Solo Leveling Arise Overdrive [Review]

Solo Leveling, by author Chugong, became a massive worldwide sensation upon its release in 2016, gaining thousands of new fans through the webcomic adaptation alone. This popularity later led to a full-fledged animated series. Following its success, three related games have been announced or launched: Solo Leveling Arise (mobile gacha game with live service elements), Solo Leveling Arise Overdrive (PC/Xbox), and Solo Leveling Karma (PC and Mobile).

This review focuses on Solo Leveling Arise Overdrive, which is presented as a beefed-up, traditional PC/Xbox game without the gacha mechanics of its mobile counterpart, Solo Leveling Arise. A key distinction is that Overdrive is a one-time purchase with completely redone visuals and a manual, smoother combat system allowing players to string together combos like a standard action RPG, as opposed to the mobile version's auto-combo combat. The core combat is an "absolute blast," drawing comparisons to games like Nier Automata, Granblue Fantasy Relink, and Genshin Impact. Fans of Solo Leveling will be familiar with the story, but newcomers can easily experience it for the first time. The game features full voice acting and well-done cutscenes that dynamically blend half-animated sequences with comic book pages. The game also supports Co-Op play, which is noted as an ideal, though personally unexperienced, way to play.

The biggest flaw is the mandatory, constant internet connection, even for single-player. This requirement, so far, is plagued by "constant connection errors" and severely harms engagement. To my understanding, a fix is on the way. Furthermore, once players acquire multiple skills and become overpowered (as demonstrated in the tutorial), the combat can devolve into "complete chaos." The screen fills with flashy lights and effects, making it difficult to discern what is happening beyond the fact that everything is dying. Overall, Solo Leveling Arise Overdrive is a fun game. While it doesn't "reinvent the wheel," it certainly keeps the wheel moving. The action is enjoyable, even if it feels familiar to veteran gamers. Solo Leveling Arise Overdrive offers a highly enjoyable and engaging experience that will be a hit with fans of action RPGs. The decision to limit its audience to PC and Xbox is somewhat puzzling, as the game seems perfectly suited to thrive on PlayStation and Switch. I plan to update this review and potentially change the score once I've had the opportunity to play the online co-op mode and experience the game with friends. Be on the lookout for a livestream as well!

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