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While the debate continues to rage around the
commendability of converting PlayStation2 releases to the Xbox360,
more titles inevitably come to the throws from the two main
 culprits; Activision and Koei. However, while Activision’s LEGO
Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy retains a higher RRP than
that of its Current-Generation peers, Koei’s releases tend to be
offered at a similar price-point. Given the fact that Koei’s
Strategy Hack-N’-Slash series – Dynasty Warriors, Kessen
and Samurai Warriors - sell ridiculously well in Japan, yet,
although still performing in other territories, in Europe in
particular it’s been some time since a release has seen a Top 10
position in the Multi-Format Sales Chart, it could be deemed an
effort by Microsoft to convince Koei, and the Japanese public, that
the Xbox360 is worth their effort.
Samurai Warriors 2 is the second of these
near-direct ports from Koei. Launching on both the Xbox360 and
PlayStation2 simultaneously in Europe, the lower RRP may have many
Xbox360 owners eager for a bargain looking at the title with
lighted-eyes.
The title is very similar to the release the Xbox360 has
already benefited from, from its sister-series, Dynasty Warriors;
Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires. Placing the player on a Map
with various objectives, all based upon the idea that you are
fighting to bring peace to Japan, the objectives are generally
simply to beat an opponent, or reach a locale on the Map, and then
beat an opponent. However, while on paper this may seem quite bland,
in effect the basic system is very pleasing.
Combat is controlled for the most part by the X and Y
Buttons – X being your basic attack and Y being the Charge Attack.
Once your Musuo Gauge fills, the player is able to
 execute a Musuo
Attack in which time slows for the duration of the charge in the Musuo Gauge. The combat is infinitely more pleasing than that
witnessed in Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires, however, the hefty
strategy element involved in the aforementioned title is entirely
absent, and often missed. Whereas Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires
may often compel you to progress through the title merely through
the organisation of your forces with minimal battle-time, Samurai
Warriors 2 offers nothing but battles, and so can feel unjustly
light-weight. However, in-order to compensate for the lack of
strategy, Samurai Warriors 2 brings what could be considered
some slight RPG elements to the plate. After each battle, along with
Skills earned during battle, the player may visit the Shop, from
which is it possible to upgrade earned Weapons, buy new Guards or
Mounts, and buy new/upgrade Skills or Special Abilities.
The title features more than twenty characters – each
being dramatically different in terms of ability and progression. As
each character benefits from a Level-Up, they each become more
distinctively different. Being able to adapt characters through
purchases from the Shop provides on opportunity for the player to
tailor the characters – either fixing their weaknesses, or expanding
on their advantages – before taking their character into online
battles. Each character features either five or six Levels on their
Story Tree, opening to well over one hundred Levels in the Story
Mode.
In addition to the main Story Mode, two other gameplay
components feature. Survival Mode consists of a Tower with seemingly
never-ending Floors. Each Floor represents a Level, in which the
main objective is always to clear all (or, occasionally, most) of
the enemies on the Floor
 before progressing to the next. However,
many Floors also offer additional Missions, in which certain
characters may need to be bested, or rescued. Sugoroku Mode is based
on traditional Japanese Board Game, with some Mario Party
spice added for extra enjoyment. Playing offline with three
opponents (either CPU-controlled or human), players take it in turns
to move around the board purchasing Squares and charging players
which then land on these Squares as in some twisted version of
Monopoly. The idea of the game is to raise your capital to the
pre-set limit, selected prior to starting the game. Other objectives
come into play, such as collecting all four of your
colour-co-ordinated Banners and returning home, Challenging other
players for their Squares of collecting Bonuses by landing on
Shrines. Both these additional Modes allow you to bring your
Levelled-Up characters from Story Mode into play; however, they will
not Level-Up further through Sugoroku Mode.
The online aspect of the title is fair, but falls short
of being a dramatic influence on the game’s play. Taking your
Levelled-Up character from Story Mode, you can compete in Challenges
online against human opponents. The Challenges are lifted directly
from Sugoroku Mode, ranging from running around a small area
collecting as much Gold as possible, to beating the largest amount
of enemies within a strict time-limit. However, Sugoroku Mode itself
remains distinctively absent from the online play-field – an
oversight that seems quite puzzling, to say the least.
Visually, Samurai Warriors 2 certainly isn’t
anything particularly special on the Xbox360. The draw-distance and
Frame-Rate has been improved dramatically in comparison to the
titles’ PlayStation2 release, however, it’s still far from being
on-par with the Xbox360’s home-grown
 releases. The visual quality
becomes apparent when, as with Microsoft’s own
Ninety-Nine Nights,
it’s clear that the in-game graphics suffer dramatically when
compared with the Cut-Scenes featured – to be expected, you may
suggest, but not when the Cut-Scenes featured in both these titles
are hardly exemplary. The sound quality is of a fair calibre,
however, as with Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires, the character
soundbites lack variety, and soon become annoying.
Samurai Warriors 2 is no masterpiece of
invention. It draws so close to it’s sister series that picking
between them on sight of the battlefield alone can be a daunting
task, making it very hard to recommend the title to those still
battling through Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires. However, the
title is rewarding in that of itself, so for the Xbox360
owners out there embittered by Ninety-Nine Nights but not yet
having delved into Koei’s veritable treasure chest of Strategy
Hack-N’-Slash adventures, Samurai Warriors 2 could be an
antidote to disappointment.
Review Score Chart Coming Soon
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