PlayStation 5 Critic Reviews

The Relic: First Guardian may never escape its technical shortcomings, but its melancholy world is well worth saving.

The Relic: First Guardian is an undeniably ambitious title, but it heavily suffers under the weight of expectations, ultimately trying to do too much and doing it poorly. There are certainly positive aspects: excellent environmental design, dynamic and intuitive gameplay, and an equipment management system that integrates seamlessly with the lore. However, these qualities are not enough to offset a series of poor game design choices. Enemies prove to be ultra-aggressive, while the 80 bosses—supposedly the flagship feature of the game—turn out to be flaw-ridden "damage sponges" that are often mere copies of one another. The game world is vast, varied, and boring—immersed in a cosmic void, with design decisions that destroy any sense of discovery. A visually well-crafted technical presentation is undercut by frustrating camera management and visibly dated NPCs. So many times in my reviews I find myself writing that "more could have been done," but The Relic: First Guardian is the first game that made me think that, perhaps, less should have been done.

There are things about The Relic: First Guardian that I absolutely loved. The game's exploration also leaves something for you to find, and the game's combat is satisfying and rewarding. It's just a shame I had to suffer through major bugs that kept me from progressing or finishing quests.

The Relic: First Guardian is a game that dared to be different and suffered for it. In the pursuit of challenging what has been tried and tested, it put forth a plethora of great ideas: equipment-based tactical combat, non-respawning enemies as progression, and genuinely great boss battles. Unfortunately, it also revealed why those ideas weren’t the norm. Poor animation implementation, questionable camerawork, and forgettable narratives all end up making this a much lesser product than the sum of its parts. In fixing what wasn’t broken, it only revealed the cracks within itself.

The Relic: First Guardian is a game of stark contrasts, where immense developer passion clashes with severe technical shortcomings. While the anachronistic PS3-era graphics and early framerate drops make for a frustrating start, the game redeems itself through a magnetic exploration loop, a surprisingly deep RPG progression without inventory clutter, and a staggering roster of over ninety unique bosses. Once the technical performance miraculously stabilizes in the latter half of the adventure, a genuinely solid and rewarding action-RPG emerges from the rubble. It’s a heavily flawed journey, but one crafted with enough heart and solid mechanics to earn a passing grade.

I think I could write about 4000 more words of complaining about The Relic: First Guardian, but I’m eager to simply wash my hands clean of this game and forget it ever existed. If you love Souls-likes or action RPGs, there are dozens of other experiences you’re better off playing. This one’s not even worth your curiosity.

The Relic: First Guardian has plenty of promising ideas on paper, from its Korean mythology setting to its fast-paced combat and variety of Brutals, but few of them truly stand out in practice. The fragmented storytelling, uninspired voice acting and lack of meaningful combat depth make both the lore and the battles feel less engaging than the trailers suggest. Despite being marketed as a soulslike, its challenge comes more from clunky controls than memorable encounters, leaving the overall experience feeling underwhelming.

The Relic: First Guardian is one of the worst games to come out in 2026. With so many other titles worth your time and money, this one is an easy skip.

Between rough gameplay feel and mechanics, The Relic: First Guardian doesn’t present itself with a bang, but with a wimper.