This is an IGN opinion piece from Travis Northup. He loves action RPGs, including Phantom Blade Zero. Read his review here.

I play an obscene amount of soulslikes and sweaty action games, and although I largely enjoy my time facing off against these intentionally challenging gauntlets, one thing I’ve grown increasingly irritated by in recent years is something I’ve taken to calling the Scrub Tax.

But what is the Scrub Tax exactly? Well, it can take many forms. Sometimes it’s a nearly minute-long walk back to the lair of the boss I’m trying to beat. Or maybe it’s a super obnoxious unskippable cutscene I’m forced to watch every time you beat the boss’ first phase as they transform into an even more gruesome monster. Other times, it’s just a good ol’-fashioned 30-second loading screen that has me rubbing my temples in annoyance between failed runs. In other words, the Scrub Tax is an irritating procedure (intentional or otherwise) that games make you go through after getting yourself killed like the low-skill scrub that you are – things that waste your time unnecessarily beyond the hours you’re already investing in learning the encounter and “gitting gud.”

Phantom Blade Zero, though, shows us it doesn’t need to be this way, just by sprinkling a little sugar over the medicine that so many modern boss battles force you to swallow — Mary Poppins would be so proud.

Don’t get me wrong: I love getting my butt kicked in every single FromSoftware game – learning the attacks of some horrifying new foe and slowly building confidence after multiple deaths before utterly dominating the enemy is an impressively compelling loop.

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