Have you ever played a game, defeated a cool boss monster, and wondered what it would be like to play the game with their move set? Coridden is an action RPG designed around that very desire, delivering smooth combat mechanics with a focus on transforming into the various creatures you defeat during your adventures. With lots of monsters to choose from and built-in co-op, you can truly experience the power of shifting alone or with friends in this interesting new ARPG.
In my review of Project Tower, I took issue with the game’s handling of monster transformations. To summarize, my critique was that while the concept of transforming into monsters was intriguing, the game failed to fully realize its potential. Instead of being a consistent and integral part of the gameplay, the transformations felt more like a gimmick that appeared sporadically, usually only in specific sections or for specific tasks. It often felt like the game simply handed you these transformations and then took them away just as quickly, making them feel less like a truly powerful or meaningful mechanic and more like an obstacle-clearing tool. It left me wishing for a more satisfying integration of monster morphing in a game.
Enter Coridden, a game that understands the allure and potential of monster morphing and does it justice in a way that Project Tower couldn’t quite achieve. Coridden takes the idea of transforming into monsters and fully embraces it, delivering what I believe is the closest to the perfect execution of this gameplay fantasy. The game offers a robust system in which the monsters you defeat throughout your journey have a chance to drop what are essentially equippable monster forms. These forms are not just temporary power-ups or one-time-use abilities—they are integral to your progression, and you can assign them in your inventory. Once equipped, these monster forms allow you to transform into the monster itself, complete with all of its unique stats, abilities, and fighting patterns. This is a far cry from the brief, often forgettable transformations seen in Project Tower.
What’s especially exciting about this system is how it elevates the entire monster transformation mechanic into something much more meaningful. Each of these monsters, which are often strange and alien in design, comes with its own distinct playstyle. They offer varied stats and unlockable abilities, adding layers of strategy and depth to how you approach combat. You’re not just transforming into a monster for a temporary power boost—you’re adopting a completely new sub-class with its own skill set. This allows for an entirely fresh gameplay experience, as you can experiment with different monsters and find new synergies depending on the situation.
Furthermore, Coridden adds even more depth by allowing you to upgrade these monster forms. As you continue to progress in the game, you can equip elemental ranged attacks that modify the ranged abilities of the monsters you transform into. This adds an extra layer of customization and strategy, giving you more control over how each monster form functions within the context of your playstyle. Instead of feeling like a one-off mechanic, these transformations become key to your overall approach to combat and exploration.
What I particularly love about this system is that it doesn’t just treat the monster forms as mere weapons or power-ups—it makes them feel like fully realized sub-classes for your character. Each monster is more than just a costume change; it’s an entirely new set of tools that you can use to tackle challenges in your own unique way. As you level up each of these forms by defeating enemies while in that specific transformation, you’re able to progress through a separate skill tree for each monster, unlocking new abilities and upgrades. This means that you’re not only upgrading your main character’s class but also leveling up your monster forms independently.
However, as much as I appreciate this system and the many layers of complexity it adds to Coridden, there is one flaw that I feel could be improved: the seeming randomness with which monster forms drop. I think it would be a better system if each monster defeat—particularly boss defeats—guaranteed a new form drop. This would be more like how Sword of the Necromancer: Resurrection handles its creature collection and would make the game feel like there’s a more consistent reward for killing monsters, especially after taking down the toughest foes in the game, but I could see how it might deliver rewards a little too fast.
While I mostly have good things to say about Coridden, I did have a few issues, namely with the story and one awkward bug I faced while playing.
The aforementioned bug I faced in Coridden was that the game launched with what I believe to be either Chinese or Japanese text (I’m not familiar enough with either language to tell you which). Even after managing to switch things back to English, the game continued to portray certain information in the other language, so there are certain elements in HUDs and menus that I simply could not read.
As for the story, I felt that it often moved at breakneck speeds, giving little time for you to fully understand what was going on or why. Small moments of exposition lead to leaving an area, only to not spend a whole lot of time in the next before coming back. Quest markers can be a little confusing too, at times summarizing quests as “go to this location,” leaving out specific markers for NPCs that you have to talk to or the sub-locations on the map that you need to venture to in order to find them.
The Final Word
The ability to transform into unique, fully fleshed-out monsters with their own skill trees and abilities makes the gameplay of Coridden feel fresh and exciting. With up to four-player co-op, this ARPG is worth giving a try, either alone or with friends.
Try Hard Guides received a PC review code for this game. Find more detailed looks at popular and upcoming titles on our Game Reviews page! Coridden is available on Steam.
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