{"id":15777,"date":"2026-10-23T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T01:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/?p=15777"},"modified":"2026-10-23T08:04:40","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T04:34:40","slug":"wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/2026\/10\/23\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview\/","title":{"rendered":"Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember Gets Wuxia\u2026 and Let Me Fight a Horrific Spider Thing | IGN Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\"><em><strong>Key Preview Takeaways:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<ul class=\"list jsx-4224303756\" data-cy=\"list\">\n<li><em>Visually, Wo Long 2 is a beautiful game.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>No stamina gauge means faster action.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>I love that the combat system encouraged me to be aggressive and chase perfection.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">I have a confession to make, friends: I\u2019ve never played the original Wo Long. I know, I know. Dust off your pitchforks, light your torches. I have it coming in the same way that we all do. \u201cHow could you, Will? You\u2019re an action game guy!\u201d Listen, I\u2019m of the opinion that Team Ninja is one of the best to ever do it. Maybe even the <em>best<\/em>. But everybody\u2019s got blind spots. That\u2019s what I told myself as a giant spider thing with weird arms named Wugu who I\u2019m sure would have been easier if I\u2019d played the original smashed me into the ground for the umpteenth time. I was also coming into the fight cold. My demo had been split by an interview with producer Mazakazu Hirayama and development producer Masaaki Yamagiwa. Great for this preview. Bad for me. But the beauty of Team Ninja\u2019s games has always been that they ask you to believe you can make it to the next moment, that you can be perfect for just a few more seconds. You have to believe. And I did.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">But before we talk about the end, we have to talk about the beginning. My demo started with a simple objective: retake the demonic island. Sure, man. Why not? As I maneuvered my character down the Red Cliffs, I was stunned by Wo Long\u2019s beauty. Team Ninja\u2019s games have always had a distinct visual style, but if I wasn\u2019t marching off to battle the demonic, I\u2019d have stopped to take in the view. Flowers swaying with the wind, a shadow cast by a wooden fence, a leaf carried gently to the ground by the breeze. Even the ships with their brilliant red sails, afire under the cliff, and the glowing mountain of corruption rising from the ground like a severed fist were beautiful, in their own way. Something to fight for, I guess. But beauty isn\u2019t why I\u2019m here.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Down the Cliffs, onto what remains of the pier. Open a chest for some of the loot Team Ninja has become famous (infamous?) for over the years. Raise a flag for the future and morale. Across a rope attached to a ballista\u2019s arrow, I find my first foes. Regular soldiers. My Gray Iron Dual Chakrams (everything, <em>everything<\/em> is Xena) make quick work of them. God, it\u2019s good to play an action game where weapons have movelists again. Just have to be careful not to follow those poor fools into the water myself. My character can duel with the best of them, but he can\u2019t swim.<\/p>\n<div class=\"display-title jsx-684634384 jsx-2659527929 quote-container\" data-cy=\"quoteBox\">My favorite trick of the demo: launching a guy into the air and watching as he falls into the water, then jumping away at the last moment so I don\u2019t take the plunge myself. <span class=\"stack jsx-2959124702 jsx-326843967\"><span>\u201c<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Across the water is where I find my favorite trick of the demo: launching a guy into the air and watching as he falls into the water, then jumping away at the last moment so I don\u2019t take the plunge myself. Every game should have jump cancels. Wo Long 2 understands this. Yes.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">A couple of boats (and deaths) later and I am coming to grips with Wo Long 2\u2019s combat, its speed. And it is fast, something Hirayama and Yamagiwa emphasized when I spoke to them. <\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">\u201cWe got heavy inspiration, obviously because it&#8217;s set in China, [from] Chinese martial arts. And for example, if we were to take a game that was based in Japan, like a samurai game, the samurai really focuses on the non-movement as well as when they actually have to move. But when we looked at Chinese martial arts, there&#8217;s a lot of speed, there&#8217;s a lot of back and forth, there&#8217;s a lot of over-the-topness to it. So we definitely got the battle system inspiration from that.\u201d<br \/>But the battle system also emphasizes aggressive play. \u201cOne of the concepts that we have for this game is we got every inspiration from Chinese movies\u2026 back and forth attack and defense, like action movies\u2026\u201d the producers told me. \u201cThere&#8217;s going to be really speedy combat and a lot of back and forth, but when you perform attacks in series\u2026 it&#8217;s going to open your options up a little more and you&#8217;ll be able to do more actions by continuing to attack.