Burning Sword tells the story of Zhang Yixiang (张逸羡) and his pursuit of power and vengeance for the death of his master. Hardcore action combat meets epic boss battles and careful roguelite progression, intermixed with subtle environmental storytelling and worldbuilding. Burning Sword emphasizes challenge, progression, and deep combat systems.

The story is told subtly, but is full of character, political intrigue, and power dynamics. Starting in the year 1139 during the Southern Song Dynasty (南宋), you play as Zhang Yixiang just as he's cast down and nearly killed by the Elder of the Northern Mountain. The martial arts emerged during moments in history like this, when tyranny and brutality must be met with strength and passion.

Enter the Burning Sword. Key combat features include:

Yixiang's fury and anger give birth to a fiery Qi and the ability to wield a burning sword. Qi restores vitality, fuels techniques, and augments combat abilities. It is a scarce but critical resource.

This martial art also emphasizes agility, speed, lightness and ease of traversal, letting Yixiang jump, wall-run, glide, and explore an expansive world.

Wuxia-based swordplay and bodily attacks combine into a fierce and flexible combat style that leaves lots of room for experimentation.

Players will dodge, parry, strike, combo, and acquire powerful techniques to carve a bloody path through mobs of enemies and make their way back to the Elder to finish the job. The combat rewards skill and timing, and punishes mistakes harshly.

While the story is deep and linear in some sections, combat also includes rich roguelite areas for Yixiang to improve his skill, technique, and power prior to intensely difficult boss fights. This offers a unique blend of linear action combat games with replayability, upgrades, unlocks, and optional uncovering of lore and secrets.

Finally, because the combat is this fun and rewarding, the game also includes an arena that allows for infinite replayability with a high score system that can be pushed as far as your skill allows.