PlayStation Finally Has An Answer To Zelda, And It's Stunning

PlayStation is no stranger to action-adventure games, but it does feel like the company’s in-house studios have mostly been making other genres lately. And while Horizon may feel like BOTW at times, it doesn’t necessarily capture the spirit of The Legend of Zelda at its core. Now, thanks to Kena: Spirits of Kosmora, we might finally have a PlayStation series that’s worthy of Zelda.

When Kena: Bridge of Spirits released in 2021, it wasn’t immediately clear that this might be a new franchise. It had all the makings of a fun one-off, especially considering PlayStation’s focus on big-name series like The Last of Us and God of War at the time. But then reviews for Kena: Bridge of Spirits were positive, word of mouth helped the game spread, and now we have a sequel releasing in 2026.

PlayStation Finally Has A Zelda Rival In Kena

I was thrilled and pleasantly surprised to see a Kena sequel revealed during February’s State of Play. The first game was astounding, blending Disney-style animation with a Studio Ghibli-like design, and giving us a world that had darkness but looked beautiful and vibrant, rather than desolate.

Even back then, I thought Kena: Bridge of Spirits had a Zelda vibe to it, both in terms of its exploration and puzzles, but also in the overall look of its world. More like Ocarina of Time than Breath of the Wild, Kena: Bridge of Spirits swept me up in its world and didn’t let go. After replaying it last year, I realized it was probably one of my favorite PS5 games, but I never really expected a sequel.

But now we have Kena: Scars of Kosmora, a follow-up that hopefully cements this series as its own Zelda rival for PlayStation. And, look, I get it. It’s a bit too soon to be saying it will rival a franchise as epic and long-running as The Legend of Zelda, which celebrates its 40th Anniversary this year, but the prospect of that happening is still pretty exciting.

What makes it even better is that Kena doesn’t feel like it’s trying to be a Zelda clone. At no point does Bridge of Spirits come across as anything as blatant and unapologetic as Oceanhorn, yet it still feels like a spiritual successor to Nintendo’s storied franchise while still managing to be distinct and unique.

The New Kena Game Looks Absolutely Stunning

Kena: Scars of Kosmora looks amazing. The first game had a tight, somewhat small world to explore, but we’re getting a much bigger landscape this time around. The combat, which was already solid, looks to be getting a number of improvements as well. There are still corrupted souls to cleanse, but Scars of Kosmora has additional gameplay mechanics.

Plus, there’s a cute baby fox spirit and (presumably) it grows up to be the much bigger fox spirit Kena is seen riding on. That’s exactly the kind of upgrade I’m looking for in a sequel. Improve the gameplay, and then let me ride a giant fox. 10/10. No notes.

I’m excited to see everything Kena: Scars of Kosmora has to offer, and I hope the sequel helps put the series into the upper echelons of PlayStation‘s premiere series. Hopefully, it won’t be the last we see of Kena because there’s so much potential here.