Stellar Blade Difficulty Designed to Be ‘Challenging’ Yet Approachable

One of the more unexpected discoveries to come out of the recent Stellar Blade demo is the PS5 exclusive plays quite a bit more like Dark Souls than expected, with a lot of fans expecting an experience more akin to Bayonetta or Devil May Cry. This approach to difficulty is by design according to lead developers at Shift Up, but there will be options in place to make the title a little easier for those who need them.

In a new interview on the PlayStation Blog, director Kim Hyung Tae and technical director Lee Dong Gi say Stellar Blade is designed “so everyone can enjoy the action”, but the studio wanted to demand more of its players than just attacking enemies aggressively and performing combos.

They continue: “It’s important that players observe the enemies’ movements closely and grasp the combat flow to respond appropriately. Skills increase through the skill tree, but equipment such as Exospine and Gear will also further increase them. As each piece of equipment performs differently, players should choose their battle style to be speed-focused, aggressive to overwhelm enemies, or cautious throughout the enemy attack.”

With what sounds like a normal mode acting as the default, you’ll be able to adjust the difficulty on the fly and make use of a Story Mode that bundles in Action Assist when needed. This setting slows an enemy’s movement down so you can learn its attack patterns and then displays on-screen prompts for when parries and dodges should be used. “This feature makes the game more approachable and enjoyable, even for those who usually steer away from action games.”

A hard mode for Stellar Blade is then teased, and New Game+ will arrive after launch for free along with new outfits for protagonist Eve. Will you try your best to stick to the standard difficulty mode, or will you allow yourself to use Action Assist if you get stuck? Let us know in the comments below.