Phantom Blade Zero’s Director thanks S-Game for the “passion and a little madness” that has made the action game into Steam’s top seller.
"Making games is not always a rational pursuit. Sometimes, it is passion and a little madness that give a game its richest flavor." After years of hype, Phantom Blade Zero is here, and it's already Steam's top seller globally. It has even reached the number-two spot for concurrent player count, topping everything but Counter-Strike 2 - and it's still climbing. Tom scored it a perfect ten in our review, dubbing it "a new action RPG gold standard." All those months of wondering whether it could deliver on its promise have been answered, and Game Director 'Soulframe' Liang says he's immensely proud of the combined team effort.
Liang recently told us how senior PlayStation executives were blown away by their first glimpse of Phantom Blade Zero, but he now reveals that it started as something much smaller. His first game as a student, RPG Maker creation Rainblood: Town of Death, established the fundamentals for his own fantasy world, "rooted in traditional Chinese wuxia but infused with elements such as body modification, parallel worlds, and more."
"Back then, I had no idea where my life or career would lead," Liang admits. "Making games had simply been a source of comfort while I studied abroad, but before I knew it, it had become one of the most important parts of my life." Fast forward to three years ago, when it made its big debut during a PlayStation Showcase, and S-Game took a chance and leapt on the reveal's popularity, canceling its other in-development projects to pour everything into Phantom Blade Zero.
While it bears passing familiarity to the likes of Dark Souls and Elden Ring, there's a softer approach to Phantom Blade Zero. Bigger bosses might have multiple stages, for example, but they offer checkpoints so you aren't forced to start from square one. Liang explains the goal was to create "a game that everyone who loves wuxia and spectacular action can enjoy. After all, this is a game. We want as many people as possible to have fun, unwind, and enjoy the experience, while offering an extra rush of adrenaline to those who seek a challenge."
Liang promises that you will taste victory: "Phantom Blade Zero exists to make you feel powerful and incredibly cool. No matter what enemy stands before you, you will defeat them in the end." He caveats that this doesn't mean the game is a pushover, however. "That feeling has to come from more than simply telling you how strong you are. It has to come through every slash of your blade, every block, every dodge, and every dazzling execution shaped by the game's brutal aesthetic. Your enemies are powerful so that your own strength can feel even greater."
The results are already visible: Phantom Blade Zero is Steam's top seller, and lest there be any question whether its success is being carried by its developer's homeland of China, it's number one in many other territories, including the United States and United Kingdom as well. Concurrent players have already passed the half-million mark within the first few hours, and are continuing to climb, with far higher numbers absolutely possible as the weekend arrives.
Liang might be the face of Phantom Blade Zero's creation, but he's quick to share the plaudits. "I am deeply grateful to the team for their understanding and support," he writes, recalling the times he called them together to deliver "a suffocating decision" such as "taking apart something everyone had already carefully built and polished, then rebuilding it, or even abandoning it," even when that meant "sometimes letting go of content that had already taken an enormous amount of time and effort."
سەرچاوەی فەرمی بە زمانی ئینگلیزی: https://www.pcgamesn.com/phantom-blade-zero/steam-best-seller-player-count
