Overview – developed by Punching Donut and Shady Corner, with porting/publishing by Eastasiasoft, Book of Korvald is a side scrolling action adventure, taking place in a bloody Nordic landscape. As Korvald, embark on a violent rampage against the church and eldritch horrors, beyond human comprehension on a mission of revenge. This version of the game is available on PlayStation and Nintendo Switch, with a link to each version of the game at the bottom of this review.
Disclaimer: before I get into the review, I would like to thank Eastasiasoft for providing the copy of Book of Korvald that was used for this piece. The provision of this software has not influenced the contents of this review, all thoughts and opinions contained within are my own.
Mature Content Disclaimer: The Book of Korvald is intended for mature audiences, with the game receiving a 17+ rating for the game. This is due to the inclusion of strong language, suggestive imagery and dialogue, alongside graphic scenes of violence blood and gore. If you are uncomfortable with this content or under the rated age, please check out the other content on offer on this site.
Now with the introductions out of the way, let’s get into the review, starting with the story. I will be only covering the core elements of the gameplay, as there are many hidden secrets that I do not want to spoil for players. This version of the game is modified from the original PC release, which has explicit adult content in it. That material has been altered/removed from this version of the game to comply with guidelines and rating boards.
Story – this is the Saga of Korvald, the Norse Scribe and his alliance with the eldritch entity Qhroth’un. Korvald’s village is destroyed, his family slain and he is branded a heretic, condemned to death by the church. During his imprisonment, Korvald is approached by Qhroth’un and an agreement is made, giving him the power to free himself. Now Korvald sets out on a bloody campaign to avenge those killed, but there are more sinister forces at work in the shadows.
Gameplay – Book of Korvald is a side scrolling action adventure, similar to titles like Castlevania and Ender Magnolia, offering a large interconnected world to explore. As Korvald, the player must explore the different locations, inspired by 9th century Scandinavia during the crusades. With over 30 areas to carve a bloody path of revenge through, including towns, forests, dungeons and the imposing stronghold of Ribe Cathedral.
During the course of the adventure, the player will need to complete objectives that will push the narrative forward. These will be marked on the world map and segmented maps, which is rather expansive showing doors, pathways and markers for the objectives. There will be the main objective for the player to pursue, alongside secondary objectives that provide special bonuses. Some of the side missions can be done at a more leisurely pace.
There will be elements of platforming and exploration during this adventure, with the player needing to jump, double jump and climb to reach new heights. There will be hazards and various dangers that the player will need to avoid, including instant death traps and pits. When exploring, some areas will be inaccessible without upgrades, or will need to be unlocked by meeting set conditions. This adds an element of backtracking to the adventure.
As this is a side scrolling action game, there will be enemies that appear throughout the different locations, attacking Korvald as they try to bring him down. In order to survive the fights with these enemy forces, Korvald can wield a variety of weaponry. These include Swords, Axes, Whips and Spears, which are equipped in the main hand as the main form of attack. Then there are the off-hand weaponry, like Shields and Throwing Knives as support weapons.
Each of the main weapons will have a relatively simple combo, dealing various levels of damage based on their level and their rarity. Off-Hand weapons operate in a slightly different way, with special attacks that use Korvald’s spirit energy. There will also be pieces of Armor that can be found, separated into parts that can be equipped individually. The quality and rarity of gear will influence how effective they are, improving the chances of survival.
The last part of the equipment system to discuss is Artifacts, special unique items that will provide a range of benefits. These include magical powers that can harm enemies, provide benefits, but be warned as some of them may just be cursed. By equipping these items, the appearance of Korvald will change, allowing players to customise the look to their liking. To equip items, the player must navigate the inventory, with slots for all of the different pieces of gear.
By equipping gear, the player stats will be affected, altering the strength, defense, luck and more which will strengthen Korvald during the journey. When picking up different gear, the player will get to see if the items will offer positive or negative stat boosts, with red for negative and green for positive. Gear and items can be collected from downed enemies, boxes and chests, with a rarity system that can be affected by Korvald’s luck stat.
It is also possible to find Alcohol, medicine and scrap items during the adventure. When using Alcohol, Korvald will become drunk, which has the chance to affect his other stats, lasting for a limited time when the bar is full. The Medicine will restore health that is lost during combat, allowing Korvald to survive the dangerous encounters against enemies. Scrap will be added to the player inventory, with various uses for players to discover.
Korvald will also be able to collect gold throughout the adventure, which is added to the players balance when it is collected. The gold can be used to purchase special items and equipment from merchants, who can be encountered throughout the world. There are many uses for gold, but the most important is in the Ribe Tavern, which becomes a base of operations for Korvald. The Tavern is run by the sister of Qhroth’un, who offers several services.
In the Tavern, Korvald can buy alcoholic beverages, as well as purchase upgrades for the Tavern, providing different facilities that can be used by the player. She will also be able to give the player quests, which will provide gold upon completion. The upgrades for the Tavern will be operated by NPC characters encountered during the game, needing to complete set objectives to recruit them. When the Tavern is unlocked, the player will also activate Fast Travel.
