Phantom Blade Zero achieves its goal of creating wonderfully fluid and cinematic kung fu-style combat - but balance and quality issues ultimately dim its shine.

I wasn't around to witness the golden age of Martial Arts cinema, but there are moments in Phantom Blade Zero that make me feel as though I've tumbled through a crack in time onto the set of a kung fu film. There's one particular encounter that sticks in my mind. Approaching a group of enemies in a shaded valley, I slowly raise my sword, and the first enemy rushes at me. Fool. I perfectly parry the blow, performing a slow-motion somersault to land behind him and plant my sword firmly in his back. The next guy comes running in, and I kick him in the face while simultaneously stabbing the previous enemy in the throat. A third joins the fray - this one on horseback - so I boot him off his horse, and use his steed to trample his helpless friend into the dust.…