Forspoken (v1.23 & ALL DLC)

Athia’s vast, ruined wilderness gives Forspoken its strongest appeal: a high-speed fantasy adventure built around magical movement and spectacular spellcasting. Frey Holland, a sharp-tongued New Yorker stranded in an unfamiliar realm, carries a sentient bracelet called Cuff and quickly becomes entangled in a disaster known as the Break. Once protected by powerful matriarchs called Tantas, the land now suffers under their corruption, with ordinary people and wildlife warped into hostile monsters. The tone mixes lonely, melancholic exploration with frequent banter between Frey and her reluctant magical companion.

Combat revolves around cycling through elemental spell sets, each offering its own ranged attacks, charged abilities, support magic, and devastating finishers. Players hurl rocks, fire volleys of water, unleash electrical strikes, and experiment with status effects while constantly moving around aggressive enemies. Magic-enhanced parkour is the real centerpiece, letting Frey sprint across plains, scale cliffs, vault ravines, and skim over water with a fluidity rarely seen in open-world action games. Activities scattered through Athia’s regions reward exploration with mana, equipment upgrades, nail designs, cloaks, puzzles, combat challenges, and new traversal options, although tougher encounters demand smart spell selection and a willingness to keep moving.

Forspoken stands apart from comparable open-world RPGs through its speed: Frey feels less like a conventional sword-and-shield hero and more like a magical freerunner crossing enormous landscapes at full momentum. Its detailed environments and particle-heavy combat look striking, especially when several spell types collide on screen, though the open world can feel sparse between major points of interest. The story’s character dialogue is deliberately divisive, but players who enjoy a sarcastic protagonist, flashy elemental combat, and mobility similar in spirit to Infamous or Prototype may find plenty to enjoy. It suits action fans willing to push through a gradual opening before its combat and traversal systems fully open up.