Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember feels like a soulslike sleeper-hit that's free to sample right now

Steam users have been blessed with a soulslike demo that’ll probably fly under the radar, but not if I can help it.

Now live on the Steam store is a free taster for Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember, developed by Team NINJA and Koei Tecmo.

I recently had the pleasure of sampling this action-packed soulslike at Gamescom and despite not caring much for the first game, its sequel quickly gripped me.

Set in the Three Kingdoms, Wo Long 2 will see players take on a wide-variety of demonic entities inspired by Chinese culture.

It reminded me of Phantom Blade Zero in many ways. That’s another game that proudly wears its Chinese culture on its sleeve, and is launching later this year.

Unlike Phantom Blade Zero though, which is an action-adventure game, Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember is a traditional soulslike.

My hands-on session saw me fight the dragon-like fire demon pictured in this article’s header image, followed by several field boss enemies scattered throughout the game's open-world.

I say open-world, it felt more like open-zone if you’re familiar with the term. My story objective was in sight and available to attempt at any time, but it was recommended that I explore and gather my strength in the surrounding areas first.

With several elemental combat styles to choose from, however, my side-questing never got tiresome.

The variety of enemy types gelled together with my equally varied combat skills, but I was pleased to see brute-force and aggression was always a solid option. I’m a simple man. I play a soulslike game and almost always resort to a strength build.

While I can’t quite put my finger on anything that was truly unique or exceptional about the experience, what I am going to give credit for is Wo Long 2’s ability to surprise me, and I think it’ll surprise a lot of other players too.

Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember has all the makings of a sleeper-hit

Like I said earlier, the first Wo Long game just wasn’t my cup of tea in the end. It had its moments, but I’ve never felt the urge to replay it unlike other non-FromSoftware soulslikes such as Nioh and Lies of P.

Wo Long 2, however, feels like a different beast. Combat simply flowed better. It felt like I was the star protagonist of an old action film, hacking and slashing my way through outposts before a climactic confrontation with the big boss.

The soulslike market is a tough one to crack as there’s just so much competition nowadays, but I wholeheartedly believe Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember can enter that upper echelon of games should enough people play it.

That free Steam demo is the first step, and I’d personally encourage you to try it out for yourself if you haven’t already. You won’t regret it.