It has been interesting to watch Asobo Studio build A Plague Tale into one of gaming’s more distinctive narrative universes, and Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy represents its boldest change of direction yet. Published by Focus Entertainment and developed by Asobo Studio, this PS5 prequel takes Sophia, one of Requiem’s most memorable supporting characters, and sends her fifteen years back into a much more action-oriented adventure built around Greek mythology, ancient mysteries and the island of the Minotaur. Ahead of release, we also spoke with lead writer Carol-Ann Bañuls and lead level designer Valérian Robert about the game’s development (read the full interview here), and they were refreshingly clear about the team’s intentions: Resonance was designed to offer a new experience rather than simply repeat what came before, retaining the DNA of A Plague Tale while changing the mechanics and creating a standalone entry point for newcomers. That ambition is immediately apparent, because this is not another story about trying to survive while feeling perpetually outmatched. Sophia is a very different protagonist, and Resonance is a very different kind of adventure.
The narrative follows Sophia as childhood visions, old wounds and a treasure hunt gradually pull her towards the mysterious Minotaur’s Island. Without getting into spoiler territory, the story cleverly uses mythology and a second timeline to explore the island’s past while gradually revealing how Sophia’s own fate is connected to what happened there. It feels more adventurous and immediately accessible than the increasingly harrowing journey of Amicia and Hugo, with the early hours often resembling a sun-drenched archaeological adventure, but the familiar darkness of the series is never far away. The mythology is used as more than decorative background material, and Asobo finds an effective way to reinterpret the Minotaur legend and connect it to the wider mythology of the Macula. The pacing can occasionally take a little too long to properly get going, particularly when extended puzzle or traversal sequences interrupt the momentum, but once the pieces start coming together, the narrative has enough mystery, emotional weight and genuinely unsettling turns to remind us that this is still very much an A Plague Tale game.
That balance between familiarity and change was something Bañuls specifically highlighted when we spoke to the team. Loss and vulnerability remain important themes, but Sophia approaches them from the opposite direction to Amicia and Hugo. Rather than openly struggling with her vulnerability, Sophia is someone who desperately tries to remain in control and has difficulty allowing herself to let go. That distinction helps explain why the new protagonist works so well. She is physically more capable, more aggressive and more confident on the surface, but the story gradually works away at that exterior. The result is a character-driven adventure that feels different without abandoning the emotional foundations that made the earlier games memorable, and it is one of Resonance’s greatest strengths that the change in gameplay style also makes sense for the person at its centre.
That change is most obvious when Sophia draws her sword. Combat is considerably more prominent than in Innocence or Requiem, with light and heavier attacks, kicks, dodges, parries and a grappling hook giving encounters a faster and more direct rhythm. Sophia is encouraged to stay active rather than simply wait for an opportunity, and the limited health system gives every successful kill and defensive manoeuvre additional importance. We found the combat entertaining and suitably energetic, especially when parries, environmental opportunities and the grappling hook come together, but it does not always have the weight or precision of the genre’s best melee systems. Some animations can look a little rigid and the parry and dodge timing occasionally feel rough around the edges, while the latter sections of the game arguably lean on combat more heavily than they need to. Nevertheless, this is a convincing first attempt at transforming A Plague Tale’s gameplay without losing its sense of danger.
Robert told us that exploring combat was one of the reasons Resonance made sense as the next step for the series. The challenge, however, was not simply adding more mechanics. According to him, the team had to find a way to introduce combat, exploration and other new systems while preserving the strong storytelling and emotional experience that had become part of the franchise’s identity. That thinking shows in the overall structure. Combat is only one part of the experience, with stealth returning when tension rather than outright action is required, while platforming, exploration and environmental puzzles constantly rotate through the adventure. The individual ingredients will be familiar to anyone who has played Tomb Raider, Uncharted or similar cinematic adventures, and Resonance does not always introduce enough genuinely original ideas of its own, but Asobo generally combines them effectively enough to maintain a strong sense of forward momentum.
