Phantom Blade Zero received the first reviews: the combat is praised, the bosses and the plot are criticized

Two days before release, the embargo on reviews of Phantom Blade Zero was lifted.Critics agree on the main thing: the combat of the Chinese action game S-Game is polished to brilliance, but the story and some bosses lack the same care.The game releases October 28th on PC and PS5.

Fight like in a kung fu movie

IGN's reviewer spent about 50 hours in the game and called the combat one of the most enjoyable and finely tuned in recent memory.You get used to parrying and dodging in a couple of minutes, and dozens of types of weapons are introduced at such a pace that there is no time to get bored.GameSpot gave the game 8 out of 10 and noted that the attack and defense here occur simultaneously, and the arsenal and locations do not let you get bored.

Eurogamer calls the game a lite soulslike: instead of the usual stamina scale, there is a “sha-chi” resource, and changing the main weapon returns the reserve of strength.Ordinary enemies and finishing moves, according to the author, look almost like scenes from a kung fu movie.

Bosses and plot: critics' complaints

The main complaint is the same for everyone: the plot is overloaded with names, sects and flashbacks.IGN admits that the convoluted story and occasional performance lags don't live up to the level of combat.Eurogamer adds that many bosses feel spongy and weapons against them feel dull.The studio released a 67 GB update two days before the embargo, but the reviewer noted that some of the problems with bosses remained, although the frame rate became more stable.

GameSpot also criticizes the game for the fact that regular opponents are sometimes too easy, which is why battles turn into a chore.

Price and Russian language

Phantom Blade Zero is sold on Russian Steam: the standard edition costs 3,999 rubles, Digital Deluxe will cost 4,799 rubles.There is a Russian language in the game, and Denuvo protection is indicated on the Steam page.The game will be released on PC on Steam and Epic Games Store, on consoles only on PS5.

We talked more about the combat system in the article about arsenal and three difficulty levels, and the preload conditions and discs for PS5 were sorted out in separate news.