Warning! The following contains major spoilers for Immortals Fenyx Rising, available December 3, 2020.
The latest mythological epic from French developer Ubisoft is almost upon us. Immortals Fenyx Rising is an engaging, action-adventure romp with an epic plot drawn from ancient Greek myths to create a new, iconic hero.
When we last got a chance to get hands-on with Immortal, we were drawn in by the gorgeous style and simple controls, but it did feel like the game would draw some comparisons to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Fortunately, the first few hours highlight a game with a uniquely humorous style and a story that draws players in.
A GODLY FRAMING ELEMENT
The game's story is framed in another as Zeus seeks Prometheus, a Titan whom Zeus had chained to a rock for delivering fire to humanity. Zeus is seeking aid in stopping the rising threat of Typhon, a titan who Zeus trapped underneath a mountain thousands of years ago. Typhon has been freed by a freak eclipse which allowed him to shatter his chains.
Typhon has bested the Greek gods and trapped them in new forms, rendering them unable to reconnect with their godly essence. Aiming to rebuild the world in his twisted image, Typhon has also enslaved four great heroes who had "more than a few drops of god's blood remaining in their veins," including Greek folk heroes Odysseus and Achilles.
Zeus and Prometheus serve as unreliable narrators throughout the adventure, periodically discussing Fenyx's adventure and what is to come, if not directly influencing it. At one point, Zeus even throws a massive Cyclops in Fenyx's direct path, only for Prometheus to cast it aside for not fitting the narrative. Prometheus is a rather loquacious god, much to Zeus' chagrin, and would rather tell Zeus a story than offer direct help.
Prometheus sees the key to the gods' salvation: the humans who Zeus has so little faith in. Prometheus and Zeus strike a bargain: if a human can save the gods, Prometheus' sin becomes a blessing. If not, he will aid Zeus in stopping Typhon by any means possible.
FENYX RISES
Prometheus' hero is an unlikely one, as they just washed up on shore after a massive shipwreck. Fenyx is a lowly-ranked shieldbearer who dreams of following in the footsteps of their brother, the legendary soldier Ligyron. Fenyx will have the chance to do so, as the other survivors -- including Ligyron -- have all been turned to stone by Typhon's curse.
Fenix is a fully customizable character, for the most part. The game only offers male and female gender options, though the game seems to be built and marketed around a female Fenyx, and none of the customization options are locked to a specific gender. There are plenty of customization options, including hairstyles, facial tattoos and various color sliders for skins, eyes and hair, as well as the ability to change them anytime once the game's hub is unlocked.
Fenyx is a wonderful character and may quietly become one of gaming's most iconic heroes in the coming years. More vocal than the hero of time and less sure of themselves than most gaming heroes, Fenyx truly feels like an insert for the player character. What's more, they're driven by a simple, relatable goal -- to rescue their brother and fellow soldiers and restore peace to the tortured world.
Fenyx is quickly thrust into battle, but they're not unarmed. Fenyx will find the Sword of Achilles, a gift Ligyron received for his bravery in battle, but which Fenyx will note feels as if it was crafted specifically for them. In short order, Fenyx will also find the massive Axe of Atalanta, as well as the Wings of Daedalus. With these in hand, Fenyx is ready to take on most threats, thanks to a mix of quick sword attacks, powerful ax attacks and the extra mobility granted by Daedalus' wings.
THE GOD OF THIEVES
Fenyx's first challenge is rescuing a mysterious stranger who was held captive by a griffin. The stranger comes off as little more than a petty thief but soon has a change of heart. Upon seeing an Oracle reveal a vision of Fenyx saving the gods, though, the stranger instructs Fenyx on how to obtain Aiolos' Jar so that they may harness the power of the winds.
The stranger stands revealed as Hermes, the Messenger of the Gods. Hermes has managed to infuriate the titan by stealing a piece of his eye, allowing the Hall of the Gods to remain unseen.
The Hall of the Gods is the game's hub. Here, Hermes awaits with advice (and an in-game store), as do several implements for leveling up Fenyx's strength, stamina and health, and a chair for changing Fenyx's appearance. The hub world is simplistic, but that's by design, and it works well for the game's tongue-in-cheek style. Everything is simple to find and use, and the animations for leveling up a stat, be it Fenyx smelting a new sword or lifting weights, feel unique and charming.
A TREE BY ANY OTHER NAME
Having safely arrived at the Hall of Gods, we see the first hints of Immortals' core gameplay loop. Fenyx learns of the gods' imprisonment and is sent on a quest to restore them so they may combat Typhon. This first encounter brings us to Aphrodite. The goddess of love has been turned into an apple tree but doesn't seem to mind too much. She's fixated instead on feeding the animals with fresh apples and frustrated that she cannot move to accomplish this task better.
To free Aphrodite, Fenyx suggests recreating the conditions of her birth. This requires Fenyx to throw a pearl into the ocean to generate seafoam, which may shrivel up the roots that bind Aphrodite in place and block her godly essence. This leads to one of the game's earliest puzzle missions, where Fenyx must guide a massive pearl down a winding mountain path. The pearl itself was never in danger of being lost, and once you reach the ocean, the game doesn't allow you to screw it up, so it's not necessarily an escort mission. However, there are plenty of enemies along the way who aim to stop Fenyx's progress.
The seafoam shrivels the roots enough to free Aphrodite but does not restore her. It does, however, create a new problem for Fenyx when it releases Achilles' wraith. The wraiths are the four legendary heroes Typhon captured, who stalk Fenyx in occasional encounters on the world map. These random encounters are challenging, but they're not the real battle. The actual wraith encounters are high-level boss fights set within Tartaros vaults. Upon defeating these challenging battles, Fenyx will acquire that hero's crest, and with it end the wraith encounters from that hero on the world map.
Though her essence isn't restored, Aphrodite is free enough to venture forth to feed the animals and vanishes. As our time with the game wound to a close, Fenyx and Hermes concluded they need a legendary form of saltwater to restore Aphrodite, and thus Fenyx sets out to find three of Aphrodite's tears, shed at the death of Adonis. However, this is but a small quest in a massive world. Immortals Fenyx Rising is a genuinely enormous environment, and it looks to be one of the grandest adventures in gaming we've seen to date.
Developed by Ubisoft Quebec and published by Ubisoft, Immortals: Fenyx Rising releases December 3, 2020, for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Stadia, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X.