Updated on February 14, 2023: The original version of this article erroneously attributed Room 8 Studio's development track record to that of Round8 Studio. This has been updated to provide the correct background information on the Lies of P developer.
AMD has shared some absolutely stunning 8K gameplay clip from Lies of P, an upcoming Soulslike from South Korean Round8 Studio. The never-before-seen footage arrives weeks after the game's director confirmed that Lies of P is nearing the end of development.
Officially announced in mid-2021, Lies of P is an action-RPG that puts players in control of an alternate version of Pinocchio on his quest to become a real boy. While the developers previously said that the game took a lot of cues from Elden Ring, its aesthetic seems to be more in line with Bloodborne, another critically acclaimed FromSoftware action-RPG.
The newly revealed 8K gameplay footage of Lies of P was rendered by the Radeon RX 7900 XTX, AMD's answer to the Nvidia RTX 4080. The 160-second clip shows Pinocchio battling his way through a steampunk-like Victorian setting and facing a variety of unsettling enemies that wouldn't look out of place in Compulsion Games' 2016 survival horror We Happy Few. This is the first look at the upcoming RPG since the developers shared 40 minutes of Lies of P gameplay back in September.
Lies of P will, naturally, only support 8K resolutions on PC. Meanwhile, the developers committed to delivering 4K gameplay in 30 frames per second on the PS5 and Xbox Series X, noting that they'll also offer a performance mode that will downscale the visuals to 1440p in exchange for hitting 60fps on both consoles. The Xbox Series S version of the game is still an unknown in regard to its performance targets.
Lies of P is an action-RPG that draws a lot of inspiration from FromSoftware's Dark Souls series, meaning players can expect tight combat mechanics focused on dodging, parrying, and carefully timed counter-attacks. The developers previously revealed that the game will feature an elaborate skill tree capable of supporting at least three distinct play styles. Besides focusing on agile swordplay and powering through enemies with brute force, players will also be able to pursue the so-called Path of Crickets, which might sound like a stealth-focused tree but is actually meant to provide a versatile set of abilities that strikes a balance between the other two options.
Round8 Studio has only one completed game to its name, a 2019 MMORPG Bless Unleashed, which was released in the West for PC, PS4, and Xbox One in 2020, but has since been discontinued on consoles. While that might normally be some cause for concern given the obviously ambitious nature of its next game, one alleviating circumstance to consider is that the studio behind Lies of P is a subsidiary of Neowiz, a South Korean gaming giant with over 15 years of multiplatform development and publishing experience, not to mention a billion-dollar market cap.
Lies of P is scheduled to hit PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S sometime in 2023.