fun.

Elden Ring’s world was clearly built for exploring on Torrent, the spectral steed. However, Bandai Namco’s implementation of horse-riding feels like it was added later, rather than being a core part of the design.

While Code Vein 2 is playable on a PS5 Pro in Performance Mode, it’s not perfect. There are occasional moments where the game’s frame rate dips, which can make combat feel less smooth than expected, especially since the game isn’t very demanding graphically.

The game isn’t necessarily unattractive, but the overall visual style lacks imagination. The characters and enemies are similarly underwhelming. Unless you specifically enjoy seeing overly-sexualized female characters posed awkwardly as shopkeepers, this game probably won’t appeal to you.

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2026-01-27 02:08