Title - "Samurai Spirits"
Alternative title(s) - "Samurai Shodown"
Genre(s) - Fighting - 2D
Platform(s) - Arcade, Neo-Geo home systems, Mega Drive and Super Famicom
I'll admit on what I'm about to say. I'm a pretty weak player against the computer when I play the "Samurai Spirits" games. I would always have a hard time beating the computer and about half of the time, I would win with help of the clock. Still, don't think that I'm weak against people because I can and I will put up a fight.
Okay! SNK's "Samurai Spirits" first came out in 1993. Don't ask me about the alternative title because I don't know how this error SNK made started. Like many people, this is my first sword fighting game series. Many people back then called this "'Street Fighter' with swords" and that was not a bad description.
There are twelve characters to choose from. You have Ha
maru - the main samurai who has the traits of Ry
and Ken (as well as the third character I picked), Nakoruru - the kawaii Ainu (not Japanese as I first thought when I was little) anime flavored fighter and most popular character of the series who fights to protect nature (as well as the first character I picked of this series), Galford D. Weiler - the American ninja who fights for justice and who likes Nakoruru (the second character I picked), Tachibana Uky - the quiet rival of Hamaru (who I never played well with over the years), Charlotte - the French knight who wants to show the world that women can fight, Yagyu Jbei - the serious samurai who receives orders to keep peace in tact, Hattori Hanzo - a ninja who has had problems rise within his family and who is Galford's idol, Senshir Kyshir - the kabuki fighter, Wan-Fu - the big Chinese fighter, Tam Tam - the tribal fighter from South America, Earthquake - the big American ninja who quitted the school Galford went to and finally Shiranui Gen-an (who thankfully is not related to Mai, though she does make a cameo somewhere) - a weird small and evil fighter and the least popular character of the series. Fight the other 11 fighters as well as your mirror, along with three bonus stages which make you cut straw figures and you will face Amakusa Shir Tokisada. Yeah, this may be the typical "madman who wants to rule the world" type of story, but what you have to look for is that he has so much going on that he ends up being evil.
A lot of characters are based on various subjects of Japan and other world subjects, while others are just random creations. Hamaru's status is based on Miyamoto Musashi-san, the classic samurai and Uky is based on Sakaki Kojir Genry-san, the most well-known guy to fall before Miyamoto-san. Jbei is the only real samurai who is based on a samurai of the same name, while Hanzo is based on a ninja of the same name. Charlotte is based on the main character of an old manga/anime series called "Bara no Versailles"/"The Rose of Versailles". I can go on and on, but this is good enough already.
Fun - 9
The computer has always been known to be a challenge over the years. This one is no exception. This game will push you to the limits. It will make you think twice on your plans.
The challenge can be a blessing, but it can be also be a bother in some cases. Wan-Fu makes me mad a lot. Amakusa can be a pain too.
Random items are thrown onto the field. The chicken can increase your health, while the bomb can decrease it if you don't block. Spiffy.
I guess that's it. The game is fun. The challenge needs to be toned down a bit.
Life - 9
It's the first fighting game with swords for many people. How can you not say that this is not a keeper? Of course, that challenge factor needs to be toned down a bit.
Control - 8
The reason why people called this "'Street Fighter' with swords" was because in this game, you have six types of attacks, but to do a hard slash, it's A+B and C+D will give you a hard kick. What makes it different from that other title I mentioned is that there's a POW bar which rises up whenever you get hit. A real spiffy idea is the ability to make your opponent lose his or her weapon. The two weapons have to meet each other end to end and the timing is hard. After this, keep pressing buttons or you will drop your weapon and you'll have to pick it up with a slash button with down. Don't block or attack without your weapon because you receive blocking damage all the time without your weapon and a good amount of your moves can't be done without your weapon.
There are only a couple of problems here. The first one is that the POW bonus is 50%, which is ridiculously high, especially if you're facing someone like Hamaru. The other is the move commands. Although they are responsive, they mess up a bit and you will have a hard time finding those hidden moves.
Audio - 10
Major thanks goes to Ikoma Harumi-san. Playing as two characters we have known to enjoy with for a decade, Nakoruru and Charlotte, is not easy. She is the only seiy to have done this.
Oh yeah. The bunch is very good, although Hamaru's seems to be just there. It's not bad, but the others have voices that stand out well.
As for the music, this is grade A music. Some characters have sound effects in place of themes, but that's okay with this atmosphere. "Shizen no Utage"/"Silent Hill", Nakoruru's theme will always be a classic. Galford's theme has a rock touch in his theme and I have always liked it over the years. Amakusa's is real scary though.
Story - 9
Other than a few silly stories, this category is swell.
Art - 10
The backgrounds look that good. If you're wondering why do Hamaru and Uky have the same background, but at different times of the day, it's because the surroundings of the battle between Musashi-san and Sakaki-san look like this and since the characters I mentioned are rivals, it would make sense for them to share a background. It's not called "being lazy". It's called "being sincere to history".
The sprites and effects may not be as flashy as people would want, but then again, this is a 1993 game. I personally think that they are good. The lightning effects of Galford are well-done. The slashes of Hamaru look fine. So, there's not much to complain.
Overall - 9
"Samurai Spirits", the first swords fighting game for many people, is one classic that people should know. So, if you have never played this game, do so, especially if you like samurai entertainment. There will always be a time I go live that experience again and again.
+
It covers so many themes rather well and there's a kawaii Ainu fighter. Hey! The latter is a high point, okay?
-
It's so inconsistent on quality in some categories.
Date of creation - 12/27/03
Last update - 8/11/04