As I said before, gameplay is comprised solely of missions. When all is said and done, the single-player experience is quite similar to the co-op experience. You choose a mission and you get put on contained map with an objective. The objective is usually to kill X number of monsters or defeat Y boss. When a smaller enemy dies, players have an option of saving or sacrificing it. Not only does this give them essence (or XP) to their next Divine or Dark level, but saving an enemy will give them a defense boost and heal them while sacrificing will give them a magic boost and give them back more charges on their offerings. When a mission is completed, players are ranked on their progress by a point system. Higher ranks nets more offerings as rewards. All missions are repeatable, so you can (and will) go back and replay them to farm offerings.
Avalon Pacts is the co-op portion of the game (it’s also available to play in single-player). It’s unlocked after completing the first six missions of the game (the Sortiara arc). After it’s unlocked, players can create or join an online or Ad Hoc lobby. The lobby leader sets the mission for the party and once all players are ready can start the mission. Pretty much everything (offerings, essence levels, etc.) is carried back to the single-player campaign. For more information on specifics of co-op connectivity and gameplay, check out our Soul Sacrifice FAQ.
There are upsides and downsides to both single-player and co-op games. As for co-op, on the one hand, playing with your friends can be really fun. I played a game with Andrew and DJ, and since Andrew knows way more about the game he was telling us about elemental chains and crazy stuff like that. Going in with a group of friends with a strategy can be quite a ride. There’s also some offerings that encourage or require cooperative play (offerings that benefit other party members or require two people to utilize). The Avalon Pacts, however, don’t have much of a story, which I quite enjoyed on the single-player side of things. Some general complaints I had about Soul Sacrifice was that after awhile it began to feel really repetitive. A handful of maps and enemy skins are repeated over and over again in various combinations for the missions. You’ll even see the same bosses many times, but with different levels of difficulty. Every once in awhile a new one will be thrown into the rotation, but get used to seeing more of the same again and again.
In general, I found the character customization to be quite enjoyable, and the combat interesting for a time. I really like the story-telling aspect of the game as well; however, the repetitiveness of maps, enemies, and objectives began to greatly detract from the game after awhile. Soul Sacrifice is a good game, but it could’ve been an amazing game if a bit more variety had been involved. If too many Avalon Pacts are tackled in a row, the game begins to feel like a bit of a grindfest. Still, it’s a very enjoyable game to play a mission or two with some friends when you have some spare time. And if repetition doesn't phase you, then get ready to sacrifice a whole bunch of your free time.
Verdict
Co-Op Score
Overall
The Co-Op Experience: Team up with up to 4 players in online or Ad Hoc co-op to complete an Avalon Pact. Gain essence (levels) as well as offerings (spells) to bring back to your single-player game.
Co-Optimus game reviews focus on the cooperative experience of a game, our final score graphic represents this experience along with an average score for the game overall. For an explanation of our scores please check our Review Score Explanation Guide.