Phantom Blade Zero reviews are in, and critics love its kung fu combat

Phantom Blade Zero's reviews are out, and S-Game's martial arts action game is getting a very warm reception. Polygon says the scores put it in pole position as one of Metacritic's best-rated games of 2026.

The combat is the star. IGN's reviewer called it "exactly as fun to play as it looks" after 50 hours, praising some of the most satisfying and well-tuned combat they'd played in a long time. VGC said S-Game has crafted "some of the fastest, most engaging combat of any action game, even if it's light elsewhere."

PCGamesN went further, calling it "A new action RPG gold standard." Push Square's PS5 review labeled it "One of the Generation's Greatest Action Experiences."

Don't go in expecting a Soulslike, though. GamesRadar+'s reviewer was blunt: "Phantom Blade Zero is not a Soulslike." Its fights draw on wuxia storytelling instead, and the PC review on Steam compared it to a mix of Devil May Cry's straightforward design and Sekiro's intensity.

You play as Soul, a former member of The Order who's been framed and kept alive by a tainted heart that gives him 66 days. That isn't a real-time clock, since in-game time only passes after specific story beats. There's also an optional hardcore difficulty that wipes your progress after 66 deaths, which is a brutal ask in a game this long.

The criticism mostly lands on the plot. IGN called the story convoluted, stuffed with mystical jargon, dozens of characters and a needlessly complex timeline, and flagged occasional performance issues. Polygon's headline framed it as the perfect martial arts game "For Better or Worse," saying it prioritizes visual spectacle from wuxia movies.