Blade & Soul is stepping into new territory. Known for its flashy martial arts combat and lush fantasy world, the franchise is about to evolve again this time through a squad-based mobile RPG called Blade & Soul: Heroes.
Currently in development, the game isn’t just another gacha rehash of its predecessor. It’s built around tactical group combat and strategic unit control, suggesting NCSoft wants to do more than just bring familiar characters to phones.
Real-time team strategy in a familiar universe
Instead of sticking to the action-MMORPG format that defined earlier Blade & Soul entries, this version shifts toward compact real-time skirmishes. Players assemble small squads of characters and control them from a top-down view in 5v5 matches.
The combat system focuses on formation, unit synergy, and ability timing rather than twitch reflexes. That makes it feel closer to Honor of Kings: World or Summoners War: Chronicles than the original game. It’s designed for shorter, tactical encounters with a strong mobile-first mentality.
This approach might open the door to PvP and PvE formats that lean on strategic depth more than gear grinding. If done well, it could offer a more streamlined way to interact with the Blade & Soul world without demanding long play sessions.
Visually ambitious for mobile
From what’s been teased so far, Blade & Soul: Heroes isn’t holding back on visuals. The game uses Unreal Engine 4, which puts it on par with some of the better-looking mobile RPGs currently on the market.
Character models echo the stylized aesthetic of the original series, with exaggerated animations and a high-fantasy East Asian art style. Arena stages, spell effects, and ultimate attacks all look polished in early previews, suggesting NCSoft is targeting the high-end mobile segment.
Whether that visual fidelity holds up on mid-range devices is still unknown. But performance scaling is going to be key if this isn’t going to end up locked behind hardware limits.
Launch window and ongoing development
There’s no firm global release date yet. The game is heading into pre-registration in Korea sometime in the near future, with global rollout likely to follow based on typical NCSoft timelines.
What stands out is that this isn’t being quietly handed off to a side studio. NCSoft appears to be leading development in-house, which means the project likely has full internal support and ties directly into Blade & Soul’s broader roadmap.
That also raises the question of how it will coexist with Blade & Soul Revolution, the previous mobile spin-off. If Heroes takes off, it could end up replacing or absorbing the older title’s audience, especially if it offers a more modern and manageable experience.
A tactical reimagining of a legacy franchise
Blade & Soul: Heroes isn’t trying to copy the MMORPG formula. Instead, it’s reworking key themes fantasy martial arts, character-based progression, flashy combat into a more focused, tactical package.
For longtime fans, it’s a chance to revisit the universe through a new lens. For mobile RPG players who’ve never touched the franchise, it could be a way in that’s easier to manage and more suited to bite-sized gameplay.There’s still a lot we don’t know. But if NCSoft gets the pacing and monetization right, Heroes might actually carve out its own identity instead of leaning too heavily on nostalgia.
Mobile Game Addict & Casual Gaming Critic
She’s played more mobile games than most people have downloaded. TAPTAPTAP is fast, fierce, and funny — reviewing the latest hypercasual hits, idle clickers, and gacha grinds with real talk and zero fluff.
