Chronos: Before the Ashes Reviews

If I had to describe Chronos: Before the Ashes in three words, they would be “eh, it’s fine.” It’s the prequel to last year’s Remnant: From the Ashes, a game we liked quite a bit. Like Remnant, Chronos is also a take on the Souls-borne-kiro genre. But whereas Remnant was succinctly described as “Dark Souls with guns”, Chronos is “Dark Souls with a sword and shield”. Which is to say, it plays a lot like stock-standard Dark Souls. Apart from some clever design and mechanics, i...

Even without the original’s VR elements, Chronos: Before the Ashes’ compelling and somewhat challenging combat is still its main draw, in which you have to attack, dodge and parry your way, with refined precision, towards victory. Its aging system also adds an interesting twist to combat, imbuing your battles with a sense of prudence. That said, it doesn’t offer anything new to the genre. Just watch out for its clumsy camera angles and you’ll do fine.

Chronos: Before the Ashes is a more casual take on the Souls-like formula. It has the weighty action and focus on learning enemy patterns to punish, but at eight hours to beat it’s relatively short and is lacking depth in many of its systems. At $30 and with an easier learning curve this is a good starter for anyone who hasn’t played this style of game, but veteran players may find the experience underwhelming. That said, I still had fun, and if you’re a fan of Remnant: From the Ashes y...

A substandard soulslike that's actually a port of the VR original. I'd say you're better off ditching this version and getting your Oculus on.

Death's just part of growing up in Chronos.

Chronos: Before the Ashes is an action RPG in which players need to traverse a labyrinth by solving puzzles and killing enemies in order to face a dragon. While some games feature heroes growing older, this one handles the aging process rather differently.

Developed by Gunfire Games, Chronos: Before the Ashes has, much like its own narrative, led an interesting life. Originally released simply as “Chronos” back in 2016 on the Oculus Rift as a VR title, it has since been reworked and updated as a third person outing and prequel to Remnant: From the Ashes, which recently hit a milestone in copies sold. Chronos: Before the Ashes uses many familiar mechanics, locations, and creatures from Remnant but is otherwise a wholly unique experience. Whereas Remnant is an apocalyptic over-the-shoulder cover shooter with procedurally generated stages, Chronos: Before the Ashes takes a much more fantastical approach.

Chronos: Before the Ashes is a strange beast. Originally released in 2016, this was an Oculus exclusive title that did VR a little differently. Following the success of Remnant: From the Ashes, Chronos, which is set in the same universe and just one month before the events of Remnant, was a perfect fit to convert from VR to a regular title. What also helped with this conversion is that Chronos handled VR differently, simply placing you as a sort of onlooker.

Have you ever been plowing through a game and thought to yourself, “Have I played this before?” When I started my review of Chronos: Before the Ashes, I felt this way for roughly my first hour. That is when it hit me: I HAD played this before! Back in 2016, when I was first dabbling in the world of VR, I remembered noodling around with a title named simply Chronos. As it turns out, this is that same game, more or less, now consolized and sans-VR. Can this dated title seamlessly transition from VR to the TV screen or will it be stifled by the competition in the PlayStation ecosystem?

Where Chronos: Before the Ashes goes wrong is in comparison to Remnant: From the Ashes. As a prequel, this comparison can’t be helped. The reduction in action, lack of complicated boss fights, and the removal of guns are a step-down. But alone, it’s a good game. The puzzles are fun, and the story is interesting, especially when used as a foundation for the events of Remnant.

I’m left to wonder if the VR perspective Chronos was originally designed for somehow changes the feel of combat. The toolset is strong but just doesn’t satisfy when put up against any level of challenge. The premise of the world and its history make a great impression, but the later half of the game overpowers it with tedium, imbalance, and a rushed finale. Chronos: Before the Ashes is out today for $29.99 on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X | S, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch.

Chronos: Before the Ashes is an interesting game, but not a consistent one. Its world is occasionally fascinating, some mechanics are quite interesting and its general theming adds a lot to the universe — that being said, it offers plenty of ideas it fails to deliver on and could do with a little more to make it really stand out

Starting out as a VR game back in 2016, Chronos from Gunfire Games is back in a brand new flat iteration with Before the Ashes.

Remnant: From the Ashes was a surprisingly good game released with little fanfare last year, but what the vast majority of people didn’t know, was that this game was actually a sequel to another title released by Gunfire Games (the same people behind Darksiders III) a few years prior. That game was called Chronos, originally released for the Oculus Rift as proof that you could actually run third-person games in a virtual reality setting. It was a mix between a Zelda and a Souls game in a Mo...

It’s not the biggest title in the world, but Chronos: Before the Ashes keeps you riveted from beginning to end. If you’re after an action RPG with some unique tricks up its sleeve you’d be wise to give it a go. And thanks to multiple difficulty levels, it doesn’t have to be an arduous affair. Those who have found themselves getting invested into Remnant: From the Ashes are particularly recommended to give Chronos: Before the Ashes a try. It may not have as much depth, and be more melee-focused, but you’re bound to get a kick out of visiting the origins of the series.