The First Berserker: Khazan
Lee Jaekwang and Go Younghwa
" a complete disquiet, sensory-depriving (orchestral) "grandeur" experience "Written by Joep de Bruijn - Review of the regular release
The First Berserker: Khazan (2025) is an arcade action-style game disguised as a role-playing game, with gameplay focusing on the revenge and bloodshed of a general, featuring a "soulslike" level of difficulty. The South Korean developers NEOPLE almost fearlessly took on the challenge of developing something devoid of nuances, a sentiment similarly reflected in the score by in-house composers Lee Jaekwang and Go Younghwa, alongside the additional contributions of Michał Cielecki, a-JAE, Ahn Soo Wan, and xka.
I attempted to play The First Berserker: Khazan for two hours and then discontinued it very quickly. I subsequently listened to the official release, which lasts for almost 90 minutes, and conducted some additional research. Therefore, I most strongly base my opinion on a relentless 90-minute release, not forgetting to fully consider other factors that come into play.
The composers utilize a choir, solo voices, assorted solo instruments, electronics, and a huge orchestra, which in itself is not pristine. Yet, every cue represents a saturated wall-to-wall, larger-than-life, and massive, muscular sound approach -times ten- despite many qualities from a more clinical perspective. There is much that can be linked to other scores in different games and other media, providing a similar scope, but these do contain a level of nuance displayed through additional releases and fuller, more diverse, in-context musical experiences. The 90-minute release is a complete disquiet, sensory-depriving (orchestral) "grandeur" experience that, despite limited game experience, is exactly what the game seems to necessitate.
Tracklist
1. Khazan 03:05
2. Beast of the Frozen Mountain 03:43
3. Ferrum Phantasma I 03:42
4. Ferrum Phantasma II 03:47
5. Scion of the Berserk Dragon 04:58
6. Prelude to Vengeance 03:47
7. Venomous Predator 01:57
8. Fury Ablaze 04:22
9. Veiled Knives I 03:59
10. Veiled Knives II 03:52
11. Dreams Forever Lost 05:02
12. The Bitter Truth 03:13
13. Witch's Castle 04:33
14. Hermit's Gorge 04:20
15. The Corruptor 04:37
16. Pell Los Requiem 04:12
17. Howl of Ruin 04:29
18. Bride of Despair I 05:00
19. Bride of Despair II 05:16
20. Master of Chaos I 04:19
21. Master of Chaos II 05:06
Toral duration: 1:27:28
(25-04-2025)
I attempted to play The First Berserker: Khazan for two hours and then discontinued it very quickly. I subsequently listened to the official release, which lasts for almost 90 minutes, and conducted some additional research. Therefore, I most strongly base my opinion on a relentless 90-minute release, not forgetting to fully consider other factors that come into play.
The composers utilize a choir, solo voices, assorted solo instruments, electronics, and a huge orchestra, which in itself is not pristine. Yet, every cue represents a saturated wall-to-wall, larger-than-life, and massive, muscular sound approach -times ten- despite many qualities from a more clinical perspective. There is much that can be linked to other scores in different games and other media, providing a similar scope, but these do contain a level of nuance displayed through additional releases and fuller, more diverse, in-context musical experiences. The 90-minute release is a complete disquiet, sensory-depriving (orchestral) "grandeur" experience that, despite limited game experience, is exactly what the game seems to necessitate.
Tracklist
1. Khazan 03:05
2. Beast of the Frozen Mountain 03:43
3. Ferrum Phantasma I 03:42
4. Ferrum Phantasma II 03:47
5. Scion of the Berserk Dragon 04:58
6. Prelude to Vengeance 03:47
7. Venomous Predator 01:57
8. Fury Ablaze 04:22
9. Veiled Knives I 03:59
10. Veiled Knives II 03:52
11. Dreams Forever Lost 05:02
12. The Bitter Truth 03:13
13. Witch's Castle 04:33
14. Hermit's Gorge 04:20
15. The Corruptor 04:37
16. Pell Los Requiem 04:12
17. Howl of Ruin 04:29
18. Bride of Despair I 05:00
19. Bride of Despair II 05:16
20. Master of Chaos I 04:19
21. Master of Chaos II 05:06
Toral duration: 1:27:28
(25-04-2025)