Since its release last year on PS5,Stellar Bladehas been one of the most-requested PlayStation exclusives to make its way to PC. That day is finally here, and ShiftUp’s action game now looks and runs better than ever before, provided players have the hardware to meet its demands. On PC,Stellar Bladeis still the great game it’s always been, blending elements of both Soulslikes and more traditional character action games to arrive at a compelling mix of combat, exploration, and story. Notably, the PC port ofStellar Bladeis also accompanied by the release of the game’s Complete Edition, which includes the new crossover DLC withGoddess of Victory: Nikkeand plenty of new unlockable cosmetics.
Considering the wild variance in quality amongPlayStation PC ports, it’s a relief to seeStellar Bladeperform as well as it does, and it’s worth noting that my experience was completely devoid of any bugs or other technical hiccups. Not only isStellar Blade’s PC version well-optimized for a wide range of hardware configurations, but it’s also in an ideal technical state befitting the game’s quality and fans' pleas for its eventual release on the platform. While we didn’t get to test out the PC version’s 4K support, playingStellar Bladein 1440p yielded some positive performance that very rarely saw any dips except when in the larger, more open areas of the game.
Stellar Blade’s PC Version Sets a High Bar for Future PlayStation Ports
Stellar Bladewas already a visually impressive game on the PS5, and it’s arguably only more so on PC. That visual fidelity is supported by the PC port’s plethora of display and graphics settings, allowing players to tweakStellar Bladeto their hardware configuration for maximum performance. As expected,Stellar Blade’s PC port features support for Nvidia’s DLSS 4 frame generation and DLAA image enhancement (as well asAMD’s FSR 3) and support for both 4K and ultrawide displays. In addition to these graphics options,Stellar Bladenow includes an impressive variety of performance settings that see its PC version go well beyond what’s offered on either a base PS5 or PS5 Pro.
On a base PS5, players have three options for runningStellar Blade —Resolution, Balanced, and Performance — that each vary in terms of their visual fidelity and targeted FPS. ThePS5 Pro enhancementsforStellar Bladeare similar, offering either a Pro Mode targeting 60 FPS or a Pro Max mode that pushes beyond 60 FPS with the help of the console’s frame generation technology and variable refresh rates. On PC,Stellar Blade’s display and performance settings include support for unlocked frame rates, pushing past 240 FPS if you happen to have a hardware configuration that can handle it.
Our playthrough ofStellar Bladeon PC was performed on a system using the following configurations, which allowed us to test all the different performance settings at 1440p resolution:
AMD Ryzen 7 7700X
32GB (2x16GB) DDR5-6400MHz
Display
LG UltraGear 1440p monitor (144Hz)
After initially using the 60 FPS setting and achieving flawless performance, regardless of what was happening on screen, I pushed past that cap to test out the other performance options available in the PC port and was able to get similarly stable results. At 1440p,Stellar Bladelooks incredibly impressive when running at 144 FPS, which has the added bonus of making the game’s combat feel more kinetic and responsive. On a base PS5, there were times when it was tricky to getEve’s parry timingdown, but on PC, those issues were largely absent thanks to how fluid the gameplay both looked and felt.
Also of note is that, across roughly 30 hours of gameplay,Stellar Blade’s PC port seemed to be completely free of any bugs. No hard crashes, no graphical glitches, not even any issues with audio syncing. That said, the larger, more open areas (specifically, the Wasteland) tended to cause frame rates to drop slightly, but nothing that impacted gameplay in any noticeable way. Throw in the added bonus of ShiftUp ensuring that players donotneed to link aPSN accountto playStellar Bladeon PC, and you have a port that’s likely to tick all the boxes for anyone who’s been hoping to play the game on PC and a lesson in how future PlayStation PC ports can and should be handled.
The Stellar Blade x Goddess of Victory: Nikke DLC Crossover is Both Fun and Worthwhile
Concurrent with the PC launch ofStellar Bladeis the crossover with ShiftUp’sGoddess of Victory: Nikke.This newest DLC introduces Scarlet and her dog Volt as quest-giving NPCs and shopkeepers to unlock a wide variety of DLC-exclusive cosmetics after completing their different missions scattered across theWasteland biomeand beyond. The missions themselves are a highlight of the DLC, as they introduce a new third-person cover-shooting mini-game that’s arguably as much of a highlight as the core gameplay ofStellar Blade. There are 6 of these missions in total, and each of them unlocks new cosmetics to purchase from Volt’s shop as well as builds progress toward a culminating boss battle that caps off the DLC.
TheStellar Blade x Goddess of Victory: NikkeDLC launches at the same time as the PC port and is included in theComplete EditionofStellar Blade. The content is accessible as soon as players make it to the Wasteland biome after visiting Xion for the first time.
The cosmetics are all well and good, and they include what are arguably some of the coolest unlockable outfits for Eve’s wardrobe, but it’s the shooting missions themselves that are the real draw. After navigating to a mission’s location on the map, Eve will be transported to an arena filled with enemies. Using an assault rifle and bouncing between concrete pylons, players have to clear waves of enemies in a given time limit, popping in and out of cover to avoid enemy projectiles and building up a meter to use screen-clearing special attacks that have some absolutely outrageous animations to accompany them.
Players hoping to pick upStellar Bladeon PC are likely looking to experience its core Souls-adjacent action gameplay, but it’s worth pointing out that theGoddess of Victory: Nikkecrossover missions make a good case for picking up theComplete Editionat launch. Along with the latest DLC, players will also get access to all other DLC content, including the crossovercosmetics fromNieR: Automata.
Stellar Blade on PC is Arguably the Best Way to Experience ShiftUp’s Excellent Action Game
Upon its initial release,Stellar Bladereceived plenty of praise for its compelling combat while getting a few criticisms levied against it for its somewhat predictable and shallow story, and those same sentiments still ring true in the PC version. The core gameplay ofStellar Bladeis the same as it’s always been in its new PC port, but with the added bonus of some impressive visual and performance benchmarks that push past what the PS5 or PS5 Pro are capable of rendering.
For character action andSoulslikefans,Stellar Bladeis absolutely worth picking up on PC, and it joins a growing roster of like-minded games while simultaneously standing out as one of the better entries in the genre. PC players have been waiting over a year forStellar Bladeto make its way to the platform, and ShiftUp has put in the work to ensure it arrives in the best possible state, delivering a port that lives up to the game’s quality and sets a bar for how other developers should approach their PC ports of formerly console-exclusive titles.
Stellar Blade
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RECLAIM EARTH FOR HUMANKIND The future of humanity hangs in the balance in Stellar Blade, an all-new story-driven action adventure. Ravaged by strange, powerful creatures, Earth has been abandoned, and what is left of the decimated human race has fled to a Colony in outer space. After travelling from the Colony, 7th Airborne Squad member EVE arrives on the desolate remains of our planet with a clear-cut mission: to save humankind by reclaiming Earth from the Naytiba – the malevolent force that has devastated it. But as EVE tackles the Naytiba one-by-one, piecing together the mysteries of the past in the ruins of human civilization, she realizes that her mission is far from straightforward. In fact, almost nothing is as it seems…
