One Year Later, Stellar Blade is a Modern Success Story

Summary

Stellar Blade faced initial skepticism and overcame various controversies to become a highly-rated and financially successful PS5 exclusive.
Despite criticisms, the game earned praise for its impressive graphics, combat design, and storyline.
Stellar Blade's success led to numerous DLCs, free updates, and collaborations, with a potential sequel or spin-off and further new content planned for the future.

Stellar Blade was released on April 26, 2024. Announced in 2019 as a fresh IP and launching exclusively on PlayStation 5, the project involved some notable risks. It also marked a major step forward for developer Shift Up, as it had previously only worked on a handful of mobile games. Stellar Blade was bolstered by a close partnership with Sony Interactive as publisher, though, and backed by a high-profile marketing campaign that drew both positive and negative reactions in the period leading up to its full release.

However, in quick order, Stellar Blade exceeded expectations in nearly every way, going on to become one of the most highly-rated PS5 exclusives, and bringing attention to Shift Up by "graduating" the studio into AAA-tier territory. Looking back on it one year later, Stellar Blade's breakout success story in the industry is one to celebrate, with it also set to continue its popularity well into the future.

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By Tristan Jurkovich

Stellar Blade is a Noteworthy Success Story, One Year Later

Stellar Blade Overcame Initial Skepticism and Controversies to Become Widely Embraced

Ahead of its launch, Stellar Blade had its share of doubters and detractors. A good portion of this criticism focused on protagonist Eve's character design and variety of outfits, which some felt were unnecessarily sexualized. This resulted in a heated backlash and arguments over Stellar Blade's alleged censorship of these and other aspects, like its depiction of violence, with both sides feeling quite strongly on the topics and Shift Up and Sony having to address them. It also later faced a lawsuit over the name itself, filed by the film company, Stellarblade LCC.

Despite all that, upon its release, Stellar Blade's story of humanity's struggle against a seemingly alien enemy on a future post-apocalyptic Earth captivated audiences. The world-building, graphics, and art direction were hailed as impressive, and its exploration of the use of AI and evolution filtered through an emotional tale packed with twists and shocking reveals resonated well with players.

This was helped by Stellar Blade's flashy and streamlined Soulslike combat design also being a highlighted component of its experience. These and the above elements led to it receiving good reception and reviews, and it was the best-selling game in North America the month of its release, going on to move 1 million copies worldwide by June.

Stellar Blade didn't stop there, though, and it received a robust series of DLCs and post-launch support for requested features, many of which were free. These included updates in the form of a photo mode, along with more substantial paid crossovers with established and popular IPs, particularly Nier: Automata, as many fans had previously noted the similarities between the two. This content was warmly welcomed, garnering goodwill for Shift Up's inclusive approach, and making Stellar Blade even more beloved after the fact, with it currently sitting at a 90 player rating on OpenCritic.

Stellar Blade was nominated for Best Action Game and Best Score and Music at The Game Awards 2024.

Stellar Blade's Future is Looking Bright

With its success, Stellar Blade has found itself in an optimistic spot. Although nothing is confirmed at this time, there has previously been talk of a potential sequel or spin-off to Stellar Blade, which is only natural given its acclaim and the possibilities for expansion, with fan demand to spend more time with the characters and setting.

What has been confirmed is more Stellar Blade DLC coming soon. The latest addition will feature content from Goddess of Victory: Nikke, one of Shift Up's prior games, along with a PC port, both set for this June. Stellar Blade’s journey from initially uncertain to surprise bona fide hit provides a positive example, and its future plans and potential give fans great reason to commemorate its one-year anniversary.

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