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Irelandgameranx: Phantom Blade Zero isn't Souls-like, but isn't easy
Jake Baldino's spoiler-free review pairs kung fu spectacle with a warning about bosses, while viewers seize on the game's difficulty options.
gameranx
Story of Why this story? One of the most watched videos since yesterday, with 627,509 views.
Phantom Blade Zero - Before You Buy
Things we can learn from the video
Press to jump
- 2:25Difficulty options and checkpoints without enemy respawns distinguish the game from the Souls-like structure Baldino says viewers might expect.
- 3:20Ordinary encounters are accessible, but bosses demand more mechanically intensive play.
- 4:21Combat combines parries, color-coded attacks, dodges and poise or stamina management.
- 5:03Soul Edges add special attacks through weapons including teleporting daggers, cannons and gauntlets.
- 7:00Baldino flags camera lock-on quirks, environmental snagging and clunky collisions.
- 12:18His closing assessment favors the spectacle and hack-and-slash action, with enough content for roughly 40 hours or more.
Bonfire checkpoints and a warrior named Soul might suggest a familiar kind of punishing adventure. Jake Baldino wants to clear that up before anyone buys Phantom Blade Zero: "First of all, it's not a Souls-like, despite what some people were assuming."
That distinction anchors gameranx's "Phantom Blade Zero - Before You Buy," which drew roughly 628,000 views since yesterday. Narrating footage from his PC review copy, Baldino describes an action game with selectable difficulty, enemies that stay defeated at checkpoints, and ordinary encounters that leave room to enjoy the spectacle. The bosses are another matter.
"Don't let people tell you this game is easy," he says. Those encounters demand attention to parries, dodges, color-coded attacks and the meters governing combat. Being able to choose a difficulty doesn't mean every opponent becomes a pushover.
The fighting also gives him plenty to demonstrate. Special weapons called Soul Edges range from teleporting daggers to cannons and gauntlets, while upgrades expand the available combinations. Baldino praises the kung fu movie-style animation and credits Donnie Yen's motion-capture involvement, describing enough content to occupy players for 40 hours or more.
In the comments, viewers keep returning to that opening distinction. Some joke about a game that isn't Souls-like naming its protagonist Soul; others discuss choosing normal difficulty or fitting another lengthy adventure into an already crowded backlog. One thanks Baldino for keeping the review free of spoilers.
His recommendation comes with practical reservations: camera lock-on can be awkward, scenery can snag the player, and the combat doesn't have the razor-sharp precision he associates with Sekiro. The enthusiasm is for the variety and spectacle, not flawless execution.
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- Channel
- gameranx
- Subscribers
- 8,660,000
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 12,943,226
- Channel views, pace per day
- 1,752,196 (on a normal day: 1,614,285)
- Video published
- October 26, 2026
- Video views so far
- 872,719 (2 days online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 627,481
The numbers
The review drew more than half a million views since yesterday. Its first-day comment section was also more than twice as busy as usual for gameranx's regular videos.
💡 Test your knowledge
What is the name of Phantom Blade Zero's protagonist?
Baldino introduces the game's elite-warrior protagonist as Soul.