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><span data-cy=\"slideshow-view-trigger\"><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-preview\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 slideshow-preview\">\n<h3 class=\"title5 jsx-62124236 jsx-1085005187\" data-cy=\"slideshow-preview-title\">Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember Screenshots<\/h3>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-container\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 images-container\"><button type=\"button\" data-cy=\"hero-image\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 hero-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"presentation\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2277167929 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview.gif\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">You can feel it immediately. By continuing to land hits, you build your own Spirit gauge, which you can spend on Martials Arts (insert drum roll), special attacks unique to each of Wo Long 2\u2019s 18 weapons or Wizardry. Bolts of lightning to electrocute the unprepared. Freezing your blade to take out enemies made of fire. It\u2019s in making the choices at the right moments, and being willing to play defense, that Wo Long 2 shines. You could just block, I suppose, or roll away. These are the tools we are used to in the soulslike, and they are the weapons of cowards. But there is no stamina gauge here, nothing to limit the fun or prevent you from being aggressive on the attack and risking parries on defense. Transcendence comes in the moments you see the attack coming, all outlined in a flashing red circle enclosing its occupant like a halo, and rush into it for the deflect. Perhaps you will die. Perhaps you will be glorious. But unless you open yourself to failure, neither option can come to pass. Glory is only possible in vulnerability. No heroes were forged in safety, in the conservative. I know what I would rather be.<\/p>\n<p><span data-cy=\"poll-view-trigger\"><\/p>\n<section class=\"box-wrapper jsx-2673806401\"><\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Or perhaps I would rather be devious. Could I, I wondered as I squared up against Han Xuan and his minions, win by knocking him into the drink? Why should I play fair? One air combo later, and he was sinking to Davy Jones\u2019. Brilliant. I learn not to play by the rules. I attack massive foes with ballistae from a distance. I send enemies to watery graves. I have come to play and to win.<\/p>\n<p><span data-cy=\"slideshow-view-trigger\"><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-preview\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 slideshow-preview\">\n<h3 class=\"title5 jsx-62124236 jsx-1085005187\" data-cy=\"slideshow-preview-title\">Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember \u2013 October 2026 Screenshots<\/h3>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-container\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 images-container\"><button type=\"button\" data-cy=\"hero-image\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 hero-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"presentation\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2277167929 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview.gif\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">I advance through armored enemies wielding maces bigger than I am, dodge through the arrows of archers foolish enough to hold their ground. I meet the heroes of the Three Kingdoms, save their soldiers, plant flags to raise morale and to bring me back when I fall to seek revenge against the foes who killed me, now strengthened by my defeat. Tecmo Koei is no stranger to the Three Kingdoms setting, something both Hirayama and Yamagiwa joke about when I speak to them, but for Wo Long 2, the team wanted to combine historical events with the dark fantasy element that defines Wo Long as a series. Creating an original character allowed them to do just that.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">\u201cWe wanted to kind of have that character interact with these events and in a way it&#8217;s like you could kind of see the behind the scenes of what was going on if this person were to exist when these events were happening\u2026 [We] think fans of\u2026 Chinese Three Kingdoms history would enjoy this game because it&#8217;s based off of true events that happened, but even people that don&#8217;t know, that aren&#8217;t too privy to the Three Kingdoms will be able to enjoy the story because of how the main character interacts with these events.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"presentation\" class=\"progressive-image article-image article-image-full-size jsx-1809694635 jsx-2338608387\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview.gif\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">As I move deeper into the corruption, things get more intense. I fight beings made of fire and freeze my blade to dispatch them. I grapple with foes whose limbs are too long and who can kill me almost immediately. Sometimes I fight. Sometimes I run. Sometimes I manifest the presence of a divine beast, the beautiful phoenix, to aid me, and it carries me through. I upgrade and rework my skills. I begin to understand. And Wo Long teaches me every step of the way, largely through its UI. Whenever I have a question, I look at the options on-screen, and they often lead to answers.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">My favorite moment in the demo pits me against Shi Huan. I have little health and no healing items. \u201cI\u2019m dead,\u201d I figure. I\u2019ll die, respawn, and try again. But why not make the most of the attempt? I stayed aggressive, wiping out his mooks and then taking the fight to him. I never let up, only pausing long enough to deflect his Critical Blows (the ones outlined in red), and somehow, I did it. It was immensely satisfying. But I wasn\u2019t done. A few more fire demons (and one 30-minute interview) later, and I was facing off against Wugu again. <\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"presentation\" class=\"progressive-image article-image article-image-full-size jsx-1809694635 jsx-2338608387\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview.gif\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">I beat him, for the record. It took everything I had: a spell that restored my health, the Divine Beast at my back, and a lot of trial and error and getting smacked into the turf by his weird tentacle arm. But I believed, and eventually I did it.