Oh boy...I have so much to say about this game.

Still haven't beaten the game, so I don't want to comment on the story just yet. So far I can say that it's a well-built world with rich lore. I find myself slowing getting more curious and eager to find out more about the story, world and lore as the game progresses.

Game-play wise it has only gotten better and better as I progressed through the game. New mechanics are constantly introduced that make the game-play feel fresh while maintaining smooth combat. You dance through the air with deflects and counter attacks, and there are so many ways that you can excel at the game. Bosses feel fair and they teach you to get better at the game, and over-leveling and face-tanking the boss won't get you anywhere. Just spent two hours beating Lady Ethereal and I gotta say that no boss fights have made me feel like this since Hollow Knight and Sekiro. Huge learning curve, but you actually see yourself getting better every time; until it's not chance and it's 100% confidence that I can and will beat her. Very few games have made me feel such confidence in knowing a boss's every move and how to counter them all. This game teaches you that nothing is impossible the same way that Sekiro, Hollow Knight, Dark Souls, etc. do. Absolutely amazing.

The only minor annoyance that I have experienced when I first started playing the game: The cutscenes are unskippable. Almost all cutscenes are unskippable or fast-forwardable. I understand that to tell a story you kind of have to let the players experience the cutscenes, but maybe at least a fast forward animation option would be nice to have. The animations play pretty slowly a lot of times and you are just watching Yi getting frozen in place without you being able to control him, which can be a little frustrating.

This minor complaint, however, have become less irritating to me as the game progresses; particularly because cutscenes occur less frequently and only do when you complete a major area/boss & I have also became more curious for the story/attached to the characters and want to see how things may unfold.

Also, a final note, as a Chinese person myself, I am very grateful and happy that our culture is getting the proper representation from a good piece of art (in video game format). The themes and social commentaries of the game is on point to say the least, and I immensely appreciate the attention to details on crafting the world and lore. The narrative choice to fuse traditional Daoism and Sci-fi elements is also an excellent touch. It's a perfect setting to reflect on the conflict between science, nature, superstition, society, and men. There are so much to say about this game; I don't really know what I'm talking about at this point, but I hope that I got my idea across.

Overall, 9/10. Definitely the best new game that I played this year.

Oh boy...I have so much to say about this game. Still haven't beaten the game, so I don't want to comment on the story just yet. So far I can say that it's a well-built world with rich lore. I find myself slowing getting more curious and eager to find out more about the story, world and lore as the game progresses. Game-play wise it has only gotten better and better as I progressed through the game. New mechanics are constantly introduced that make the game-play feel fresh while maintaining smooth combat. You dance through the air with deflects and counter attacks, and there are so many ways that you can excel at the game. Bosses feel fair and they teach you to get better at the game, and over-leveling and face-tanking the boss won't get you anywhere. Just spent two hours beating Lady Ethereal and I gotta say that no boss fights have made me feel like this since Hollow Knight and Sekiro. Huge learning curve, but you actually see yourself getting better every time; until it's not chance and it's 100% confidence that I can and will beat her. Very few games have made me feel such confidence in knowing a boss's every move and how to counter them all. This game teaches you that nothing is impossible the same way that Sekiro, Hollow Knight, Dark Souls, etc. do. Absolutely amazing. The only minor annoyance that I have experienced when I first started playing the game: The cutscenes are unskippable. Almost all cutscenes are unskippable or fast-forwardable. I understand that to tell a story you kind of have to let the players experience the cutscenes, but maybe at least a fast forward animation option would be nice to have. The animations play pretty slowly a lot of times and you are just watching Yi getting frozen in place without you being able to control him, which can be a little frustrating. This minor complaint, however, have become less irritating to me as the game progresses; particularly because cutscenes occur less frequently and only do when you complete a major area/boss & I have also became more curious for the story/attached to the characters and want to see how things may unfold. Also, a final note, as a Chinese person myself, I am very grateful and happy that our culture is getting the proper representation from a good piece of art (in video game format). The themes and social commentaries of the game is on point to say the least, and I immensely appreciate the attention to details on crafting the world and lore. The narrative choice to fuse traditional Daoism and Sci-fi elements is also an excellent touch. It's a perfect setting to reflect on the conflict between science, nature, superstition, society, and men. There are so much to say about this game; I don't really know what I'm talking about at this point, but I hope that I got my idea across. Overall, 9/10. Definitely the best new game that I played this year.