【My Mothers Friend 5】

Forspoken,My Mothers Friend 5Square Enix and Luminous Productions’ open-world spell-slinging simulator is out Tuesday, and its opening hours are, to be blunt, not the game’s strength. It takes about three hours before you’re set loose in the expansive realm of Athia, and even then, it takes even more time for many of your magic powers to become fun. 

SEE ALSO: 'Forspoken' is a fun game if you do these 3 things

But thankfully, you can accelerate that process if you know where to look. Here’s how to jumpstart Forspoken’s magic motor to get the most out of the game in the early goings. 

Find those founts

There are new spells just waiting to be found. Credit: Square Enix

Whenever you unlock a new school of magic in Forspoken(this is done by following the main story, so remember to do that!), you’ll notice that the skill tree in the "Magic" menu will have some spells labeled with question marks. First things first, you need to pursue these spells, which means figuring out where to get them: Founts of Blessing.

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Forspokendoes a very nice thing where you can not only see what those spells are by hovering over them, but you can even press the PS5 touchpad to see the Fount of Blessing where you unlock it. These are magical wells littered around the map that bestow new spells upon the protagonist, Frey. And it just so happens that some of these founts give you key movement powers, like the ability to gain speed by pressing a button right as you land on the ground after a jump.

Not every Fount of Blessing gives you something crucial, but at the very least, find the ones that house new movement powers. Frey’s magic parkour is the key to getting around Athia painlessly, and you want every advantage you can get.

Support your support spells

Trapping enemies in big balls of water is fun. Credit: Square Enix

Speaking of Forspoken’s magic skill trees, they can be a little overwhelming at first. There are a lot of spells to spend experience points on, and it’s hard to tell which ones will be useful and which ones are duds. Let me tell you right now: Support spells are great.

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They may not be as flashy as attack spells (which you should absolutely invest in as early as possible), but the support spells that live on the left side of every skill tree are crucial to success. They can do everything from summon fixed turrets to fire rocks at enemies to lock baddies in a giant ball of water that explodes on contact. 

Aside from the fact that the support spells are useful, there’s another good reason to unlock as many as you can early on: Cooldowns. Each support spell has its own individual cooldown, so ideally, you’ll use one and then switch to another (and so on) to flood the zone with spells. Forspokenis at its best when you have as much chaos happening on-screen as possible.

If you don’t emphasize unlocking support spells, you can’t do that. Bummer!

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Be smart about upgrades

Parkour uses stamina, but it doesn't have to. Credit: Square Enix

Last but not least, Forspokenisn’t just about unlocking spells. You can also upgrade them, and doing so is crucial to making the game as enjoyable as it can be.

Play enough of the main story and eventually you’ll get the ability to upgrade spells at bookcases in safehouses around Athia. You can pin three spells to your upgrade board at a time, with each upgrade locked behind a minor challenge. Sometimes you just need to kill a certain number of enemies with the spell you’re trying to upgrade, for example.

SEE ALSO: 'Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion' is the perfect holiday gaming binge

But it’s not just about pursuing upgrades. You have to pursue the right ones. From the start, I stronglysuggest upgrading any of Frey’s movement spells when you can. Doing so can unleash a number of big benefits, like removing the stamina cost of the ability or making it replenish lost stamina. Do this often enough and you’ll find yourself never running out of stamina again.

Forspokenis far from a perfect game, but the best version of it is easy to find as long as you set your priorities straight early on. Seriously, just go to those Founts of Blessing whenever you can. You can thank me later. 

Topics PlayStation