The First Berserker: Khazan Steam Charts & Stats

Probably the best soulslike i've played. To me this game perfectly blends the nioh "arcade style" of faster paced combat with the weight of the souls games. Bosses are fantastic, while most of them are humanoid their movesets & themes are unique. Combat took a bit of getting used to, not because it's bad but because i just refused to engage with the spirit system for like half the game roughly, once i figured out to engage with the games mechanics combat became SO MUCH better (shocker). I was constantly looking for windows where i can abuse enemies and bosses and deal massive damage. The story is there? It's easily the weakest part of the game imo. Just used as an excuse for moving the game along. Game runs absolutely fantastic, it's refreshing to play a new PC game and not have performance issues or crashing. Easily worth the money if you have an interest in these types of games, free demo to try out, multiple endings and you can easily replay the game on NG+ or NG++ trying out different weapons that have their entire own skill trees attached. Highly recommended.

The First Berserker: Khazan is a dark, intense action RPG that throws players into a brutal world full of betrayal, bloodshed, and revenge. The story is dark, but it is told with enough weight and purpose to keep you interested from beginning to end. Combat is the highlight here- Raw, responsive, and ruthlessly satisfying. Every fight demands focus, and enemies hit hard without mercy. Boss battles are especially intense, pushing you to learn patterns and react with precision. It’s easily the HARDEST game I’ve ever played, and some encounters can really push your limits. At the same time, it may feel repetitive. Wave after wave of enemies sometimes dulls the impact. Visually, the game impresses with its stylized art direction. The shaded graphics blend beautifully with the bleak environments, bringing a unique look. The soundtrack hits hard, also the powerful scores that underscores the game’s heavier moments. (Features I liked best in this game) It’s not without flaws- Some camera issues show up during tight encounters, and the game could’ve used more variation in it’s enemy design. But overall, it delivers a raw, focused experience that hits hard. If you’re into stylish action and don’t mind getting wrecked a few times, Khazan won’t disappoint.

I wish there was a middle option, but between recommend and not I have to go with no. The combat is amazing, some of the most fun in the genre for sure. The decision to give some XP every time you attempt a boss, and to put your dropped XP outside the door should become genre staples. However, a million little things add up to be extremely frustrating and detract from the game. A lot of reused bosses again and again (one lore scroll has a voice acted line going "Is that BOSS? No, it's his brother, BOSS2"), some frustrating fights mixed in with mostly really well done fights, certain crafting items (Water Resistance Parchment - resistance NOT cleanse) are straight up not obtainable as far as I can tell, the gear upgrade system is bafflingly bad, they have stated that they have no ability to make shortcuts persistent (they are adding some QoL teleports and stuff to mitigate this but it's a bandaid at best) so going back to levels for collectibles is awful, bad soulslike "platforming" (falling) segments, occasional issues with the camera. I definitely intend to finish the game, but as my playthrough has gone on I have become more and more surprised at the level of praise the game got. Excellent combat and mostly good boss design definitely carry the experience, but the number of small issues (not even to get into game breaking bugs or performance issues, which are rare but not completely absent) didn't turn up in any of the many reviews I read. I love a good soulslike and I especially love Ben Starr so I hope the game gets some refinement, and maybe a sequel where you don't fight the same boss 3 times. I also purchased the Deluxe Edition since it explicitly states the gear can be used for transmog and can be upgraded (and I wanted to support a very cool looking new game, which I don't regret). The most recent patch made the first part more accurate, previously transmog was NG+ exclusive, so shout out to the devs on that one. Upgrading it is possible as well, but due to the terrible upgrade system even without having to grind for materials it basically goes up one level at a time so by the time you unlock the upgrade system it would take dozens of times going through the upgrade window with dozens of items in the same slot, for each piece. By the time I wanted to try the set out, I was level ~75 and the DLC gear was level ~25. Even using a level 75 piece to upgrade got it 1 level at a time (I did see 2 once) so I gave up on it rather than go through the upgrade button presses 50 times for each of 6 pieces of gear. Then, upgrading gear does not increase the randomly rolled stats, you have to reroll them and they'll reroll at the new level. The desire to craft and reroll my loot is hugely diminished because every 10 levels or so I would have to randomly roll the stats repeatedly to try for the same things.

