Slice Your Own Samurai Adventure

*Akasha* · August 05, 2004, 10:13 AM

It is the beginning of the Edo period, and the first stirrings of a wave of modernization are about to hit the heretofore-isolated islands of Japan. Port cities have opened to trade with foreign nations and have become bustling centers of activity. You are a wandering samurai who walks into town one day. You have no allegiance to the shogun nor to any feudal lord -- the system of feudalism that built the samurai way of life is becoming obsolete, just like you and the sword that hangs at your side.

You haven't eaten in days, but a little girl gives you her rice ball. Before you can thank her, she runs off and gets accosted by a group of street toughs. What do you do? A) Leave -- it's none of your business. B) Fight to save the girl. C) Talk to the street toughs and join their gang. Whatever you decide, be careful -- there are always consequences to your actions.

If Grand Theft Auto's story of an up-and-coming Mafioso let players put themselves into the movie Goodfellas, then Way of the Samurai 2 makes gamers into the star of a Kurosawa samurai flick. (The intent is definitely to reproduce a samurai movie rather than the actual historical reality of the samurai -- the default player name is Mifune, a not-so-subtle reference to the star of most of Kurosawa's epics.)

So ... it's Grand Theft Rickshaw? Not quite. In contrast to GTA's sprawling city, Samurai's fictional port city of Amahara is nearly claustrophobic. You can see the entirety of it in about 20 minutes, although the cluttered layout and stiff camera make exploration frustrating. But it is fun to look at the buildings and scenery, which are rendered in attractive, authentic detail.

But Samurai isn't about the places you go, it's about the people you meet. As soon as you pass through the gates of Amahara, you're set upon by all kinds of folks -- street toughs, yakuza (Japanese mobsters), merchants, children, courtesans and the magistrates who try to keep them all under control. You can get job assignments from the townspeople, from the magistrates or from the yakuza -- whom you choose to work for is up to you.

Taking jobs earns you money, but it also earns you trust. If you start working for the mobsters, picking pockets and assassinating officials, you'll find that the people in town soon come to hate and fear you. The local blacksmith, instead of upgrading your swords, will come after you and kill you if you talk to him. But it all evens out -- if everyone hates you anyway, you can just kill a few officers and take their swords.

Swordplay is where things start getting a little rough. Samurai starts you off completely in the dark as to how not to get julienned in seconds. If you find the dojo in town, you can learn the basics of parrying and defense, but the rest of the combat system still remains a mystery that you have to solve on your own. And it's not easy or particularly fun. (Not to mention the fact that the poor targeting system means you often end up accidentally killing the people you're supposed to help.)

And the quests and jobs that don't involve sword fighting are usually boring and repetitive. Practically every time you talk to the town job broker, he tells you that a baby has been kidnapped and placed in some random section of town. I'm not sure which is less believable -- that a moronic kidnapper would take a baby and then just leave it somewhere, or that one baby a day gets kidnapped in a town of a few hundred people.

The varying branches of Samurai's plot lead to 14 different endings -- endings that see the town prosper, fall to the yakuza or just ramble along. To see some of the endings, you actually have to leave Amahara before the game's 10-day window is over. And the awful voice acting and translation might have you doing just that. (Sadly, unlike on DVD movies, there's no option to listen to the original Japanese language track.) But if you are looking for a samurai adventure that stays vaguely realistic and accurate, you'd be hard-pressed to find another such title, especially in English.

Way of the Samurai 2 is published by Capcom for the PlayStation 2 at an MSRP of $40. It is rated M for mature.

Information Source : Wired News!

Not my type of game personally ( although I could like it if I tried it, you never know ) but I do like how it reflects what choices you make... makes things a little more intersting.

August 05, 2004, 10:13 AM	#1 (permalink)
Akasha	Slice Your Own Samurai Adventure It is the beginning of the Edo period, and the first stirrings of a wave of modernization are about to hit the heretofore-isolated islands of Japan. Port cities have opened to trade with foreign nations and have become bustling centers of activity. You are a wandering samurai who walks into town one day. You have no allegiance to the shogun nor to any feudal lord -- the system of feudalism that built the samurai way of life is becoming obsolete, just like you and the sword that hangs at your side. You haven't eaten in days, but a little girl gives you her rice ball. Before you can thank her, she runs off and gets accosted by a group of street toughs. What do you do? A) Leave -- it's none of your business. B) Fight to save the girl. C) Talk to the street toughs and join their gang. Whatever you decide, be careful -- there are always consequences to your actions. If Grand Theft Auto's story of an up-and-coming Mafioso let players put themselves into the movie Goodfellas, then Way of the Samurai 2 makes gamers into the star of a Kurosawa samurai flick. (The intent is definitely to reproduce a samurai movie rather than the actual historical reality of the samurai -- the default player name is Mifune, a not-so-subtle reference to the star of most of Kurosawa's epics.) So ... it's Grand Theft Rickshaw? Not quite. In contrast to GTA's sprawling city, Samurai's fictional port city of Amahara is nearly claustrophobic. You can see the entirety of it in about 20 minutes, although the cluttered layout and stiff camera make exploration frustrating. But it is fun to look at the buildings and scenery, which are rendered in attractive, authentic detail. But Samurai isn't about the places you go, it's about the people you meet. As soon as you pass through the gates of Amahara, you're set upon by all kinds of folks -- street toughs, yakuza (Japanese mobsters), merchants, children, courtesans and the magistrates who try to keep them all under control. You can get job assignments from the townspeople, from the magistrates or from the yakuza -- whom you choose to work for is up to you. Taking jobs earns you money, but it also earns you trust. If you start working for the mobsters, picking pockets and assassinating officials, you'll find that the people in town soon come to hate and fear you. The local blacksmith, instead of upgrading your swords, will come after you and kill you if you talk to him. But it all evens out -- if everyone hates you anyway, you can just kill a few officers and take their swords. Swordplay is where things start getting a little rough. Samurai starts you off completely in the dark as to how not to get julienned in seconds. If you find the dojo in town, you can learn the basics of parrying and defense, but the rest of the combat system still remains a mystery that you have to solve on your own. And it's not easy or particularly fun. (Not to mention the fact that the poor targeting system means you often end up accidentally killing the people you're supposed to help.) And the quests and jobs that don't involve sword fighting are usually boring and repetitive. Practically every time you talk to the town job broker, he tells you that a baby has been kidnapped and placed in some random section of town. I'm not sure which is less believable -- that a moronic kidnapper would take a baby and then just leave it somewhere, or that one baby a day gets kidnapped in a town of a few hundred people. The varying branches of Samurai's plot lead to 14 different endings -- endings that see the town prosper, fall to the yakuza or just ramble along. To see some of the endings, you actually have to leave Amahara before the game's 10-day window is over. And the awful voice acting and translation might have you doing just that. (Sadly, unlike on DVD movies, there's no option to listen to the original Japanese language track.) But if you are looking for a samurai adventure that stays vaguely realistic and accurate, you'd be hard-pressed to find another such title, especially in English. Way of the Samurai 2 is published by Capcom for the PlayStation 2 at an MSRP of $40. It is rated M for mature. Information Source : Wired News! Not my type of game personally ( although I could like it if I tried it, you never know ) but I do like how it reflects what choices you make... makes things a little more intersting.