Highlights

  • Parrying is key in Stellar Blade's combat, similar to Sekiro, for powerful attacks - timing is crucial for success.
  • Don't overlook Beta and Burst skills in Stellar Blade, they can make the difference between life and death in the game.
  • Exploration in Stellar Blade is rewarding, offering valuable items and SP currency - side quests are worth doing for the rewards.

Shift Up's action-adventure title Stellar Blade is proving to be a hit, despite any controversy it has faced up to this point. In fact, Stellar Blade has been so successful that it is now one of the PS5's highest-rated games. This is all thanks to its challenging yet satisfying action-packed combat, breathtaking visuals, rewarding exploration, and gratifying progression.

For the most part, Stellar Blade is a fairly straightforward experience, especially for Soulslike veterans. That being said, there are a few unwritten rules any new Stellar Blade player should be aware of before they dive into the game.

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Parrying Is the Secret to Success in Stellar Blade's Combat

Stellar Blade's combat is without a doubt the core component of its gameplay. From a difficulty standpoint, it takes after popular games from the Soulslike genre, but its most prominent influence is arguably Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. This is primarily because parrying is of the utmost importance in Stellar Blade, just as it is in Sekiro. Performing a perfect parry on an enemy will decrease their balance. Once their balance meter is depleted, players will be able to pull off a powerful attack, so timing those parries just right is the secret to success in Stellar Blade.

Stellar Blade's Beta and Burst Skills Shouldn't Be Put on the Back Burner

Aside from parrying, players should take advantage of EVE's Beta and Burst skills. EVE will begin the story with Beta skills, but players will need to progress further to unlock Burst abilities. These powerful abilities can sometimes mean the difference between life and death in Stellar Blade, so players shouldn't neglect to use them when necessary.

Death Is Not the End in Stellar Blade

Unlike typical Soulslike games, which see players severely punished when they die, Stellar Blade is more forgiving on this front. Specifically, when players die, rather than losing any resources or experience they've gained up to that point, they will simply respawn at the last Camp or Supply Camp they rested at, or at the beginning of the boss fight that killed them.

Exploration Always Pays Off in Stellar Blade

Shortly after Stellar Blade's prologue, players will arrive in Eidos 7 and be allowed to explore its unique world. Stellar Blade's world is more than worth exploring, as there are plenty of valuable items to find. However, the most valuable "item" players can find while exploring Stellar Blade's wasteland is SP.

SP is the primary form of currency players will need to unlock new skills in Stellar Blade, and it can be acquired by looting, investigating, or searching almost anything. While completing side and main quests are a great source of SP and other resources, sometimes exploration can be just as rewarding, if not more so.

Stellar Blade's Side Quests Are Worth Doing for the Rewards

Stellar Blade's side quests aren't all that stellar when it comes to content and storytelling, as many are simple fetch or kill quests. Even so, they are worth doing just for the rewards they provide. Most side quests reward players with Gold, consumables, and crafting materials, but many others can eventually result in new Nano Suits for EVE or important upgrade materials for EVE's blade, Tumbler, and the Drone.

Most of Stellar Blade's side quests can be picked up from the city of Xion, which players will arrive at shortly after the game's opening chapter. More side quests will become available as players progress through the story, so they should revisit the city often and use the map to determine where to find the quests. Furthermore, Xion's Bulletin Board also provides plenty of worthwhile side quests for players to complete.

Fortunately, Stellar Blade arguably can't be appropriately classified as a Soulslike game, so it's not too punishing for those new to the genre. Still, it can be helpful to know these essential unwritten rules, as the entire world of Stellar Blade revolves around them.