Review: Samurai: Way of the Warrior - Hottest Games of 2009 We Missed

Overview Samurai: Way of the Warrior is a unique hack and slash built for the iPhone. You swipe the screen to deploy devastating sword slashes killing all in your path. A deluxe story line is included that is revelaed with comic book like cut scenes. You play as Daisuke Shimada trying to defeat Daimyo Hattoro battling through waves of his minions and generals. Can you follow the way of the warrior battling against overwhelming odds to defeat evil? Features A main storyline is included which is the majority of the game. Plus there are two dojo modes letting you spare with enemies in an arena. Three difficulty levels are included; cub, lonewolf, and executioner. The controls are easy and iPhone specific. Tap and hold to move your character, and then swipe to use your sword. Nine combos are included that you unlock as you progress with the ability to swipe right, left, or up for flying dragon as an example. AGON is included for online high scores for each of the difficulties, and both dojos. Score is based upon the number of swipes as well as the consecutive hits you can get in without taking damage. The Good Samurai has a lot of good packed in that is highlighted by the gameplay. It's so straightforward and simple, and then really melds you with the character as you swipe rather than press buttons. The swiping is picked up extremely well, and the combos make you have a purpose to your swiping rather than just simply madly swiping on screen. Every encounter with an enemy is a nice battle, and then occasionally enemies team up making you really on guard. An experience that is truly iPhone unique is one to have, and even nicer to connect it with a genre we've experienced before. Every single minute in the game you will be intertwined with the character's actions which is usually unfelt on any device. The story is deluxe, especially for the iPhone, giving you an entire tale that is a nice read through. It adds a real nice incentive to make it through the whole game. The inclusion of three difficulty modes, agon online high scores, and the dojo mode give this game even more replayability if once through the story doesn't make this game well worth the price of admission. The design of the game can only be described as beautiful from everything rendered in 3D using unity to the fine details of the Japanese buildings, and environment. The killing animations are absolutely stunning with each swipe splattering blood on the ground, and then relatively rare, the dead bodies stay on the ground. When you get an especially devastating hit you chop the enemies in half or sever their head. It's great to see, and hear as two pieces of an enemy slop apart, and fall to the ground or a head bounces away. When this occurs there is a blood splatter on the screen partially obstructing your view. During the entire game there are varying Japanese zen type soundtracks. There are screams with each slash of the sword by everyone on screen which can be quite annoying. A great feature is the save system. The game has checkpoints throughout long levels, and when you restart the game after exiting it picks up at your last checkpoint. The Bad The only real concern is that the game could be viewed as just madly swiping on the screen. In actually playing I never found that mostly because of the combos, and you will get attacked more easily if you just madly swipe on the screen. The game is repetitive though. The locations change, but the gameplay is just swipe to dispose of enemies who get increasingly tougher with no variability. The Verdict Samurai: Way of the Warrior is one of the best games for the iPhone, and especially great for a fighting game. It's wonderfully iPhone unique with swiping for the sword slashes of your character rather than pressing buttons. All of the production values are great, and the entire story mode is a relative stand out for the iPhone. The game is a little too repetitive to be an absolute must, but it's a must buy, and you'll have a great time with it.

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