(Yicai) Nov. 3 -- Phantom Blade Zero, a Chinese action role-playing game inspired by the choreography of Hong Kong kung fu films, has sold more than four million copies across all platforms in just 72 hours of its release, developer S-Game announced on X yesterday.

Phantom Blade Zero has generated at least CNY1 billion (USD150 million) in revenue based on its lowest available prices of CNY268 (USD40) for the computer digital standard edition in China. However, the deluxe edition costs CNY328, with the physical collector's edition box at CNY1,199 (USD180), while the price in the United States is USD59.99 and in Europe is EUR59.99 (USD67.15), meaning the figure is likely much higher.

Launched by S-Game on Windows and Sony's PlayStation 5 on Oct. 29, Phantom Blade Zero features a fictional world that blends elements of wuxia -- a Chinese literary genre centered on martial arts heroes, chivalry, and justice -- with steampunk aesthetics. Players take on the role of a swordsman whose heart has been badly damaged and who has only 66 days left to live, unraveling a conspiracy that shrouds the martial arts world.

Even after deducting platform fees and marketing expenses, the investors in Phantom Blade Zero should have recouped their investment within 72 hours of launch, Zhang Shule, a game industry analyst, told Yicai. According to earlier estimates by Liang Qiwei, founder of Beijing-based S-Game, development costs were between CNY300 million and CNY400 million (USD45 million and USD60 million), Zhang pointed out.

Reaching 10 million copies sold in one year looks very promising for Phantom Blade Zero, a game industry investor previously said to Yicai.

Phantom Blade Zero's all-time concurrent player peak was 833,921 on digital distribution platform Steam. The game has received more than 94,000 player reviews with an average rating of over 90 percent. Some players have said it is more fun and easier to get into than Black Myth: Wukong, the hit Chinese AAA action game developed by Game Science that has sold more than 30 million copies since its August 2024 release.

Although Phantom Blade Zero's four million sales are quite strong, they still fall short of Black Myth: Wukong, which sold more than 10 million copies in three days, with peak concurrent players exceeding 2.4 million.

Given that Black Myth: Wukong was the first-ever Chinese AAA game and its protagonist is based on the widely recognized Monkey King intellectual property, Phantom Blade Zero's performance is still quite impressive, Zhang pointed out.

Overseas markets may be key to Phantom Blade Zero expanding its reach and potentially narrowing, or even surpassing, Black Myth: Wukong sales, Zhang said, adding that the game's kung fu concept is a familiar Chinese cultural element abroad, while its steampunk setting also helps make its theme more accessible to global audiences.

In addition, Phantom Blade Zero's non-Soulslike kung fu action design lowers the learning curve, making it attractive to players who are not especially skilled at such games, Zhang stressed.

Soulslike is an action RPG subgenre known for its high level of difficulty.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev