Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Review

Man, 2025 has been a killer year for soulslike fans. After awesome releases like The First Berserker: Khazan, the Lies of P: Overture DLC, and the co-op heavy Elden Ring: Nightreign, we’re getting spoiled. Now, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers from Leenzee Games jumps into the mix, and it’s a solid addition. Right off the bat, I was hooked by its fast, fluid combat and one of the best skill trees I’ve seen in a soulslike. The levels are super detailed, weaving through stunning landscapes and creepy, grotesque areas. But, the difficulty can be a rollercoaster—some parts feel like a breeze, while later bosses hit so hard you’re left wondering when you’ll ever get a chance to fight back. Even with that inconsistency, it’s a game I’d easily recommend to anyone craving more soulslike action.

Like most soulslikes, Wuchang makes you work to figure out its story, but it’s not as smooth as something from FromSoftware or Lies of P. The setup is cool: you play as a mostly silent hero waking up in a cave with a disease called The Feathering, which wipes your memories and slowly turns you into a monstrous bird creature. You start off trying to uncover your identity and find a cure, but it spirals into a dark fantasy tale as you learn more about the disease and fight its twisted victims.

The opening had me intrigued, but by the end of the 45-hour journey, I was lost with all the characters who show up, say a few lines, then vanish for hours before popping up somewhere else. People kept mentioning names I didn’t recognize, so I couldn’t keep up with the plot. If you love piecing together lore from item descriptions, you might have a better time, but for me, playing it like I do most games, the big story moments didn’t hit as hard as I hoped.

A Game of Skills

The combat, though, is where Wuchang shines, with tons of ways to attack and defend. What makes it stand out from other soulslikes with standard stamina-based attacks is how it blends weapon-specific skills with Discipline skills from a massive skill tree. For example, pair the Flamebringer Longsword’s Infernal Firebrand Weapon Skill with a sword parry Discipline skill, and you can stack burn damage while having a defensive option. Or, use the same sword with the Crescent Moon skill to hit and run, dodging counterattacks while building Skybound Might with its evade. You can even swap between two weapons mid-fight, even mid-combo, which gives you tons of flexibility.

You’ll need those options because you can’t just button-mash your way through, especially in tougher fights. Skybound Might, a resource you build by perfectly dodging attacks or landing specific hits (like the fourth hit in a light combo with the Axe or clashing with dual blades), powers your skills and spells. It’s a system that rewards precision and keeps fights engaging.

Mixing Weapon and Discipline skills let me get creative to work around stamina limits. Using a Skybound Might charge often gives you a strong attack that doesn’t drain stamina or lets you break an enemy’s defense with a poise-damaging mist, chunking their health fast. Leveling up feels more meaningful than in most soulslikes, thanks to a progression system like the Sphere Grid in Final Fantasy X or Salt and Sanctuary. It’s got six paths: five for boosting stats and weapons, and one for universal perks like extra healing or technique buffs. The grid is huge, and even 20-30 hours in, I was still unlocking new skills and upgrades. Plus, respecs are free, so you can totally overhaul your build to try a new weapon or tackle a tough boss without any hassle. It’s a great setup that encourages messing around while rewarding you for sticking to a plan.

There’s also a solid variety of enemies, with each area throwing new, creepy creatures at you that demand different strategies. From weak but sneaky hunchbacked guys who can grab you for big damage to massive fiends that feel like minibosses, everything keeps you on edge. It made exploring new areas tense since I never knew what was coming next.

Bumpy Roads

For the first 10 hours or so, I cruised through most fights without much trouble. It wasn’t exactly easy, but as a soulslike veteran, once I figured out how to dodge the last hit of an enemy’s combo and follow up with a heavy attack to stagger them, I felt like I had the game’s number.

But then there were these annoying “gotcha” moments that felt cheap, like sudden traps or ambushes that kill you out of nowhere. Most soulslikes have some of these, but Wuchang does it so often it started to feel like the developers were trolling me, and it got old fast.

Things were mostly fine until I hit a boss named Commander Honglan. She wasn’t a difficulty spike—she was a brick wall. It took me two hours to beat her, and while I enjoyed the intensity, she’s a perfect example of what frustrated me about some later bosses.

The problem is the super tight window for dodging their attacks perfectly, which makes it less satisfying when you pull it off. In games like Sekiro or Khazan, precise blocks or dodges build toward a big payoff, like a critical hit. In Wuchang, perfect dodges only give you Skybound Might, and you still need an opening to use it. There’s a posture meter, but it only goes up when you land hits and drops if you don’t keep the pressure on, which is tough when bosses give you so few chances to attack. Not every late-game boss is like this, but the ones that are drag on too long and aren’t as fun.

The Dark Descent

The world itself is packed with secrets, interconnected paths that tie the map together in satisfying ways, and tough optional challenges with worthwhile rewards. I loved how it starts in a beautiful Chinese village with subtle hints of The Feathering’s impact, then gets darker as you descend into ruined, horror-like areas ravaged by the disease.

There are also some smart non-combat sequences that ramp up the tension. One part has you sprinting past enemies to avoid an instant-kill Despair effect from a foe’s gaze, dodging poisonous ceiling drips and tough monsters spawned by another enemy. It’s a great mix of clever enemy and level design that creates a wild, intense moment.

Verdict

With its fast, flexible combat and an awesome skill tree that lets you experiment with builds, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a strong first soulslike from Leenzee Games. Some later bosses are frustratingly hard to hit, and those cheap “surprise, you’re dead” moments could be toned down. But those rough spots don’t stop this fresh take on the genre from standing tall among some of the best.