You wake up in a busted-up coastal city, surrounded by chain link fences, concrete, and wrecked cars. At least until some weird creatures roll through, trying to rip you apart. Lucky for you, your old, beat-up sword made it ashore too, so you can start swinging your way toward the sounds of battle ahead. After some events that set up the story, you get pulled into the humans’ safe spot called Ward 13. That’s your home base now, where you can upgrade gear, buy weapons and armor, and stock up for your next trip out. Plus, there’s NPCs hanging around who’ll drop some lore if you wanna hear it.

So, how does this game even work? Imagine Bloodborne, Diablo, and Destiny had a weird baby. You get the RPG grind—leveling up through fights and choosing gear that suits how you like to play. There are three classes: Hunter (ranged), Scrapper, and Ex-Cultist. The loot system feels Diablo-ish but mixed with Bloodborne’s vibe of collecting blood echoes.

As you roam the world(s) in Remnant: From the Ashes, you pick up scrap and ammo from enemies plus experience points. Breaking crates and boxes gets you more scrap and materials like iron to upgrade your stuff. Sometimes you’ll find weapons and armor out in the wild too. When you hit a checkpoint crystal, you warp back to Ward 13 to upgrade your gear—using iron and other materials—just gotta pay a scrap fee. You can even craft boss weapons from rare drops and boost how many Dragon Hearts you carry. Think of Dragon Hearts like Estus flasks in Dark Souls, because why not throw in another Souls reference?

From the Ashes - Level Up Glow-Up

It gets kinda extra as you level up. Every time you level, you get a trait point to spend, plus you can find rare tomes scattered around that unlock even more traits. If you're thinking about what to buy PS5 games, at first, it’s the basics—health, stamina—but as you hit story milestones or play co-op, more traits pop up. You’re talking extra armor, ranged defense, elemental resistances, even perks for playing with friends. It’s all about building a character that fits how you roll, as long as you’ve got the trait points to spare. My Hunter? She was built for quick getaways and speedy reloads, so she could dodge Root claws and blades. But if things got too close for comfort, she’d whip out a hatchet and get up close. Oh, and she could call in some backup with a gun mod for extra firepower.

Speaking of the Root, these enemies are a whole mood. Mostly twisted humans, with some wild critters thrown in. You gotta mix melee and ranged attacks depending on who you’re facing. And just when you think you’ve got a handle on it, a special Root will lock onto you with zero warning—just this sharp sound cue before they come at you full force. The first time that happened to me? Total chaos. This weird figure showed up shooting arrows and all, and I barely managed to take it down. Thought I was good, but nope—the sound hit again, and I turned to a giant beast swinging swords that blocked every shot. I panicked, and yeah, I died.

These surprise enemy showdowns start popping up more often as you go, with tougher monsters trying to block your path. You might think not losing XP on death would make it chill, but these moments keep you sharp. Checkpoints show up at the start of most new zones and dungeons, but getting there? Way harder than it looks. The game’s gonna throw you around until you figure it out.

Boss Fights Go Hard

Alright, what about those bosses? Thankfully, checkpoint crystals chill right outside the fog doors, so you don’t have to grind through the same boss fight over and over—any Souls fan knows that pain all too well. You won’t even fight every boss in one playthrough, because Remnant’s built for replay, and it’s straight-up impossible to see everything on your first go. Plus, it likes to switch things up. Not every boss is some massive beast; one’s actually more like a Resident Evil 4 defense mission where you gotta protect an NPC from waves of Root. Yeah, protection missions usually make you groan, but this one’s actually intense since the bigger Root ignore you and go straight for your buddy.

Then there’s a giant Cthulhu-style Ent that had me running, shooting, picking targets smart, and juggling stamina like a pro—or just hoping for luck. Took me a few tries, but I was hooked on retrying.

The real highlight was teaming up with two other players—this game shines in co-op, with up to two friends or randoms. Honestly, I had a blast both solo and with others (don’t judge). Though, we desperately needed emotes, ‘cause nobody wanted to mic up, and there’s no built-in way to chat otherwise. You can go totally offline, play invite-only, or go public so randoms can drop in and out.

Me and my squad took on a boss zone packed with a swarm of deadly creatures. More players means even crazier swarms. We probably died like eight or nine times. We got flanked, outgunned, and sometimes couldn’t even revive each other. But every time, two of us bounced right back from the checkpoint and jumped in again. One dude gave up after a couple tries, but someone else slid in and helped us finally snag the win. Pure stubbornness and the sheer fun of the fight kept us going… only to find the “reward” was a dead-end vault with a new weapon instead of the progress we wanted. Classic.

Remnant: From the Ashes - A Vibe That Slaps

Yo, real talk? I was totally vibin' with that. It gave me all the feels to slide back to the last zone and switch up my path, lettin' me dive deeper into a world that’s straight-up flexin' its wild variety of vibes.

Remnant: From the Ashes got that next-level depth, with a story you can follow without goin' full lore nerd. The core loop? Absolute fire. Keeps you hooked, beggin' for more, ‘specially since you gotta replay to catch all the sauce it’s servin'. If you even manage to see it all, fam. Most importantly, Remnant: From the Ashes is just a straight-up banger of an action RPG.