The puzzle design is particularly important to that balance. Sophia’s notebook provides contextual information and optional hints, while a Minoan sphere becomes an increasingly versatile tool for manipulating light, revealing information and activating mechanisms. Later puzzles build on those ideas in satisfying ways, using colors, reflections and environmental structures rather than relying entirely on isolated puzzle rooms. They are usually intuitive without being completely effortless, and the optional hint system means the game can offer assistance without constantly giving away the solution. There are moments when the formula starts to repeat itself, and some platforming sections can go on long enough to feel like they are stretching the journey rather than enriching it, but the variety between puzzles, climbing and stealth does prevent the adventure from becoming too one-note.
This is also where the interview provided some useful context for what Resonance is trying to achieve. Bañuls and Robert described the development process as a constant collaboration between narrative, game and level design, with the player experience acting as the point where those disciplines meet. The intention was to think from the beginning about how story could be delivered through gameplay and levels rather than treating cinematics and mechanics as entirely separate elements. Resonance does not always hide its blockbuster influences, and there are familiar chase sequences, narrow traversal routes and cinematic set pieces that feel drawn from a well-established action-adventure playbook, but the strongest moments are the ones where the island itself, the puzzles and Sophia’s emotional journey all reinforce one another.
Exploration and progression are comparatively lightweight. Resonance points, skills, alternative weapons and collectible charms provide reasons to search the environments, and we appreciate that Asobo has resisted turning Sophia’s adventure into an unnecessarily bloated RPG. There is value in keeping the systems manageable, particularly in a game that already has several gameplay disciplines competing for attention. At the same time, the upgrades and equipment can feel less consequential than they initially appear, and the more linear structure means exploration rarely develops into anything much more substantial than locating a hidden route or collectible. Players looking for large optional areas or extensive character customisation will not find it here, but the focused structure does help the game avoid the padded open-world tendencies that have affected so many modern action adventures.
Visually, Resonance is exactly what we have come to expect from Asobo Studio in the best possible sense. The PS5 version regularly delivers spectacular Mediterranean landscapes, imposing ruins, sunlit coastlines and much darker, more claustrophobic locations as Sophia travels deeper into the island’s secrets. The ancient Minoan material gives the game a visual identity that separates it from its predecessors while still feeling compatible with the series, and the lighting does more than simply make the environments look impressive because it is also woven directly into the puzzle design. During our interview, Robert credited the studio’s art and technical art teams for helping create that distinctive identity, particularly because Resonance required them to build a civilisation that sits somewhere between historical inspiration and myth. That effort pays off, although the presentation is not completely flawless: minor clipping, occasional visual glitches and performance or image issues in larger areas were seem, and some facial and combat animations can be inconsistent.
The audiovisual storytelling remains one of Asobo’s biggest strengths. Bañuls explained that the cinematics were brought to life through motion-capture sessions in which she also directed the actors, while the experience gained from the earlier games helped the team create the expressive close-ups that have become a recognisable part of the series. That attention to performance is particularly effective with Sophia, whose physical reactions often communicate as much as the dialogue does. Olivier Derivière’s score provides another major asset, adapting the musical identity of the series to the setting while maintaining its emotional intensity, and the sound design is equally important when the game moves into its more disturbing territory. On PS5, the DualSense features also contribute to the physicality of the experience, making movement and environmental interaction feel more tactile.
Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy is therefore a risk that largely pays off. It is more conventional in mechanical terms than Innocence and Requiem were, borrowing liberally from established cinematic action-adventure games, and its combat and progression systems do not always have the depth or impact to match its ambitions. Some puzzles and traversal sequences can outstay their welcome as well, but the crucial thing is that Asobo has not mistaken changing the formula for abandoning the identity of the series. Sophia’s story has its own rhythm, mythology and gameplay language, while the emotional darkness, visual ambition and narrative focus remain recognisably A Plague Tale. At roughly a dozen to fifteen hours for a typical first run, it is also a focused adventure that rarely feels burdened by unnecessary excess. Resonance may not reinvent the action-adventure genre, but it successfully proves that this universe has room to evolve beyond Amicia and Hugo – and that may be the most important discovery hidden within the Minotaur’s labyrinth.
Score: 8.4/10