In a matter of weeks, Stellar Blade will launch for all the PlayStation 5 owners out there to enjoy. This third-person action hack-and-slash title has been in the news for a very long time. Fans are hyped because they will be getting a brand-new hack-and-slash game for PS5, which would be one of very few such games on this console.
Its developer, Shift Up, has been very proud of their game. They have put a lot of work into it, getting inspired by a bunch of similar games. They have crafted this title just the way they themselves wanted to play a game. And now, it looks like the game’s director has even better reasons for making such an incredible game.
The Director of Stellar Blade Suggests This Game Holds Much More Significance Than One Knows
Helldivers 2 is one of the most played live service games right now. This game was released on PC and PlayStation 5 back in February and has yet to stop its climb towards the peak. But live service games are everywhere nowadays.
Every now and then, a publisher hints at the possibility of them heading towards the live service model. The biggest example is WB Games. Even though Hogwarts Legacy became the best-selling game of 2023, they still decided that they would stop focusing on single-player experiences.
This is where Shift Up comes in with their popular new title, Stellar Blade. It is one of those games that people rarely see nowadays. Yes, there are plenty of single-player experiences available, but an experience such as this is hard to find.
A game where an attractive female character takes center stage. A game where ridiculous action is part of the core gameplay loop. And a game that is not afraid of showing what it is. It’s like people were waiting for this game to come out.
Even the director of Stellar Blade, Kim Hyung-tae, is pretty clear about his intentions. He once suggested that he made a good-looking protagonist such as Eve because he does not want to play an unattractive character.
Now that he is back with another piece of titbit, he says that he made Stellar Blade because he wanted to make a console game with an ending. He pointed at a bunch of online live service games that don’t have an ending, which he wanted to give fans an experience with an ending.
“Sales success has become a severe issue in recent years due to the rising costs of development. To be honest, I often hear advice from people around me that it would be better to make games that have higher profit margins. But what our industry needs than anything is variety, isn’t it? Console titles, that is single-player games with an ending, have a very important value in themselves.”
It’s an interesting thing coming from him, as single-player games might not be in decline. However, publishers continue to focus on games that are not single-player or games that do not have an ending.
In times like these, one cannot help but appreciate what Shift Up is doing. After all, single-player games are what keep gaming stable. Live-service games often rise and then instantly go out of existence; they are not reliable.
Shift Up Says They Will Continue Making Games Like These
Game director Kim Hyung Tae also suggested that once Stellar Blade is all done and launched, they would continue this thing. He had hinted before that since Stellar Blade is popular, they would be making a sequel too.
It’s incredible news, and it’s pretty interesting that a Korean developer is making this commitment. Let’s not forget that another pair of Korean developers who worked on Lies of P has also announced a sequel to their game, hence continuing their own commitment to single-player games.
