In 2019, a new Netflix series titled Kingdom landed on the streaming service. Kingdom is set in 16th-century Joseon and follows a mixture of horror and drama as its cast navigates the trauma of an ongoing mysterious epidemic and its chaotic impact on the world. Now, excitingly, YJM Games has officially released the mobile game Kingdom: The Blood, to take us back into the universe.
The Netflix tie-in game is out now, on Android and iOS – and is available on PC via Steam, if you'd rather play it there. This action-focused game has an intense blend of traditional Korean swordplay mechanics with action RPG elements, all set against a backdrop of relentless zombie hordes. It undoubtedly has the potential to be in the conversation for our best mobile games of the year list.
Developed by studio Team Mago at Action Square, this team has put Kingdom: The Blood through a long, meticulous testing and fine-tuning process (for context, the gameplay trailer dropped in 2022) in order to optimize the experience for gamers. During testing, Kingdom: The Blood received praise for its close-quarters combat mechanics and vivid world – the trailers show that some of the art design is really impressive. Kang Hyeong-seok, the PD at Team Mago, expressed gratitude for the enthusiastic response from global users, acknowledging their invaluable feedback in shaping the game's development.
Pre-registrations for Kingdom: The Blood number over one million, which means anyone who did register gets to reap all of the benefits offered, including in-game currency, costumes, and crafting items.
To celebrate release, there are loads of in-game events going on so you can get a step up while slaying zombies. If you happen to be one of the first five players to clear the main mode – using Lee Chang or Ashin – you get a 500,000 won voucher – that's around $400. Nice!
For more handheld fun, see our list of the best action games, and our picks for the best Nintendo Switch games. Or, check out all our speculation about the new Zelda game, as well as our thoughts on what to expect from the Switch 2.