Samurai Warriors: State of War Review (no fat)

by KOEI Platform: PSP Genre: Act-Adv	ESRB Rating: Teen Release: 2006-03-08	Samurai Warriors: State of War Features: Board game style gameplay Limited multiplayer capabilities Charms that contain special abilities Multiple maps
	Egamer's Rating: 3 / 10. Reviewed on: 2006-04-10

Game Description

The second installment in the Dynasty Warriors series is just a revamped version of the previous game. Samurai Warriors: State of War features everything from the previous version, but throws in some updated gameplay and graphics. Gamers who liked Dynasty Warriors will like this game because of its portability. All of the details lie ahead… Read on.

Samurai Warriors: State of War Gameplay

The layout of gameplay is in the form of a board game. Players will move around a grid like board, where they follow paths to camps that can be conquered. The board game grid of Samurai Warriors: State of War incorporates strategy into the gameplay as you’ll have to plan your moves in order to defeat their enemies. If players should happen to land where an enemy is located, a battle takes place. Not much information is given during battles either, and you’ll have to fight no-name majors, officers and armies in nameless areas.

Even with that, you should try your best in every battle, because how well you perform in those battles tells how far you’ll move on the grid board in the next turn. The number of spaces you can move depends on how quickly you win battles or how many KO’s you have during battle. However, the styles of the battles in the game are limited, and players will repeatedly play through each style over and over again. This aspect of the game can get annoying after a while.

Allied armies are a force to reckon with, even while out on the battlefield. During gameplay, there is no way to tell them what to do. Most of the time they run around like chickens with their heads cut off, and do a horrible job at defending what needs to be defended. They do what they want to do, when they want to do it, and all that, in the slowest manner possible. Gamers beware! Many losses will take place because of this.

Predicting enemy movement is extremely easy in SW: State of War. This makes it easy for the gamer to scoot across the game board if an allied army is in need of back up; which they will almost every second of the game. Also, charms can be won during battles or found in the grid map board that can help gamers progress through the game. These charms contain special abilities and provide many different actions that gamers can take to help themselves out of a sticky situation.

The multiplayer capabilities in the game can hardly be called multiplayer action. Gamers can link up via Ad Hoc, but they won’t even get a chance to meet each other on the battlefield. You will play independently and your actions will affect your friend’s gameplay. However, there is no direct competition available…a sham in the name of multiplayer, if there ever was one.

Samurai Warriors: State of War Graphics

While pop-in has been updated a bit, it is still an issue. During gameplay, sometimes you won’t even see an enemy running at you until its too late.

The graphics have been updated from the previous version also, and incorporate smoother and clearer animations. However, the camera situation is as helpless as it was in Dynasty Warriors, with the only option of resetting it while on guard.

Samurai Warriors: State of War Audio

Audio in the game is probably the only high note of Samurai Warriors: State of War. The sound effects of swords and shields clashing together sounds realistic, as well as the moans of those whose blood was shed on the battlefield. A nice oriental style soundtrack accompanies gameplay, setting the mood and location of the game.

Final Verdict

Gamers who loved Dynasty Warriors will be the only ones who will like this game. Others will get frustrated over its clumsy board game play and lack of any real storyline. Newbies to the series shouldn’t pick this game up at all! It’s not worth the $39.99 price tag, and it’s not worth renting either.