Summary
Stellar Bladeis one of the biggest surprises of 2024, after it all but convinced skeptical onlookers that it was nothing more than a bit of eye candy with its seemingly exaggerated character models and then turned out to be quite an enjoyable experience with challenging combat, stunning visuals, and rewarding exploration. In addition to its best gameplay qualities,Stellar Bladehas consistently made good on its promise to give players plenty of different cosmetic options for its protagonist, EVE, to wear as she fends off the growing Naytiba threat on a post-apocalyptic Earth.
When it was released,Stellar Bladealready included a wide variety of cosmetic options for players to unlock and craft as they played through the story. Players can then unlock more outfit variations for EVE by playing through the story a second time inStellar Blade’s New Game Plus mode. However, the game was released back in April and has received several updates since then that have added even more cosmetic options to the already sizable list. As of today, there are over seventy different outfits for EVE to wear inStellar Blade, setting it apart from othersingle-player gameslike it. However, it isn’t just the amount of cosmetic options players have inStellar Bladethat makes the game so special, but the way these outfits are distributed to players that future single-player games should take note of and strive to imitate.
Stellar Blade’s Outfit Distribution Sets a Strong Precedent for Single-player Games
Nearly All of Stellar Blade’s Outfits Are Free to Players and Obtainable Within the Game Itself
One of the more distinctive characteristics ofStellar Bladeand its post-launch strategy is that every major update made to the game so far has been free, and that includes all the new cosmetics that have been added since its April 2024 release. Every major update has given players access to new outfits for EVE and her team, and, based on what has been revealed so far,Stellar Blade developer SHIFT UPhas no intention of ever charging players for future cosmetic additions.
So far, the only outfits players have had to pay for are those found in the Digital Deluxe Edition ofStellar Blade— the Stargazer Suit for EVE, Adam, and Lily, the Stargazer Pack for the Drone, the Half-rim Glasses, and the Quadruple Rectangle Earrings. This means that players are able to obtain nearly all ofStellar Blade’s outfitssimply by playing the game, making it rare among the growing library of single-player games that don’t apply the same approach.
DespiteStellar Blade’s persistence in offering players free cosmetic options, the same can’t be said for all single-player games. It makes some sense for multiplayer games to charge for cosmetics, as these games are generally live-service games and are often filled with players who want to look their best when they step out onto the battlefield. Single-player games, on the other hand, arguably have no place charging players for outfits — and yet, they do. Ubisoft’sAssassin’s Creedseriescomes to mind, as it has recently sold DLC outfits that only the players who purchase them can appreciate.Stellar Blade, however, refuses to charge its players for outfits that no one else will see but perhaps friends and family who may occasionally glance at their screen.
Future single-player games can stand to learn quite a bit fromStellar Blade’s cosmetic distribution strategy, especially considering how positively it has affectedStellar Blade’s player base. In fact,Stellar Blade’s recent summer updatesaw a 40% increase in its active players, and it has yet to charge a single dime for updates such as this one. If future single-player titles were to take afterStellar Bladein their offerings of vanity, perhaps the whole idea of cosmetic DLC wouldn’t leave such a bad taste in the mouth anymore.
Stellar Blade
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RECLAIM EARTH FOR HUMANKIND The future of humanity hangs in the balance in Stellar Blade, an all-new story-driven action adventure. Ravaged by strange, powerful creatures, Earth has been abandoned, and what is left of the decimated human race has fled to a Colony in outer space. After travelling from the Colony, 7th Airborne Squad member EVE arrives on the desolate remains of our planet with a clear-cut mission: to save humankind by reclaiming Earth from the Naytiba – the malevolent force that has devastated it. But as EVE tackles the Naytiba one-by-one, piecing together the mysteries of the past in the ruins of human civilization, she realizes that her mission is far from straightforward. In fact, almost nothing is as it seems…
