Phantom Blade Zero Developers Aren’t Afraid of Critics, Reviews Will Appear Before Release

The first reviews of the action game Phantom Blade Zero will appear on October 26, three days before its release.

The early review window may suggest that developer S-Game is confident in the quality of the project. The game will also have to compete for audience attention with the November launch of GTA VI.

Early trailers and the dark setting of feudal Asia led many to assume Phantom Blade Zero was another soulslike. The game is a fast-paced action title with difficulty options, and enemies do not respawn after the player rests at altars. Its style is closer to Black Myth: Wukong than to FromSoftware’s games.

Fans of martial arts and the Chinese wuxia genre praise the smoothness of the animations. Some players are unhappy that there is no physical disc edition. The game takes up 134 GB, and the digital-only release disappointed those who hoped to put a boxed copy on their shelf.

If critics rate Phantom Blade Zero highly on October 26 and confirm the quality of its combat system, the game could get a strong start thanks to recommendations.