Samurai Warriors 4-II

Samurai Warriors 4-II for PC, PS4 and etc. is an upgraded edition of a third-person slasher called Samurai Warriors 4 (in Japan, it was released in the Spring of 2014), which was released for the tenth anniversary of the franchise. The game (as well as the entire series) was developed by Omega Force – an experienced Japanese team popular for such franchises as Dynasty Warriors or Warriors Orochi (of similar genre). Originally, the game came out for the same platforms the standard edition was released for, but contrary to its direct predecessor, it ultimately came out also for the PC.

Plot

Traditionally, the game is set in Feudal Japan and it presents the events leading to the country's unification. The game maintains the historic fidelity of that period, which is one of the distinguishing features of the franchise. However, the story present is noticeably different from the one from the pervious game, as, instead of taking a holistic approach to the era, it focuses mainly on individual storylines of the game's characters. The player gets acquainted with those storylines nearly at random, depending on what character the player has chosen to play as (there are dozens of them available). This edition adds Naomasa Li to the list of playable characters, who was not featured in Samurai Warriors 4. In similarity to the standard version of the franchise's fourth installment, the creators included an editor, which allows the player to create a unique character.

Mechanics

Mechanics-wise, Samurai Warriors 4-II for PC, PS4 and etc. does not depart beyond the standards of the franchise, so the game is a conventional slasher played from the third-person perspective. The experience focuses on participating in subsequent encounters – from small skirmishes against several enemies, to epic, large-scale battles. Similarly to the standard edition, the player can choose two characters for each level and switch between them at any time.

Samurai Warriors 4-II nonetheless brings a lot of smaller (though relevant to gameplay) changes and modifications. Above all, the game introduces a remodeled character development system, which brings a series of different weapons with individual stats, as well as abilities that improve the power of one's character. Also, an opportunity to combine weapons together appeared, which allows to create substantially more powerful versions. The experience was complemented by a larger number of strategic elements – those have enriched the dynamic nature of gameplay with tactical aspects.

Game modes

The game offers two main modes, and contrary to Samurai Warriors 4, it does not feature the Chronicles mode, which was patterned on the Mercenary mode from Samurai Warriors Chronicles. In the story mode, the player is acquainted with 13 new scenarios connected to particular characters. The scenarios were divided into chapters – each features 5 locations. The second mode, that is, Endless Castle, constitutes a mixture of the Survival and the Challenge modes from previous installments of the series. The first of these modes requires the player to eliminate subsequent enemy waves and to climb to subsequent floors of the castle, where increasingly difficult challenges are waiting. The Challenge variant offers the player four types of challenges, including the Chamber of Trials, Chamber of Riches, Chamber of Agility, and Chamber of Death. The goals in each one are slightly different, and they all require application of different tactics.

Those who prefer a multiplayer experience can play both the aforementioned modes in cooperation, either via the Internet or on a single device.

Technical aspects

Samurai Warriors 4-II for PC, PS4 and etc. is definitely the best-looking game in the series. However, because Samurai Warriors is a typically console franchise, and since many characters fight one another simultaneously on the screen, the game still does not fully make use of the capabilities of modern-day gaming systems, such as PCs or the PlayStation 4 consoles.

Last updated on 14 September 2015