Xuan-Yuan Sword VII Reviews

Xuan-Yuan Sword VII is ranked in the 67th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
6 / 10.0
Nov 9, 2020

Xuan-Yuan Sword VII suffers from a weak story, and a poor translation. Despite this, there is a lot to love for ARPG enthusiasts.

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40 / 100
Nov 13, 2020

Xuan-Yuan Sword VII has promise, but it fails in delivering a consistent and manageable experience. In meshing hack and slash games like Dark Souls, Bayonetta, and any mid-2000 mid-card action game out there, this action RPG feels like a hybrid that doesn’t know what to excel & focus on.

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GameMAG
Top Critic
7 / 10
Mar 31, 2021

Xuan-Yuan Sword VII offers a dramatic story based on chinese mythology. Of course, the drabness of battles and long roads to some places can be tiring in the final part of the game, but in general, Xuan-Yuan Sword VII deserves an attention.

Review in Russian | Read full review

5 / 10.0
Sep 30, 2021

Xuan Yuan Sword 7’s biggest sin is that it’s boring. Really boring. It might look nice, sound great, and be steeped in culture, but actually playing is closer to a chore than anything else. It’s also really long, coming in at 20+ hours. The gameplay on offer here can barely sustain a game half – or even a quarter – of that length. This is scratching at the heels of mediocrity, and it’s not with the time.

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7 / 10.0
Sep 30, 2021

I had plenty of fun with Xuan Yuan Sword 7. Though I wish the story would have been a little more engaging, the fun yet straightforward combat and exploration kept me going until the end, that said the game does suffer from some lousy difficulty spikes and forgotten mechanics that are introduced early on. It's the seventh core title in the franchise, and I'm hoping it's not the last one to make it to western shores.

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75 / 100
Sep 30, 2021

Despite the notable jump in quality and budget, Xuan Yuan Sword 7 does not get to take full advantage of all its mechanics and leaves the feeling that with a little more time and effort a magnificent RPG could have been achieved. Despite that, it is a highly recommended game for fans of the genre and a great entry into the West.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

5 / 10
Sep 30, 2021

An ancient Chinese character tale rather than an epic, Xuan Yuan 7 is a linear RPG that takes inspiration liberally from the best games around, but has no idea how to implement anything it’s stolen. Combat is farcically easy, systems are barely explained, puzzles feel decades out of date and there’s that stamina bar that does nothing. Sometimes there’s a reason you haven’t heard of a series.

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8 / 10.0
Sep 30, 2021

Xuan Yuan Sword 7 is an RPG with a really engaging story. Based on Chinese legends, it offers a solid experience that proves the series value as an Oriental classic. Despite a few small issues, it's a title that any fan of the genre should have the chance to experience. Hopefully one day it'll be possible to also play the other games in the franchise in English and maybe even Portuguese.

Review in Portuguese | Read full review

82 / 100
Sep 30, 2021

If there’s a sticking point to really enjoying Xuan Yuan Sword VII, it’s that not everyone will respond to its pace and insistence on story and character over action. While its mythology, history and politics are firmly rooted in Chinese culture, this 20-hour family drama is moving, universal and entirely relatable, and its action is rewarding. For those with patience, Xuan Yuan Sword VII is a unique and memorable action roleplaying game experience.

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8 / 10.0
Sep 30, 2021

With Xuan Yuan 7’s action, story, and various systems all clicking into place so well, Domo Studio has given the world a truly superb video game.

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5.5 / 10.0
Sep 30, 2021

Xuan Yuan Sword 7 reminds me a lot of why people dislike trailers. You could easily watch the launch trailer for this and get the wrong impression. Everything shown happens, it’s just behind a couple of hour commitment and sandwiched between an underwhelming story and an equally underwhelming world. If you’re willing to invest the time and give Xuan Yuan Sword 7 a good try, it can potentially be a good game. However, for everyone else, there are better adventures out there.

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Oct 1, 2021

Xuan-Yuan Sword VII is an exceptional game, and a compelling example of how Taiwanese RPGs will be able to add to the narrative and thematic depth of the genre as a whole. The gameplay might be a little derivative, but that narrative, coupled with the gorgeous art and refined gameplay, make this one that you shouldn't let slip under your radar.

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7.3 / 10.0
Oct 1, 2021

So overall while Xuan Yuan Sword 7 doesn’t really do anything new mechanically, it’s still enough of a solidly built title especially if you’ve been needing a break from the open worlds that have been all the rage of late. With a duration of a dozen plus hours, the world looked great on the Series X and there’s enough bad dad jokes from Zixu to his sister to make you either laugh or groan while they explore the lands to get her real body back.

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Avoid
Oct 2, 2021

Xuan Yuan Sword 7 has some interesting ideas and an exciting backdrop but it won’t be for everyone. The game's battle system has is decent but lacks the depth that makes actually playing the game memorable.

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8 / 10
Oct 2, 2021

Despite these missteps, Xuan Yuan Sword 7 surprised us with just how fun it was. It harkens back to classic adventure games from the early '00s, filled with all the charm of that era. Sometimes it's refreshing to play a game that knows exactly what it wants to be and accomplishes it with very little getting in the way. While there are some localisation issues, some presentation problems and a lack of challenge in its combat, we do hope Xuan Yuan Sword 7 finds an audience in the west, as it would be a shame not to see how the next entry can build upon these solid foundations.

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7.6 / 10.0
Oct 4, 2021

For me Xuan Yuan Sword 7 was a wonderful surprise, discovered shortly before release and convinced by a trailer to take a look, I was not disappointed. The game is so wonderfully unobtrusive and definitely doesn't crave the "RPG Hit 2021" trophy, and despite a fast travel system, it's so pleasantly linear. It offers pretty much all the aspects you'd expect from a role-playing game and still only has one thing in mind, which is to keep the player well entertained and I really liked that. That's why it's also a 内幕消息 for me.

Review in German | Read full review

Thumb Culture
Gareth Trueman
8 / 10.0
Oct 5, 2021

My final thought is that Xuan Yuan Sword 7 is a great game with a rich story into Chinese mythology. You really create a bond with the characters and you just wish it had a longer playtime. For me, twenty hours is nowhere near enough for a game of this much potential. Even with some graphical flaws I had an absolute blast playing it and would highly recommend it to any RPG fan. So I would like to give Xuan Yuan Sword 7 the Thumb Culture Gold Award.

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7.5 / 10.0
Oct 6, 2021

While never having played a Xuan Yuan in the past, I can confidently say they have a new fan. As I stated above all of the talking, and explaining can turn off some folks, those that stay will be in for quite a thrill ride of a story full of Chinese mythology, politics and epic fights. While some of the translation is off during the script and on some combat abilities it was never enough to break immersion. The words that popped up were always close enough, that I was able to understand what was going on in the scene.

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6.5 / 10.0
Oct 8, 2021

Overall, Xuan Yuan Sword 7 is a completely mediocre game. That isn't to say it can't be fun or doesn't have strong moments, but somehow, none of what it does really stands out. It's interesting to see a long-running franchise finally get its chance to shine outside of its home country, but Xuan Yuan Sword 7 doesn't do enough to set it apart from the crowd. There are a lot of interesting ideas here, and I look forward to seeing what the next entry shows off.

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89%
Oct 8, 2021

I had a great time playing Xuan Yuan Sword 7 and can only hope that Western gamers will get the chance to experience more games in the series at some point. We’ve clearly been missing out on a compelling series if this entry is any indication! It might not have reinvented the action RPG wheel, but Xuan Yuan Sword 7 is a well-rounded and incredibly solid take on the genre with a phenomenal story at its core.

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