WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers Reviews
Thanks to its stunning visuals, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers certainly makes a good first impression. Its gameplay is what will keep you hooked in the long-run, though, even if it is perhaps a little too derivative of the early Souls games by FromSoftware. Still, being able to freely respec your character here is a fantastic touch, allowing you to experiment if a boss is proving to be a tough cookie to crack.
Besides its unobtrusive story, Wuchang boasts some fairly stellar combat variety. Between spells that recharge on dodges and special hits, combat disciplines that function like equippable skills, and an easily respecable skill tree, Wuchang incentivizes experimentation and success. To specify, while other souls games would force you to commit to a single build for an entire run, Wuchang lets you switch classes and weapon reinforcement immediately and without consequence. For example, though I enjoyed most of my run as an axe-wielding strength main, after encountering Commander Honglan, who outran most of my attacks, I switched to Longswords and learned to parry nearly every one of her attacks until victory.
At first glance, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers feels familiar, but its deeper systems take the genre in some unexpected and highly rewarding directions.
Familiarity stalks you at every turn in Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, a competent, cool and pretty soulslike with a nice twist on death but few true surprises.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is yet another great soulslike to add to the ever-increasing pile, featuring excellent combat, wonderful level design, an incredible skill tree, and fearsome bosses. Just watch out for some steep difficulty dips and spikes, and a reliance on cheap-feeling "gotcha!" ambushes.
Wuchang brings some fun ideas to soulslike boss fights, but the rest of it is a pale imitation of much better games.
There’s plenty to enjoy about Wuchang, but it is not a game for the casual soulslike enjoyer.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a solid soulslike game, but it takes a while to get used to its quirks.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers' combat, art direction, flexibility, and level design are fantastic, but balancing issues and its derivative nature ultimately hold it back.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is an ambitious game that has a lot going for it. The combat is solid, fun and challenging while still giving you a dozen ways to solve any sort of trial that you’re going up against.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers doesn't soar all the way to FromSoftware heights, but it comes darn close. What's presented here is likely the best traditional Soulslikes I've ever played from a competitor, and well worth checking out for any fan of the genre.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers does a lot of things right and manages to stand out in a genre as crowded as souls-like games, but it also tries to take on too much, and that ends up costing it. In any case, fans of the genre (and especially of games like Bloodborne, Sekiro, or even Black Myth: Wukong) shouldn't hesitate.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is an innovative souls-like with deep combat and dynamic systems that add a lot of the depth to the overall experience. The 'Madness Gauge' and the Inner Demon manifestation is quite a groundbreaking way to transform death into a powerful gameplay mechanic. If you are looking for a new souls-like with fun, fast-paced combat, then Wuchang: Fallen Feathers will definitely check all of your boxes.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Despite a fascinating premise, one inspired by both Chinese folklore and real-life history, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers resolutely fails to deliver on any of its initial early promise. This is a Soulslike by the numbers, one hampered by a cornucopia of PS5 performance issues that plague the game like a disease.
The character models don’t always look great, and the feel of combat wasn’t always where I wanted it to be, but this is still an interesting take on the Soulslike action-RPG style, bringing enough unique elements to the table that it feels well worth the challenge.
In a vacuum, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers would stand as a resounding success, especially when you consider that it was helmed by a relatively unknown developer. But, when compared to its genre contemporaries, it fails to reach the same impressive highs of the games it clearly holds reverence for.
Another step up for China-based soulslikes.
Wuchang is overall a fairly competent soulslike, which makes it even more of a shame that its issues prevent you from fully enjoying it.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Wuchang has some neat ideas, but the inconsistent difficulty and confusing story really made it hard to enjoy a lot of times.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers isn't perfect, but it doesn't need to be to stand among the best in the Soulsborne genre. It doesn't just mimic what makes these games fun but expands on the formula that few others could. Challenging gameplay, riveting exploration, and unique control mechanics help to elevate Wuchang well above the run-of-the-mill Soulsborne clone. Wuchang more than deserves its own franchise.