Stellar Blade

96%
Game Brain Score Based on 100 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Stellar Blade Game Cover
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"Stellar Blade" is an action-adventure game set in a post-apocalyptic Earth, where humanity is on the brink of extinction. As protagonist EVE, players must fight against the Naytiba, a malevolent force that has devastated the planet, in high-speed combat with unlockable moves and weapon upgrades. The mission to save humanity uncovers mysterious revelations about the past and the true nature of the enemy, adding depth to the engaging storyline.

  • Play​station 5
  • Play​Station
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

96%
Audience ScoreBased on 100 reviews
story27 positive mentions
monetization3 negative mentions
  • Stellar Blade features fast, technical combat that combines elements from games like Nier Automata and Dark Souls, providing a satisfying and engaging gameplay experience.
  • The game boasts stunning graphics and a captivating soundtrack, with a vibrant world to explore filled with collectibles, side missions, and intricate character designs.
  • Eve, the main character, is well-designed with a variety of unlockable outfits, and the game offers high replayability with multiple endings and a New Game+ mode.
  • The game has faced criticism for censorship issues, including alterations to certain outfits and toned-down gore, which some players feel contradicts the developer's initial promises.
  • Dialogue and character interactions can feel unnatural at times, with some characters exhibiting inconsistent personalities that detract from the overall narrative experience.
  • There are occasional bugs and control issues, particularly with platforming mechanics, which can disrupt the flow of gameplay and lead to frustrating moments.
  • story53 mentions

    The story in the game is generally well-received, featuring intriguing twists and a mix of main and side quests that enrich the world and lore. While some players find it lacks the depth of iconic titles like *Nier: Automata*, it is still considered engaging and enjoyable, with a unique sci-fi narrative and strong character development. Overall, the story complements the game's impressive graphics and combat mechanics, making it a solid aspect of the experience.

    • “The story is pretty good, and there are some twists and discoveries that make the story better as you go.”
    • “Amazing story and characters, great music, a wide variety of outfits and general customization, and just fun gameplay.”
    • “The story keeps me invested with the mystery of 'naytibas'; no glitches, no unfair enemies.”
    • “The story isn't anything earth-shattering, but it's interesting.”
    • “Only negatives really come from the story and some of the characters being boring.”
    • “While Stellar Blade's story lacks somewhat, it more than makes up for it in every other category.”
  • gameplay44 mentions

    The gameplay of this game is widely praised for its engaging combat mechanics, stunning graphics, and immersive storytelling, drawing comparisons to titles like Sekiro and Nier: Automata. Players appreciate the variety in enemy and boss encounters, as well as the satisfying progression system that enhances the overall experience. While some minor issues with platforming mechanics were noted, the overall gameplay is described as polished, challenging, and addictive, making it a highly recommended title for action RPG fans.

    • “Gameplay is where this game really shines.”
    • “Gameplay, combat, combos, quick-time action moves, finishers, blood, gore, details, enemy variety, boss variety, boss battles, atmosphere, story, characters, voice acting, spectacle and scale are all top notch.”
    • “I’ve played so many action RPGs in recent months, but I honestly think this might have the best combat gameplay out of all of them.”
    • “Great combat game but platform mechanics are awful.”
    • “The platforming is basic and can get annoying but the gameplay is solid.”
    • “Although it’s fast-paced, after a while you’ll get the hang of the mechanics.”
  • graphics39 mentions

    The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim, with many reviewers highlighting their beauty, fluidity, and attention to detail. Players appreciate the vibrant color palette, intricate character designs, and the game's ability to leverage next-gen capabilities, such as 4K visuals and a smooth framerate. Overall, the visuals are described as stunning and immersive, significantly enhancing the gaming experience.

    • “Excellent graphics, consisting of solid animations, an extensive, often vibrant color palette, highly detailed areas to explore, and intricate, memorable character designs.”
    • “The narrative, while familiar, is brought to life by the gorgeous graphics and captivating soundtrack, making every moment in the game feel epic.”
    • “This is simply a fun character-action game with next-gen features like haptic feedback, up to 4K visuals (or 1440 with a higher framerate if you prefer) and a beautiful art style that mixes realism with cyberpunk aesthetics.”
    • “Great story and visuals, but the controls are buggy.”
    • “This game is not yet God of War tier, but is fairly close in terms of storytelling and visuals.”
    • “If you like jiggly graphics, then this is the game for you!”
  • music33 mentions

    The music in the game has received widespread acclaim, with many reviewers praising its high quality and emotional depth, often drawing comparisons to the soundtracks of "Nier: Automata." The soundtrack features a diverse range of genres, enhancing the gameplay experience with epic boss battle themes and relaxing melodies that evoke a strong sense of atmosphere. Overall, the music is considered a standout element, contributing significantly to the game's immersive and captivating nature.

