In many ways, Fusilier: Dawn Siege lives up to its name. The flintlock was a beautiful weapon, but it was also an unstable and often unreliable weapon, as likely to hit the target as to miss it completely or miss it entirely. The follow-up to the impressive Ashen, Fusilier: Siege of Dawn is A44’s attempt to enter the double-A game market with a 10-15 hour cinematic adventure game that’s worth playing thanks to Game Pass. But it is difficult to justify yourself externally.
The world and story of Flintlock immediately grabbed my attention. You play as Noel, a sapper in a world of black powder, knights, and trench warfare. An army is currently struggling to hold back the never-ending tide of the dead pouring out of a fortress that has opened a strange portal. The world is under siege, and judging by the deep trenches, sandbags, and destruction, it’s clear that this battle has been going on for quite some time. Noelle’s father figure didn’t go on a suicide mission to blow up the portal, so she convinced her commander to let her pursue it.
Applicable to: Xbox Series S/X, PS5, PC
Comment Platform: Computer
Developer: A44
Publisher: Kepler Interactive
Price: $39.99/£34.99
Indeed, what strikes me most strongly is the world and its vast potential. Fusilier: Dawn Siege’s mix of black powder weapons, swords, magic, fantasy, and more reminds me of the work of Brian McClellan pink mage Trilogy, a series of books in which people were able to use black powder to enhance their magic. There are a lot of cool elements mixed into this game, and while it results in a slightly confusing visual style at times, I think it’s a world with a lot of storytelling potential.
Unfortunately, Flintlock: Siege of Dawn’s storytelling isn’t great. It has its moments, including some really good interactions between Noel and Eun-ki, but overall the plot is simple and the writing often trips over itself. Even though the game repeatedly tells us she’s close to them, her hatred of the gods and her motivations for killing them all are barely explored, nor are the companions she gathers along the way. Her feelings for Eun-ki also seem to fluctuate wildly between cutscenes and in-game banter, which really doesn’t help the development of their relationship, which should be the central pillar of the entire story.
As for Noelle, there are some moments where she shines as a character, but most of the time she’s just another forgettable protagonist without an effective or engaging arc. It’s a real shame that the A44 never fulfilled her military role as a sapper, who historically was someone who focused on things like demolition, breaching fortifications, and clearing minefields. Instead, she’s just a regular soldier who chops things up with an axe.
The developer describes the Flintlock as “Soul Lite” in the game’s official promotion. It’s easy to see why: your resources are lost upon death and must be collected, there are bonfires where you can stop and rest (which respawn enemies), and you even have a healing bottle of limited use. I admit, when I realized it was taking inspiration from the soul genre, I sighed and exclaimed “oh god, not another one.” But honestly, in the vaguest sense, The Flintlock It’s just that Soul barely entertains the idea, almost as if it just wants to claim ownership of the term for marketing reasons. The larger hallmarks of the Souls genre, such as the difficulty and depth of the build, are completely missing.
I think Flintlock draws more inspiration from modern God of War games. The shoulder-mounted camera, semi-open environments, combat, and more remind me of Kratos’ journey than Dark Souls or Elden Ring. Another useful point of comparison is the recent Outcast: Souls of New Eden, which was also a double-A game trying to punch above its weight.
Nor’s primary weapon is her ax, which she wields with a simple tap of the shoulder button, but she can also unload her black powder pistol, which is the only way to interrupt enemy attacks when they flash red. For some inexplicable reason, black powder can only be retrieved by bashing an enemy with your axe, whereas regular attacks can be dodged, blocked, or parried if you so choose. Enki also plays an important role in combat, as he’ll rush in for a quick attack at your command, building up a special meter that stuns enemies and leaves them vulnerable to having their butts kicked. He can also unleash some divine power to help turn the tide of battle.
Of course, there’s a little more to the combat than I’ve described, but overall it’s a simple combat system that feels pretty good, especially once you get the hang of the slightly weird timing of blocking, but in There wasn’t a lot of growth throughout the process. The overall pacing of combat really reflects Souls’ overall style, encouraging you to wade in for a hit or two before quitting again, and I found the idea of interrupting an opponent with a black powder blast satisfying. That said, I wish the camera would pull back a bit when the game decides to throw a lot of enemies on the screen at once, especially since the combat system doesn’t feel very good when fighting a lot of enemies.
There’s a decent amount of platforming in Flintlock, and to the developers’ credit, they do let you use Nor’s double jump and air dash to get around the environment. But it’s during the jump that Nor’s floating physics kick in, giving it a feeling of weightlessness. It doesn’t help that sometimes she’ll hit a ledge and sideways instead of grabbing right away, which does look hilarious. But sometimes, she doesn’t catch it at all, which is less funny.
Enki is occasionally able to aid platform jumping by opening purple portals in the air that he and Noel can travel through. It’s a cool idea, but its main function is to form shortcuts, and is rarely used.
There are many indications that the purpose of the flintlock was more ambitious than it actually was. For example, you can enter a random village with the goal of fighting and defeating the leader, at which point the village is freed and all the people magically move back in as if nothing happened. A coffee shop opens as a reward, giving you extra access to your healing bottles, some nifty new cosmetics, and maybe a side quest or two. Liberating these towns is fun, but it’s a gameplay mechanic that feels completely separate from the rest of the game. It doesn’t really fit in with anything else.
Then there’s Sebo, a coin-based mini-game that Nor can play with random people she meets. I really mean random people – you’ll find Sebo players in the weirdest places, including the room where you just wiped out a bunch of enemies. I guess the idea was to emulate the success of Gwent in The Witcher 3, but instead of putting the Sebo players in a logical position, they put them everywhere. These Sebo players are also the only NPCs that will actually react to your presence, as everyone else will ignore you and your antics. Even if you swing an ax around the village, you won’t be able to chop anything, and no one will criticize you for being impolite.
In summary…
Like the flintlock, Dawn Siege’s shots don’t always hit their target. Its combat is fun but simplistic, its world is beautiful and vast but has little content and is largely static, its story is full of potential it never quite taps into, and its platforming floats too much. Every element it brings requires finer tuning.
Fusilier: Siege of Dawn isn’t a bad game, but it’s definitely more of a proof-of-concept for a better idea, which is why I’d love to see a sequel, although the early player numbers have me worried about it Will never happen. Considering the ending, A44 seems intent on making the world a better place.
Definitely worth checking out if you have Game Pass. On a personal level, I actually had a lot of fun with it, but on a more critical level, the whole game needs a little more time in the oven.
