Stellar Blade's PC release is scheduled for June 11th. Despite official confirmation, the game's Steam release won't be global. More than 120 countries have blocked the title, a situation that even caught the developer, Shift Up, by surprise.
The South Korean company announced the release on social media, but received messages from players informing them that the game was not available in their regions. In response, Shift Up assured that Stellar Blade for PC does not require a PSN (PlayStation Network) account, but expressed surprise at the restriction.
Steam restrictions create frustration and misinformation
Consulting SteamDB, it's possible to confirm that the game is indeed unavailable in countries where PSN isn't officially available. This measure is reminiscent of the recent case of Helldivers 2, which faced mass boycotts after requiring a PSN account link, leading to its removal from 177 countries.
Unlike that episode, Shift Up made it clear that PSN usage won't be mandatory. However, a cosmetic bonus can be unlocked if players connect their account to Sony's service, which may have led to the preemptive block in some regions.
Besides regional restrictions, another common complaint is the inclusion of the Denuvo protection system. Known for its rigidity, the software is often frowned upon by gamers due to its performance impact.
System requirements and high performance expectations
Along with confirming the release date, Shift Up released the technical specifications for running Stellar Blade on PC. The minimum configuration requires an Intel i5-7600K or AMD Ryzen 5 1600X processor, a graphics card equivalent to a GTX 1060 or RX 580, and 16 GB of RAM. The game will take up 75 GB of storage.
For higher performance, the requirements increase considerably. At 4K at 60 frames per second, you'll need at least an RTX 3080 or Radeon RX 7900 XT. All configurations listed recommend using an SSD for better performance.
Sony also confirmed that additional content from the PC version will be available for free on PlayStation 5. The update reinforces the attempt to align experiences across platforms, despite geographical barriers.
Expectation of higher PC sales
According to the financial report released in February, Shift Up is betting on the commercial performance of the PC version to outperform the console version. The company believes that AAA third-person action games have been gaining more traction on PC, especially in the Asian market.
According to the developer, the expansion of the single-player genre strengthens sales potential outside the PlayStation ecosystem. The studio is banking on players migrating to PC, motivated by the hardware flexibility and the lack of mandatory additional accounts.
With the release date already set and the backlash ongoing, it remains to be seen whether Sony will revise the restrictions and release the game in currently blocked markets. Until then, part of the community remains awaiting full access, while others prepare to run the title with the announced technical requirements.
