Zhen Shattered Legacy Is The Lo Fi Wuxia Banger You Were Waiting For

Every now and again, I worry that action games have stagnated. Ever since Hades basically set the template for isometric action games, it feels like way too many of them started to feel samey. "inspired by Devil May Cry", some of them will read, yet at most they'll have a baked in air combo with no changes based on timing or any kind of combo system. 

So imagine my surprise trying out the demo for Zhen: Shattered Legacy, an upcoming action game by Katanarama developers Ghost Machine Games. The game has fundamentally understood action games as more than just flashy action sequences- it knows that these sequences have to be hard. 

The Difficulty Is The Point In Zhen Shattered Legacy

When I say Zhen Shattered Legacy is hard I don't mean that the game is some kind of souls like. Instead, it skips the control scheme used by its contemporaries. Playing as a Wuxia robot, your attacks are done by flicking the right stick, with a dodge on your bumper and regular movement on your left stick. The direction itself doesn't matter- you just have to flick the stick to attack, with multiple flicks leading to a combo. 

It's genius simply because it forces an intentionality to your actions that a lot of action games have loosened up on. Its parry is the embodiment of this- rather than just be a last minute dodge or strike. you have to dodge towards the enemy's attack as it comes out. Unlike a lot of games where you might try to just throw out a hitbox to fish for parries, it's a parry of the specifics: decide who you want to parry, then execute the input to do so. 

It eschews a lot of visual flair for mechanical brilliance. Ultimately the demo itself didn't have much in the way of specific challenges- it's more a taste test of how well you can adapt to the game's unique take on action game rules. Combo structure still feels intuitive- once you unlock more more of these moves you'll have options like holding a direction on the stick at the end of the combo to do an ender, or rotating the stick to do big damage. But for now the combat encounters feel thoughtful: figure out who's attacking and what your options are. 

It also helps that the game is aesthetically gorgeous. The Wuxia mixed with hip hop soundtrack is a vibe most immaculate, and helps sell what you're meant to be doing. After all, you're not on a rampage, you're proving your mastery over martial arts. 

While Zhen Shattered Legacy has no release date yet, I highly implore you to check it out if you're looking for a new action game that's not just a flashy mash combo. It's definitely going to be one to watch: the demo already has one new weapon, and hitting the end of the demo feels like it's teasing what else you might encounter down the line.