| Wuchang: Fallen Feathers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Release Date | Gameplay & Story | Pre-Order & DLC | Review |
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a new Soulslike action RPG that features a dark fantasy set in ancient China. Read our review to see what it did well, what it didn't do well, and if it's worth buying.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Review Overview
What is Wuchang: Fallen Feathers?
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a dark and fantastical story set in the land of Shu during the final years of the ancient Ming Dynasty. Taking on the reins as titular protagonist Wuchang, a female pirate, the game will center around her as she maneuvers through a land full of plague, war, and darkness. A phenomenon known as Feathering has begun to mutate within the people, causing an epidemic.
Wuchang must overcome the throes of twisted monstrosities and her Feathering to uncover the truth and discover who she really is.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers features:
⚫︎ Soulslike with Unique Combat Mechanics
⚫︎ Huge Weapon Variety
⚫︎ Multiple Builds with Free Experimentation
⚫︎ Skill Trees That Expand the Combat
⚫︎ Inner Demon System
⚫︎ Challenging Bosses
For more gameplay details, read everything we know about Wuchang: Fallen Feathers’s gameplay and story.
| Digital Storefronts | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Steam |
 Epic Games |
 PlayStation |
 Xbox |
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| $49.99 | |||||||
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
 Fluid and Satisfying Combat Deep and Flexible Progression Great Visuals and Audio Design |
Difficulty is Not For Everyone Tons of Menus to Go Through Load Times Are Considerably Long |
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Overall - 88/100
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a bona fide Soulslike that has deep combat mechanics and unique progression systems that synergize perfectly to create one of the more satisfying gameplay loops in the genre. This is further reinforced by giving the player the power to freely experiment with builds and create their own unique way to play. There are some nitpicks here and there, as well as the difficulty spiking in certain areas, but all that is moot with how well packaged everything is.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Story - 7/10
In typical Soulslike fashion, the story of Wuchang is not as clear-cut as it may seem. But it does, however, make an effort to at least set up story elements that are not just pure exposition. It’s to be expected that Wuchang isn’t just a simple protagonist who’s afflicted by the Feathering, and even more so that there’s more to the mystery of the Feathering than meets the eye. It’s engaging enough to keep you interested, and having multiple choices to explore the story means that it only gets better on the next playthrough.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Gameplay - 10/10
The synergy of its combat mechanics and the progression is where Wuchang: Fallen Feathers shines the most. Having multiple mechanics that expand with their skill tree isn’t anything new, but letting the player decide which of the mechanics they want to expand upon and build around is something that other games should emulate.
Not only that, but being able to freely experiment with different weapons is also a huge bonus. There are some issues, like having too many mechanics to utilize, simplistic level design, difficulty, and even the pacing through menus. However, the gameplay loop is so satisfying that you can bear with these little nitpicks as you keep progressing through the game.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Visuals - 8/10
In terms of visuals, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is well-presented. So much so that, surprisingly, it’s an AA game. Character and monster designs are well-crafted and distinct. Not to mention that the special effects with the spells and weapon skills are all a treat for the eyes to watch.
There are flaws, however. Some of the characters look a little too similar to each other, and their facial animations aren’t exactly what you’d call smooth. Additionally, you may have to tweak your settings a bit if you’re getting fidelity and frame rate issues.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Audio - 9/10
Even the audio design of the game isn’t a slouch. The music is stellar, the sound effects are heavy, and the voice acting is also surprisingly great. It isn’t absolutely perfect since some sound effects should be a lot more noticeable than others, like when perfect dodges are triggered, but there’s not much to criticize either.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Value for Money - 10/10
To put it simply, the game is simply worth it. The price of $49.99 puts it into AA category, and I, for one, am surprised that they don’t charge more for it. The satisfying gameplay, added to how well the game is presented, adds to its overall value. And to top it all off, the game also has a ton of content and builds to explore, which makes it replayable as well.
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Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Review: Soars Above the Rest
In a world where Soulslikes have now become the norm in the action RPG space, you can definitely say that it’s oversaturated with how many releases there have been within the past few years. One might even say that there are a lot more misses than hits when it comes to hyped up games in the genre. But for Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, this felt a little different.
