Lost Ark review – flashy combat that eventually wears thin

If you mixed together Disney’s “It’s a Small World” theme park ride with Indiana Jones and Lord of the Rings, you might end up with something resembling the dungeons of Lost Ark. It’s a game punctuated by set pieces where players roll through enemies like butter, gliding from one room to the next, all with gorgeous special effects and slick combat.

Lost Ark reviewPublisher: Amazon GamesDeveloper: Smitegate RPGPlatform: Played on PCAvailability: Out now on PC.

There’s nothing subtle or particularly original about Lost Ark’s settings – it combines nearly every MMO and fantasy trope into one leviathan campaign – but that’s not the point. It’s a game about flashy action, power fantasies, and stomping on dozens of enemies.

First released in Korea in 2019, Lost Ark is an isometric MMO-ARPG that has already made a splash since its American and European release on 11th February. It’s rocketed towards the top of the Steam charts, reaching a huge peak concurrent player count of over 1.3m. As a glossy free-to-play game, perhaps this popularity isn’t totally surprising, but it’s also a credit to Lost Ark’s early stages and onboarding that so many players are giving it a try. It’s an MMO that, unusually, isn’t afraid to make you feel powerful from the start – and as a result the first few hours are a real blast.

From the outset, Lost Ark gives you the option to pick between seven different base classes, ranging from beefy warriors to deadly assassins, before immediately getting down to business and asking you to choose a subclass. Handily, you’re given the option to take these subclasses for a spin before making a final decision. You’re then unleashed into the world with a generous set of combat abilities that you’d typically expect to see mid-way through an MMO. It’s a refreshing approach that allows you to immediately get stuck into the action.