Summary
- S-Game's upcoming Phantom Blade Zero targets PS5 and PC, as a big and ambitious project with fast-paced samurai action gameplay.
- A developer's harsh comments at ChinaJoy 2024 suggest an Xbox release of Phantom Blade Zero may never happen.
- The trend of some Asian games skipping Xbox for PlayStation, Nintendo, and PC continues.
A developer working on the upcoming PlayStation 5 console exclusive Phantom Blade Zero has made some harsh comments about the Xbox platform, stating that "nobody" needs it. First announced at the 2023 PlayStation Showcase, Phantom Blade Zero is the first console title by Beijing-based development studio S-GAME, targeting PS5 and PC.
Phantom Blade Zero is also S-GAME's biggest, most ambitious project yet, with the studio only having released two smaller games before it - one for mobile and the other for PC. Despite S-GAME's presumptive inexperience, though, the fast-paced samurai action in Phantom Blade Zero's gameplay trailers has piqued the curiosity of many players, and it even closed out the 2024 Summer Game Fest showcase. Phantom Blade Zero has undoubtedly put S-GAME on the map, but a lot of players on the Xbox side have questioned why their platform will be excluded at launch.
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This question was reportedly answered at the recent ChinaJoy 2024 games conference during an interview with an anonymous S-GAME developer. According to Brazilian gaming website GamePlaysCassi, the developer in question allegedly said "nobody needs this platform" when asked about the lack of an Xbox port for Phantom Blade Zero. They further noted that Xbox consoles aren't popular in Asia, and building games for them is difficult due to Microsoft's overloaded ecosystem. After the recent Xbox Series X/S price hikes in Japan, a turnaround in regional popularity seems even more improbable for the platform.
An Xbox Release of Phantom Blade Zero May Never Happen
The remarks are quite scathing, but it's worth mentioning that the developer's quote could be a mistranslation. However, it doesn't change the fact that there is a worrying trend of Asian games consistently skipping the Xbox platform in favor of PlayStation, Nintendo, and PC. Another recent example of the same is Black Myth: Wukong's Xbox version being delayed, inadvertently making the highly-anticipated Chinese action game a PS5 console exclusive at launch. While Phantom Blade Zero never confirmed an Xbox release, S-GAME might not be considering the prospect at all if the developer's comments are to be believed.
Given the Microsoft platform's dwindling market share in the East, many Asian studios likely don't find Xbox ports economically feasible for their business. This avoidance can also be noticed at bigger companies like Square Enix, which has yet to bring blockbuster games like Final Fantasy 7 Remake and FF16 to Xbox. Phantom Blade Zero doesn't have a release window yet, but Xbox fans can only hope that the platform accrues enough popularity to warrant a port by the time it launches.
- Released
- September 9, 2026
- ESRB
- Unreal Engine 5
- Developer(s)
- S-Game
- Publisher(s)
- S-Game
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5
- Franchise
- Phantom Blade
- PC Release Date
- September 9, 2026
- PS5 Release Date
- September 9, 2026
WHERE TO PLAY
Phantom Blade Zero is a new character action game from developer S-Game that features the type of fast-paced combo-based gameplay popularized by series like Ninja Gaiden and Devil May Cry. Its art style combines traditional Japanese iconography with the fantastical and horrific.
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 5
