2025 was a year with some of the most impressive games, and 2026 is poised to follow it up with even more incredible games. There are RPGs, shooters, cozy games, platformers, and of course, action games. There are a surprising number of action games this year, and not all of them are soulslikes. However, despite the competition this year, the best action game of 2026 is clear already, and it is almost here. The combination of animation, movement, combat design, visual presentation, and sheer ambition makes it feel leagues above everything else.
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Phantom Blade Zero stands out as the clear frontrunner for 2026’s greatest action game. The upcoming action RPG from S-GAME has consistently looked incredible, but the latest gameplay footage has made it much easier to understand why this game has attracted so much attention. It is scheduled to release on October 29, 2026, for both PlayStation 5 and PC. I am confident Phantom Blade Zero will be the best action game of 2026. The combat looks insane, the choreography is unusually elaborate, and the game appears determined to build its own identity rather than simply becoming another Dark Souls imitator.
Phantom Blade Zero Is an Action Game Built Around Movement
The first thing that stands out about Phantom Blade Zero is its speed. This is not an action RPG that is satisfied with giving players a sword and a handful of basic attacks. Soul, the protagonist, moves rapidly between opponents, combining sword strikes, evasive movements, counters, aerial attacks, and environmental interactions into sequences that resemble a carefully choreographed martial arts film. That is a major reason the game has become one of my most anticipated action games of 2026.
S-GAME calls its style “Kungfupunk,” combining Chinese kung fu and wuxia influences with steampunk technology, supernatural elements, and a darker fantasy setting. The game follows Soul, an assassin who has only 66 days to live after being betrayed and gravely wounded. This gives players a sense of urgency, and the setting gives S-Games plenty of room to create enemies and locations that do not look like standard medieval fantasy.
The most appealing aspect is that Phantom Blade Zero doesn’t fit into a single established formula. It is a fast-paced action RPG that borrows from all sorts of genres to create a unique mix of linear storytelling and exploration across interconnected areas, all with a martial arts element. The world is divided into distinct regions rather than following the conventional giant open-world model, giving it a focused action adventure experience without sacrificing the sense of discovery.
Donnie Yen Makes the Combat Even More Exciting
One of the most surprising and impressive aspects is the involvement of Donnie Yen. His involvement is not simply a celebrity cameo designed to put a recognizable name on the marketing. Instead, he has served as a creative consultant on Phantom Blade Zero since 2023, contributing his martial arts and action filmmaking expertise to the game’s combat design. He also provides facial and motion capture for an in-game character, showing how important Yen is to Phantom Blade Zero.
His influence on the choreography is clear to see, and it is very impressive-looking. The fights look staged with an understanding of how martial arts action should move from one beat to another. Attacks do not simply appear to be animations attached to statistics. They have rhythm. Characters close distance, reposition, respond to attacks, and deliver combat encounters that feel like miniature action scenes. Donnie Yen’s contribution makes the game’s commitment to authentic kung fu feel considerably more convincing.
Donnie Yen’s influence helps differentiate Phantom Blade Zero from other action RPGs, especially soulslikes. It has an emphasis on dangerous enemies, deliberate encounters, exploration, and action RPG progression. Yet the game’s defining feature is its elaborate martial arts combat. The developers have repeatedly shown it as a fast-paced action experience, and the footage supports that distinction. If the finished game delivers on what these previews show, it will take the trophy for best action game of the year.
It Could Blow Marvel’s Wolverine and Other 2026 Action Games Away
That isn’t to take away from 2026’s competition. Marvel’s Wolverine is scheduled to launch on September 15, 2026, and Insomniac’s latest previews have shown brutal combat built around Logan’s claws, parries, combos, traversal, and a Rage system. It is difficult to look at that game and not understand why it is one of the biggest action releases of the year. Wolverine is an iconic character, Insomniac has an impressive history with action games, and the project has the production resources of a major PlayStation release.
But Phantom Blade Zero is doing something that feels harder to find elsewhere. Instead of relying on an established superhero, famous franchise, or familiar fantasy setting, it is trying to sell players on the cinematic physicality of its combat. Everything about the game’s combat feels elaborate, flashy, and so satisfying to watch. It truly makes me feel like there is no other game that can claim the best action game of 2026 ahead of its release.
But it still remains to be seen. Trailers cannot tell us everything about enemy variety, progression, difficulty balance, story quality, repetition, or whether the combat remains satisfying after dozens of hours. Those are things only the finished game can prove. But based on everything shown so far, I am willing to make the prediction anyway. Phantom Blade Zero looks incredible; its combat looks highly choreographed, and Donnie Yen’s involvement only makes the prospect more exciting. If S-GAME can translate this footage into a consistently excellent full game, it could blow every other action game of 2026, even Marvel’s Wolverine, out of the water.
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