Phantom Blade Zero PC launch crushes Modern Warfare 4 as Assassin's Creed star joins cast

Phantom Blade Zero is officially out now and it’s genuinely one of the best games released this year. That should say a lot too, because 2026 has felt like a great year for new games.

The new Chinese action-adventure game has taken many years, and many previews, to release, but it’s been well worth the wait.

Reviews were overwhelmingly positive, and since landing in the hands of consumers, the game has continued to thrive.

At the time of writing, there are currently 514,296 people playing it on Steam, which has impressively beaten the newly released Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4’s PC player count peak.

GAMINGbible’s review of Phantom Blade Zero was written by yours truly and I’d urge anyone and everyone to give it a go for themselves, especially since you can grab the game for less than $1 thanks to a new deal from Fanatical.

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While my time reviewing Phantom Blade Zero was an absolute blast, I’m shocked to say the game is still surprising me even at launch…

Phantom Blade Zero casts Sonic the Hedgehog as lead protagonist and I'm second-guessing my review score

You read that right: Phantom Blade Zero announced a new addition to its English voice cast on the same day as its launch.

Roger Craig Smith, who’s played the likes of Sonic the Hedgehog, Assassin’s Creed’s Ezio Auditore da Firenze and Kyle Crane from the Dying Light series, is the official voice of Soul.

Despite reviewing the game with the English dub switched on, this is actually news to me. It’s news to all reviewers actually, because Smith’s performance was not part of the build we received.

Since the news dropped, I’ve loaded up Phantom Blade Zero once again and kicked off a new playthrough, and what a difference this change makes to the game.

One of my few gripes with Phantom Blade Zero was its story. It’s not a bad story by any means, but it didn’t grab me as much as I’d expected it to. It’s easier to follow than Black Myth: Wukong at least; I have to give it that.

After playing the opening hour again, though with Roger Craig Smith’s portrayal, the difference in delivery is night and day.

The story beats are all the same, but Smith’s talent as an actor adds the depth and emotion that was missing from the build I played for the review.

Now the question I have is: would this have changed my review score had this been the version I’d played? Honestly, probably not.

It definitely adds to the overall experience, but as my review will tell you, it's the gameplay that initially had me interested in Phantom Blade Zero and while it’s top-notch on several levels, some of the technical teething issues held it back.

A lot of those mechanical problems have been fixed since the launch build, but we review games based on what they are at the time, not what they could be.

Nevertheless, Phantom Blade Zero is still an excellent game and it’s nice to see the Steam charts reflecting that.

Phantom Blade Zero is available now for PlayStation 5 and PC. Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s time for my second playthrough…

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