Genji: Days of the Blade

"Could have been so much more."

Well, by now everyone who knows anything about gaming has heard about Genji for the Playstation 3, though they probably don't know exactly what game it is. From the famed botched E3 showing which introduced us to "Giant Enemy Crabs", "Real Time Weapon Change", and "Attack the weak point for Massive Damage" comes this title. With the entire internet community getting its kicks and laughs at this games expense, did it come around and shut up everyone? Well..sort of.

Graphics: 8/10
The game is very stunning visually. There's no real gripe here. The PS3 shows its power with the characters each looking very detailed, each enemy looking just as much, and the backgrounds all looking, well, pretty good. The only thing that could have been done better is once I popped this game in for the first time and saw the first building and the entire look of inside it, it looked just like Ninja Gaiden and Onimusha. Granted, this looks better than those games did, it almost looks as though this exact backdrop has been recycled for a long list of games. However, besides that and feeling a huge sense of deja-vu, I must say this game was a lot better looking graphics wise than I expected. Pleasant surprise.

Gameplay: 4/10
Oh boy, this is where this game just falls flat on its face. By now if you have looked at other previews and reviews you know about the camera issues. If you don't, I'll summarize it. Basically, you'll get a good camera shot to see the very beautiful background, that's good, right? I mean you get to see all the minor details around you. However, unless you keep a close eye on your map, you'll never know enemies are all around you until its too late. The camera just is a total botch and the only word I can think to describe it is that it is depressing. The fighting isn't awful, it plays a lot like a Dynasty Warriors game. It's basically a hack and slash with a few different characters to mix things up and some different weapons that make things a bit more interesting. However, the game feels a bit sluggish. This is especially true for the character Benkei. I know, I know, he's suppose to be the super strong type that causes a ton of damage at the expense of as slow as a sloth. However, the sluggishness crosses a point when you start facing enemies with spears or the upgraded enemies with the purple stone things (I don't know the exact name) who are all ready to rip you apart. This isn't only true for Benkei, for the other characters you don't really feel that speed or "rush" like you're playing a faced paced action game. It almost feels like you move to one area, kill everything so that the purple fence disappears, move onto the next one. Throw in a few less than appealing boss fights and a camera that would rather show you the sky than your actual character and here you go.

I don't want this to come off as though I'm bashing Genji for not being Dynasty Warriors or trying to be something else. The game is not awful by any means, it is playable and can be enjoyable with the special attacks and different characters giving you a somewhat refreshing experience. However, after an hour or two it almost feels as though it's a chore and just feels like it's a grind just to keep going on. If you can get past the beginning and look past the camera issues, you can enjoy Genji: Days of the Blade. But if you can't, like most people, just wait for something else to come along to allow you to fill your hack and slash needs.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 12/05/06