Burning Sword: Death Sun, the wuxia hack and slash developed by Bangkok-based Nomadic Games and published by Rising Tide Publishing, enters Steam Early Access on Tuesday, November 17, 2026. The game will be priced at $19.99 during Early Access.
According to information Oyun Günlüğü received from Rising Tide Publishing, the Early Access build is complete and review copies are now available to press and content creators. The announcement follows the game’s appearance at Gamescom Asia x Thailand Game Show, held October 29 to November 1 at QSNCC in Bangkok. Visitors to the Burning Sword booth were the first players outside the studio to try the new Early Access content, and hundreds of them competed in an Arena Mode contest on a live scoreboard. The top player won the Burning Sword displayed at the booth along with a cash prize.
A $1,000 Arena Mode competition on launch day
To celebrate the launch, Nomadic Games and Rising Tide Publishing will hold an Arena Mode competition for content creators on November 17. Accepted creators will livestream a single Arena Mode run as soon as the game unlocks on Steam at 15:00 UTC, and the highest score of the day wins $1,000. The development team will be in the chats supporting participants. Creators who want to compete can tick the competition box on the review copy form, while keys can also be requested without entering. The form stays open through launch.
What’s in Early Access
Players take control of Zhang Yi Xian, a fighter seeking revenge against the powerful Gao Tianqi for the death of his family. The Early Access build includes five handcrafted linear stages with secrets off the main path, five bosses and two secret bosses. The full combat system is playable, including the Power Gauge, Ignite, Quick Shot and Qi Drain mechanics along with three equipped skills. The Hub and character-based progression are also included, as is Arena Mode, an endless arcade-style score attack. The free demo on Steam will remain available until the Early Access launch.
Roger Renfro of Load Last Save said the game is fun and shows a surprisingly solid grasp of fundamentals that many modern action games lack.
The full game will feature 12 stages
After launch, more stages, bosses and skills will arrive through regular updates, each accompanied by a devlog. The full game will span five chapters and 12 handcrafted stages, featuring nine named bosses including Gao Tianqi, two secret bosses and many elite minibosses.
