Wuchang: Fallen Feathers' most fearsome enemy may be yourself

Soulsborne games have been around long enough that it would take quite the hook for a new one to stand out. Developer Leenzee and publisher 505 Games may have just that with the upcoming Wuchang: Fallen Feathers. Wuchang isn't just about surviving against relentless enemies, but before long, players eventually have to survive against themselves. Shacknews recently had the opportunity to check it out during this year's Game Developers Conference.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers follows the title character, who is an amnesiac pirate warrior looking to recover her memories. The story will take players across the land of Shu during the late Ming Dynasty in China. Across her journey, Wuchang faces off against enemies afflicted with the Feathering plague, which is a hideous curse that transforms and corrupts anything it infects.

There wasn't exactly a set destination during this hour-long demo session. The hour began in the Shu Sanctum with the idea to exit the Reverent Temple and explore the outside world. The Soulsborne influence was evident over the course of the full playthrough with methodical melee combat, limited healing, and save points that revive any fallen foes. However, developer Leenzee has added several ideas that look to help this game stand out.

The combat itself looks to separate itself from standard Soulsborne fair with the Skyborn Might system. This allows players to tap into special attacks or spells that are tied to Wuchang's equipped weapons. As one might imagine, these shouldn't be clumsily thrown out there, but rather saved for when the time is right to use them. Skyborn Might combos and specials will vary on more than the equipped weapon, but also on upgrades unlocked over time. Not every spell is built equally and some may work better than others in a given situation.

The other big thing to note is that a full skill tree allows for the freedom to build Wuchang in many different ways. Players can level up certain attributes or learn new moves through the skill tree while also using any equipment found in the world to help build up Wuchang's weapons by collecting the Red Mercury resource. It's all meant to add up to a more customized protagonist, allowing players to approach the ample challenges presented in their own way.

Even with customization options and higher-end weaponry, death came frequently during my time with the game. While there was an early sense of discouragement from watching the enemies I had killed respawn, after familiarizing myself with the combat system a little more, I started to gradually make more progress. I found myself going up a nearby mountain and exploring another nearby temple area, still racking up more death along the way. Then something funny happened.

After several deaths, I got to the previous area where I had died only to be relentlessly attacked by a powerful spirit. I was then informed that Wuchang had filled her Madness meter, which is something that fills up through repeated deaths and through killing human characters. Upon filling up that meter, players will encounter a demonic manifestation of Wuchang's madness at the last point that they died. If players can defeat this spirit, they'll recover any Red Mercury that they dropped on their last death. If they're killed again, it's lost forever.

While there's still a lot more of the world than what I was able to explore in a short hour, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers looks like a capable addition to the growing library of Soulslike games. Try and survive the monsters that lie ahead and if you can't, then try to survive against yourself. Look for Wuchang: Fallen Feathers to come to PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S this summer.

This preview is based on an early demo played on-site at a private press session during GDC 2025. The final product is subject to change.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?