The following contains major story spoilers forLies of P: Overture.
In no conceivable way am I immune to a sad, arresting story. To be fair, though, it isn’t always clear what game genres will be particularly hard-hitting, as I didn’t necessarily dive intoClair Obscur: Expedition 33’s turn-based RPGat launch anticipating a narrative proposing remarkably intelligent and philosophical considerations about grief and existentialism. Moreover, the last genre of games that I’d expect to gut-punch me is a genuine, traditional Soulslike, which is perhaps whyLies of P: Overturewas able to catch me so vulnerably.
Having playedLies of Pbefore, I chose to play Overture on the Legendary Stalker difficulty, though I wasn’t opposed to dropping to Awakened Puppet if it was much more challenging than I’d remembered. I expectedLies of P: Overtureto be brutal because of how tough enemies and bosses might be, as is par the course for any Soulslike, let alone its post-launch DLC expansions, but what I didn’t suspect is that it would be equally heartbreaking.Lies of Pcertainly doesn’t tell a happy tale, yet there are several haunting and devastating story beats in the DLC that I’ll forever be grateful were told beforeLies of Pshuts the book on its fairy tale adaptation.
Lies of P: Overture’s Spider Cave Puppet Krat Mystery and Alexander Goodman’s philosophical predicament are two beats that hit me the hardest, and having them both occur nearly back to back dealt a doubly impactful blow. In the former, players are encouraged to discover where a mining puppet named Rockhead could be heard still striking a wall. This puppet is claimed to be murderous, and the faint sound of the pickaxe continued to frighten any human who had worked the tunnels since.
Players will know precisely where this “ringing” can be heard as they come across it while pursuing leads on how to find the person belonging to the voice emanating from broken-down Crusher puppets. The wall can be interacted with, but players aren’t prompted to hit it and trigger anything until they have the Decoded Corroded Cipher Machine Text. At this point, hitting the wall destroys it, revealing Rockhead and a skeleton on a nearby mattress.
I was admittedly not followingLies of P’s Krat Mystery loreall that thoroughly by the time Rockhead burst through the wall—after hearing about a “Spider Cave Puppet,” I was much more concerned with there potentially being some nightmarish creature waiting for me. But, after re-reading previous text logs I had procured and the Misfit’s Diary note that was left by the skeleton, knowing the puppet continued hitting the wall with the pickaxe in a never-ending attempt to free them both is unbelievably tragic.
As for the quest related to the broken-down Crushers and their disembodied voice, players eventually stumble on a room with a gas leak, another broken-down machine, and a brain in a vat. It was always fairly clear that all wouldn’t be as it seemed in this quest, much like with each Krat Mystery inLies of P: Overture, but players are given the choice here to either grant Alexander Goodman’s request and pull the plug on his Mindkeeper Machine, essentially extinguishing his life support tank, or refusing to do so.
This choice wasn’t traumatic for me as I was removed from the character in question as well as simply agreeing to let him die as he wished; still, I found Alexander’s awful situation as someone who is suddenly forced to come to terms with his inescapable entombment and imminent death deeply sympathetic.
The primary plot ofLies of P: Overturedoesn’t truly begin until players learn about Lea Florence Monad, and its melancholy narrative refuses to relent thereafter. Thefates ofLies of P’s Carlo and Romeotie into the base game’s story with a bit more exposition and lore to chew on, too. However, I wasn’t drawn in wholly until Arlecchino was name-dropped.
ExhumingLies of P’s most eerie and enigmatic character,Lies of P: Overture’s surprise final bossis a heinous and sinister figure who is made tremendously terrifying by how he chooses to take revenge on Lea. Plus, due to the cinematic and dynamic camera angles that are introduced toLies of Pvia the DLC, I was that much more allured by Lea, someone whom I was tailing for the entire DLC prior to finally meeting her in a shack near the Krat Lighthouse.
Lies of P: Overturehas a big lore dumpin the Monad Charity House, but by then I was already hooked and committed to aiding Lea in whatever way possible. It’s crucial that players witness Romeo’s severed arms dangling from a statue through Lea’s eyes, and not just P’s—who is mute and whose expression is rarely expressive, regardless of how long or grey P’s hair is or how many times P’s heart has pounded in response to a choice made—because it’s Lea’s tragedy to endure. I loved the fact that I was basically her NPC escort as P and Lea raced toward the Monad Charity House, rather than her being another lackluster and futile companion atop foundations in games, and I was perfectly willing for the story to be hers in the DLC’s third act.
Lies of P: Overture’s post-credits scene paints a clearer portrait of how reprehensible and despicable Giuseppe Geppetto is, which helps to fully inform whether players might refuse or accept to freelyrelinquish P’s heart at the end ofLies of P.
Furthermore, whilesummoning the Tracker for the Two-faced Overseer boss fighthas no effect on the story and is simply a means of lending players aid in the boss fight, Arlecchino, the Blood Artist is Lea’s score to settle, not P’s. Narratively, it felt correct helping Lea to her feet and engaging in Arlecchino’s boss fight cooperatively.
Part of me was disappointed that I solicited her help in the boss fight instantly as I didn’t get to learn the boss fight much at all, and I only died once before succeeding in my second attempt, again with Lea summoned. That said, with the lines of dialogue that players hear from her, the stunningly cinematic Fatal attack that P and Lea team-up for whenArlecchino, the Blood Artistis staggered in his second phase, and the cutscene that plays once Arlecchino is defeated, I knew summoning Lea was the right choice for me based on how invested in her and her story I was.
Lies of Pcertainly doesn’t tell a happy tale, yet there are several haunting and devastating story beats in the DLC that I’ll forever be grateful were told beforeLies of Pshuts the book on its fairy tale adaptation.
Lies of P: Overture
WHERE TO PLAY
Lies of P: Overture is a dramatic prequel to the acclaimed soulslike action RPG, Lies of P. It transports you to the city of Krat in its final days of haunting, late-19th-century Belle Époque beauty. On the brink of the Puppet Frenzy massacre, you follow a legendary Stalker—a mysterious guide—through untold stories and chilling secrets. As Geppetto’s deadly puppet, you’ll journey through Krat and its surroundings, uncover hidden backstories, and face epic battles that shape the past and future of Lies of P.
