Stellar Blade Review: Cutting Through the Hype

Introduction to Heavenly Edge: A Spectacle of Korean Magnificence

Shallow yet fulfilling, “Heavenly Edge” is a testament to Korean magnificence. As it competes in a culture war, Shift Up’s action game emerges as a genuine slice of Korean cyberpunk, both beautiful and bizarre.

Cultural Context and Personal Insights

As a Korean American who has visited South Korea many times, I am acutely aware of my culture’s obsession with appearances and the allure of looking attractive. This constant pressure is also felt by Korean men. Unlike typical elementary school reading, mine wasn’t Dr. Seuss, but GQ Magazine — my father thought it crucial that, from the age of seven, I understand how men are “expected” to present and behave.

The High Stakes of Beauty in South Korea

In South Korea, conventional beauty is more than a desire—it is an aspiration, an ideal, an end goal above all. Want a good career? It will likely require good looks. Applying for a job? You might initially need to submit a headshot, a practice only recently abolished for public positions. The dynamic cosmetics industry aggressively markets beauty products to children who are not even old enough to read. Advertisements for plastic surgery are ubiquitous and blatantly dictate what is considered “ugly.” This context introduces us to Eve, the player character of “Heavenly Edge,” the latest PlayStation 5 exclusive set to release on April 26. Born from South Korea’s culture and ethos, her slender and shiny appearance has sparked debate in the U.S. gaming press about stereotypes and the “male gaze.”

Cultural Sensitivity and Stereotype Challenges

The discourse has been unsettling for me because, on one hand, it is clear that Korean standards of beauty are rigid and often unreasonable. Numerous Korean women took to the streets during “Escape the Corset,” a protest that began in 2018 against societal norms demanding that women adhere to “traditional” roles. My friend Elise Hu, who worked at NPR in Korea for years, wrote a book about navigating “the most cosmetically advanced country in the world,” as Washington Post critic Becca Rothfeld described it. On the other hand, it’s disheartening to see a project by people who look and sound like my family used as a weapon in a culture war unrelated to this game. It is troubling to see Eve used as a point against diversity, and it was disturbing when an IGN France article (later apologized for) claimed “Heavenly Edge” looked like it was made by people who had never met a woman, despite the studio being staffed with many women.

Game Director’s Vision and Commentary

Game director Kim Hyung-tae has been attentive to these discussions and is not surprised, especially since modern video games focus on realistic representations of people. However, Eve is designed to be a character whose expression of beauty comes “with minimal limitations and no constraints.”

“The game is a virtual reality, and I believe we need opportunities to see things that are not so realistic in the virtual space,” Kim explained via a translator. “We are already familiar with reality; we live in it. So when you play a game, I want you to experience something different from what you encounter daily. There are many things more realistic, and that should also be respected. And I feel games like ‘Heavenly Edge’ should exist.”

Unique Representation and Industry Impact

I think the discourse is missing the point that it is extremely rare in the global games market to see a video game with a Korean woman as its lead. Kim confirms that he defines Eve as a Korean woman, designed by Koreans, modeled after a Korean woman, voiced by a Korean woman, and in a Korean-made game accompanied by a beautiful soundtrack (by master composer Keiichi Okabe of “Nier” fame) with Korean lyrics. She embodies Korean-coded beauty in every sense, and Kim is well aware that she represents only a specific, narrow definition of beauty.

“By bringing this game to players, there is a chance for me to show the world how Korean and Asian beauty can be unique, how Asians differ from each other,” Kim stated, referring to a global games industry primarily dominated by Japan and the US.

A New Cyberpunk Vision

The discourse has been particularly frustrating because “Heavenly Edge” is a fantastic, albeit flawed, first attempt by the studio to develop a big-budget single-player action game. Kim is unusually direct about citing his inspiration, “Nier: Automata,” often described by critics, including myself, as one of the masterpieces of the medium. Kim isn’t out to create a masterpiece per se; he’s simply enjoying the process of wearing his influences on his sleeve.

“Of course, there is pressure, but it has also been a very enjoyable journey for me to create a game like ‘Nier.’ As a fan, it’s been a delightful experience,” Kim said.

Game Dynamics and Final Thoughts

The game’s opening likely confirms skeptics’ assumptions, as it did mine. For hours, it feels like a bland, me-too copy of “Nier: Automata,” taking only the most superficial interpretations of its characters and story. Earth is overrun with massive creatures, and Mother Sphere sends down an army of warrior women, including Eve, to slay the chief monster. A catastrophic landing leaves Eve as the last one standing, and she’s assisted by a stranger named Adam to complete her mission. Any veteran sci-fi reader will predict this game’s plot beats hours in advance.

The moment-to-moment writing does not help. “Classic Eve,” jokes Lily, a person Eve has just met. The dialogue implies more history and personality than is actually shown. Conversations feel forced and unnatural. Eve is the star of the show, yet displays a concerning lack of character.

However, more gameplay reveals this emptiness as part of her character arc. Eve is intentionally bland, a clear metaphor for the creation myth who gains personhood through the forbidden fruit of knowledge. In fact, this concept is directly woven into the narrative design, as one of the game’s multiple endings depends on how much knowledge Eve gains through reading books and interacting with other characters. Like the story, it’s straightforward stuff, but effective and clear.

The game stumbles when it tries to be too many types of games at once, leaving peripheral elements underdeveloped. It’s plagued with mind-numbing, tedious puzzles that have appeared in countless other video games over the last several decades: bouncing laser lights off mirrors, frustrating block-sliding sections, and even a “Pipe Dream” minigame that does nothing new with the formula. This game would have been better served as a more streamlined experience without distracting ideas lifted wholesale from every other game.

Fortunately, “Heavenly Edge” keeps things interesting by oscillating between a linear, level-based structure and modest locales complete with side missions, hidden stories, and even a city hub. Boring creature designs of the opening hours (your typical goop and limbs) give way to far more interesting combinations of tech and wildlife. Scatter these across a desert landscape and suddenly “Heavenly Edge” moves like a Final Fantasy game, ethereal and majestic.

The third and final act manages to send the game off with a flurry of memorable, challenging, and engaging battles, each one a winner with interesting moves, compelling visual design, and finally introduces some real narrative stakes. (A story mode makes things noticeably easier for those not inclined to sweat it out in battles.) As predictable as this story is, it ends with a familiar sense of empowerment—a strong enough conclusion that I felt compelled to start the 20-hour experience all over again.

The combat design is this game’s winning feature, addictive, crunchy, and distinct despite the visual similarities to games such as “Bayonetta,” another game featuring shapely battle femmes. Eve’s combat may feel slow compared to that game, but I would describe it more as weighty. Later, Eve gains counterattacks that sling her behind or away from the fight, creating new opportunities for attack. These, and significant enemy reactions, help the game’s battles stand apart from “Bayonetta” and this game’s other inspiration, “Dark Souls.”

“Heavenly Edge” doesn’t make the strongest first impression, but it leaves a lasting one. What’s more significant, carving out its own distinguished character toward the end, much like Eve has truly succeeded. Over the years, there’s been significant discussion about how cyberpunk fiction is rooted in xenophobic fears, and that the genre appropriates Asian culture. Now here is “Heavenly Edge,” a genuine slice of Korean cyberpunk, like Eve, beautiful in its own absurd way.