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I've been playing this game for five hours straight and, needless to say, my hands hurt!! Yet, they hurt in a good, "I love this game!", sorta way. Bushido Blade is basically the samurai Tour de Force I was expecting, with a couple of pleasant surprises.
The Graphics:
I'm quite impressed with the quality of the characters, they are as detailed as those in Soul Blade, and the motion of the game ( 30fps?) is smooth with no slowdown at all. The backgrounds are nicely textured and little details here and there, like trees that can be sliced, water, MUD (this is cool, trust me!), can be ineractive. All around, a wonderful job.
The Gameplay:
Bushido is not your run of the mill 60fps button smasher. The gameplay is more strategic and method-based, ie- dodging, running, parrying, and finding holes in your opponents defense to get the upper-hand. The inclusion of one-hit kills adds tension to the game, knowing that you could fall to one well placed blow, and forces you to learn how to parry and practice your defense. Also, when your opponent takes a slice to one of your appendages, it renders it useless until the next match, leaving you to fight with only one arm or limp and crawl while fighting!!! Skill, with a dash of luck, plays a big part in the game.
The Story:
From what I can gather, each character has their own storyline, but it basically follws the same premise: you control a samurai warrior who has some conflict with his/her clan. You begin to fight other members of your clan in this massive compound when you run into an assasin who was sent to kill you by your clan leader. Again, my Japanese is weak, so I could be WAY off.
The Controls:
At first the control can feel sluggish compared to the arcade fighters we are all accustom to, but it is simply different, and once you get the hang of it, it becomes second nature. Multiple stances and full 3-D mobility is what may be disorienting in the beginning, but you will soon find that the control suits the nature of the game well.
The Characters:
With six original fighters, and hopefully several hidden ones, the game stands quite solid as far as balance goes. The fighters are not that unique,where mechanics are concerned, but they all have distinctive moves and combos. Plus, there are multiple weapons you can choose from, each with their own strengths, weaknesses, and combo systems.
The Environment:
This is what makes this game so great (IMHO). The first several battles are within a large courtyard with things like a bridge, acsending levels, and (my fav) a large mud pit that (check this out) when you and your opponent fight in it, they actually get covered in mud (!!) and stay all grungy for the duration of the game!!!! Eventually,your fighter cleans him/herself off before confronting the bosses (can't be rude and show up all dirty for the head honchos!!!), who you fight in smaller one room areanas.
The Little Things:
There are your usual modes to fight in: story,versus, practice, endurance--- and there's your unusual: first-person (Doom-like) perspective!!! This mode trips me out. Other features include a link-up option for deathmatches, the ability to turn the games color on or off and viewing the endiing CGs in a special viewing mode. BB has a fantastic atmosphere to it. The presentation, music, and sounds all add to the all around effect of the game. You even must obey the Samurai Code of Honor, and only strike when your oppnent is prepared, ie- can't strike when your opponents back is turned, etc..
The Verdict:
Bushido Blade is simply amazing (if you can't tell, I like the game), and I can't recommend it enough. Alas, there will be a few people out there that just won't enjoy BB as much as I, but this game wasn't made for everyone. The methodically paced fighting will certainly drive away the button smashers. Give this game a try if you even remotely like weapon-based fighters and you won't regret it. BB is definately a step in the right direction!!!