The early to mid 1990s was nothing short of a proving ground for fighting games thanks to the successes of “Street Fighter II” and “Mortal Kombat”. And while those two franchises are given credit for revolutionizing the genre, there was an unsung hero that achieved the same notoriety on a smaller scale as SNK produced a weapons-based fighter focusing on fantasized Japanese lore named “Samurai Shodown”. My first experience with the series came courtesy of a port on the Sega Genesis. While not a perfect 1:1 rendition of the original arcade offering, the Genesis version of “Samurai Shodown” convinced me that this was a magnificent game. The Game Gear port became one of my favorite games of all time on a handheld console while “Samurai Shodown II” on the Super Nintendo also occupied a lot of my time. Unfortunately with the franchise being more of a niche offering it became somewhat difficult to find physical & rental copies as the gaming generations progressed, becoming something of a happy ghost of my gaming past. With the announcement of an eighth generation offering I became excited to see if it could attain the same level of greatness that was associated with the heyday of my adolescent gaming years.
Did I Complete “Samurai Shodown (2019)”?
Sticking to the format seen in previous entries, “Samurai Shodown (2019)” offers a lot for the player to potentially enjoy from a single player aspect including a prototypical “Story”/Arcade mode that culminates in a battle against an overpowered final opponent who lacks that memorable charm usually associated with SNK final bosses. On the base settings a full “Story” playthrough featuring comic style still shots and a couple of animated cutscenes will take about a half an hour to complete. Beyond “Story” mode are “Survival”, “Time Trials” & “Gauntlet” modes with the latter forcing the player to fight the entire roster of seventeen characters (sixteen playable with thirteen of those sixteen being returning characters and the single boss). One of the more interesting single player modes is “Ghost Mode” where the player will do battle with characters built on the play styles of other gamers including the game’s developers. Online is rather barebones with only “Ranked” and “Casual” play alongside the Leaderboad. Completing “Samurai Shodown” is not necessarily difficult, just time consuming such as defeating 100 Ghosts, winning a certain amount of matches with specific abilities, and completing “Story” mode with every character without utilizing a continue (a task made easier if the player turns down the difficulty & sets each fight to one round). The grind is on to complete all the stipulations associated with obtaining a full set of trophies while having a blast online in the process.
Did “Samurai Shodown (2019)” Live Up to the Hype?
During a time when every developer making a fighting game wanted to be the next “Street Fighter II” or “Mortal Kombat”, SNK went a completely different direction with the first “Samurai Shodown”. The original play style including the control scheme of light, medium & heavy strikes having their own buttons respectively alongside a single button to throw kicks returns here. One of the biggest factors in playing a “Samurai Shodown” game is working with reaction in mind more so than being a force that moves forward haphazardly. A swift counter by an opponent utilizing a heavy strike can cut off a third of someone’s health if a player isn’t careful. Depending on what strike is used when pulling off a special maneuver will actually modify said special such as gaining a greater distance or being more damaging. Like the strikes, opting for a more heavy-based attack strategy can be incredibly beneficial if the attacks land. But heavy-based attacks (be it strikes or special maneuvers) take longer to start up and will leave the character open for a bigger counter if the attack doesn’t land or is blocked; making this game a true test of mental might as much as who can unleash the most devastating attack first.
The “POW” meter returns as the “Rage” bar. As a character lands attacks or is struck the “Rage” bar fills up, and when activated puts said character in “Rage Mode” where regular & special attacks do greater damage for a short period of time & can be activated only once per fight. Also associated with “Rage Mode” is the “Lightning Blade” attack – a maneuver that too can only be used once per fight. If anticipated and successfully utilized when a character’s “Rage’ bar is full, “Lightning Blade” can cut down almost seventy-five percent of an opponent’s health. “Lightning Blade” is a wonderful comeback mechanic because of how devastating it is, but the attack can also be easily blocked or may not do as much damage as one would’ve hoped if the player doesn’t manage their meter properly before executing the attack.
