Musou games, for the longest time, tend to be a video gamer’s comforting game that they can unwind and enjoy taking down hundreds of enemies stylishly.
Samurai Warriors aims to be just that. A good installment in the Musou series where it revisits old characters in a new way that old players can enjoy and newcomers might start to love when they go over this game’s previous releases.
So how is Samurai Warriors 5? Is it the casual junk food gaming that it is well known for? Absolutely.
Presentation
Samurai Warriors 5 takes a different approach for graphics by bringing in a new ink-brush aesthetic that fits the character designs within its very large cast. It looks quite nice even on the Playstation 4 and makes the game run at a consistent 60fps per second even with thousands of enemies on the screen.
The new redesign characters look quite well and are a breath of fresh air for the series to see series regulars like Nobunaga Oda looking like your typical shonen character and Tokugawa Ieyasu being the youngin’ this time and benefits the bits of help introduce them to the newcomers
The soundtrack is quite catchy too. Koei Tecmo made the soundtrack quite catchy enough for listeners to listen to during the times where you’re doing menu-ing stuff like leveling characters and weapons.
Even the voice actors sound nicer than the last game, Dynasty Warriors 9 and that’s not even a tall order. So a good improvement in both visuals and audio altogether.
Gameplay
The Samurai Warrior series is basically the go-to game for your Musou “take down a thousand men or more” style of gameplay. And after the disappointment of their sister series, Dynasty Warrior 9, Koei Tecmo would want to make up with their loyal fanbase by making a gameplay loop so enticing that it captures what made them fun to play in the first place.
SW5 blends enemy juggling combos with some neat ultimate skills that are unique towards the character that you’re playing as, making the combat very therapeutic during the game’s many acts.
These skills are equipable via the pre-mission screen and are fitting within all of the face buttons. that not only makes battles easier but also fills a new energy bar called the “Musou bar”.
With the presses of the Square or X button, it would make your character do a special Musou Attack which may or may not have been inspired by the last game that they worked on (it’s basically the All-Out Attacks from P5 Scramble), which makes facing the many officers or bosses that littered the battlegrounds rather easy.
Though this sort of game style is not for all really, it does feel quite a bit brain dead when compared to other action titles but its charming animations and cheesy dialogue does make it viable for the newcomers to pick up and play this one.
Content
The main story campaign with its many twists and turns thanks to its acts sometimes having an alternative part of the story from the point of the clan that you’re fighting during that time.
Some very neat alternative missions that help pan out the game’s completion time is about around 15 to 20 hours, and that includes me leveling up some of the characters.
There’s also Citadel Mode, where you defend a point of your Castle or Base from the enemy combatants in a varying level of difficulty as you advance further from the mode.
For this review, I’ve used the mode to level up the various characters since it doesn’t really tie with the main plot of the story, and it does feel like this mode is for those who want to play a tower defense style game but with good mechanics and a more direct approach behind them.
There is co-op play with friends but it is only restricted to levels that you and your friends have completed before. Quite backward considering you need to play new levels to continue the story but it is just a small hindrance.
Personal Enjoyment
Koei Tecmo should be pleased to know that someone who only played the original Samurai Warrior on the PS2 and coming back almost 17 years to see the improvements that they have made is quite refreshing for a series that tends to build up from the previous endeavors.
It’s a very nice game to return after looking at the disappointment of Dynasty Warriors 9 and its neat story bits make it easy for someone who hasn’t played any of the DW/SW games all these years to come back and enjoy their time.
Though its price point at launch is quite steep, it has dropped down a bit to quite of respective pricing around here, which I urge you guys to get and play this.
Verdict
Samurai Warriors 5 brings new ideas and focus to a series that makes learning about Feudal Japan somehow enjoyable with its outlandish display of mowing down enemies like it’s butter.
Its casual and easy entry is great for those who are joining the video gaming sphere and we welcome your stay in this weird series.
Played on the PlayStation 4, Review Copy provided by Koei Tecmo.
Samurai Warriors 5
Samurai Warriors 5 brings new ideas and focus to a series that makes learning about Feudal Japan somehow enjoyable with its outlandish display of mowing down enemies like it’s butter.
- Presentation 8.5
- Gameplay 8
- Content 7.5
- Personal Enjoyment 8