(LAST UPDATE: 7/22/09)
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Developer(s): SNK
Publisher(s): SNK
Platform(s): Playstation
Release: December 22nd, 1999
Characters:
Haohmaru,
Hanzo,
Nakoruru,
Rimururu,
Garyo, Jushiro,
Jin-Emon,
Oboro,
Ranpo,
Saya,
Rinka,
Seishiro,
Tohma,
Haito,
Tashon
Mao, Mikoto,
Mugenji,
Minto,
Daruma,
Yaci,
Brute,
Samurai,
Oboro
Amazon, Iga Ninja, Yuda
Related Games:
Samurai
Shodown, Samurai Shodown 2, Samurai
Shodown 3, Samurai Shodown 4, Samurai
Shodown 5, Samurai Shodown 5 Special,
Samurai
Shodown 6, Samurai Shodown 64, Samurai
Shodown 64 - 2, Samurai Shodown
Pocket, Samurai Shodown 2 Pocket,
Samurai Shodown: Edge of Destiny,
Samurai
Shodown Anthology
Story: It is a time of sustained peace, and the age of the sword was drawing to a close. But an increasing number could not adapt to the flow of history and became trouble before long. So the shogunate created a "colony of prisoners" on a small island in sea nearby Edo as a place to rehabilitate the outlaws. But, there were those who exploited this prison island and tried to create a "new world exclusively for the chosen ones" after destroying the shogunate. The group they formed was called the "League of the Three Blades of Domination" and each member had their own mighty strength. Using their might, they subjugated the outlaws and begin their plans to overthrow the shogunate. And in no time the "town of outlaws" came to be called "Ritenkyo"-the seat of opposition.
Under these figures Ritenkyo
unexpectedly changed from a "place of rehabilitation for returning to society"
to a "lawless zone in which only the strong survive." The inhabitants engaged
in vendettas, skirmishes, and death battles to survive from day to day.
And the "Three Blades of Domination" steadily consolidated their power
to its utmost, absorbing strength from the hate surrounding them. On a still, pitch-black
night of the new moon. Flicker-Flicker-Flicker-Flicker. The glow of a candle
grows and a single shadow emerges from the darkness. It is an elderly gentleman
with a beard and tranquil visage. "Have they arrived?"
"Yes, Lord Oboro. The red-eyed
boy and girl have come." Only a voice comes from
the darkness. Without making a noise, the old man rises and speaks: "At
last, the time has come.... Time to make their acquaintance." The man's
closed eyelids pop open. His red eyes glow with the light of the candle. Whooooosh! A burst of wind
slices the calm, and darkness once again dominates the world.
A few years later, three
people look down at the world below from a tall tower. One is a tall man
armed with a sword; the other, a bewitching, alabaster-skinned woman. The
two share a pair of red eyes. And standing behind them awaits a fine-looking
elderly man who appears somewhat out of place. The sunlight reflects off
their red eyes, making them glow eerily. The woman mutters, "A few people
we have some things to settle with appear to have entered Ritenkyo. Word
has it that they are major obstacles to the realization of our intentions." The man speaks as he continues
to survey the world below. "All we need to do is wait here. The rats will
come even if we do nothing." The Three Blades of Domination
are about to bring an end to the era of peace in this world. And the warriors
who battle for their own reasons converge on "Ritenkyo" as our story begins.
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Review: Continuing the storyline of the
two Hyper NeoGeo 64 games in the series (Samurai Shodown 64
& Samurai
Shodown 64: Warriors Rage), Samurai
Shodown: Warriors Rage takes place 20 years later, with a dramatically
revamped cast, and was released exclusively for the Sony Playstation. Though
other SS games have followed it, it is chronologically the last game in
the series, and is the only game in the series proper to not get an arcade
release. Though the
game was still in 3D, SNK still kept the gameplay 2D based, only offering
a 3D dodge technique. Two buttons are used for weak and strong slashes,
a third button controls kick attacks, and the fourth button is used for
dodging.
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Warriors
Rage introduces an interesting new life bar system... To sum it up: The first
round lasts until one person's life is drained of all three sections, in
which one section of the bar disappears, and the remaining two refill.
Once those two are drained, the second section is be dropped, and the last
one refills. This actually causes the fight to pause, as winning fighter
does a taunt animation. The match is over when one player had been drained
of this last section of life... Overall, the life bar system is a bit annoying;
and interrupts the flow of the battle. Graphically, the game is inferior to many
other 3D (and 2D) fighting games, and the animation is also below average for a
3D fighting game. The gameplay is also rather slow and choppy, not nearly as smooth,
technical, or as fun as it's predecessors.
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6 / 10 |
Closing Comment:
I love the Samurai Shodown series, but didn't spend much time with
this game at all... For obvious reasons. The series was
known for it's awesome 2D graphics and gameplay, so I highly doubted it's successful
jump to 3D, as with most 2D fighters that go 3D. Following in tradition,
no, it's not nearly as fun or graphically impressive as the classic 2D
incarnations.
Even though there are some decent character designs, they really shouldn't have left
so many of the classics
out of the game. This game does have a "fresh" feeling at least, and the story is
pretty decent, but still falls short of the 2D installments.
~F.Yagami,
Webmaster
of TFG
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