“Weapon Flipping” is also associated with the “Rage” bar as a character can use the bar’s entire collective to knock an opponent’s weapon out of their hands; forcing the disarmed character to fight with their much shorter & less deadlier hands & feet only (a character can retrieve a fallen weapon, but doing so can be a lot tougher than said thanks to an advantageous enemy approaching). There are other unique mechanics associated with the game including throws/Stance Breaks that will push a grabbed character forward or backwards to leave them open for a debilitating or even match-ending blow (though if the opponent is fast enough they can get their guard up just in time to stop sure devastation). Players can dodge incoming strikes and retaliate, but the windows for success in both dodging and countering are small and may not pay off in the end.
There are also “Super Special Maneuvers” similar to ultra attacks from other fighting games. These flashy attacks also deliver great damage, can only be used once per fight, and a blocking opponent will avoid sure death if the maneuver is unleashed late in the fight. Of course the base mechanics work across the board for each character, but all play differently. While the massive Earthquake is not surprisingly a hulking monster that hits hard somewhat slowly, someone like the rapier-wielding Charlotte is great at poking fast & striking hard quickly. The ranges of certain character’s weapons makes a huge difference and will force players to either adapt or get chopped in half.
Beyond the aforementioned single player modes or playing around in the Dojo associated with a rather rudimentary tutorial that doesn’t even feature video demonstrations of the actions required are the online offerings. “Ranked” is as expected with players of specific rankings being matched to fight each other with the option of having continuous rematches while gaining points with each big win. While “Ranked” is everything you’d want, “Casual” mode isn’t and it’s disappointing in presentation. “Casual” mode features two base settings for gameplay types – “Single Vs.” and “Team Vs.” with the latter witnessing up to ten players joining forces in a five-on-five elimination team battle. The issue with “Single Vs.” in “Casual” mode is each room only has one fight going on at a time. This means if a room features ten people in it, eight of those potential fighters have to wait and hope they can figuratively jump into the open slot when the previous fight concludes.
The execution of “Single Vs.” rooms is even more shocking considering SNK’s “The King of Fighters XIV” didn’t have the same issue as it would allow multiple fights to occur in each “Casual” mode’s room. No matter the online mode the player will take part in there will be some form of lag. Some fights will slow down to a crawl, others will be flawless until the start of round two before clearing out after a few seconds, and then there will be times when “Team Vs.” matches will just fail midway through. While the player can attempt to avoid poor connections through the settings, there will still be connectivity issues here & there. Thankfully the community is a lot stronger than expected and a majority of every online encounter is incredibly fun when there aren’t any connectivity issues mostly thanks to the game’s battle system.
The game’s flaws go beyond lacking online options & connectivity including extensive loading screens, somewhat uneven visual offerings including blurry textures & backgrounds, and some input delay. Thankfully the gameplay makes up for “Samurai Shodown’s” shortcomings, but may not be enough for those who aren’t dedicated to the franchise.
Should You Play “Samurai Shodown (2019)”?
“Samurai Shodown” fans, no matter the generation, will be hard pressed to dislike this game when it’s time to throw down. The gameplay continues to focus on defense first, strike hard second with a cast of characters that have enough varying abilities to entice players to test out everyone. All the various gameplay mechanics, be it old or new, make each battle harrowing & incredibly satisfying win, lose or draw. The game’s biggest issues come with its overall presentation including a lacking “Story” mode, single player modes that are very similar in nature, a disappointing tutorial, and a poor implementation of “Casual” online mode. Fans of the franchise will be greatly satisfied, but novices may find the overall package a little too light for a full priced purchase – opting to wait for a slight sale. “Samurai Shodown (2019)” is a worthy continuation of the franchise and almost every fighting game aficionado should discover just how devastating a girl with her knife & eagle can be at any given, dangerous moment.