kinda feel regret buying this game at full price. It was fun for a while until mid-game and recognising the repetitiveness in the game. Level design is bad. Side missions are under-rewarded. Shortcuts are reset when revisit the map (why?). Can't go back to collect items in a map once finish the boss in story quest (why?). No teleport between nexus blades. Player's view get messy when fighting near the objects or edge of the map (super annoying). Many things don't make sense in this game. After 30 hours in, really don't want to play the game anymore, and never want to finish the game. The game experience is torturous, not fun. If you value your time and just want to have fun game experience, I recommend not to play this game.

I wanted to add a caveat to this review: I used the greatsword for that playthrough. I decided to try a playthrough with the spear, and it's honestly shocking how much easier the game is with the spear. It's far faster, has much more range, and scales with proficiency which means you deal tons more stamina damage, making it much easier to stagger enemies. Like.... I'm breezing through the game. I haven't died more than three times on any boss (just beat the spider), and just once during one of the levels. This tells me that the greatsword really just isn't powerful enough; as slow as it is, it needs to be better balanced to hit harder OR, ideally, it should do massive stamina/stance damage. Anyway.... I still don't recommend the game for anyone but hardcore soulslike fans due to the balance issues and poorly designed late-game bosses. Here's the original review: --------------------- It breaks my heart to write a negative review of a game I've gotten a lot of joy from, but after 60+ hours and toiling away on a ludicrously overlong and terribly designed final boss, I've just had enough. The payoffs have simply not been worth the hours of frustration and difficulty, especially the bosses. My soulslike experience is limited: some time in Sekiro, some in Elden Ring, but Lies Of P is one of my all-time favorite games, and I've beaten it five or six times. Recently, I finished Wukong: The Black Myth, but I haven't had much interest in replaying it. But those will be my primary basis for comparison with Khazan. I don't make any claims of being some great gamer, but I'm not one to shy away from a good challenge. The combat in Khazan, generally, feels excellent. Combos feel impressively devastating, and when you start trivializing enemies it's a great feeling. "Reflect" is absolutely one of the best ideas ever in a game and feels immensely satisfying to use. Khazan gets so much of the moment to moment gameplay just right: the parry system is fantastic — not quite as demanding as Lies Of P, and for the better. Like Wukong, it also has a perfect dodge. And like many soulslikes, you can break your opponent's stance and unleash a high-damage attack with a button prompt. Here's the deal, and yeah, I'm gonna be that person: this game is too hard. Making a game difficult isn't hard or clever; you can just crank up the damage output of enemies, and make them tanks. The real challenge is making difficult boss fights both interesting and rewarding, and Khazan just drops the ball way too many times here, instead just making the bosses tanks that take far too long to kill and deal out far too much damage. The worst offenders, by far, are bosses like Trokka and the absolutely atrociously bad final boss, Ozma. I will never understand why developers build a whole game around melee combat, then create bosses that literally spend the majority of the fighting running away from you and shooting extremely powerful, fast projectiles. It's not fun, and it's not why I play a game like this. I'll be honest: after struggling for a solid 30 minutes and barely making a dent in Trokka, I knew that I didn't want to spend another 3-4 hours on her as I had Maluca (who was actually a great boss). It's just cheap, overlong, and frustrating. So I turned the difficulty to "easy," and it still took me over a dozen tries. "Overlong" is a problem with all of the boss fights. In Lies Of P, the bosses were tough, but the challenge lay in understanding their moves