Phantom Blade 0 Brings Stylish Swordfighting To PS5

Phantom Blade 0, a new third-person slasher from Chinese developer S-Game, debuted as part of Sony's latest PlayStation Showcase.

A moody, dark trailer depicts a lone swordsman named Soul embark on a bloody quest to "get his heart back." Framed for murder and nearly killed, Soul is saved by a healer, albeit with the caveat that he only has 66 days left to live. On his quest he battles a myriad of mask-wearing foes in stylish, Wuxia fashion. Phantom Blade 0's combat looks to be the true star, with fast-and-fluid sword strikes combined with aerial acrobatics like wall-running.

In a post on the PlayStation Blog, S-Game describes Phantom Blade 0 as a semi-open world with multiple large maps, all set against a bleak and punishing tone that is "a constant reminder to never let your guard down." Defeating foes will earn players new weapons, armor, skills and more ways to customize their character. Phantom Blade 0's combat takes inspiration from a number of sources, ranging from Louis Cha's Wuxia stories to John Wick: Chapter 4, according to S-Game. All blended together, S-Game calls the Phantom Blade 0's unique blend of action "kung-fu punk."

Phantom Blade is an ongoing series from S-Game, who most recently worked on the Phantom Blade: Executioners for PC and mobile. Most earlier entries in the franchise were never released outside of China, but S-Games describes Phantom Blade 0 as a "spiritual rebirth" for the series. No release date was given for Phantom Blade 0, but it will be coming to PlayStation 5 sometime in the future.