There is also a crafting system, where players can craft weaponry, armor and even foods. This system is a little cumbersome as the parts needed to create items can be hard to obtain, this leads to players needing to grind and search to find the needed items. There is sadly no way to know if the recipe has been unlocked yet, unless the player manually checks at a crafting point. This is the only blemish on an otherwise well rounded out equipment system.
As this is an action RPG, Korvald will unlock new skills and abilities during the course of his journey. The main way to obtain new powers, is through defeating boss opponents, who are powerful enemies that can annihilate Korvald if the player is not careful. The abilities that are unlocked can open up new areas, like a slide that will provide safety from traps, and a teleport that can cross large gaps. These are key to progressing through the game.
Players can also collect talent points, which can buy upgrades on the skill tree. These include increased chances of getting rare items, improved stats and faster recovery of special attack power. Many of the talents will have more than one level to them, which will increase the power of the skill attributed to it. Then there are the unique skills which will have only a single level, giving Korvald special powers that will be important to survival.
Then there are the Rune Stones, which are ancient stones that are imbued with magic. When a rune stone is discovered, the player will be able to learn new magic powers. These powers offer both passive and active effects, the passive effects will be active at all times, letting the player use them freely. But the active effects can only be used when the Rune meter is full, unleashing a powerful magic attack against enemies, with only one that can be equipped at a time.
The last mechanic to discuss is the “Urge” system and companion system, which causes Korvald to be overwhelmed by an insatiable lust. At set points during the course of the adventure, Korvald will encounter various maidens that he will lay with. When this happens the game will fade to black, before transitioning to the next section, with a few exceptions. These scenes will push the narrative forward, as they occur at key points of the story.
Many of those who Korvald lays with will become available to be recruited, allowing them to accompany Korvald on his journey. There are many companions that can be recruited, with each of them having their own unique powers, that can be called upon when they have enough energy. This makes them very useful during combat, as they can be of great help during boss battles. Many of the Companions can be called to action freely, switching between them on the fly.
This is not the only way that the system can be used, as Korvald can use his power of seduction to gain secondary allies. When the urge meter is full, the player can unleash the built up energy, seducing an enemy maiden and causing them to follow Korvald. This will last until the recruited companion is defeated, with only one secondary companion that can be Seduced at a time. Having two companions can improve the chances of Korvald’s survival.
Now with the gameplay covered, it is time to discuss the other aspects of this release, starting with the controls.
Controls – there is a pretty easy to use control system with this release, with easy to use inputs for the combat, movement and platforming. Throughout the game, the player will be given tutorials on the inputs, which can allow the player to get acclimated to them quickly. Everything feels snappy and responsive, with all controllers used, including the Switch 2 Joy-Cons feeling comfortable to use. In general the game feels good in action.
Difficulty – Book of Korvald has multiple difficulty settings, with the lowest two offering a relatively straight forward experience. However, the higher up in the choices the player gets, the more brutal the experience will be. At higher levels of difficulty, the enemies that the player encounters will be siginificantly more deadly, with the capability to wipe the player out quickly. Thankfully, there are checkpoints that will allow the player to get back into the action upon death.
Presentation – there is a unique style to the visuals with this game, with highly detailed, hand made sprites for the game world and characters. This is part of the original design as an adult game, with the variety of maidens having soft, appealing faces and sex appeal to them. This is contrasted by the stoic males and horrific abominations, which are equally as detailed in terms of quality. The attention to detail is incredible, there are even “special” paintings in the background.
Then there are the combat effects, like the blood and gore, which is over the top like everything else, especially when enemies are reduced to bloody skeletons. Last is the sound, with some excellently implemented music and ambient sound, which fits the experience very well. There is also a lot of voiced dialogue present, with performances from various independent voice actors, including Pixie Willow, Pear Blossom and Sed21.
Final Thoughts – I had been aware of Book of Korvald during the development of the PC version, having had a chance to see and play little snippets of the game. So I was already familiar with the title, but sadly I didn’t have the time to fully commit to it. So when this game was announced for consoles, I knew it was my chance to give it a proper look. I can safely say, that this is a worthwhile action game, with a lot of passion and care put into it.
There is a lot of work that has gone into making the Book of Korvald, which is apparent from the detail in the sprite work, environments and general setting. The gameplay and narrative are also fleshed out very well, with the game feeling fully complete even if the sexual elements of the PC version are omitted. There are elements of the original version still here, with the sex appeal, suggestive content and lust mechanic still present.
This title is very good, but unfortunately the game is not without some minor flaws. There are some elements that are a little cumbersome, like the crafting system, which isn’t explained very well. I will also say that the objectives are a little awkward to find, needing to go between two map menus. But these are minor complaints and don’t hurt the main experience. So with that said, I am happy to recommend this game, there is so much depth and content to enjoy.
In the end, I give Book of Korvald a final score of 4.5/5. This is one of the few adult titles that have successfully made the jump to console, with a lot of substance to the gameplay and narrative, offering a satisfying yet bloody action experience. If you want to check this game out for yourself, a link to each version of the game will be below.
Link to Nintendo Switch version (HERE)
Link to PlayStation version (HERE)
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