Since it was revealed, one of the most enticing aspects of Luminous Productions’ new action-RPG Forspoken has been its fluid parkour traversal system, but how exactly does it work? The game’s latest trailer gets into it, detailing the game’s basic flow and stamina mechanics, and some of Frey’s more advanced parkour moves. There are also various challenges to complete that will improve your parkour abilities. Eventually, Frey will be able to float, summon platforms to jump through the air, and glide over water on a magical surfboard, essentially turning into a fantasy superhero. You can check out the Forspoken parkour deep dive, below.
Looking good! It Luminous Productions can deliver the tech to support their parkour mechanics, traversing the world of Forspoken should be a lot of fun. Here’s a rundown of Frey’s various moves…
- Flow – Frey is activated by holding down the circle button – when in this state, Frey will dash through the world with stunning speed and amazing grace. She’ll automatically leap over small rocks and ledges, jump up small walls and do everything she can to keep pushing forward in the direction you tell her. Of course, there are limits. Using Flow alone won’t let Frey scale a cliff face or climb up a tall building – plus it requires stamina. To really get around with style, you need to combine Flow with Frey’s other moves, and learn how to chain them together.
- Rush – The Rush ability lets you Flow even faster by working in well-timed button presses. As you use Flow, you will occasionally see flames briefly emanating from Frey. Press the circle button upon seeing this visual prompt, and she’ll burst forward keeping up her fastest pace. Even better, it also lets you keep up top speeds while restoring some stamina.
- Shimmy – Want to get your speed up fast? Time to Shimmy. This move lets Frey kick off the ground to accelerate. Press X at the right time and Frey will perform a short leap forward. If you press X again when she lands, you can continue to dash forward at amazing speeds. It’s also great because it’s another move that conserves stamina. Many skills draw on this resource, and when it runs out, so does Frey’s current run. Sometimes taking a well-timed breather is helpful as her stamina will recharge quickly when Frey is not using an ability.
- Scale – Flow can get you some of the way up a wall but to get higher, you need to learn to Scale. This ability lets Frey create phantom footholds to launch herself into the air. You can use this to give yourself the boost you need to reach the top of a structure or launch off to keep moving seamlessly through the world.
- Soar – Soar lets you climb even higher by doing multiple leaps in quick succession. As the name implies, Soar enables Frey to reach incredible heights that are unattainable with a normal jump – that extra height is a real game-changer, letting you reach areas that would otherwise be inaccessible, and opening up even more opportunities for flamboyant parkour.
- Zip – By pressing the square button, you can make Frey launch a magical tether, which pulls her towards anything it connects with. It’s useful for keeping you pushing ahead in situations where you’d otherwise fall short of a ledge, or to bypass scenery that could otherwise slow your forward momentum. Alternatively, you can hold square to slow the action and target areas that you specifically want to pull yourself towards. While Zip can latch onto any wall, it really comes into its own when you target certain objects found around the world. These let Frey swing forward at incredible speeds or launch herself high up into the air!
- Float – You’ve Flowed, Scaled, Soared and Zipped your way up high, but you need to get down in a hurry – what do you do? Use Float of course! This endlessly useful ability lets Frey manipulate gravity itself to soften any fall. Simply hold the X button in the air, and you can gently drift downwards at a controlled speed. Of course, the applications go well beyond mere survival – it’s also fantastic in traversal situations.
- Glide – Glide lets Frey skim across the surface of the water. If Frey has learned the ability, it automatically activates when you use Flow in the splashy stuff – simply hold Circle to start surfing. The speed and style at which you can travel makes every lake, river and sea an opportunity for stylish showboating. it’s particularly useful when fighting some of those aforementioned moist monsters – with this ability you can run rings around them. Or, more accurately, Glide rings around them.
Forspoken glides onto PC and PS5 on January 24, 2023.
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