so you could parry them and break their stance to unleash a high-damage attack. Often, when you would finally win, you would absolutely slaughter the boss because you could quickly stagger them. While Khazan has this mechanic, it lacks the reward — the button-prompt combo hardly does any more damage than a regular attack. It feels defeating to meticulously learn a boss's moves, parry the majority of them to whittle away at their stamina bar, but still die because every boss has an absolutely gargantuan health bar and their attacks deal massive damage — often with status effects, too. And don't forget that those bosses who constantly retreat from you also regenerate their stamina, making them extremely difficult to stagger. Bosses also have a number of vaguely telegraphed AOE attacks and, my least favorite, unblockable grab attacks. These were poorly implemented and horribly overused in Wukong to the game's detriment, and while they're not as bad here (they're better telegraphed and thus don't feel as cheap) they seemingly exist only to frustrate players. I got so exhausted from every boss — even the ones in side missions — taking 3-4 hours to beat that I just started turning the difficulty to easy for every boss later in the game. They were still plenty hard, with Hizmar taking me several hours to beat despite the reduced difficulty. By the end of it, I was just done. The final boss is three phases. Twice, I died on the third phase, meaning that's 20+ minutes down the drain. On easy mode. Toiling away at every boss for hours and hours, memorizing every single move to avoid even the smallest mistake because you are punished hard, against bosses with massive health bars who are immune to throwables and often simply retreat out of range and unleash attacks that are nearly impossible to dodge.... is this fun? Is this why I play video games? There's a certain level of frustration that's worth it. Lies Of P pushed me hard that way, but by the end of the first playthrough I couldn't wait to play again. But that's also because for the most part, I liked the bosses in Lies Of P — especially Laxasia and the Nameless Puppet, with their near-constant trading of attacks and parries. But Khazan overplays its hand, and the tanky bosses don't feel like momentous occasions — they feel like an annoyance I want to get past. The world is, unfortunately, largely drab and uninteresting, with repetitive textures and locations with a bland, desaturated palette. There is some very nice art design later in the game, but the middle portion is full of repetitive caves, dungeons, villages, and castles. I was actually able to follow the story (more than I can say for Wukong), and while it's well-told, the game simply didn't instill that sense of danger and urgency that Lies Of P did, nor was it as touching or evocative. Khazan had a good run for me. I got several dozen hours of enjoyment out of it, But just as Wukong fell apart in the last chapter with terrible world design and a barrage of egregiously bad bosses, Khazan also devolves into a slugfest where the extreme difficulty doesn't have any payoff. I should feel triumphant when I beat a boss, not relieved that I can get back to the parts of the game I was enjoying. The last boss is so badly designed, so utterly unenjoyable, tedious, cheap, and overlong, that even on easy it was no longer worth the effort. Could I farm for legendary gear and keep trying? Could I just be persistent and beat him eventually? Could I watch a bunch of videos with tricks and tips to beat him? Sure, but why go through all that trouble for a boss fight I don't enjoy at all? I mean really, if I haven't conveyed enough how much I dislike this boss, I uninstalled the game because I genuinely have no interest in repeating such an atrociously, insultingly bad boss fight. So despite my positive early impressions and some brilliant mechanics, I think Khazan ultimately falters under the weight of trying out-hardcore other soulslikes. And, just for the record, a friend of mine also purchased Khazan, and unlike me he is a diehard fan of the genre. He's beaten every Fromsoft game and most of the soulslikes. He quit Khazan because of the difficulty.

