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It is rare to get blessed with two souls-like releases during the same month. One of the rare recent cases involves AI Limit and The First Berserker: Khazan. Both are good in their own way and deserve at least one playthrough, especially if you’re a fan of the genre. However, not everyone has the money for both games, so picking one for now might be a tough choice. After playing both, we have pros and cons for each that might nudge you and your wallet in the right direction.
Combat
Let’s start with the most crucial part of a souls-like game: its combat, and for that, let’s begin with AI Limit.
AI Limit offers a more traditional and methodical souls-like experience, with a few changes, though, like not having a stamina bar, which is huge. Still, this one will make players who grew up with FromSoft games feel at home. The combat isn’t as engaging as those games, though, but that’s not to say it is terrible. It has exciting additions like the Sync Rate, encouraging you to play more aggressively to increase your DPS. Also, weapon variety is a bit better in AI Limit as it has more armaments than the three in Khazan. Overall, AI Limit is a more traditional experience, but with it sticking to that “traditional” approach, it doesn’t really hit the highs of the games that have made the genre stand out so much.
On the other hand, The First Berserker: Khazan takes a more Nioh-like approach in many ways. Combat is much faster with different combos and many skills you can slot to use when fighting. On top of that, you have a lot of loot to grab, which might be a cool thing for some but overwhelming to others. Still, Khazan‘s combat is aggressive, flashy, and quite challenging despite having so many tools to kill enemies. By tools, we refer to skills because the weapon lineup isn’t the best. You only have three weapons, and while they are great, more variety would’ve been great. Yet, they all feel impactful and perfectly designed, so that’s a clear example of quality over quantity.
Winner: The First Berserker: Khazan has better combat than AI Limit. While AI Limit offers a traditional souls-like experience in terms of combat, it doesn’t reach the heights of other games of the genre.
Level Design
AI Limit shines with its level design. The setting might not be for some, but the way the levels are crafted is marvelous. You have a lot of hidden places here and there and a lot of verticality in certain areas. While there may not be a lot of variety, the design is what makes exploring AI Limit worth it. There are way more secrets than you can imagine, and this design captures what made previous souls-like games feel so iconic.
The First Berserker: Khazan, however, has a level design that sometimes feels too safe. By safe, I mean there isn’t much encouragement when exploring. Every level feels like a hand-holding experience, and while the actual visuals of each are fantastic, the exploration part isn’t great. Again, it feels a bit Nioh-y, for that matter. Yet, if you want a more linear experience that takes you from point A to point B without detours, Khazan nails it.
Winner: AI Limit has a better level design than The First Berserker: Khazan. In terms of visuals, Khazan wins by a large margin. However, AI Limit makes exploration feel more engaging and rewarding.
Length
Out of the two, AI Limit is the shorter. You’re looking at less than 30 hours of playtime, and that’s about a leisure playthrough or if bosses give you a lot of trouble. A typical playthrough should take you 20 to 25 hours. That’s not to say it is bad. While it may be short for a souls-likes, a 20-hour game is ideal nowadays, especially with so many games constantly launching. Plus, AI Limit is cheaper than The First Berserker: Khazan, so that’s another thing to remember.
The First Berserker: Khazan may take you anywhere from 35 to 50 hours for one playthrough only. This is quite a lengthy game, but a length you’d expect in a souls-like. If you focus solely on the story and not on the side quests or collectibles, your time might be shorter. Still, 30 hours or more is a good amount of time, too, especially for a game of this genre.
Winner: The First Berserker: Khazan is longer than AI Limit, and while it is also more expensive, it has more content. Length might be subjective for some, but we feel Khazan has way more things to do that justify the playtime.
Final Verdict
Overall, we believe The First Berserker: Khazan is the one you should go for, whether you’re a souls-like veteran or not. While both games are great, Khazan has more content and better boss fights, and the combat is more approachable. Still, AI Limit has many great things, especially for those who like a more traditional approach. If you’re only buying one game, starting with Khazan is a good idea. On the other hand, you could buy AI Limit, which is cheaper, and then go for Khazan when or if it goes on sale.
