Phantom Blade Zero souls-like questions have followed the game since its very first reveal, and honestly, it is easy to see why. Interconnected maps, checkpoint systems, and punishing bosses tend to make people reach for that label instantly these days. But S-GAME has been remarkably consistent and vocal about one thing: Phantom Blade Zero is not a Soulslike. Here is what that actually means once you look past the surface comparisons.
The Short Answer: No, and the Developers Really Want You to Know That
Director Soulframe Liang has addressed this comparison publicly, more than once, going out of his way to clarify that Phantom Blade Zero should not be filed under the Soulslike genre. In his own words, he has described the reaction to the game’s reveal by explaining that people assumed it was a Soulslike because it seemed to feature interconnected maps, hidden secrets, and familiar checkpoint systems. But according to Liang, that is where the similarities stop.
Instead, S-GAME has described the game’s design as resting on three separate pillars, blending Devil May Cry style combat, Souls style level design, and Resident Evil style atmosphere and narrative pacing. That combination is really the clearest official answer to the Phantom Blade Zero soulslike debate. It borrows structural ideas from the Souls genre, but its combat identity and pacing come from somewhere else entirely.
Where Phantom Blade Zero Actually Resembles Soulslikes
To be fair, the comparisons are not baseless. There are a handful of genuine similarities that explain why people keep bringing up the genre in the first place.
- Interconnected, layered maps with shortcuts and hidden paths, similar to Souls games before Elden Ring’s fully open world shift
- Checkpoint systems that let you rest, recover, and fast travel between unlocked points
- Challenging boss fights that test pattern recognition and timing
- A general sense of atmosphere and environmental storytelling reminiscent of FromSoftware’s world design
Liang has actually compared the map design directly to the Souls games that came before Elden Ring, describing a seamless, non-linear layout built around exploration and backtracking rather than a fully open sandbox. That comparison is intentional and something the studio is happy to embrace.
Where Phantom Blade Zero Breaks From the Formula
This is where things get a lot more interesting, and where the real differences start piling up.
Combat Speed and Traditional Growth
Traditional Soulslikes tend to favor slower, more deliberate combat built around stamina management, precise dodges, and patient trades. Phantom Blade Zero throws that pacing out the window. Hands on previews describe combat where you are not just trading single hits with enemies, you are trading entire combos.
Players can equip two weapons and swap between them mid attack, resetting and extending combo strings in a way that feels closer to a character action game than a Souls title. One widely quoted preview described the combat as irresponsibly fast, adding that forcing Soulslike style deliberate pacing onto this system would only weaken what makes it stand out in the first place.
Some players who tested early builds noted that certain areas felt closer to a straightforward series of connected paths, while more recent previews closer to launch describe a noticeably more layered design with shortcuts and hidden routes woven throughout. It is a structure that rewards players who like to poke around every corner, without ever losing the thread of the main story.
No Enemy Respawns
One of the more notable departures is that Phantom Blade Zero will not respawn regular enemies every time you die or rest at a checkpoint, a core mechanic in almost every Soulslike game. This alone changes the entire rhythm of exploration, since you are not constantly re-clearing the same areas over and over.
No Currency Loss on Death
Dying in a Soulslike usually means dropping your currency at your death location, with a race to reclaim it before a second death wipes it out permanently. Phantom Blade Zero skips this entirely. There is no currency penalty tied to death, removing one of the genre’s most tension heavy, and for some players, most frustrating mechanics.
Boss Phase Checkpoints
Dying to a boss in most Soulslikes sends you straight back to the very start of the fight. Phantom Blade Zero softens this considerably. If you make it through a boss’s first phase and die in the second, you resume directly from that second phase instead of starting over completely.
Multiple Difficulty Levels
Soulslikes are traditionally built around a single, fixed difficulty curve as a core part of their identity. Phantom Blade Zero includes multiple difficulty settings, giving players more control over how demanding they want the experience to be, which runs directly counter to the genre’s usual philosophy.
Phantom Blade Zero is Not Soulslike, See the Comparison Below
| Feature | Traditional Soulslike | Phantom Blade Zero |
| Combat pacing | Slow, deliberate, stamina based | Fast, combo driven, weapon swapping |
| Enemy respawns on death | Yes | No |
| Currency lost on death | Yes | No |
| Boss retry point | Start of the fight | Resumes from last reached phase |
| Difficulty options | Usually fixed | Multiple difficulty levels |
| Map design | Interconnected, layered | Interconnected, layered, similar in spirit |
| Core combat inspiration | FromSoftware combat systems | Devil May Cry-lite combat |
So What Genre Does Phantom Blade Zero Actually Belong To?
According to its own creator, Phantom Blade Zero is not just avoiding one label, it is trying to avoid being boxed into any existing genre entirely. Liang has gone as far as describing it as neither a Soulslike nor a traditional action game, suggesting instead that it could carve out its own identity altogether.
The closest official description remains that three pillar blend of Devil May Cry combat, Souls-lite level design, and Resident Evil style atmosphere, wrapped inside a wuxia, kung fu inspired presentation that neither of those reference points fully captures on their own.
For players who are burned out on the flood of Soulslikes released over the past few years, this is largely being received as good news. Reception from hands on previews has been consistently positive on this exact point, with several previewers explicitly saying they were relieved the game did not simply become another entry in an increasingly crowded genre.
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FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
Q. Is Phantom Blade Zero a soulslike game?
A. No. The developers have repeatedly clarified that despite sharing some structural elements like interconnected maps and checkpoints, the combat, pacing, and core identity are built around fast, combo driven action rather than the traditional Soulslike formula.
Q. Why do people compare Phantom Blade Zero to Soulslikes?
A. Mostly because of its layered map design, checkpoint system, and challenging boss fights, all of which are common Soulslike traits. However, the studio has confirmed these are surface level similarities rather than genre defining ones.
Q. Does Phantom Blade Zero have Elden Ring style bonfires?
A. It has a similar checkpoint system that lets you rest, recover, and fast travel, but without some of the harsher penalties tied to death that define traditional Soulslike checkpoints.
Q. Do you lose currency when you die in Phantom Blade Zero?
A. No. Unlike most Soulslikes, dying in Phantom Blade Zero does not cause you to drop or lose currency.
Q. Is Phantom Blade Zero harder or easier than a typical Soulslike?
A. It depends on your chosen difficulty setting, since the game offers multiple difficulty levels, something most traditional Soulslikes do not include.
Q. What genre does Phantom Blade Zero’s director say it belongs to?
A. Soulframe Liang has described it as blending Devil May Cry style combat, Souls-lite level design, and Resident Evil style atmosphere, positioning it as its own distinct identity rather than a straightforward Soulslike.