[h1]The First Berserker: Khazan — A Brutal, Unforgettable Challenge[/h1] From the start, I appreciated that Khazan doesn’t lock me into a single playstyle. Whether [b]parrying, dodging, or guarding[/b], I could adapt my combat approach depending on the fight. I’ve played Souls games [b]a lot[/b], so I expected a challenge—but Khazan pushes things even further, demanding [b]precision, aggression, and endurance[/b]. [h2]Combat: Fluid, Adaptive, and Brutal[/h2] Combat in Khazan is [b]one of the best I’ve played[/b], but its [b]mechanical balancing struggles in late-game fights[/b]. [b]Brink Guard (parry)[/b] is tight, rewarding precise timing, but stamina depletion and HP scaling issues hold the experience back. I relied on [b]dual wield and spear[/b], with spear becoming my go-to for its [b]speed, range, and ability to extend Moonlight uptime[/b]. [b]Moonlight activation requires landing three consecutive Swift Attacks[/b], but if I was interrupted, I had to [b]restart the sequence entirely[/b] before I could chain into [b]Assault or Reversal[/b]. Even when I successfully executed the combo, [b]stamina drained too quickly[/b], making fights against [b]status-inflicting mobs (Poison, Flame, Chaos)[/b] particularly punishing. Late-game enemy HP [b]bloated so much that fights became exhausting endurance tests[/b], forcing players into prolonged encounters that felt more about survival than skill. The [b]weapon kits for dual wield, spear, and greatsword need adjustments[/b]—for instance, the execution speed of [b]greatsword attacks[/b] is [b]too rigid[/b], locking players into [b]predictable sequences[/b] that struggle in high-pressure battles. To counterbalance this, the [b]upkeep for chained maneuvers needs reworking[/b], allowing [b]Moonlight extensions to flow into Assault/Reversal, then into additional multi-hit skills[/b], creating [b]a more consistent offensive rhythm[/b] rather than forcing constant resets. However, even if players successfully execute these chains, [b]stamina drains far too quickly[/b], limiting engagement and further amplifying the difficulty gap against enemies with [b]excessive HP scaling[/b]. A [b]reduction in stamina depletion[/b], paired with [b]improved chaining of multi-hit attacks[/b], would help [b]shift combat toward mastery rather than endurance[/b], ensuring weapon abilities feel [b]responsive, rewarding, and competitive against high-health foes[/b]. Without these adjustments, fights continue to feel [b]drawn-out and imbalanced[/b], requiring excessive effort for limited payoff. Using [b]greatsword[/b], I often felt like I was [b]backseating the fight[/b], holding a defensive stance and [b]waiting for an opportunity to strike instead of actively engaging[/b]. This was especially noticeable against [b]quick-attacking enemies like Viper[/b], whose relentless speed [b]forced me into a reactionary role[/b], struggling to find clean openings. The [b]slower execution of greatsword attacks[/b] meant [b]enemies interrupted me before I could land a decisive hit[/b], turning encounters into [b]drawn-out battles of attrition rather than rewarding duels[/b]. Instead of feeling empowered, I was [b]waiting for my turn[/b], which [b]broke the momentum[/b] of combat. [h2]Bosses: Ozma Sets the Bar, Others Lag Behind[/h2] There’s no debate—[b]Ozma is the best boss fight I’ve ever played[/b]. His [b]multi-phase battle constantly forced me to adapt[/b]. [b]Missile barrages[/b] kept me moving, explosions cutting off escape routes, while his [b]relentless slashes and lunges demanded perfect Brink Guard timing[/b]. [b]Sweeping combos baited dodges[/b], making counters crucial. Unlike many late-game encounters that relied on [b]high HP to stretch out difficulty[/b], [b]Ozma’s challenge came entirely from his mechanics[/b], making the fight thrilling instead of exhausting. Other bosses didn’t reach this level. [b]Too many relied on status effects instead of innovative attack sequences[/b], and [b]delayed attacks became frustrating rather than rewarding[/b]. The [b]bloated HP pools[/b] dragged out encounters, replacing strategy with endurance grinding. [h2]World & Art Direction: Stunning Aesthetics, Flawed Design[/h2] Exploring Khazan wasn’t always engaging. [b]Stormpass and Mount Heinmach lacked atmosphere[/b], feeling [b]more like obstacles than immersive locations[/b]. The [b]early game is repetitive[/b], improving later but never fully delivering. Enemy placement frustrated me. [b]Archers behind elites, exploding