Scifi’s new landmark: Stellar Blade is a five-star masterpiece

Stellar Blade

Developer: Shift Up. Available: PS5. Peggy 18. ★★★★★

Do you rememberhow it feels when you see a really good sci-fi movie for the first time, for example Alien – the eighth passenger this Blade Runner?

What about Do you remember the impact if you experience a masterpiece without prior knowledge? So that it rolls cleanly on top.

Here’s the feeling.

The game case of the beginning of the year is South Korean Stellar Bladea massive sci-fi action-adventure that takes you deep into an amazing future, coming exclusively to PS5.

Unusually for the industry Stellar Blade is not part of any big series or a sequel, but arrives without giant marketing and advance hype.

Or the hype, which is, was created on its own merits. A free demo of the game was released a few weeks ago, which collected players in double figures compared to Final Fantasy VII Rebirthin to the demo. The quality spoke for itself.

In the future people have died or fled Earth. Animalistic mechanical figures of the outer space Naytiba race hold the devastated planet in their grip.

Later, a strike group is sent from the colony beyond the stars to retake the area. Among them is Eve (the popular model Shin Jae Eun scanning), a fighter who outwardly resembles a young woman, who must be something else under the skin.

Eve is a streamlined, emotionless killer. He runs, jumps, fires and dives into explosive melees tirelessly. We move from one situation to another without even flinching, no matter how harsh the fates may be.

In addition to the action, progression consists of exploring the environment, talking with side characters and doing favors. Eve’s abilities are also developed multidimensionally.

The game opens with an adventure full of wonderful sights, reminiscent of the genre’s masterpieces, such as Bayonettafrom the series (2009–), Nier: Automata (2017) and from Finland Returnalista (2021).

It’s not about a copy, but this also pulls past its predecessors. Anti is fresh and bold.

Hurry up the reflex-requiring mechanics feel merciless, but soon the movements come from the spinal cord. The rhythm is also excellent: the experience convinces immediately but always gets better as it progresses. The length is also enough, and there is no information about bugs.

Stellar Blades the director is Kim Hyung-tae, who a couple of years ago said that he draws everything from himself into his work. He said that making games is a passion, a lifetime.

Unknown to many, Kim, a star of the future, is a famous mobile game graphic designer in his home country. Kim’s first console game, five years in the making, is an achievement of the kind that pulls you into silence.

The brutal Naytiba enemies, on the other hand, have been designed Hee Chul Jang. He is known as an Oscar winner Bong Joon-honin of movies The Host (2006) and Okay (2017) monsteridesignista.

The expression is unpleasant in a nice way, and harsh scenes are highlighted with beautiful, serene moments. The game is also the sharpest tip of the PS5 in terms of its technical implementation.

The sense of style is crowned by the singing and choral performances of several female artists, which reach the levels of bright fantasy.

Wild and shocking Stellar Blades at the core is the state of humanity now and in the future, typical of rewarding sci-fi. The work lives on interpretation, when mystery and subtlety wrap in its grip.

Where are people, animals and nature driven by greed, capitalism and giant corporations – how does it feel to be stuck in the system?

Is Eve, who fits into skin-tight clothes and is genetically manipulated to say the least, the ideal of humanity or a mockery – what about constant shopping? The player decides.

The game year that started has been particularly strong, but Stellar Blade is easily the best so far this year. Scifi’s new landmark.