Skydance’s Behemoth review

2023’s Asgard’s Wrath 2 was proof that big open world RPGs can work in VR, and while this doesn’t come close to Sanzaru Games’ masterpiece, there’s plenty of appeal when you’re slicing through enemies and shooting them in the held with a well-placed arrow. It’s a shame the centrepiece of Skydance’s Behemoth don’t show their faces all that much, but stepping up and facing one of the huge bosses is a sight to behold. Apart from some repetitive combat and an poor checkpointing system, there’s plenty to enjoy if VR is relatively new to you.

When the Forsaken Lands are cursed with the rot, you must find a cure and return your home to its former glory. There’s little to cling to in terms of character, as you play as someone who doesn’t get any character progression, and while the story isn’t particularly engaging, combat is pretty good. The feel of the sword in your hand allows you to live out your fantasy fantasies, and striking enemies with your blade is satisfying. You can block or parry, but sometimes the responsiveness isn’t great. I thought I had blocked correctly, only for one of the creatures to attack me without issue.

The bigger Behemoths which the game focuses on are visually staggering and also adapt some cool mechanics for which you need to use to protect yourself from them. I would have loved to have seen more, but through the eight or so hours you’ll spend with Skydance’s Behemoth, it becomes more of something to look forward to and not appearances that happen all too often. The sheer size of them up close is unlike anything I’ve ever seen, especially in virtual reality, and I hope other studios learn from this because that feeling of having your breath taken away like this never gets old.

Wren, the character I played as, feels like a badass. While rot seems to be a curse to everyone in the Forsaken Lands, you are actually given the ability to use rage to do more damage. It’s also unlocked rather regularly, helping to break up the somewhat repetitive combat. There are some puzzles scattered around that don’t require a ton of thinking, and traversal is pretty straightforward, but I always loved using the grapple hook. There are various upgrades you can find to improve it as well as your weaponry, and while they improve movement and combat, it does sometimes get a bit repetitive.

Regardless of where you are in Skydance’s Behemoth, the visuals are pretty impressive. While it all feels like a variation of the last area you went to, the environments are steeped in detail. The little visual details on your character are also pretty cool, such as the grip on your sword switching. It’s one of the better looking VR games I’ve played recently, and I loved the snowy mountains feeling like I had stepped into Skyrim all over again. It would have been nicer to see a bit more variety, but I still appreciated how good it looked.

While combat is easy to learn, difficult to master, and enjoyable to engage in, the biggest frustration about Skydance’s Behemoth is the checkpointing system. I thought developers had learned that players don’t want to have to relive tons of dialogue before a boss fight over and over again upon dying, yet this is something you’ll have to bear. Combat can be challenging at times, and death will come knocking a fair bit, so having to deal with the same dialogue a lot is more than frustrating. Checkpointing is an issue elsewhere too, breaking immersion when it doesn’t have to.

Skydance’s Behemoth is staggering in scale, and while the boss fights are impressive, the bits between feel lacklustre. Fighting the same kind of enemy over and over again does start to tire, but thanks to some cool visuals and simple combat, you’ll still have an enjoyable time roaming the Forsaken Lands. The checkpointing system is overly annoying and does begin to frustrate you to the point of almost making you stop, but it’s still a solid title that is worth checking out.