Officially revealed back in 2024, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers has been one of the more anticipated releases ever since. It had a unique theme of dark fantasy based on ancient China, as well as striking character and monster designs. Some designs could even be said to be more grotesque than FromSoftware’s Bloodborne eldritch horrors. That being said, however, how does Wuchang differentiate itself from the rest of the Soulslikes? And finally, does it live up to the hype?
A Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a dark fantasy set in the land of Shu during the tumultuous period of the Ming Dynasty. While the setting isn’t exactly unique, the theme is. There aren’t a lot of mainstream games that end up exploring ancient China and its many folklore and legends. The central binding force of everything is the plague called the Feathering. It’s a mysterious curse that afflicts humans, slowly turning them into monsters.
This disease now affects the heroine, Wuchang, who is also unfortunately struck by amnesia. In terms of a premise, it can’t be more vague or more basic than that. But, trust me when I say that the story does get a lot more engaging and entertaining as you progress. Especially since there are choices that you have to make, and that would leave you to decide how you want things to end up.
Striking Audiovisuals
In addition to its story, the game is also well-presented. Both the visuals and the audio design are incredibly noteworthy. One thing I would complain about the former, however, is that they might have focused too much on the dark
aspect of the fantasy, as there were tons of caves or underground areas to explore. Other than that, the character designs, monster designs, and overall look of the game are eye-catching and downright beautiful.
The music also sets the tone perfectly, as the ambient, dreadful music is notable while exploring the more secluded areas. But the different boss music? Amazing. Additionally, the sound effects and voice acting are also surprisingly great, especially since it’s an AA game. I expected a couple of hiccups on the audio aspect, but I’m glad to be proven wrong.
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Fight Your Own Way
As a Soulslike, it’s already quite obvious what the combat would be like. Stamina management, attack patterns, status effect buildup, checkpoints, interconnected levels, and other classic Soulslike mechanics are included in the game. On top of all that are the unique combat mechanics that the game has. One of these is Skyborn Might, which is essential to fully realize the potential of its combat system.
Skyborn Might is basically the game’s Spell and Skill system, which functions in charges. There are a ton of ways to gain charges by either attacking or perfectly dodging attacks. After gaining enough, you can opt to use the charges by casting spells or by using weapon skills. The way it all synergizes is also based on the five different weapon types that have their own unique specialties.
But before we get into that, let’s talk about the leveling and progression in the game. Instead of just pumping up your stats, Wuchang has a skill tree for each weapon type as well as a personal utility skill tree where you can use your hard-earned mercury (souls) to level up. These can be stat nodes, attack chain modifiers, skill modifiers, status effects, and straight-up just new skills.
For example, the One-handed Sword weapon types allow you to passively gain charges of Skyborn Might in addition to being the weapon of choice for magic-based builds. Another is the well-rounded Long Sword, which has a specific node in the skill tree that allows you to gain a charge after its second and fifth swing in the attack chain. Also, did I mention that you can use any spell as long as you have the necessary charges to use it? This makes magic an option for any build if you can make it work.
Other than that, there are a ton more mechanics in the game that you should honestly just explore on your own. And even more in the skill trees, since some nodes specifically upgrade certain interactions and mechanics. One of which is a node that allows the Spear to use their skill to dodge attacks and net you an additional Skyborn Might use. Another is a node that allows Dual Swords to utilize the Clashing mechanic more, where more of its attack chains allow it to clash and lower the opponent’s damage.
It’s layers upon layers of mechanics on top of familiar combat. Add the fact that progression is flexible and you’re allowed to respec freely; this is what elevates the gameplay loop of Wuchang. You want to try out a magic build? Ok, sure, just reset your points and allocate them as needed. The freedom of experimentation makes the game a lot more fun, and building around certain mechanics is one way to make players appreciate that they can play their way.
Stay Mad
The way it also handles dying and the effects of Feathering is also something to look at. Every time you kill a human enemy, your Inner Demon gauge increases. In contrast, it also decreases every time you kill a demon. At maximum, you will be afflicted with Madness, which increases the damage that you take and inflict.
