Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Review - Birds Of A Feathering

FromSoftware's catalog of exceptional action RPGs has garnered critical acclaim, and as a result, spawned the Soulslike subgenre, known for its exceptionally high difficulties, expansive worlds filled with diverse enemies, a methodical approach to combat, and a dark fantasy or mythological worldbuilding. Outside of the FromSoftware games, we've seen plenty of successful Soulslike games like Darksiders 3, Remnant, Code Vein, the Star Wars Jedi games, and recent releases like Another Crab's Treasure, The First Berserker: Khazan, and Lies of P. Now we have a new entry with Wuchang: Fallen Feathers.

Developer Leenzee looks to join its fellow contemporaries with their latest action RPG release, putting their unique, refreshing take on the Soulslike subgenre by delighting players with a vibrant world, engaging combat mechanics, challenging bosses, and a formidable protagonist in which their "portrayal of historical events aligns with mainstream historiography," according to game director Xia Siyuan. With all of this in mind, have the developers produced a game that lives up to the expectations of another classic Soulslike game, and can Wuchang: Fallen Feathers stand out from its counterparts?

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Review - A New Soulslike Journey Begins

Following its official reveal, Wuchang has drawn comparisons to a myriad of Soulsborne and Soulslike games, including Dark Souls and Bloodborne, as well as Game Science's action RPG Black Myth: Wukong. While many believe the comparisons are primarily positive, developer Leenzee seeks to give Wuchang its own identity.

The game's story follows its protagonist, Bai Wuchang, who embarks on a life-threatening journey while exploring the areas of the ancient Shu kingdom during the late Ming Dynasty that have been ravaged by war and a contagion called The Feathering. Unfortunately, for our protagonist, she awakens to this world suffering from amnesia, and she is afflicted with The Feathering, which has gripped the Shu region and is mutating anyone who comes into contact with it.

Bai Wuchang thus explores this region in the pursuit of truth and learns how The Feathering came into existence through steel, blood, and magical powers as she plows her way through contorted enemies and ferocious bosses in the hope of finding a cure to purge this contagion. Luckily for her, she has the guidance of various NPCs along with an arsenal of weapons, a collection of spells, and skill trees to utilize on top of the game's unique combat systems to aid her in perhaps the deadliest mission she has embarked on by facing mutated enemies, ferocious area bosses, and her Inner Demon.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Review -  Feather Of Truth Behind The Madness

Exploration and traversal in Wuchang is what many will anticipate from an action RPG or Soulslike game, as the game follows a non-linear structure, boasting interconnected areas governed by a foreboding boss. The environments are beautiful and vibrant, which is a deviation from previous Soulslike games, which can be tonally dark and depressive, and the various characters that inhabit this world have varying personalities that either add to its vibrancy or depressive state and overall distinctive charm.

There are temples that can be found during her journey, but one in particular, the Shu Temple, acts as a central hub for much of the early game's campaign. Many of the game's important NPCs can be found here, providing relevant information or offering unique items and valuables for sale or to sell back to them for Red Mercury; the latter is used for upgrading character and weapon stats, unlocking nodes, and more.

Some temples may leave some valuable items and details about their history by interacting with unique interactive points that add more layers to the game's riveting story. While temples serve as an important hub in Bai Wuchang's journey, Shrines function as a save point, a teleport system to fast travel to other discovered Shrines she finds, and importantly, the Character Menu allows players to unlock and upgrade character and weapon stats and deposit items away.

The game's combat system is one of the major gameplay aspects emphasized by the developers, as seen in multiple game trailers, and has been designed to create magical and spectacular showcases and moments. Throughout her daring quest to learn the truth about The Feathering, Bai Wuchang has access to a range of weapons found throughout the world or acquired from enemies, bosses, and shop vendors, as well as spellcasting and skills.

These can be used in conjunction with the Skyborn Might and Temper systems, with Tempering allowing players to imbue their weapons with enhanced abilities through needles, while Skyborn Might is a valuable resource that enhances weapon abilities and spells but reduces their power. Additionally, Benedictions can also enhance various weapon abilities like blocking and counters, or character traits like stamina recovery or reduced damage taken when equipped.

