In a rare occasion for the Soulslike genre that spawned from the popularity of the Dark Souls games, Overture is releasing this summer, which will come with some interesting new gameplay options.

As reported by VGC, Lies of P will be adding three difficulty options to both the base game and its Overture expansion. The difficulty options are: Butterfly's Guidance (a new easy mode), Legendary Stalker (the game's default difficulty), and Awakened Puppet (a new hard mode). The decision to introduce difficulty options came from a desire to get more interest in the game and the expansion, with director Jiwon Choi saying the developers "wanted to make sure a wider audience of players could play the game."

Difficulty Options Can Bring A New Audience

As Popular As Souls Games Are, They Haven't Been For Everyone

Difficulty options coming to Lies of P is a bit of a surprise. The game was heavily inspired by Bloodborne and other big FromSoftware titles, and none of those games offered traditional difficulty options. According to Choi, when asked about this decision and whether it was due to player , he responded: “Absolutely, we have a lot of from customers, and from our developers." The base game was quite challenging and didn't have the brand recognition that the Souls series has.

Choi went on to say that Neowiz and Round8 Studio wanted the game and the expansion to appeal to as many people as possible, saying that "by making development adjustments and introducing these difficulty options, we can offer the experience to different types of players. This broadens the base.” The Souls games have a relatively high barrier to entry, so it does make sense for a lower-budget game not carrying the Souls brand to attempt to introduce new players and reacquaint veterans with the Overture patch and release.

Our Take: No Need To Gatekeep Soulslikes

The Original Difficulty Is Still There

While this decision will likely cause some controversy among die-hard Souls fans, I see this as a win for everyone. The game's original difficulty is still present. There will be an easier difficulty for new players or players jumping into a Soulslike game for the first time. And there will be an even harder difficulty for veterans, which offers another reason for Lies of P fans to play the game again. Players must own the base game to play the DLC, and the start of the new content is likely not a traditional menu option, akin to other Soulsborne games.

There's no need to gatekeep Soulslikes. With this being one of the few popular Soulslikes to offer difficulty options, Lies of P may see a drastic increase in player count and interest for both the base game and the Overture DLC. Even two years later, Lies of P seems to have a lot of life left in it.

Source: VGC