Do we have another Star Blade here? A great combination of heartfelt play and dynamic combat.
Together with our partner Česká spořitelna we are launching the largest European gaming event.
In recent years, there has always been at least one Asian game at Gamescom that immediately attracted more attention, and it’s no coincidence that they all have one thing in common: they draw inspiration from FromSoftware games. Last year we had the Korean Lies of P, last year we had the Chinese Black Myth: Wukong, and this year the Chinese studio S-Game also presented a demo of Phantom Blade Zero. Paradoxically, it didn’t fit in at the fairgrounds, especially due to the location of the stand, but it attracted the attention of many players already from demos at PlayStation events.
For Western audiences, the S-Game name will probably be completely unknown, but the company has been around for some time. And somewhat surprisingly, the Phantom Blade brand has been around for some time, but only for mobile phones. With Zero, Chinese developers want to try a full-fledged big game and reach a new audience.
The demo wasn’t too long, but it showed the essentials. At first glance, the title impresses with its dark aesthetics, but it really matches the game. The environments look beautiful, and the same can be said about other details. In terms of graphics, they may not be top-notch, but they still look very nice and very unique. There is also quality sound design.
Source: own photo
I also have to praise the overall technical side, because I didn’t encounter any bugs and already long before the release the game runs very decently on the PlayStation 5. Most of the time it ran at 60 frames per second, but in more demanding moments the frame rate dropped noticeably.
But the gameplay is what matters here, and it’s great. The main character, Soul, whose name, given the genre, is as unnoticeable as his oversized hat, had two weapons at his disposal in the demo. Either one long sword for slightly slower but still fairly fast attacks, or two shorter swords for really wild action, so I mostly used those.
Within seconds of the first battle, I felt at home for the simple reason that the combat system is very reminiscent of this year’s hit Stellr Blade. We have melee and ranged attacks, combos, special attacks, parries and dodges. In such words, it probably does not seem like anything special, but the execution of these movements, in short, is very similar. Maybe too much? But for such judgments it is too early.
It’s certainly true that the combat looks great. It’s incredibly fluid, both thanks to the satisfying controls and attack and movement options, and the excellent animations. The combat is even faster than in Stellar Blade, but that’s not a bad thing, because it makes the Soulslike combination work surprisingly well.
In the demo I had the chance to fight a few regular enemies, both melee and archers, who could be cleverly eliminated with stealth beforehand. Of course, the bosses with their unique designs and attack patterns dominated here, and these were the fights I enjoyed the most. You will have to approach them tactically, but due to the overall speed you still rely mostly on your instincts, movement is really important here.
I only died once in the entire demo, and the overall difficulty seemed pretty easy. It’s possible that this will change in later stages of the game, but the developers have been saying for a while that this is supposed to be a more accessible game, not something completely hardcore, and I can confirm that from the playable demo.
By the way, it’s nice to see that the developers at S-Game take these fairs seriously and bring the game here to get feedback. That’s why Gamescom isn’t the only event where the game is available, and that’s why they asked about my impressions right after finishing the game. So we hope that the players’ feedback will help them improve the game even more.
If you liked the combat system of Stellar Blade, then Phantom Blade Zero will not disappoint. After Wukong, this is another very ambitious Chinese game that we will undoubtedly hear more about. As for PlayStation 5 and PC, we do not yet know the release date or year.
Source :Indian TV
