Huh, What was that noise?
Stealth games are a rare breed these days. Not stealth-ish. Not stealth-optional. I’m talking about the kind where getting spotted feels like setting off a car alarm in a library. That’s the lane Styx: Blades of Greed cruises in like the preverbal Shadow. Coming in as someone new to the series, I wasn’t sure what to expect beyond “stab people quietly and hope nobody notices.” What I found is a game that is unapologetically stealth-first, occasionally rough around the edges, but incredibly committed to making you think like a tiny green criminal mastermind.
Developed by Cyanide Studio and published by Nacon, Styx: Blades of Greed is not pretending it is an action game with stealth elements layered on top. No, no, Styx is small, fragile, and constantly one bad decision away from getting overwhelmed. It is very clear early on that if you are swinging weapons in the open, something has already gone wrong. For the record, I suggest just never even attempting to get into an open fight. It has not gone well for me a single time during my playthrough.
MSRP: $39.99
Platforms: Xbox (reviewed), PlayStation, PC
Price I’d Pay: $39.99
Coming in fresh, the biggest surprise is how committed the game is to patience. Patrol routes matter. Sound matters. Vertical positioning matters. You are constantly scanning for alternate paths, overhead beams, and small environmental advantages. It creates this constant low-level tension where every successful infiltration feels earned instead of handed to you.
What helps with this feeling is the huge, open environments that players have freedom to move about through. Missions feel less like obstacle courses and more like problem-solving sandboxes. Multiple routes, hidden traversal options, and layered level design mean you are rarely forced into one specific solution. If you want to move slow and methodical, you can. If you want to improvise with abilities and gadgets, that works too. The freedom helps offset some of the early learning curve.
That learning curve is real though. Early hours throw a lot of systems at you. Abilities, tools, traversal mechanics, environmental interactions. It can feel like the game expects you to already think like a series veteran. Once everything clicks, though, the systems start feeding into each other in satisfying ways. Movement opens new stealth options. New tools like the glider will open alternate routes. It all builds into a loop that rewards planning and creativity more than reaction speed.
The world itself is easy enough to settle into as a newcomer. The tone leans darker and more cynical than most fantasy stealth games, which fits Styx as a character. He is not heroic. He is not trying to save the world. He is trying to survive it and make a profit along the way. That perspective keeps the story grounded even when the larger lore starts creeping in. Narratively speaking the game is fine, it begins with Styx regaling some folks about what I think were the events of the previous game. The game forfeits a compelling narrative for engaging gameplay and mechanics. Styx is out here just trying to steal some quartz to make it from day to day, he’s not trying to save the world.
Technically speaking, Styx: Blades of Greed performs pretty well on the Xbox Series X. Controls, and everything feel snappy and responsive which helps in traversing the massive maps. Honestly my issues come from how the game looks visually, while I appreciate the fact it runs at a snappy 60 fps, I dislike the weird, almost haze-y glaze that is over everything. It’s hard to explain but once you see it its unmistakable; it’s the same visual effect that I see with High on Life 2 on Xbox. No doubt it has something to do with the resolution, and I am sure the PC folks will be looking at crystal clear 4K.. sigh rant over.
What stands out most as a newcomer is how confident Styx: Blades of Greed feels. It is not chasing broader appeal. It is building on a specific stealth identity and trusting players who want that experience to meet it there. Players looking for power fantasy stealth or action-heavy combat will probably bounce off quickly. The game expects patience and attention, and it does not bend much to meet players halfway. For stealth fans, that is a strength. For everyone else, it might be a barrier.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
