Phantom Blade Zero’s State of Play Has One Incredibly Simple Job

PlayStation and their State of Play events have been on a bit of a hot streak as of late, as while we are still yet to see a Bloodborne Remastered, just about every other franchise and IP under the sun is getting to love. Among all these highly anticipated sequels and spin-offs, though, lies perhaps the single most hyped game of the year, outside of Grand Theft Auto 6—that being, Phantom Blade Zero. Shown over three years ago, the game has seen a steady cycle of development, with a couple of delays and pushbacks until finally, we have arrived on what appears to be the definitive release date of October 28th. Before that, however, we are going to get an exclusive State of Play event that will show off an additional 20 minutes of unseen gameplay, and in order to keep the spirits high, the event needs to include a couple of crucial details.

We have already been shown the different combat styles, enemies, bosses, and an array of stylish combos, but we are yet to really dig into the world that houses all of this intense action. That means the story, the environment, and most importantly, the characters that we will encounter along our playthrough, and thankfully, PlayStation is way ahead of the curve and knows exactly what to show from the rest of Phantom Blade Zero. The blog post mentions build expression and central NPCs to the story, as well as noting the participation of martial arts legend Donnie Yen as a consultant and motion capture actor for the protagonist’s father. So, it seems as though the stage is set, and we are in for a stellar presentation, but if they decide to simply give us some more clips of fighting, then it may make the excitement train stumble slightly, due to the lack of engaging new content for us to sink our teeth into.

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All We Really Need From Phantom Blade Zero’s State of Play Is to See Its World

From the moment Phantom Blade Zero was shown to the world, it was very clear that there was going to be a big focus on combat and fighting expression. Martial arts homage is perhaps a more apt way of describing the game, as, rather than opting for a safe approach akin to a soulslike, the developers have chosen to take influence from all sides of folklore and history to deliver an authentic yet unique combat experience unlike any other out there. This extends to the different weapons, each fitted with their own playstyles and strategies that you can use to fundamentally alter how fights play out, or choose to ignore them entirely and focus solely on one specific build for the entire game.

The most recent preorder trailer showed us even more of that lovely combat, showing glimpses of a carriage fighting sequence, as well as several other different environments, from mountainous caves to icy wastelands, and, as an avid ARPG enjoyer myself, it has been a long time since I have seen a game with this much flavor and energy. There is just a huge amount of variety and doesn’t matter what clip you look at, the player is always swinging and dodging in a completely unique manner, fending off attacks and casting abilities that look straight out of an anime final battle. But, as great as these spectacular fights are, I can’t help but feel we are missing something from the reveals, and that is more details regarding the characters in the world and the locations themselves that we will explore for hours on end, until reaching one of the several endings that will no doubt close things off in cinematic fashion.

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Image via S-GAME

Image credits: S-GAME

Image via S-GAME

The story and the characters are clearly going to be a much more explicit part of the experience when compared to something like a FromSoftware game, with clear cutscenes with a good amount of dialogue, as well as a whole host of different fully voice-acted characters that should bring some light into an otherwise dark world. Yet we are still in a state where all these interesting figures, like the Blacksmith and Soul himself, are fairly obscure in their motivations and intentions throughout the game. Of course, a lot of the specifics will come in due down and will be revealed throughout an extended playthrough, yet it would still be great to have a bit more pretext for exactly what is happening prior to booting up the game.

The little story information we have comes from the game’s description and those brief cutscenes, speaking of a wounded soul out to quell a conspiracy that may very well bring about the end of days, but beyond that, we don’t have a lot to go on. Another interesting aspect that is yet to be fully explained is the concept of the Phantom World, which appears to be almost a parallel to reality full of secrets and mysteries around every corner. Exactly how this different environment will intertwine with the main one is, again, fairly unknown as of right now, and I believe that a 20-minute dedicated State of Play is the perfect place to really delve into the nitty-gritty behind this eerie yet alluring alternative world.

With all that said, one thing is still for certain and that is that Phantom Blade Zero is one of the most hyped games of the year, topping many wishlist charts and dominating the marketing space for a lot of sites, including the PlayStation store pages themselves. ARPGs as a genre have grown tremendously over the past few years, guided by a wave of soulslikes, but it is nice to see a brand-new IP join the fray and potentially be a real driving force in ushering in a golden area of action and world building. Given how much anticipation there is behind the game, and simply how incredible it looks, I can easily see a world where it becomes a real frontrunner for Game of the Year, pushing back against the bigger names and potentially causing a major stir this awards season.

But, before we get to handing out trophies, Phantom Blade Zero still has a lot to prove if it is going to be a heavy-hitter going into the end of the year. It needs to play well, be polished right from the get-go, and have a compelling enough narrative to follow that players will want to keep playing it for more reasons than just the flashy combat. I have a lot of faith in the game, yet I am still hesitant to get over-hyped over the fighting alone, and the event is the ideal place to entice us in further and broaden the appeal, so when launch day eventually arrives, we can be certain that we are in for a truly world-class ride.