But whether it's accidentally dropping from great heights, not paying attention to their surroundings while engaging in combat with various enemies, or directly facing some of the most brutal boss battles, which are no pushover, death comes at a major price: Madness. Madness is a modifier that gradually builds when defeating specific enemies or dying too frequently and near or at its max, it increases Bai Wuchang's damage output but also increases the damage she takes.

This is indicated onscreen by the "Madness Descends" demonic mark and her eyes glowing red, but at the site of her last death, her Inner Demon will spawn, attacking everything within the vicinity. Defeating the Inner Demon is rewarding as it cleanses her Madness (which there is an item that can cleanse it), but it also awards her with the Red Mercury she lost before her death.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Review - Ruffling Up Some Feathers

During my experience with Wuchang, I encountered a few issues alongside some bugs, glitches, and technical/performance errors that either caught me off-guard or left me in a state of confusion. Granted, when I wasn't fighting for my life by clearing enemy mobs or bosses or paying attention to the story, it was also spent dying quite a lot and in rather spectacular fashion (RIP to me platforming at Narrow Stretch chasing after a Bamboozling).

One issue that concerned me was the developers not having or utilizing a better option to explain the core gameplay features and combat mechanics, especially pertaining to Madness, Skyborn Might, and the Tempering systems. As a subtle request, players will spend a considerable amount of time reading about many of the game's features and mechanics once they're unlocked, and I feel there are better implementations to get players familiarized with these features and mechanics.

Much of this information is listed in the Help section, where players can read more or discover something new about these core gameplay features and mechanics below the System Help tab. This feels like a chore, having to switch between gameplay and the System Help tab all too frequently, which can potentially hurt the gameplay experience.

Performance-wise, there were few issues experienced other than the occasional input lag; however, given that this game is quoted as having "high-fidelity visuals," this could be an issue impacting gameplay (and not just visuals) for less powerful PCs. Character movement actions, such as sprinting and combat, will also be affected; however, for the best possible experience, toggle any or most graphics settings to the lowest possible setting, which may result in a less engaging gameplay experience.

Lastly, as much as I do love a good Soulslike game with a deeply immersive world and storytelling, Wuchang has an intriguing story on its hands, but how it's being told is less enticing than some of its contemporaries. The story heavily focuses on learning the truth behind The Feathering while uncovering the stories of Bai Wuchang's past, it felt there wasn't enough done to get me hooked on the story, nor continue developing the game's world into its story, and Bai's character writing is less desirable despite some NPCs being more fleshed out than her.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Review | Final Thoughts

Leenzee's action RPG Wuchang has the potential of being yet another great Soulslike game outside of FromSoftware's catalog, much like its predecessors in Black Myth: Wukong, The First Berserker: Khazan, and Lies of P. Its worldbuilding, quick and engaging combat, and intriguing narrative, explored through its protagonist, show that the developer has hit all the right notes, while adding some refreshing takes and plenty of vibrancy to the Soulslike subgenre.

The enemies and bosses are challenging, and the encounters are pretty brutal, but the game's combat systems nail the key essentials expected from an action RPG (and a Soulslike game, generally speaking). Players will heavily rely on dodging attacks unless they wield weapons that allow them to block, and the Madness mechanic is an exhilarating addition, adding more nuance to the overall combat, making attacks more powerful, but similarly, leaving the protagonist more vulnerable to enemies' attacks.  

Some inconveniences do make understanding various features and in-game mechanics quite tedious, resulting in spending too much time reading entries or questioning NPCs, and may frustrate players if they're not paying attention. The narrative is deeply fascinating, but the writing, character portrayals, and how it conveys this story are some of the weaker aspects of the game that didn't quite stick the landing in some instances, but certain characters and dialogue will be remembered and loved by players.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers was reviewed on PC via Steam for 25 hours with a key provided by the publisher. All screenshots were taken during the course of the review.