spiders, and relentless gank squads[/b] turned encounters into frustrating battles rather than skillful duels. This issue was [b]clear right from the tutorial[/b], where the game [b]introduces archers/shooters placed behind mobs[/b], foreshadowing the [b]artificial difficulty padding seen throughout[/b]. That said, the [b]art direction is phenomenal[/b]. [b]Cel-shaded character designs against realistic backgrounds create a unique, visually striking look[/b]. [b]Bruises and cuts stay on enemies as I fight them[/b], adding a brutal touch that enhances the sense of impact in every battle. Once again, this game proves that [b]art style matters more than chasing realism[/b]. Korean developers have been [b]putting out incredible titles[/b], with Lies of P, Sanabi, and Dave the Diver all pushing distinct aesthetics. Khazan follows that trend beautifully. [h2]Loot & Progression: Unbalanced and Lacking Basic QoL Features[/h2] Crafting [b]wasn’t worth the effort[/b]. [b]Loot drops constantly outclassed crafted gear[/b], making upgrading [b]pointless minutes after grinding materials[/b]. The [b]Diablo-style loot mechanics[/b] clashed with Khazan’s Soulslike systems, making build progression [b]feel more dependent on random drops than planning[/b]. On top of this, the [b]inventory management system needs a serious overhaul[/b]. [b]Sorting weapons and armor by set would make comparing stats much easier[/b]—right now, flipping between helmets, chest pieces, and attributes feels clunky. Being able to [b]view all equipment from the same set side by side[/b] would help with making meaningful loadout decisions rather than constantly jumping between individual items. [h2]Story: Functional, But Forgettable[/h2] The story wasn’t bad, but it [b]lacked depth[/b]. I hoped for something layered, like Elden Ring, where [b]lore unfolds naturally through exploration[/b]. Instead, Khazan [b]relies on straightforward cutscenes[/b], making the narrative feel [b]surface-level rather than immersive[/b]. [h2]Final Verdict: Combat Excellence Held Back by Flaws[/h2] Despite its issues, Khazan [b]kept me hooked[/b], especially in the fights that delivered. [b]Ozma’s battle alone makes this game worth playing[/b], setting a new standard for what a Soulslike boss should be. The [b]combat system is exhilarating[/b], rewarding fast reactions and perfect execution. But [b]bloated enemy HP, stamina depletion issues, repetitive level design, frustrating enemy placements, and an unbalanced loot system[/b] prevent Khazan from reaching true greatness. This game [b]punishes mistakes and demands endurance—but when it clicks, it’s an absolute thrill[/b]. [b]Final Score: 8.5/10[/b]

First Berserker Khazan would be a forgettable run-of-the-mill Souls-like BUT its combat feel more like Hack N' Slash that it singlehandedly carries the game. This feels like a blend of Sekiro, Lies of P, and especially Nioh, with a heavy emphasis on parrying, unlocking perks, and way too much loot. I’m generally not a huge fan of skill trees but Khazan kept giving me great skills to unlock all the way to the end. This holds the real build potential where you can craft your own playstyle. You can remove skills with no punishment which lets you make every point count. They only have 3 weapons. Many won’t like the smaller roster but like Bloodborne, lower quantity means higher quality. All 3 are fun, unique, and have an insane amount of depth. I did Spears on my first run and tried out Greatsword on the mean time which were both incredibly fun and distinct. Tough bossfights but fair, and if you died at the boss room your souls respawn outside the boss room like Lies of P and you gain souls from bosses even if you lose, which are easy. This also has a summon system similar to Lies of P. It’s an ai, no multiplayer, but there’s one outside every boss door and you can fight phantoms to level up yours. I didn’t use this system but it seems like a great way to make the game more manageable. If you're a big anime fan like myself, you will love the story. It's not overly compelling, but it made me genuinely care about some characters to the point where I felt strong emotions towards the end of the storyline. This could be partly due to the wonderful cinematics and soundtracks, especially during certain boss fights. Overall, i would recommend this game to anyone who enjoys Action RPGs; it certainly delivers everything you'd expect from the genre and introduces some refreshing new mechanics.

