Stellar Blade Review

Stellar Blade has been turning heads since the days it was known as Project Eve, but its new status as a PlayStation 5 exclusive has greatly enhanced its profile. Developed by South Korean studio Shift Up as the studio’s first AAA game, it’s understandable that some may be skeptical about the developer’s ability to deliver a game that lives up to the high standard set by other PlayStation exclusives. Many doubts were put to rest when fans got their hands on the Stellar Blade demo, and the full version of the game proves the demo wasn’t a fluke. Stellar Blade is yet another excellent PS5 exclusive and a potential Game of the Year candidate.

Stellar Blade‘s exciting action sequences and highly-sexualized main character have seen it earn many comparisons to games like Bayonetta, but it really has more in common with FromSoftware’s Sekiro. It basically plays like a far more forgiving spin on Sekiro, with a big focus on melee combat and parrying. Anyone going into Stellar Blade hoping they can hack and slash their way through its enemies is going to be in for a rude awakening, as mastering the game’s parrying is a must.

Combat in Stellar Blade feels excellent, with players given a great deal of leeway when it comes to parries, so that the game rarely becomes frustrating or too difficult. As long as players are patient and learn boss patterns, they will have no problem pulling off perfectly-timed blocks that leave their opponents wide open for devastating special attacks. Like Sekiro, every enemy in Stellar Blade is a threat that must be taken seriously, and also, like FromSoftware’s games in general, the boss fights are the real highlight of the experience.

Stellar Blade has some incredible boss fights that deliver in terms of gameplay and pure spectacle. Each battle is a heart-pounding affair that ends with a brilliantly animated and occasionally jaw-dropping QTE scene that leaves the bosses decimated. FromSoftware fans know the overwhelming sense of satisfaction and relief that comes from conquering the bosses in those games, and Stellar Blade captures the exact same feeling.

Stellar Blade Will Appeal to Soulslike Fans, But It’s Not a Soulslike

Shift Up’s Stellar Blade is clearly inspired by Sekiro and FromSoftware games in general, but potential players shouldn’t let that intimidate them. It’s true that Stellar Blade has a lot in common with Soulslikes, complete with bonfire-style save points that trigger enemy respawns, but it is not a true Soulslike. It’s far more forgiving, with players never at risk of losing any progress like they are in Souls games. Plus, players are showered with support items that can make encounters way easier. There’s even an item that lets Eve spring back up at full health if she happens to die, though it can only be used once per boss attempt and is available in limited quantities.

Still, anyone that takes the time to thoroughly explore the world and complete Stellar Blade‘s side missions should have more support items than they know what to do with. The game does a fantastic job of rewarding players who take the time to tackle its extracurricular activities, with so many rewards doled out at the end of side missions that it’s almost irresponsible to ignore them. Unfortunately, the bulk of Stellar Blade‘s side content is underwhelming. A lot of it is boring and requires back-tracking to previous levels, and while there are a couple of standout side missions, most of them are a drag compared to the main story missions.

The rewards from doing side quests are nice, but Stellar Blade players can still safely ignore everything but the main quest if they want and will likely have a more enjoyable overall experience as a result. There is no filler or other time-wasting nonsense padding out Stellar Blade‘s runtime, ensuring a constant stream of fun fights and interesting locations to explore. From a gameplay standpoint, Stellar Blade‘s main story missions far exceed expectations.

Stellar Blade’s Story Leaves Something to Be Desired

Story-wise, Stellar Blade doesn’t come close to reaching the same level of quality, though it’s cheesy enough to still be entertaining. In the world of Stellar Blade, strange monsters known as Naytiba have taken over the planet, forcing humanity to retreat to space. Stellar Blade protagonist Eve is sent back to Earth to fight these monsters. Instead of using armor or mechs or any other kind of powerful machinery that it’s established these people have access to, Eve decides to fight wearing next to nothing most of the time.

Stellar Blade unapologetically sexualizes Eve and nearly every other female character in the game, while the men are almost always wearing multiple layers to the point where only their heads are visible. Some of the men don’t even have fully visible heads, instead wearing unwieldy helmets or having chunks of metal grafted on their faces. Eve’s outfits are ridiculous and hilarious because the story is played completely straight. The characters have these solemn, dead-serious conversations with each other, all the while Eve is practically naked with the game’s goofy jiggle physics making her breasts bounce around in an exaggerated manner with every slight movement. Battles with the fate of the known world at their stake can be fought in a skirt that flies up when Eve is running for no other reason than to show the player her backside. It might bother some people, but most will find the gratuitous fan service so over-the-top that it becomes funny.

Beyond crafting new outfits for Eve, players are also able to put together builds that have an actual bearing on gameplay. Players are able to equip gear that can have a rather dramatic effect on the action, like equipment that lets Eve build up her special attack energy faster or take less damage from melee damage. Putting together the best gear based on how one has leveled Eve up to that point is crucial for some of the game’s tougher battles.

There’s a difficulty spike with the last couple of boss fights, but for the most part, Stellar Blade is like a breezier, sci-fi Sekiro. The near-naked main character is unsurprisingly stealing a lot of attention, but remove that element from the equation and what’s left is an absolutely incredible action game that provides a satisfying challenge and rewarding melee combat. Simply put, Stellar Blade is the next great action game and one of the PS5’s best exclusives.

Stellar Blade releases April 26, 2024 exclusively for PS5. Game Rant was provided with a PS5 code for this review.