Tides of Annihilation isn't just style, it's the high-octane action RPG I've been waiting for

Lauren Bergin News Editor
Lauren spends most of her time dead in League of Legends, or equally as dead in Valorant. Don't ask her about Vampire: The Masquerade.
Published: September 22, 2026

Something about Arthurian mythology just sings to me. While there are tall tales of knights in shining armor battling dragons and all manner of beasties, there's something inherently relatable about the Knights of the Round Table. Placing the magic and monsters aside, there's a sense that these were ordinary people blessed with martial prowess and extraordinary bravery. Yes, they're fables, but they're still remarkably human.

That's why Tides of Annihilation is so interesting to me. Blending the magic of the Arthurian mythos with a dystopian modern-day London setting, it's both visually spectacular and narratively intriguing. We've seen a lot of beautiful games coming out of China recently - Black Myth Wukong perhaps being the first, paving the way for the likes of S-Game's upcoming Phantom Blade Zero and, now, Tides of Annihilation. While a lot of these have honed in on Eastern myths, Eclipse Glow Games' debut combines China's spectacular visual storytelling with Western folklore, and after playing an hour of it at Gamescom, I'm genuinely hungry for more.

Let's start out with the obvious: in terms of visual fidelity, Tides of Annihilation stuns. The level I played was set in the Great Russell Museum, which is clearly inspired by the ever-iconic British Museum. As Gwen - the modern nickname for King Arthur's wife, Guinevere - I'm tasked with exploring the Russell's once spectacular halls, which have now been overrun with corruption.

The zone is expansive, and there's a real sense of scale, amplified by Gwen's myriad traversal mechanics. She can glide along magical ziplines, hop easily from platform to platform, and grapple around. The movement itself is dynamic and fluid, but it also helps illustrate the Museum's size - you feel small, while it feels intimidating, much like a lot of London's architecture does.

The Egyptian Section is my North Star, but my personal highlight was in the Chinese exhibition where, if you're a history nerd like me, you'll recognize various artifacts like the Dragon Tiles, which are, indeed, housed in the British Museum's Sir Joseph Hotung Gallery of China and South Asia.

That attention to detail is impressive, as is the imposing figure of Guan Yu, the Han Dynasty general who, in Tides of Annihilation, effectively acts as Gwen's mentor. He's cast in stone and is, in many Chinese regions, almost treated as a god. Eclipse Glow has done a fantastic job of evoking that sense of awe, bringing him to vibrant, yet intimidating life.

Eclipse Glow's Co-CEO and Tides Game Director Ary Chen tells me that the team "conducted extensive research on location, visiting historic sites and studying historical artifacts at the British Museum to immerse [themselves] in the city's atmosphere, architecture, and folklore. Our aim has been to bring together a deep respect for the source culture and the freedom to interpret it creatively, rather than take a strictly academic or documentary approach," he says. That's clear to see here.

The only thing that takes away from that authenticity is that, upon closely inspecting a vending machine for journalistic purposes, I did notice that the chips inside are Lay's. The London setting would call for these to be Walkers instead, but that's a very nitpicky, inside baseball moan about an otherwise spectacular-looking world.

A game, however, lives and dies on how it plays. I was slightly concerned that Tides of Annihilation's gameplay couldn't quite live up to the promise of its visuals. I was thankful, then, that Tides' action was both smooth and fluid, with combat genuinely feeling fast-paced and exciting, with a good level of difficulty.

The core premise of Tides is what Chen calls the "Dual Frontline Battle System," which is what inspired the Arthurian setting in the first place. As Gwen, you can effectively 'summon' different Knights of the Round Table, akin to FromSoftware's age-old system. Each one has his own unique ability set, which can be used inside of combat to chain different combos with Gwen, or outside to interact with the environment.

Sir Palamedes, for example, is a heavy bruiser who's good for taking down smaller enemies or tanking lots of damage. He can also smash through walls and move in-game blockades, adding to that sense of limitless exploration.

While the Museum itself houses myriad lower-level beasties, the core focus of the Gamescom demo is the fight against Anubis, the Egyptian god of death. Once again, I have to praise the visuals here - the fight is absolutely spectacular, and it isn't particularly easy. While, for the sake of time, I blitzed through everything on the easiest difficulty, I can see where Anubis' combos will cause trouble, and I'm excited to go back and crank things up a notch.

That leans into the discussion around difficulty. Chen is quick to clarify that Tides of Annihilation "is not a soulslike game," and instead falls more into the "action-adventure" category. While it is a "hardcore" title, there are difficulty modifiers, and the addition of the Knights of the Round Table 'summons' makes the action feel a lot easier. You can obviously refuse to use them if you want to, but given the focus on slick combos and Gwen-to-Knight interactions, it feels like you'd be missing out by doing so. Instead, I'd be more inclined to up the difficulty and see where you land.

While Chen acknowledges that "the success of landmark titles such as Black Myth: Wukong has greatly energized the entire industry and demonstrated to the market just how strong the global demand is for high‑quality, single‑player games from China," he stresses that "Tides of Annihilation grows from its own unique creative soil." After playing for an hour, that's something I fully agree with.

There have been myriad beautiful games coming out of China - and Asia more widely - of late, but it feels like they're often style over substance. I'm glad that Eclipse Glow has really put its money where its mouth is, creating a world that's both absolutely stunning, but also fun to play in. I walked away from Tides' demo craving more - I'm excited for a new approach to Arthurian folklore, and I really hope that Eclipse Glow manages to craft a strong narrative. In the meantime, however, I fancy another trip to the British Museum. Hopefully I'll be able to recognize a few more artifacts when release rolls around.