<\/p>\n<div class=\"display-title jsx-684634384 jsx-2659527929 quote-container\" data-cy=\"quoteBox\">Would Wo Long 2 have a weapon that featured an Izuna Drop? Hirayama and Yamagiwa laughed at that one.<span class=\"stack jsx-2959124702 jsx-326843967\"><span>\u201c<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">But I\u2019d only seen a fraction of what Wo Long 2 has to offer. When I spoke to them, Hirayama and Yamagiwa emphasized the open field, a more strategic aspect that can have an impact on the enemy\u2019s morale. \u201cThere&#8217;s a lot of small things that you could do within [the] open field\u2026 You could attack a smaller squad of the enemy side, and you could even take over that squad, have their leader join you and become an ally. You could attack the enemy&#8217;s foodstock and kind of lower their morale. As you play the game, you find all these small things that you could do on the battlefield for you to achieve that ultimate objective, main objective.<br \/>\u201cThree Kingdom games are famous for the strategic aspect, taking over a certain area from the enemies,\u201d they continued. \u201cThere&#8217;s been a lot of that in a lot of these Three Kingdoms games, and we wanted to combine those two aspects&#8230; That&#8217;s one of the main characteristics of the Wo Long series, the soulslike aspect, tons of dying as well as the strategic taking over areas from the enemy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"presentation\" class=\"progressive-image article-image article-image-full-size jsx-1809694635 jsx-2338608387\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview.gif\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">My brief time with Wo Long 2 hadn\u2019t allowed me to experience the open field, but it does give me something to look forward to. Still, I had one more question. One very dumb, very selfish question that anyone who had played a Team Ninja game, whether it was Ninja Gaiden or Rise of the Ronin, might have on their mind.. And I needed an answer: would Wo Long 2 have a weapon that featured an Izuna Drop? Hirayama and Yamagiwa laughed at that one. They hadn\u2019t considered it, they told me, but it was a good idea. So who knows? If it shows up, remember this preview<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Either way, Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember is shaping up to be an interesting sequel that combines elements of Team Ninja\u2019s action game expertise with the Three Kingdoms games\u2019 penchant for strategy. But what I liked most about my time with it was that it encouraged me to be aggressive and chase perfection. That\u2019s what the best action games do. Will Wo Long 2 live up to that pedigree? That remains to be seen. But it certainly feels like it\u2019s aiming for the right stuff. And if you can make it through the next few seconds, you can make it through anything.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">While you&#8217;re here, check out these recent previews of other big upcoming games we&#8217;ve checked out recently!<\/p>\n<section class=\"author-sign-off\" data-cy=\"author-sign-off\"><span class=\"stack jsx-59817748 jsx-1927875859\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"rounded jsx-444076027 jsx-1730475047 profile-thumb jsx-2141281959 aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-1-1\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Will Borger Avatar\" class=\"progressive-image profile-thumb-img jsx-249361588 jsx-2338608387 expand\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview.jpg\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"stack jsx-2509706801 jsx-3630940851\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"interface jsx-1132626198 sign-off-text\">\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Will Borger is an IGN freelancer. You can find him on Bluesky @edgarallanbro.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/span><\/section>\n<div class=\"media_block\"><a href=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview-1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview-1.jpg\" class=\"media_thumbnail\"><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"media_block\"><a href=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview-1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/wo-long-2-wings-of-ember-gets-wuxia-and-let-me-fight-a-horrific-spider-thing-ign-preview-1.jpg\" class=\"media_thumbnail\"><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15778,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[59,50],"class_list":["post-15777","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-49","tag-soulslike","tag-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15777","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15777"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15777\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15779,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15777\/revisions\/15779"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15778"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15777"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15777"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imdbnews.ir\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15777"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}