Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a 2025 Soulslike action role-playing game developed by Leenzee and published by 505 Games. The player assumes the role of Bai Wuchang, a female pirate, who navigates the supernatural horrors stemming from the Feathering. Set in an alternate history representation of Shu during the late Ming dynasty, the story explores a region ravaged by war and plague.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers was released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on 24 July 2025. It sold over 1 million units as of March 2026 and reached 5 million players by July 2026. An upcoming sequel, developed by Indolphinity and published by 505 Games, has been announced.
Gameplay Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a Soulslike action role-playing game. It is played in single-player mode from a third-person perspective.
The player controls the female pirate Bai Wuchang. She initially wields the Cloudfrost's Edge, a longsword based on the Chinese changdao. She can wield weapons of several types, namely longswords, one-handed swords, dual blades, axes, and spears. The weapons are equipped as a primary or secondary option. They are used to perform light attacks, heavy attacks, weapon skills, and disciplines. Weapon skills are unique to each individual weapon, while disciplines are tied to weapon types. Disciplines are unlocked through the skill tree and assigned to any weapon within the corresponding type. Defensive maneuvers include dodges, blocks, and deflects (parries), with the latter two depending on the disciplines available to specific weapon types.
A core combat mechanic is centered on skyborn might, which functions as a combat resource for weapon skills, disciplines, and spells. It also enables swift draws (weapon swaps that instantly activate weapon skills). It is accrued by performing shimmers (well-timed dodges) and through other methods specific to each weapon type. It is visually represented by the colored feathers attached to Wuchang's arm.
Another core combat mechanic is centered on madness. If Wuchang kills humanoids or dies, her madness increases. If she kills feathered beings, her madness decreases. Other means to influence her madness are also available. Her madness is visually represented through her eyes turning red and her body manifesting demonic markings. Some skill tree upgrades become more effective once her madness reaches specific heights. Once her madness reaches 90 percent, she will both deal and take increased damage. If she dies with maximum madness, the Inner Demon materializes as a hostile entity that attacks her and everything else that targets it.
The skill tree, which is known as the impetus repository, is accessed through shrines. It is divided in six branches, with one path focused on each weapon type and another path for other features. The playstyle can be adjusted by reallocating points in the skill tree at no cost. Red mercury is a resource that can either be refined into red mercury essence for use as points in the skill tree or be used as currency to purchase items at vendors. Upon death, it is dropped in a proportion determined by the height of madness.
There is a feature to transmogrify armor, which enables the customization of the player character's appearance independently of stats. According to Xia Siyuan, "Armour designs are drawn from Ming Dynasty influences, regional clothing traditions, and mythological elements that tie into the world of Wuchang. Each piece is meant to reflect where it comes from — whether it's a forgotten temple, a warrior's clan, or a corrupted region touched by the feathering."
The game is structured as a non-linear experience. Its world consists of multiple interconnected areas. The traversal between areas is seamless, but some paths may initially be restricted. Shrines, scattered throughout the environment, act as checkpoints. Non-player characters may offer dialogue and provide side quests. Player choices influence the story's direction and ending. A New Game Plus mode becomes available following the completion of a playthrough.
Synopsis Setting
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is set in the war-torn and plague-stricken region of Shu during the late Ming dynasty. The Feathering is a disease spreading across the region, causing the gradual decline and collapse of society and its environment. The setting is presented through an alternate history centered on the disease. According to Xia Siyuan, "Our portrayal of historical events aligns with mainstream historiography. However, the game's world diverges due to supernatural forces that reshaped history millennia ago. We show this through our worldbuilding, which traces back to the era of King Duyu of Shu [from the legendary era of Shu]."
Plot During the late Ming dynasty, the region of Shu is devastated by warring factions and plagued by the Feathering. This affliction erodes memory, induces madness, and initiates monstrous transformation. The female pirate Bai Wuchang aims to resurrect her younger sister Bai Yu, so she returns to her homeland of Shu to find an ancient artifact capable of bringing her sister back. One of the artifact's remnants, the Ancient Chisel, is in her possession.
Following a feathered monstrosity's rampage in Worship's Rise, Bai Wuchang becomes afflicted with the Feathering and loses her memory. She is found unconscious and taken to a cave near the Reverent Temple by the Taoist Xuanyangzi. Wuchang sets out for the Shu Sanctum, rumored to hold the knowledge needed to treat the disease, but finds it in a state of neglect. She reunites with He Youzai, her crewmate and companion in the quest to revive Bai Yu. Wuchang treks to the Tang Emperor's Palace and discovers the Jade Ancient Chisel within the complex. Honglan, the Commander of the Imperial Guard, fights her and takes the chisel.
Bai Wuchang pursues the Imperial Guard, who has the Jade Ancient Chisel, to Cloudspire. Ming and rebel forces are engaged in conflict. Wuchang kills Huang Yan, the Madam of Snowfall Palace, in combat and finds Honglan imprisoned within the complex. Previously, the Madam used the chisel to revive Fang Ling, who was tortured to death, and turn her into a perfect bride, but the act changed her into a monstrosity. Wuchang kills Ling in combat and retrieves the chisel. Fang Yao mourns her elder sister Ling, but she may meet He Youzai and leave with him for other locations.