In addition to this, there are nodes in the skill tree that want you to be at a certain level of your Inner Demon gauge. For example, one node gives you the effect of recovering health when using the Swift Draw, an attack that lets you simultaneously swap weapons and attack with the swapped weapon’s Weapon Skill, at 50% or above Madness levels. You can use death to your advantage and even spec into having the max amount of Madness to make use of the empowered effects of skills and abilities.
Speaking of dying…
Bosses Will Challenge You
Soulslikes are not easy. They're designed to be difficult and will require you to, more often than not, study the bosses. Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is no different. The bosses are designed to be beatable using any of the given weapons, but you may find that they will challenge you enough to make you think of other ways to beat them.
In my experience, I had to adjust my build against a specific boss, as it was a particularly hyper-aggressive human enemy. Instead of relying on the Long Sword’s Sword Counter ability, I respecced to the Dual Swords skill tree, took advantage of the Clashing mechanic, and stayed on the offensive while mitigating damage.
There’s Always Something
It’s not all perfect, however. First off, there’s a bit of a pacing issue when it comes to the game’s menus. They’re not as smooth as one would like and are the main roadblocks for people to keep trying out new builds. Additionally, even reloading and teleporting between areas is a bit problematic. It’s not an absurdly long wait, but it can be considerably annoying due to the need to teleport to different locations to talk to NPCs and advance their questlines.
The difficulty of the game also spikes quite high in certain areas. There would be areas where I would be able to do an easy sweep of the enemies, but there are also areas where it just feels like it’s not worth trying to fight any of the enemies. In addition to the difficult areas, it’s quite early into the game when you explore its version of Dark Souls’ Blighttown. It’s just as annoying and just as infuriating, but at least it doesn’t drop frames every time.
These aren’t game-breaking issues or dealbreakers, but more of annoyances. Admittedly, these can also just be a skill issue since you can get past most areas with the same build and strategy.
Change Rules Everything Around Ming
So, does it live up to the hype? Yes. And is it different enough from the other Soulslikes? Absolutely. Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a prime example of how you can take the Soulslike formula and put your own spin on it and turn it into something fresh. Having a well-thought-out gameplay loop and having its mechanics synergize with how the player will level up and their choice of weapon is absolutely genius.
If anything, I’m still surprised that this is all offered for $49.99. The quality of the audiovisuals and the satisfying gameplay loop make it an absolute steal. Now, excuse me while I run through the game a second time and see what else there is to offer in the cursed land of Shu.
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Is Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Worth It?
Absolutely! One of the Better Soulslikes Out There!
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is, without a doubt, a great Soulslike that has enough to separate itself from the competition. In a sense, its combat is like the opposite of Lies of P or Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice in terms of combat, where the focus is on perfectly dodging attack patterns instead of rhythmic blocking. Yet, this isn’t the full scope of what it's truly capable of.
The synergy of its systems is something that players have to experience to fully understand the depth of its combat. Additionally, having both the challenge that Soulslike enjoyers crave and the added freedom of exploring builds is a recipe for success. For $49.99, this game is an absolute steal. Not to mention that if you’re currently subscribed to Xbox Game Pass, then you’ll be able to play it on release as well.
| Digital Storefronts | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steam |
Epic Games |
PlayStation |
Xbox |
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| $49.99 | |||||||
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers FAQ
What are the System Requirements for PC to play Wuchang: Fallen Feathers?
The System Requirements, as listed on Steam are as follows:
| Specifications | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10/11 (64-bit OS required) | |
| Processor | Intel Core i5-8400/AMD Ryzen 5 1600 | Intel Core i7-9700/AMD Ryzen 5 5500 |
| Memory | 16 GB RAM | |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 6GB/AMD Radeon RX 580 8GB | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070/AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT/INTEL Arc A750 |
| Storage | 60 GB | |
| Additional Specs | Direct X12 | HDD Supported, SSD Recommended |
Game8 Reviews
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Product Information
 |
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| Title | WUCHANG: FALLEN FEATHERS |
|---|---|
| Release Date | July 24, 2025 |
| Developer | Leenzee Games+ |
| Publisher | 505 Games |
| Supported Platforms | PC (Steam, Game Pass), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S |
| Genre | Action, RPG |
| Number of Players | 1 |
| ESRB Rating | M 17+ |
| Official Website | Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Official Website |