It’s like a dope genre smoothie, mixin' it up to create a vibe that can hang with the best Soulslikes out there. Bet.

The start of the game is like a tutorial, but don’t get comfy — it’s not going easy on you. The devs, Gunfire Games, claim the difficulty scales with your skill. Nah, don’t buy it. Remnant is savage, brutal, just like the world it’s in. One slip-up? You’re dead. Ignore a warning? Dead. Waste a bullet? Dead ‘cause you won’t have one when you actually need it. There’s loads of ammo and even more enemies — monsters with health bars triple yours and damage that hits four times harder. You’ll find a few power-ups here and there, and you can level up the difficulty, but it never lets up. Beating this game? Think Bloodborne-level pain and sweat. And teaming up? Doesn’t really make it easier — enemies get stronger in groups.

Remnant: From the Ashes has a Platinum Trophy and a bunch of rare achievements. But trust, you’re gonna sweat buckets unlocking those. Besides beating every boss, there’s a challenge where you gotta wreck one without taking any damage at all. The trophy list spoils a lot of the story, so don’t peek until you’ve played through once.

Strategic Combat and Stamina Management in Remnant

Remnant: From the Ashes is a third-person shooter but with survival vibes, so yeah, it’s action-packed but you gotta move smart. If you’re looking to buy PS5 games that offer more than just mindless blasting, this isn’t one of those games where you just grab a gun and blast through monsters like it’s no big deal. Monsters will smack you, and even the weak ones can take a huge chunk of your health. Dodging is key, no doubt — but stamina is tight. You can’t just sprint forever; a light jog plus a couple of rolls and you’re already gasping for air. So expect to move slow and steady, like really careful about every step. You explore small zones, figure out how many baddies are lurking, take out the closest ones first, and save the tough enemies for last. You’re gonna die. A lot. But when you respawn, you can kinda learn the flow of the area — not every time, though. Minibosses pop up in random spots, so you never know if that nasty armored Root with the dodge-proof gatling gun will show up or if the summoner rolls in with a bunch of minions ready to mess you up.

Every run feels different, no cap. Gunfire Games promised it, and they deliver. You start by picking one of three classes: Hunter — long-range specialist with a hunting rifle, repeater pistol, and sword; Ex-Acolyte — mid-range with a double-barreled shotgun and repeater pistol (this one’s solid, trust); and Brawler — all about close combat. Whatever you pick, you’ll have a main and secondary weapon plus an axe for close fights (but seriously, avoid getting up close with a crowd of enemies if you can).

Almost everything in the game can be leveled up. You gather iron and scraps, which are your main resources, to boost armor, boots, hats, and basically all your gear. There are also collectible amulets that give you bonuses. New weapons? Yeah, you can buy those at the shop, but the selection isn’t huge. And weapons can be upgraded too. The real game-changer? Mods. These are power-ups you slap on your weapons. When you use the weapon enough, the mod charges up and then you can unleash a bonus — could be a healing circle, extra projectile damage, or something wild. Some of the best mods come from beating the giant bosses, so good luck out there.

Art and Tech in Remnant Amid Procedural Limits

The art and tech in Remnant: From the Ashes? Honestly, pretty impressive. Not perfect though — the environments can feel kinda empty and sometimes a bit repetitive, and even though the worlds are procedurally generated and have a bunch of areas, there are really only four main maps. But still, it feels like a game made by people who really know their craft, even on a tight budget. Gunfire Games flex their skills again, and it shows, especially in the boss fights. Take the first big boss, the Mazzuolatore — that fight will haunt you for days. We spent an entire hour trying to beat him, and got super close like three times. The satisfaction when you finally win? Straight-up on the same level as the best Souls games.

We played on a PS4 Pro and didn’t spot any lag or frame drops. The graphics aren’t mind-blowing for this generation, but they’re solid enough. What really counts though is the gameplay and, yeah, that atmosphere again — it’s a vibe. Oh, and multiplayer is a thing too: you can totally play solo offline if you’re about that tough solo grind. But if you’re down to team up, you can host or jump into a game with up to three players. The fun definitely scales up — along with the difficulty, no joke.

Tactical Shooter Meets Soulslike: Remnant’s Lovecraftian Challenge

Remnant: From the Ashes is low-key a super tactical third-person shooter, even if it looks like a straight-up action game. Think Soulslike vibes, but with pistols and rifles — totally not what you’d expect dropping late August 2019. It’s actually a legit hidden gem. The art direction is next-level, with this corrupted world that’s all Lovecraft horror energy. You’re gonna sweat through tough challenges, hunt for collectibles, and grind hard. Playing online with friends? That’s where it really shines — might even deserve an extra half-star for that. Now we’re just hoping the devs get some solid support soon, maybe seasonal events or something. And honestly, someone needs to throw them double the budget so we can get a sequel that’s even crazier.

Remnant’s got a story that pulls you in, environments that actually put you in your character’s shoes, and gameplay that feels purposeful enough to keep you hooked. Yeah, there’s a grind for sure, and the graphics can feel kinda PS3 throwback, but those aren’t game killers or anything. Plus, you can squad up with a friend, which makes the whole thing way more fun. Speaking of which, let’s talk story.