At Mount Zhenwu, a rebel army seizes control and slaughters the locals. In the Zhenwu Temple, the rebels use the Aurum Ancient Chisel to resurrect their leader Zhang Xianzhong, who returns as a monstrosity, but Bai Wuchang kills him in combat and retrieves the chisel. Wuchang can visit the Bai Mansion, her family home. A long time ago, Governor-General Bai Tingzhao, her father, took the Ancient Chisel from the temple and used it to resurrect his son Bai Kru, but the attempt twisted the toddler into a monstrosity. In the marshlands, Wuchang can assist Zhao Yun in killing the Bo Sorcerer, an Avian woman, in combat and defeat him in a duel to claim the Cyan Ancient Chisel. Many centuries ago, he led an army against monstrosities and seized the chisel.
Worship's Rise is reduced to ruins by the Bo Magus. Bai Wuchang can kill the Magus in combat, but she may consequently become ensnared by the Magus' power and thus ascend as a changed entity in the Successor of the Bo ending. Wuchang can kill the Nightmare Demon, an incarnation of herself who has awaken to the world's mortal guise and seeks to end the dream that binds them, in combat. Xuanyangzi laments the loss of a chisel acquired by Honglan and claims the object could have advanced the study on the Feathering, so Wuchang can give the Jade Ancient Chisel to him. Ming loyalists use the Vermilion Ancient Chisel to resurrect the Ming Emperor Zhu Youjian, but the deed warps the ruler into a monstrosity. Wuchang defeats him in combat and retrieves the chisel.
The Bo Capital, the heart of Ancient Shu, lies entombed beneath Worship's Rise. During ancient times, the Avians crafted red mercury with the aim to bend fate and used the chisels as tools in rituals to warp reality. In a shrine dwelling, Bai Wuchang can kill the Demon of Obsession, an incarnation of herself who never let go of her fixation to revive Bai Yu even after many journeys through endless dreams, in combat and form the Ring of Samsara that serves as a causality key to reach her wish. At the Gate of Truth, Wuchang faces Xuanyangzi, whose machinations have enabled his ascension as a feathered immortal, and kills him in combat. She then passes through the gate.
In the Jarful of Medicine ending, Bai Wuchang enters the stream of Samsara. Though the feathered Xuanyangzi is dead, another incarnation of him thrusts a sword through Wuchang. As the cycle turns anew, Xuanyangzi seals the previous Wuchang within a jar, while another Wuchang begins her journey. In the Dream's Sweet Deceit ending, Bai Wuchang enters the realm of dreams. She departs with He Youzai and Bai Yu on a boat. She remains afflicted with the Feathering. In the Bound by Fate's Threads ending, Bai Wuchang enters the realm of truth. She departs with He Youzai and Fang Yao on a boat, while a ship waits in the distance. She is free from the Feathering.
Development
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is a game developed by Leenzee and published by 505 Games. Leenzee is based in Chengdu, Sichuan, China. The game was built using Unreal Engine 5.
Leenzee officially approved the project in 2019. According to CEO Jiang Min, the company was facing a dire financial situation and relied on doing work outsourced by foreign companies to stay afloat around that time. He said that although the work generated revenue, it was not the kind of work that motivated employees to stay on. He explained that the project was thus launched as a source of hope for everyone. When the game was unveiled in September 2021, it had been in development for about a year and a half. After 2021, the development team was separated from the company's original pipeline and reorganized into an independent unit.
Historical sites of ancient Shu societies such as Sanxingdui and Jinsha were drawn upon by the developers. Historical and mythical elements featured in classic literature, including the Annals of the Kings of Shu, the Brocade Zither, and the Classic of Mountains and Seas, were adapted. The distinctive landscape of Sichuan and historical Shu, including the architecture and topography, was recreated in the scenery. Sichuanese dialects were used for the Chinese voiceovers of numerous non-player characters.
According to Xia Siyuan, "Our game's world is based on a parallel universe concept - one that branched off from our own reality due to a small divergence during the time of Duyu. Building on that idea, we consulted a wide range of historical texts, studied numerous Ming Dynasty artifacts, and visited museums to deepen our understanding. From there, we created a full timeline and narrative arc spanning from the Duyu era to the Ming Dynasty, striving to make the world feel authentic and believable. We also drew inspiration from cultural traditions such as the Sanxingdui civilization, Sichuan opera face-changing, and the iron flower ritual, as well as from Ming-era Confucian, Buddhist, and Taoist philosophies and the evolution of firearms. These influences have been woven directly into the gameplay. Our hope is that these elements not only capture the historical atmosphere but also allow players to truly experience the unique cultural richness of the region." Furthermore, he said that the particular period during the Ming dynasty was a time of transition and uncertainty that was marked by political collapse, widespread conflict, and major shifts in worldview, which reflects a kind of instability that enabled the team to explore deeper themes such as decay, fate, and transformation in a grounded way.