Stellar Blade (PS5)

[franch1se]

finally beat it last night. 34 hrs even. I will probably do new game + in the future, but i just need a break from this game after playing so much since Saturday lol. I was going to try to platinum it but i don't think i have the energy anymore for it.

[peter42O]

Completed Stellar Blade a week ago. Played on story mode. About 80 hours to do pretty much everything on my first play-through.

Visuals - 9.0/10 (excellent)
Audio - 9.0/10 (excellent)
Gameplay/Combat - 10/10 (superb)
Story/Characters - 8.0/10 (great)
Overall - 9.0/10 (excellent)

The highlight is the combat and gameplay. It's just so damn good. Always feel like you're progressing with new skills and moves. The loop is excellent as is the game design and level design. The two big open areas are my least favorite but they're great for exploring and seeing what stuff is hidden and stashed about. I liked the story and characters. It's not amazing but I enjoyed and it kept me interested all the way through the game. Visuals are excellent. Not at the level of GOWR, HFW or Avatar but still, a great looking game. Enemy designs are the highlight. Boss fights are insane. Voice acting is solid and the soundtrack is excellent. I do wish there was two or three songs on loop during the two big open areas but other than that, no issues.

I did play new game plus which opens up a few more skills and stuff which was fun to get them all. I did a speed run on normal for the second play through since I had 39/45 trophies and am going for the platinum which I never do. lol

Started a third play through where im playing like I did on my first play through as I need to make sure I do certain things in order to get the ending I haven't unlocked yet which will give me the platinum trophy. Playing on hard mode for the linear levels but normal mode for the two open areas since there's a lot more enemies and I don't want it taking forever for me to accomplish what im trying to do.

About 108 hours total play time thus far. Absolutely loving this game which is obvious since I rarely replay games and almost never replay a game right after completing it. Out of almost 50 completed games this generation, my only replay in general and back to back to back was Outriders three years ago. Otherwise, every game is a one and done excluding expansions and DLC.

Hoping for a sequel and this series to be a trilogy.