Yeah nah, the last patch moved all the spear power into set bonuses. You don't have a set? Tough luck, go farm. Trance might have been overtuned but nerfing it like this and putting so much emphasis on set skills just kinda scream that you need several sets farmed just in case you want to test if Assault is a better skill than Eagle Wind for this boss. Hope DW and GS users had a better patch experience. Spear is unrecognisable. The functionality still exists and you can still do the same combos.. you just don't get the same results and it kills the whole feel of the playstyle.

The game is a lot of fun and I had planned to 100% complete all the achievements for the game. But the most recent update introduced a bug that causes items to not be added to the inventory after it is picked up, this includes collectible logs, and netherworld energy(basically estus flask upgrade). Even worse is that the item is no longer available to be picked up so even if the issue is fixed I would still be unable to collect it.

Khazan delivers a brutal, high paced souls-like experience rooted in fast combat and amazing boss battles. While it can shine in many areas (and boy, does it know how to shine in those), there are also some flaws that should to be talked about. Pros: - Combat System: The fighting in this game is absolutely phenomenal. Responsive, stylish and satisfyingly brutal. Each of the three weapon types has it's own skill tree, which enable a deep combo system that encourages aggresive and intense gameplay. Similar to Lies of P, the combat combines best of the both worlds from Sekiro (parry-based combat) and classic Souls, where dodging the enemy's attack plays a vital part. Which approach you should choose heavily depends on the situation, your build and the opponent you are facing at the moment. - Bosses: The bosses in this game are one of the best in the entire genre, nothing short of spectacular. Each (main-)boss is uniquely designed, hard, but, if you take your time to learn them, never unfair. - Difficulty: The difficulty is one of the most discussed aspects of this game. On the one hand, there is already literally an easy mode available (which does lock you out of the true ending tho). But still there are mainy claims that this game is too hard when you play it on normal, which is the way it was meant to be played by the developers. Instead of commenting on this with the obligatory "git gud", I'll say this: What is one of the core characteristics of a good Souls-Like? That it is meant to be hard, that you are meant to struggle and (partially) suffer. Only when you failed against a boss, again and again, each time understanding their mechanics a little more, slowly getting the timings right, gradually getting closer and closer to your goal until finally, hands-sweating, heart-pumping, you manage to defeat him - then you have truely beaten, no, mastered the boss and experienced the true meaning and beauty of the souls genre. Push your limits, apply yourself, overcome your weaknesses, git gud. The sense of accomplishment will be worth it. Armor sets: Armor in this game does not just supply protection against enemies or makes you look like a badass (which it does), it also grants you a variety of set bonuses in the likes of passive buffs, elemental effects or even new skills, which allow for a variety of effective builds and counterplay to certain bosses. Cons: - Level Design: In contrast to most souls-likes, which present a rich, interconnected world to explore (think of Dark Souls, Bloodborne), Khazan opts for a mission-based format (like Nioh). Paired with the for the most part disappointingly linear level layouts, this game fails to create the distinguished dark atmosphere for which especially the Fromsoft games are known for. - Story: The plot is your run-of-the-mill revenge story. It's not terrible, but also nothing new or sensational. - bugs/performance: Two months after release, there are still minor bugs present in the game. Tho the developers are continually releasing new patches, it is still not entirely bug-free, but the main problems have been adressed. What on the other hand really grinds my gears: When did publishers/developers decide, that a game does not anymore have to be polished and optimized regarding performance, and that it is instead just fine to throw a pop up in your face every time you boot up the game, that you should not run this game on an HDD, but on an SSD? Don't out-source the performance problem to me, just polish your games like you are supposed to do (/rant over). Khazan may not offer the interconnected, immersive world that other games of this genre deliver and many players crave, but it more than makes up for it through it's incredible combat system and phenomenal bosses. It is punishing but also rewarding and is at it's best when you are locked in in a life-or-death duel with one of it's amazing bosses. If you live for great boss fights and intense action, Khazan should be your next game.