Lies of P Director Clarifies Difficulty Adjustment: Aims for Broader Audience Appeal

The upcoming DLC for *Lies of P*, titled *Overture*, is set to bring a significant and long-awaited change to the game—difficulty options. This marks the first time players will be able to adjust the challenge level, a feature notably absent at launch. As a traditional "Soulslike," *Lies of P* has been known for its punishing difficulty, which can be especially daunting for newcomers drawn in by its dark narrative and gothic atmosphere.

When the game originally launched, director Jiwon Choi made it clear that the development team at Neowiz believed difficulty settings didn’t belong in Soulslike titles. That philosophy, however, appears to have evolved. According to Choi in a recent interview with VGC, the decision to add difficulty levels came after careful consideration of player feedback and internal discussions:

“We wanted to make sure a wider audience of players could play the game. We have a lot of feedback from customers and from our developers. So by making development adjustments and introducing these difficulty options, we can offer the experience to different types of players. This broadens the base.”

This shift in design philosophy has sparked discussion among the community. Some players appreciate the inclusivity that adjustable difficulty brings, particularly those who discovered gaming later in life or struggle with the intense mechanical demands of the genre:

"I got into gaming around the age of 24. I'm using the easier difficulty settings because, as much as I love Lies of P, I have a major skill issue, and that's okay. I just thought it would be nice hearing why someone would reasonably want the difficulty settings. I never got to own any systems when I was a kid, so now I can as a working adult who doesn't have 10+ years of skills."

Others see this change as a necessary step to move beyond catering to hardcore elitism:

"Souls elitists don't want difficulty because they like bragging about their video game achievements. I'm glad Lies of P is not servicing them."

However, not all reactions are positive. On Steam forums and social media, some players expressed disappointment, arguing that the changes dilute the original experience:

"Was interested in playing, but after all the nerfs and adding difficulty levels, I lost interest. Game devs, please stop catering to babies."

"You had a masterpiece on your hands Neowitz, and you turned it into laughing stock. For shame."

Despite the backlash, many replies in those same threads support the developer’s choice, emphasizing that accessibility improvements benefit more than just casual players—they help preserve the artistic and narrative depth of the game by allowing more people to experience it fully.

What Lies Ahead in *Overture*

Beyond the addition of difficulty settings, *Overture* promises a robust expansion featuring new locations, enemies, bosses, characters, and weapons. It also introduces *Death March Mode*, a boss-rush-style challenge that lets players test their skills against every major boss in the game.

For experienced players, the DLC is expected to offer between 15–20 hours of gameplay and becomes available after completing a specific chapter in the main story. Neowiz has also confirmed a full sequel is already in development, signaling a growing commitment to the *Lies of P* universe.

IGN reviewed the base game favorably, awarding it an 8/10 and stating:

"Lies of P might not branch out particularly far from its soulslike inspiration, but it plays the part extremely well."