Electronic Arts gives the First Person Shooter genre a bold and unusual twist with Immortals of Aveum. Is this THE playable surprise of 2023, or is that all a bit of an exaggeration?
WANT’s Mark Hofman played the game for a few weeks on his PlayStation 5 and tells you all about it in this article.
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Immortals of Aveum comes out of nowhere
Titles such as Starfield, Hogwarts Legacy and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 complete my year in gaming. While I can enjoy these immensely, I must honestly admit that it did not surprise me. The enjoyment was in line with my expectations, though.
In all honesty, this was certainly not the case with Immortals of Aveum. When the review code for the PlayStation 5 version showed up in my inbox, I didn’t even know what exactly I had been sent.
So that I then managed to completely lose myself in an insane First Person Shooter, I really could not have imagined. But how glad I am that it happened to me.
Eternal war in Aveum
Immortals of Aveum is set in a world called Aveum, a world in the middle of the Everwar, a battle between five different kingdoms that all want to rule over the world’s magical resource, a resource that lies deep in the heart of the planet.
As a player, you step into the shoes of Jak, an orphan from Seren who had no magical powers at birth but was later able to develop them. He is dragged directly into the war the moment he has a striking burst of magic during an attack on his city, killing his friends.
At the time of play, the war has been going on for centuries and only two kingdoms remain: Lucium and Rasharn. Jak joins the first kingdom and is admitted to the so-called Order of Immortals, which can practically be called the Special Forces of Lucium.
There, however, Jak soon finds out that he is a Triarch Magnus, a special type of mage capable of using three different types of magic: blue, green and red. Together with the help of the other Immortals, players can do their best to save Lucium and stop the evil Rasharn leader Sandrakk.
Immortals of Aveum gives FPS unique twist
That story lends itself perfectly to an enjoyable adventure, but it is the unique twist in the First Person Shooter genre that makes it interesting.
The reason: Immortals of Aveum trades weapons for magic. There are spells that mimic the effect of a shotgun, machine gun or LMG. Something that surprisingly not only works well, but is also very satisfying.
Something that, as far as I’m concerned, certainly applies to the light RPG elements that go along with it. Think of unlocking and using 25 unique spells, 80 different talents and different pieces of equipment that Jak manages to develop excellently.
Yes, combining the FPS genre with magic is undoubtedly a bold move. But I must confess in all honesty that as far as I’m concerned it works out excellently. Immortals of Aveum is really surprisingly fun.
The necessary problems are present
The story is incredibly well put together, but the lack of emotion in the characters is really a bit of a shame. Although Immortals of Aveum looks excellent, the facial expressions in the cutscenes are really a bit empty. It feels a little uncomfortable.
A problem I also have with the NPCs while playing the game. Having to run away hard because the whole place is on fire makes for adrenaline, but it feels a little stupid to have to wait in that rush for NPCs that are just a little too slow to run away.
Just like that I personally find it quite unfortunate that the beginning of the game can be quite overpowering. The gameplay is full of great elements, but you do get all of them in about the first hour of the game. And that, quite frankly, doesn’t feel very nice.
That said, overall I can say that Immortals of Aveum really gave me a really fun time. A surprisingly fun time, even.
Immortals of Aveum is my surprise of the year
For a game that, as far as I’m concerned, comes a bit out of nowhere, it has a lot to offer gamers, especially if you’re looking for an old-fashioned single-player game that you can just finish from start to finish.
Although titles like Starfield and Hogwarts Legacy managed to make my year in gaming quite a bit, it’s safe to say that Immortals of Aveum is the surprise of the year for me personally.
All reason, when in doubt, to really give this game a chance anyway.