‘Phantom Blade Zero’ Can Scratch The ‘Sekiro: Shadows Only Die Twice’ Itch While Also Showing What ‘Stellar Blade’ Could Have Been
Phantom Blade Zero is an upcoming fast-paced, combo-heavy, third-person RPG set in a dark Wuxia-themed world from S-Game.
The game draws heavily on FromSoft’s titles, including Sekiro: Only Shadows Die Twice with its level design and setting. On the other hand, the combat shows what Stellar Blade could have been if Shift Up opted for full-on combo-heavy battles without slowing it with an odd parry/dodge system that many players failed to connect with.
RELATED: Opinion: After Their Recent String Of Live-Service Disasters, Sony Can Score A Big Win By Letting Bluepoint Games Remaster ‘Bloodborne’
FromSoftware perfected the souls-like formula with Demon’s Souls and Dark Souls and opened up a gateway into a new genre. They not only created such timeless masterpieces like Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Bloodborne, and Elden Ring, but they inspired and pushed others to explore the genre and emulate the style in games like Lies of P, Nioh, Lords of the Fallen, and countless others.
Now, Phantom Blade Zero is another RPG action-adventure that takes inspiration from the genre. It was first announced in May 2023 during Sony’s State of Play. The announcement trailer made many jaws drop to the floor in its initial moments with its dark aesthetics that developers described as “kungfupunk.” Phantom Blade Zero shamelessly blends Chinese kung fu with steampunk elements, creating a unique take on the action-adventure genre.
The upcoming action-adventure draws comparisons to FromSoft’s 2019 Game of the Year title for its level design. According to the developer, Phantom Blade Zero will have several vertically stacked maps atop one another and connected through numerous pathways spread across the game world. Furthermore, the game will encourage exploration of its semi-open world zones with hidden secrets tucked away in the map’s most obscure corners. Nevertheless, this is where the similarity ends, but it is enough to scratch the Sekiro itch combined with its dark world.
RELATED: Sony Reportedly Working To Acquire Kadokawa Corporation, Deal Would See PlayStation Parent Company Take Direct Ownership Of ‘Elden Ring’ And ‘Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO’ Dev Studios
Phantom Blade Zero sets itself apart with fast-paced combat and heavy combos reminiscent of Devil May Cry and Ninja Gaiden games. And in doing so, it shows what Stellar Blade could have been, with smoother mechanics and a more dynamic combat system not locked behind a dull, out-of-place parry system.
Speaking of the parry system, it is quite intuitive with fast flashes of blue and red colors during enemy attacks. Blue are blockable attacks while red are those that can only be dodged, making the action combat smoother and faster than seen in Soulslike games and Stellar Blade. Every successful parry fills the power gauge of weapons, and players will have access to devastating Sha-Chi-based special attacks.
RELATED: In A Move That ‘Stellar Blade’ Should Copy, ‘Lost Soul Aside’s’ Drops PSN Account Requirements For PC Release
Since the announcement in 2023, there haven’t been many updates on the game, until now. S-Game dropped a Year of the Snake trailer on January 22nd in celebration of Chinese New Year that shows six minutes of unpolished gameplay captured on PS5.
The Year of the Snake trailer shows a fight between Soul (the player character) and one of many in-game bosses, Chief Disciple of the Seven Stars, also known as Decree. This is a multi-character boss as Soul takes on six additional puppet-like enemies (called The Seven Judges) controlled by Decree.
These foes attack together and sacrifice their health to heal Decree, making it a hard fight. Once Decree is weakened, the Judges use red ribbons to control him, turning him into a faster, more dangerous version with powerful aerial attacks.
The trailer doesn’t shy away from showing all the blood and gore as the main character slices through the enemies with several snake-themed weapons. These are the White Python longsword, the Red Viper shortsword, and the Venomous Softblade.
Furthermore, offering a more distinctive combat, Phantom Blade Zero gives players access to Phantom Edges, which are special secondary weapons; the trailer gave insights into a couple of those. The Savage Axe is one of them, and when fully charged, it deals massive Sha-Chi damage to foes. And Ink Cut, which adds combo variety to primary weapons, greatly expands combos.
Matching the combat extravaganza and dark aesthetics are the heavy metal tones as S-Game has also paid attention to the soundtrack, which adds another dimension to the game.
For those unfamiliar, Phantom Blade Zero follows Soul, an elite assassin who is betrayed and left for dead. A healer saves him but only gives him 66 days to live. During this time, Soul must uncover the truth behind the betrayal while fighting against powerful enemies. It is in development for PS5 and PC, but unfortunately, the game still doesn’t have an official release date. However, the recent trailer hints at a 2025 reveal of a release date. This means the game could potentially launch later this year or 2026.
More About:Video Game News
Read this Next