You’re this character trying to get to an island by boat. That island’s like this last hope in a world that’s basically gone to hell. You’re escaping from these demon-like creatures, which look like they came straight out of a nightmare with angry, fiery tree vibes. You manage to get away, head out on the boat, but then some brutal storms and wild waves keep pushing you back, making the island feel straight-up unreachable. When you finally wash up on land, you find a group of survivors in this abandoned reactor. Turns out, they all tried to make it to the island too and failed. As you move through the game, more pieces fall into place about what actually happened and what the deal is with those demonic enemies.

Remnant’s Dark Mystery: Unraveling the Story Through Relentless Exploration

Remnant: From the Ashes keeps you straight-up in the dark for most of the game, and it doesn’t even try to sugarcoat it. If you’re looking to buy PS5 games that offer a similar intense and mysterious experience, this one definitely fits the bill. That mystery is exactly why you keep grinding through quests and missions — you wanna know what’s really going on behind the scenes. It’s kinda like Horizon Zero Dawn, where you’re piecing together the world’s story bit by bit with every mission you finish. This storytelling style isn’t some big new thing, but it still hooks you and makes you wanna push through all the grind.

To keep things interesting, the game throws some seriously weird and mostly gross enemies at you. Think Silent Hill vibes, but lighter — the monsters are more unsettling than straight-up scary (there’s a difference). You’ll run into a bunch of repeat enemies with swords or energy attacks, usually in abandoned city ruins and underground tunnels. But the game knows you’d get bored if it was just that, so it makes you earn your keep with big, unique bosses and mid-bosses that stand out. Like, in the first big quest where you gotta find the “root” of a problem near the reactor, you’ll fight through normal mobs and then face this massive beast with a giant sword just slowly coming at you. When it finally charges, it’s panic city. These bosses don’t stick to easy attack patterns and hit way harder — keeping you on your toes and making fights feel real.

Then there’s the wild mid-bosses that show up randomly, sometimes dressed in creepy religious gear. They’ll swing swords that block your gunfire or blast energy attacks, and you gotta switch up your game to handle them. These guys are brutal but drop special loot if you can take them down. Having these random mid-bosses and unique big bosses breaks up the usual hack-and-slash grind, which is good because, yeah, you do grind a lot in this game.

The Grind is Real: Embracing Classic MMORPG Progression in Remnant

Remnant takes a page from basically every good MMORPG out there — you’re gonna be grinding enemy kills, gathering materials, and upgrading your gear nonstop. The more you grind, the more you collect, the more you upgrade, and that’s how you move forward in the game. If you walk in thinking you can skip the grind, you’re setting yourself up for major disappointment. How much you vibe with the grind is gonna decide how much you like the gameplay overall. They’re stuck together like good and evil — you kill enemies, loot their stuff, and use that to level up your gear. You gotta gather a ton of materials just to get ready for the harder challenges ahead. Sometimes collecting feels kinda mindless, but the upgrades you get make it worth sticking around.

My only real gripe is how the game throws up these small walls in quests where you have to beef up your character before you can move on. Unlike MMORPGs or Skyrim, where you can juggle smaller quests while leveling up for the big ones, Remnant wants you locked in on one mission at a time, at least early on. It’s a bit restricting, and honestly, feeling stuck like that can get tiring — especially when you need a break from grinding. Thankfully, the game chills out on that later.

If you can handle or at least accept the grind, there’s a big world waiting with tons of ways to customize your character. From clothes to weapons, the upgrades you make actually make the game more fun. Improving your weapons and crafting new gear gives you solid motivation to keep going. The upgrade system is kinda complicated but in a way that makes you forget you’ve been farming materials for hours. It’s a fine balance, and the game pulls it off without feeling like a scam (respect).

Plus, Remnant hooks you up with solid checkpoints to make the grind easier. You’ll find crystals that save your progress and let you teleport around — very Dark Souls vibes. The game knows you’re grinding slow and steady, so it makes sure you can take breaks without losing progress. That way, you can farm materials, head back to base, upgrade, then jump back in without sweating it. It’s not just one big risk every time you play, but a bunch of smaller safe bets thanks to these crystal saves.

Remnant’s Hook: Story-Driven Boss Battles and Deep Character Progression

At the end of the day, Remnant: From the Ashes keeps you hooked through its story, those hype big and mid-boss fights, and a deep, kinda complex upgrade system that goes beyond just weapons and armor — it’s about leveling up your whole character. You can’t really have a good time if you’re not improving more than just your gear. For me, the story was the real pull. I wanted to see what Gunfire Games had planned for this dark, messed-up world as it all unfolded. And honestly, they didn’t disappoint.

Overall, the grind might feel like a lot if you’re not used to that kinda thing, especially if you’re just playing casually. But if you’re cool with the grind, there’s a solid story waiting for you, wrapped up in a smooth leveling and upgrade system that keeps you motivated to keep going. Is it perfect? Nah. But it’s definitely a damn good time, especially when you’re playing with friends.