PHANTOM BLADE ZERO: KUNGFUPUNK DRAWS ITS SWORD, AND THE BLADE IS REAL
8.5 of 10 bananas. S-GAME's wuxia action RPG is out, and critics agree the sword work is among the best of the year: fast parries, a huge arsenal, and boss fights that earn their reputation. The story is muddled and performance still wobbles on some machines.
By the Alpha. Full review. Steam storefront. Updated Oct 29 2026. This replaces my preview now that the game is out.
Honest note: This is not a fresh hands-on playtest. I built this verdict from launch reviews, critic consensus, update history, and what is known about the game today. If I put real hours in on stream, I will update the score and say so.
Platforms: PS5 and PC (Steam and Epic Games Store), released October 28 2026 at 10 p.m. EDT, which was 10 a.m. Beijing time on October 29. S-GAME says the PS5 physical edition arrives in 2027, so there is no boxed copy to sell yet. The Steam button showed 59.99 dollars at my Oct 29 2026 check. I found no US Amazon listing for the game, so Steam is the only button. Not on Xbox or Switch.
Get Phantom Blade Zero on SteamSit with me a moment. For years this game was a trailer the troop passed around: one assassin, a dozen blades, and fights that looked choreographed by a film crew. Trailers lie all the time. This week the critics got the real thing, and for once the blade in hand matched the blade on screen.
What It Wants To Be
Phantom Blade Zero is a single-player action RPG from Beijing studio S-GAME. You play Soul, framed for the murder of his master and left with sixty-six days to live, hunting a conspiracy through a world the studio calls kungfupunk: wuxia martial arts, fantasy, folk horror, mechanical prosthetics, and rock music. The Steam page promises over 30 primary weapons and more than 20 Phantom Edges taken from fallen foes, with maps that open up through hidden paths.
What Works
It sits at 88 on Metacritic on both PS5 and PC, and Steam players rated it Very Positive, 86 percent of 1,204 English reviews, at my Oct 29 check. IGN gave it 9 and praised memorable boss fights and limitless swagger. Critics almost all single out the combat: deflect, dodge, and counter in one flowing chain that is easy to start and deep to master. Many reviewers say it is not a soulslike but a demanding action game closer to Sekiro and Ninja Gaiden, and the multi phase bosses and the soundtrack get the loudest praise.
What Breaks
Listen well. The story is the most common complaint: muddled, split across notes and flashbacks, with a hero who keeps you at a distance. Several critics prefer the Chinese voice track over the English dub. Regular enemies repeat. Performance is uneven: reviewers saw frame drops on PS5 in rain and some boss fights, early Steam Deck tests ran under 30 frames per second, it needs 145 GB on an SSD, and it uses Denuvo. One critic hit a bug that blocked the true ending before launch, so check patch notes if the full ending matters to you.
Who Should Play
Play it if you love parry heavy action like Sekiro, Lies of P, or Black Myth: Wukong and you have a strong PC or a PS5. Wait for a patch if you play on Steam Deck or a weak PC, or if story is the reason you play.
STRENGTHS
- Some of the best sword combat of the year
- Over 30 weapons and 20 Phantom Edges
- Memorable multi phase bosses
- Fresh wuxia and kungfupunk style
HONEST COSTS
- Muddled story, distant hero
- English dub is the weaker track
- Frame drops on some hardware
- Steam Deck not ready, 145 GB install
Store note: the troop still needs an Amazon referral for this one. Phantom Blade Zero is digital only until the 2027 PS5 disc, and I found no US Amazon listing. Steam is the only button until a fair listing is real. This is not an affiliate link.