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Way of the Samurai 3
A game about choice and consequence.
November 2, 2009 | 7:19 PM PSTKombo's Review Policy: Our reviews are written for you. Our goal is to write honest, to-the-point reviews that don't waste your time. This is why we've split our reviews into four sections: What the Game's About, What's Hot, What's Not and Final Word, so that you can easily find the information you want from our reviews.
What the Game's About
Way of the Samurai 3 is a game about choice. You play as a samurai caught in the middle of a war. You are found after a brutal battle by some local farmers and from that point on, every decision you make has the potential to butterfly into large, game changing decisions. Way of the Samurai 3 is the equivalent of playing a "choose your own adventure" book. Sandbox games claim to have a lot of freedom, but that comes at the cost of not having a dynamic storyline. With Samurai 3, it places more focus on storytelling and multiple endings and it leaves the task up to you to decide what you think is the best ending.
What's Hot
Consequences is the central theme in Samurai 3. You are not bound by any rules or an invisible hand of the developer leading you to the game's planned conclusion. If you want to start off by acting like a samurai bound by honor and respect for your saviors, you can play that way. You can also start off by being a giant jerk and killing the entire town full of people. The choice is entirely up to you and it will change how you finish the game. Compare what Samurai 3 is doing to a game like Red Faction, you'll see the difference between the design philosophies. On one hand, you are given free reign over your environment but the story stays on track throughout the entire game. On the other, one small act of aggression could send you down a path that will block off potential paths you might have achieved if you would have made different choices. This concept of making lasting choices is rarely explored in videogames and when something like this comes around and makes you second guess your actions before making a decision, it shows the power of video games as a story telling method.
You likely won't be satisfied the first time you play through Samurai 3. You'll think back to a choice you made and wonder if it would have made a large difference in your samurai's journey. Each time you play through the game, you keep your swords and save state so you can build on your rewards with each play through. The gameplay is nuanced so that something as simple as unsheathing your sword could trigger a different ending, so you need to pay attention to detail as you make the connections to your actions. You'll definitely play this game more than once, each time with a fresh pair of eyes and a renewed interest.
What's Not
The idea is ambitious. However, the scope is limited. The playthroughs don't last that long, and the section of Japan you reside in isn't that large. There are under 10 parts to the map you explore. In a short time, everything will start to feel familiar and people will be standing in the same spots, just like the movie Groundhog's Day. There is certainly a paradox with criticizing Samurai 3 in this way, because if you look at the game only as one playthrough as the entire experience, the game is going to feel way too short. Nevertheless, when you do play multiple times, the confined gaming area won't make you feel your actions and resulting consequences have much more weight outside of the a farming town.
The game looks dated and last-generation in addition to feeling confined. In an age where entire in-game cities never need a single loading point, Samurai 3 somehow manages to not feature any of that. You'll have you sit through loading screens for the handful of areas you travel, which gets annoying. The characters aren't that detailed and the scenery is fairly plain and unexciting.
Final Word
You have to really be in love with the central design concept Samurai 3 is built on to appreciate what this game is and isn't. If you aren't sold on having your choices carry with you for the rest of the game, this game is likely going to collect dust on your shelf. Samurai 3 should get a lot of credit for being different and standing out from the crowd, but there are some issues close to the heart of the game that you need to balance first. This is one of those hard games to recommend because everyone will have a different opinion based on their experience, which I'm sure the developers intended to some degree.
What the Game's About
Way of the Samurai 3 is a game about choice. You play as a samurai caught in the middle of a war. You are found after a brutal battle by some local farmers and from that point on, every decision you make has the potential to butterfly into large, game changing decisions. Way of the Samurai 3 is the equivalent of playing a "choose your own adventure" book. Sandbox games claim to have a lot of freedom, but that comes at the cost of not having a dynamic storyline. With Samurai 3, it places more focus on storytelling and multiple endings and it leaves the task up to you to decide what you think is the best ending.
What's Hot
Consequences is the central theme in Samurai 3. You are not bound by any rules or an invisible hand of the developer leading you to the game's planned conclusion. If you want to start off by acting like a samurai bound by honor and respect for your saviors, you can play that way. You can also start off by being a giant jerk and killing the entire town full of people. The choice is entirely up to you and it will change how you finish the game. Compare what Samurai 3 is doing to a game like Red Faction, you'll see the difference between the design philosophies. On one hand, you are given free reign over your environment but the story stays on track throughout the entire game. On the other, one small act of aggression could send you down a path that will block off potential paths you might have achieved if you would have made different choices. This concept of making lasting choices is rarely explored in videogames and when something like this comes around and makes you second guess your actions before making a decision, it shows the power of video games as a story telling method.
You likely won't be satisfied the first time you play through Samurai 3. You'll think back to a choice you made and wonder if it would have made a large difference in your samurai's journey. Each time you play through the game, you keep your swords and save state so you can build on your rewards with each play through. The gameplay is nuanced so that something as simple as unsheathing your sword could trigger a different ending, so you need to pay attention to detail as you make the connections to your actions. You'll definitely play this game more than once, each time with a fresh pair of eyes and a renewed interest.
What's Not
The idea is ambitious. However, the scope is limited. The playthroughs don't last that long, and the section of Japan you reside in isn't that large. There are under 10 parts to the map you explore. In a short time, everything will start to feel familiar and people will be standing in the same spots, just like the movie Groundhog's Day. There is certainly a paradox with criticizing Samurai 3 in this way, because if you look at the game only as one playthrough as the entire experience, the game is going to feel way too short. Nevertheless, when you do play multiple times, the confined gaming area won't make you feel your actions and resulting consequences have much more weight outside of the a farming town.
The game looks dated and last-generation in addition to feeling confined. In an age where entire in-game cities never need a single loading point, Samurai 3 somehow manages to not feature any of that. You'll have you sit through loading screens for the handful of areas you travel, which gets annoying. The characters aren't that detailed and the scenery is fairly plain and unexciting.
Final Word
You have to really be in love with the central design concept Samurai 3 is built on to appreciate what this game is and isn't. If you aren't sold on having your choices carry with you for the rest of the game, this game is likely going to collect dust on your shelf. Samurai 3 should get a lot of credit for being different and standing out from the crowd, but there are some issues close to the heart of the game that you need to balance first. This is one of those hard games to recommend because everyone will have a different opinion based on their experience, which I'm sure the developers intended to some degree.
November 20, 2009
