Phantom Blade 0 isn’t really a game at least not yet. The demo we played at this year’s Gamescom in Cologne, Germany was more of a collection of three enemy encounters to create a playable vertical slice. In fact, when speaking with the team showing this same demo at Summer Game Fest it was casually confirmed that it likely won’t be released until “at least 2026.”
That said, from what we have played, the team over at S-Game has already built a strong gameplay foundation that was by far the most engaging action game of its kind at the show. In fact, compared to other similar games at the show, like The First Berzerker: Khazan and Crimson Desert, Phantom Blade 0 feels laser-focused on gameplay that, while unforgiving, feels really damn good.
Source: S-Game
Like the two other games listed above (and the recently released Black Myth: Wukong), Phantom Blade 0's core philosophy seems centered around taking the core sensibilities of a Fromsoftware game and injecting them with faster-paced combat and more stylish animations. However, this can often lead to these games feeling somewhat frustrating compared to a Dark Souls or Elden Ring. When you get locked into an elaborate attack combo that drains most of your stamina and the enemy quickly lets out a four-hit combo, decimating your health bar, it can be very frustrating. Many of these newer Soulslikes demand speed and combos, but also punish not being slow and considered.
Thankfully Phantom Blade 0 sidesteps this issue. First, it doesn’t seem to have a stamina bar that drains when you attack. Instead, it gives you a posture bar similar to Sekiro that will drain as you block. Secondly, this block acts more like that of Raiden’s in Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, in that it allows you to interrupt your own attack animations to deflect an incoming blow. The result is a constant clash of blades that perfectly replicates the speed of the Wuxia films that inspired the game.
On top of this, Phantom Blade 0 has already put a lot of thought into its high-level play. Having now played through the demo twice, we feel like we are really getting a feel for the combat, and there is a lot of depth. One of the main things we noticed is that because enemies send such a flurry of strikes your way, it's almost impossible to deflect them all. As a result, when playing for a second time, we realized that the best defense is a good offense. Instead of trying to block everything, we realized we could block enough to stun enemies before chaining together artful-looking combos. And, because you are always carrying two weapons with you, when an enemy is about to break out of its stun-lock, you can switch to your second weapon with a special attack that slightly extended the combo further.
All this gameplay depth, paired with a killer art style that adds a Bloodborne-esque gothic styling to a Wuxia epic and some of the best metal-hitting-metal audio design we’ve ever heard, turns Phantom Blade 0 into a visceral experience.
While this might be S-Game’s biggest game yet, the team has already shown it has a keen sense for creating a rewarding combat system and an assured direction when it comes to the game’s style. The only problem is that it might take us quite a while before we find out if S-Game can nail the execution.
This preview is based on an early demo played at Gamescom 2024. The final product is subject to change.
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replyLexi Luddy posted a new article, Phantom Blade 0 wants to carve out its own niche in a crowded field of Soulslikes
