Today I stumbled upon an application entitled Samurai II for my idevice. I have spent the past six or seven hours locked in a dark room, desperately attempting to slash a bunch of ninja samurais into little bits with my trusty katana. This gore-splattered hack and slash game has crisp, 3D visuals, detailed character design and movement, and blood. So much blood. The game is centered around killing; in fact, the storyline is typical of a game in the genre: man meets woman, man and woman fall in love, other man kills woman, other man sells his soul to the devil to become a demon, man vows to avenge woman’s death, man kills other man.
Graphics: Beautiful. Everything about the game seems perfect, from the background visuals such as ships swaying in their harbours to the pathways and bridges and even the spike traps and swinging axe blades. It’s hard to believe that such a console-quality game can be fitted into such a small screen, for such a low price.
Controls: Much improved over the original Samurai game, which we found tiresome. Instead of swiping your finger desperately across the screen, Madfinger has conveniently placed O and X attack buttons, similar to controls found in arcade games. I find that I can now execute my combos with ease, and appreciate the gruesome decapitations that my character performs, like some sort of evil surgeon.
Gameplay: Similar to other hack and slash games, the premise is simple; kill everyone else. However, this simple idea is further developed by an intricate story set in feudal Japan, following the story of a samurai chasing a demon through lush, beautiful landscapes packed with other evil samurais. The game only has seven levels plus a survival dojo to play, but each of these levels are quite lengthy and are packed with multiple types of enemies and bosses. Unfortunately, the game is quite repetitive, with a simple formula; travel from point A to point B, kill people at point B, and then travel to point C. Repeat. However, the button-mashing is so enjoyable that I find myself able to play the game for long periods of time without losing any enjoyment. In my humble opinion, Samurai II has perfected the art of the hack and slash genre.
Recap: Beautiful visuals set in beautiful Japanese settings, convenient button controls, and violent yet enjoyable gameplay. For 2.99, this game is an absolute must-buy.
Graphics: 10/10 Controls: 10/10 Gameplay: 9/10 Overall: 9.5/10
Sincerely,
The Saber-Toothed Haggis
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