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S-Game Opens Phantom Blade Zero to Six-Hour Hands-On

S-GAME keeps claiming Phantom Blade Zero is not a soulslike, and the event was built to prove it: six hours of exploration, finite map resources, no enemy respawns, and an RPG base under the swordplay.

Key Facts

  • Phantom Blade Zero is scheduled for release on October 29 on PS5 and PC, with a Standard Edition priced at 8,580 yen and a Digital Deluxe Edition at 9,980 yen.
  • S-GAME founder and director Liang Qiwei said the game contains at least 50 bosses, matching 30 main weapons and more than 25 Phantom Edges.
  • A hands-on event in Beijing let press play about six hours, covering most of Chapter 1 and two bosses cut from the later game.
  • Phantom Blade Zero has four difficulty options: Wayfarer, Normal, Hellwalker, and 66 Days, which ends the run after 66 deaths but uses the same enemy AI as Hellwalker.
  • Donnie Yen is a creative consultant on Phantom Blade Zero and voices and plays Mo Yan, the protagonist's father, who appears as a boss.

Reporting from 4 sources: 4Gamer.net, GAME Watch (Impress), Automaton, Game Spark.

S-Game Opens Phantom Blade Zero to Six-Hour Hands-On

S-GAME held a hands-on event in Beijing for Phantom Blade Zero, its wuxia action RPG launching October 29 on PS5 and PC. Press played roughly six hours, clearing most of Chapter 1 and sampling late-game bosses including the sword fanatic Hua Qianxiao and the lion dance boss Flame. Protagonist Soul, framed and given an artificial heart, has 66 days to live. A Sha-Chi resource governs attack and defense; parrying blue attacks opens a Ghost Step counter, while red attacks demand evasion. Defeated enemies stay dead, so upgrades come from exploring new areas rather than farming. The game ships in Standard at 8,580 yen and Digital Deluxe at 9,980 yen. Donnie Yen is a creative consultant and plays Soul's father, Mo Yan, also one of the bosses. Director Liang Qiwei, known as Soulframe, and sound producer Bo Caisheng spoke at the event.

  • Four difficulty modes: Wayfarer (Easy), Normal, Hard, and 66 Days. Wayfarer lowers enemy aggression and makes guards easier to break, not just the numbers. Hard and 66 Days share the same top-level AI; 66 Days only adds a cap of 66 deaths.
  • Direct quote from Soulframe at the event: "In Easy mode, it feels like watching a kung fu movie with simple button operations."
  • The 66 Days mode is the one where "no one on the development team has been able to clear it without dying." Soulframe says he believes a skilled player will eventually manage it.
  • Boss count: Soulframe corrected the reported figure on the spot, saying "at least 50" bosses and "actually more" than 30, since every weapon drops from one.
  • Development method draws on Donnie Yen's account of the split between Hong Kong and Hollywood action production. Hong Kong shoots fight scenes improvisationally; Hollywood pre-boards everything. S-GAME used both.
  • Music producer Bo Caisheng called the score the culmination of "18 years" pursuing new Chinese-style music, continuing from the studio's earlier indie title Rainblood and enlisting top pipa and erhu players.
  • Motion capture was done at Shanghai studio FLYING GOAT. Actors recorded more than 10 variations of basic actions like approaching an enemy so the game's system can pick one based on posture and state.
  • Side quests affect the ending. Soulframe confirmed the game has multiple endings, and that Donnie Yen's character Mo Yan is positioned as a sub-character who appears throughout.
  • Estimated playtime: about 20 to 30 hours for the main story, and 50 or more with side content.

Synthesized by Yomimono from the 4 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.

Phantom Blade Zero S-GAME Donnie Yen Soulframe Bo Caisheng

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