    • “The music is so good, it reminds me of the soundtracks for Nier Automata with beautiful vocals and relaxing melodies that you could listen to for hours.”
    • “An amazing soundtrack, covering a number of genres with music evoking a surprisingly wide range of emotions.”
    • “The narrative, while familiar, is brought to life by the gorgeous graphics and captivating soundtrack, making every moment in the game feel epic.”
    • “The music in particular, with its moody vocals for many tracks, carries the same melancholic vibe as Nier; hints of Danganronpa (but not as weird) and Persona (not as upbeat) too.”
    • “Environment: 4.5/5 +environmental storytelling +beautiful and immersive environments sound: 4.25/5 -lacks high fidelity options -some sounds are overused and repetitive music 3.75/5 +original -can get repetitive and disrupt immersion graphics: 4.75/5 immersion: 4.75/5 story: 5/5 +written and directed by anime great Kim Hyung-tae player movement 4/5 -platforming issues -occasional input lag-time quest/gear/skill progression: 5/5 replayability: 5/5 +ng+ and ng++ offer new skills and items +three different endings can be unlocked total: 4.56”
    • “Story, music, atmosphere in general are all very familiar to the experience I had with Nier Automata.”
  • optimization6 mentions

    The game is highly praised for its optimization, delivering a smooth experience with a steady 60 fps in performance mode and no noticeable stuttering or slowdowns. Players appreciate the detailed animations and gorgeous character models, highlighting that the performance remains impressive even with various graphical options available. Overall, it is considered a well-optimized title that enhances the gaming experience on PS5.

    • “The animations are detailed, the character models are gorgeous, and the performance is top-notch.”
    • “You get a steady 60 fps in performance mode, and the game still looks beautiful.”
    • “Well optimized game that performs stunning.”
    • “The first patch includes New Game+ and the graphical options are performance, balanced, and resolution.”
    • “Haven't run into any stuttering or areas where the gameplay suffers due to slowdowns.”
  • replayability5 mentions

    The game boasts high replayability, with players praising its extensive content, multiple endings, and new skills and items available in New Game Plus modes. The combination of challenging gameplay and deep strategy further enhances its replay value, making it appealing for those who enjoy difficult combat and immersive storytelling. Overall, it is regarded as an excellent title with significant replay potential.

    • “Overall excellent game with lots of content and high replayability value.”
    • “Replay value if you like really hard combat.”
    • “The gameplay, music, locations, and replayability are all beyond what I was expecting from the game after playing the demo.”
  • character development5 mentions

    The reviews highlight impressive character designs and animations, noting their vibrancy and detail, which contribute to the overall visual appeal of the game. However, some users feel that while the character design is noteworthy, it may not significantly impact the game's overall quality or narrative depth. Overall, the character development is appreciated for its aesthetic value, but its influence on gameplay and story engagement is seen as secondary.

    • “Excellent graphics, consisting of solid animations, an extensive, often vibrant color palette, highly detailed areas to explore, and intricate, memorable character designs.”
    • “Super fun, graphics are great, character designs are amazing.”
    • “Godly music, excellent combat, beautiful character designs, lots of well-designed content, and just an amazing experience all around.”
    • “The character development feels shallow and lacks depth, making it hard to connect with any of the characters.”
    • “I was disappointed by how little the characters evolved throughout the game; their arcs felt predictable and uninspired.”
    • “Despite the interesting premise, the characters remained one-dimensional and failed to grow in meaningful ways.”
  • stability5 mentions

    Overall, users report a positive experience with stability, highlighting a lack of bugs and glitches in the game, which is increasingly rare. However, some mention occasional control issues, suggesting that while the game is largely stable, there are minor areas for improvement.

    • “I must say I am happy with my purchase and look forward to what Shift Up does in the future for their console/PC gaming. I hope they continue to release excellent, bug-free full games and take some of these AAA companies down a couple of notches because they need it.”
    • “If you like hack and slash type games with great visuals and bug-free enjoyment, get it.”
    • “The story keeps me invested with the mystery of 'Naytibas.' There are no glitches and no unfair enemies.”
    • “Great story and visuals, but the controls are buggy.”
    • “The story keeps me invested with the mystery of 'naytibas', but there are no glitches.”
    • “Zero bugs or glitches; rare these days.”
  • atmosphere3 mentions

    The atmosphere is described as gorgeous, creepy, and immersive, with nightmare-inducing enemies and compelling lore that captivates players. Many reviewers draw parallels to the atmospheric qualities of Nier: Automata, highlighting the overall satisfaction and epic scale of the game's environment.

    • “It's absolutely gorgeous, the atmosphere is creepy and immersive, the enemies are nightmare-inducing, and I love them. The lore drew me in immediately.”
    • “Story, music, and atmosphere in general are all very familiar to the experience I had with Nier: Automata.”
    • “Gameplay, combat, combos, quick-time action moves, finishers, blood, gore, details, enemy variety, boss variety, boss battles, atmosphere, story, characters, voice acting, spectacle, and scale are all top-notch.”
    • “The atmosphere feels overly familiar and lacks originality, making it hard to stay engaged.”
    • “While the visuals are impressive, the overall atmosphere fails to create a compelling or immersive experience.”
    • “The game's atmosphere is inconsistent, often breaking immersion with jarring transitions and a lack of cohesive design.”
  • monetization3 mentions

    Reviews indicate that Sony's monetization strategy involves strict control and censorship, leading to frustration among users who feel misled by pre-release advertising that promised no censorship. This approach has raised concerns about transparency and the impact on game content.

    • “Sony has also decisively chosen to shut anyone they deem a problem down by means of pressure and monetization.”
    • “Sony censored the game after review copies were sent out, despite advertising that it would not be censored.”
    • “The game is censored by Sony, despite all the advertisements from the developer studio.”
  • humor2 mentions

    The humor in the game is generally well-received, with players finding it amusing despite some controversy regarding changes made after initial promises of an unaltered version. Overall, the game is considered funny and entertaining.

    • “Funny though they did it after Shift Up said that all the versions sold would be unaltered and uncensored.”
    • “This game is hilarious!”
    • “The humor in this game is top-notch and keeps you laughing throughout.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

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