GAMEPLAY

PRESENTATION

FINAL VERDICT

RATING: 7/10 — I'd love to give it an 8, but without an option to have English voice acting, I'm definitely not getting the full experience that I think anyone who purchased the piece of trash known as Samurai Warriors 3 deserves.

The last time we sawhit a major console, it was for the Wii back in 2010. The title was received with major backlash toward Koei, which had not been seen since their blunder in what was the lacklusterSince then,has won back its fan base with back-to-back terrific releases of7 and 8. The question that remains is, didaccomplish the same thing?I have been playing the varioustitles from Koei ever since the release of3 for the PlayStation 2. I found myself extremely disappointed whenmade the transition to the Wii; the controls were clunky on a Wii remote, even when I swapped it out for one of the various alternatives, such as the Gamecube controller. The buttons were just too ass backward in several areas; I just couldn't get used to it. To sum it up: it was a mess!With, they have hit the nail on the head. One of the biggest criticisms of the prequels was that they were more of the same. To some extent, the same can be said about the newest title. The raw combat mechanics are pretty much the same; you juggle light attacks with strong ones to create some fast and crazy combos. However, several added features to this game have not only created a more difficult and fun experience but also givenits own identity and feel.First, the new hyper attack system has changed my gaming experience (for the better). In the past, hitting the triangle button would create a standard charge attack that didn't do much but stun the opposition. Now it's become a way of destroying large groups of enemies. By hitting triangle, you glide foreward and crush huge groups of enemies, string together various other combos after, and can easily charge up your special attack. The only catch is that enemy officers are pretty much unaffected by this new assault.As for special attacks, better known as "Musou," they've been upgraded from just holding circle down until your bar is depleted, to a fun one-button press spectacle that has your character strike an epic pose before crushing your enemy. If you've played, it's pretty much the same thing that's been done there.All in all, everything is much smoother and in many cases provides you with much more of a challenge than the previous titles. Throw in the ability to change to another character in real time, and the chaos that ensues is just amazing. Plus it's so convenient to switch to a character who is nearer the target you're after.As for the game modes, they are split in two:Story Mode, in which you follow the story of bulky roster of Samurai and Ninas and watch history unfold, andChronicle Mode, where you create your own character and travel across Japan, meeting, greeting, battling, and more with theyou from Story Mode. Chronicle Mode seems more of a fun passtime than it does the meat of the game, but the character creation is definitely most welcome and quite in-depth compared with previous attempts.has never failed to deliver with Story Mode, and it continues that trend here. Its over-the-top spin on things never ceases to keep me interested and researching the history of the Sengoku period of Japan.is by far the best looking game in any of theseries, which is quite the upgrade consideringwas the most ugly, by far. Although the art style is a little more "cartoony" than, say,, it fits with the Japanese culture, creating something that's pleasing to the eyes.The opening to the game shows clips of various storylines that you will play in Story Mode and highlights the poster boy of series, Yukimura Sanada, and his brother, Nobuyuki Sanada. Now, while the video package was well put together and had me excited for the game, I couldn't help but notice from the get-go that all of the voice actors were Japanese.Many people in the past have played with the Japanese voice actors because in previous titles the English ones have not been up to the expected standard. I can appreciate that, but during actual game play there is too much going on at once. I don't have time to read, plus hack and slash at the same time. Thus I'm constantly missing what the characters are saying. I'm not sure if Koei was hesitant to put more money into the game due to the last title, but this has hurt my overall experience more than I thought it would.Putting the voice acting aside, the game sounds great, the music is well produced and fits the mood of the battle, whether it's Tadakatsu Honda charging the battle field or an action-packed chase to a retreat point,gets it right every time.If you have not liked theor theseries in the past, then this game just isn't for you. It's not going to have changed enough to make you think otherwise. In the end, that's the biggest problem in anytitle; it's evolved, but not enough to make a huge difference to the casual audience.If you have been a fan of the previous titles, or are new to this genre and want to give it a try, thenis definitely for you. It's the most complete, polished, and fun game in any of theseries. As afan who has been jerked around by Koei a few too many times, my final verdict is…Are you going to purchase? If you have already, do you agree with me? Let me know in the comments below!