Phantom Blade Zero Review - Game of the Year or NO?

Phantom Blade Zero Review Summary

Overview and story

The reviewer describes Phantom Blade Zero as an unusually ambitious, large-scale action RPG with enormous maps, an extensive plot, and many boss fights. Its story combines revenge with a world-saving conflict, but the reviewer found it fairly conventional and not especially engaging.

Much of the lore and character background is conveyed through notes and “memory flowers,” making it difficult to keep track of the large cast before meeting some characters in person.

Highlights

• Visuals and art direction: Detailed, striking environments blend dark Asian-inspired aesthetics with steampunk elements.
• Combat: Responsive controls give the player strong control over the character. Once mastered, combat feels fluid, powerful, and visually exciting.
• Bosses: A major strength, with roughly 55–60 encounters by the reviewer’s estimate. The bosses are visually distinctive and exhilarating to fight.
• Music: Varied tracks suit boss battles, exploration, and emotional scenes, helping build atmosphere.
• Weapons and Phantom Edges: Secondary weapons offer many options, impressive animations, and uses that extend into exploration.
• Accessories and medicines: A broad selection of rings, talismans, and healing items encourages players to adapt their equipment to different enemies and bosses. Medicines include instant and gradual healing, buffs, and conditional effects.

Drawbacks

• Performance and polish: Performance was generally good, with slowdowns in two areas: the first Shachi tower and a later water section. The reviewer also encountered minor bugs, but no crashes or serious problems.
• Story and voice acting: The plot did not make the reviewer care strongly about the characters, and they felt it could have been shorter.
• Enemy repetition: Large maps lead to frequent enemy reuse, including some familiar foes in later areas.
• Difficulty: Even on Hell Walker, the hardest difficulty available for a first playthrough, the reviewer found the game insufficiently challenging. Enemies do not respawn after death, completed boss phases stay completed, and death costs the player little or nothing. The game also seemed to get easier as it progressed; the reviewer beat many late-game bosses, including the final boss, on the first attempt.
• Exploration and loot: Early areas offer enjoyable exploration, but later exploration is less rewarding. Frequent pickups interrupt the pace, and much of the loot felt unnecessary or unusable.

Difficulty tips and observations

• Dying can be used to make incremental progress: enemies defeated before death stay defeated.
• Resting at bells restores charges without reviving enemies, so players can spend Phantom Edge charges and then replenish them.
• Boss phases remain cleared after death, making later attempts easier.
• 66 Days is a more punishing mode with limited lives; running out deletes the save. The reviewer did not play it during the review, but believes it could add the tension missing from a standard first playthrough. They would recommend trying it if it becomes available for a first run.

Verdict

The reviewer enjoyed the visuals, combat, weapons, music, and especially the bosses, but Phantom Blade Zero was not their Game of the Year. They felt a more challenging experience—particularly through 66 Days mode, or with optional bosses that more thoroughly test the player—could have made it a standout.

Overall, they consider it a good game whose reception will depend on players’ tolerance for enemy repetition, the story, plentiful loot, and the difficulty.

Featured source

• Fextralife — the reviewer and source of the impressions; no other gamers are named.