Bushido Blade 2

"One mistake and it could mean your life!!"

INTRO

I played Bushido Blade on a demo and it sucked so hard that I immediately trashed it. Then came along the sequel. I have never played the original Bushido Blade game, but I never really payed much attention when I saw the commercial fo Bushido Blade 2. I thought it would suck, but one night with a rent 1 and get one free coupon (what a lifesaver) at Blockbuster I decided to give Square a chance. Finally, when I went home I inserted the CD in my Playstation to see a nicely done intro FMV. I pressed start and then I played story mode. When I saw only 6 characters accessible I got pissed off very fast, but then I just played to see how it is. I liked it pretty good, then I continued to play it. This game goes to show you that Square isn't THAT bad of a company for fighting games. This is probably the only Square fighting game that I like. Anyway, Bushido Blade 2 was made in late October of 1998 and was developed and created by Squaresoft. I think this was a success for Square, but why did most of all their other games suck so bad? (I live in US so I haven't played Tobal 2). This game is rated T for Teen because of the violence and the blood. There is blood but I will talk about that later. Bushido Blade has it's ups and down which I will explain thoroughly next.

STORY: (10/10)

The story is very good. The story features two families from Japan feuding. This is very like a Bruce Lee type movie but with swords. Most of the Japanese stuff has families that feud with each other in movies and that's probably where Square started off. Anyway here is the story. For many years two families have been battling. The hatred between the two families is amazing and the war is still not over. The two families are the Narukagami and the Shainto. The war isn't over until every member of the other family is dead. The heart of the Narukagami is a very special sword (which the name I forgot, silly me) which lies in their throne as the Shainto is after that. The families consist of many members and they are the finest swordsman in all Japan. This is sure a great war which the winner is still undecided. Both sides are extremely fierce and have very good technique. There is no underdog or topdog. The war will only be won by bloodshed. Ack! I think I just described that thing horribly. Oh well, that's how I see it as. Basically, it's just a longtime feud which is about to end and the winner is you! You choose who wins the war. The story is original and very nice.

GAMEPLAY: (8/10)

As I said in my synopsis ''one mistake could mean your life'' is exactly how BB2 is. If you swing and miss and have your head unguarded you can say farewell to your life. Before I continue, to you people who haven't played Bushido Blade this is a realistic fighting game meaning one slice is all it takes to lose and win. There is no life meter or anything like that. It's just a one on one battle. There is a few selection of weapons to choose from, but each character does better with a certain weapon. You can choose your weapons before you fight. There are two different types of weapons; sword and spear. Well that being said this is all for story mode where you can get secret characters who offer to fight for you temporarily during the story and you cannot die with them if you want them to be accessible in the game. There are a lot of modes to play other than story mode such as VS mode, team attack mode, training and more. The fighting in the game is kind of fun but it can get irritating at times. Since you can die in one hit you truly need to be some kind of samurai master. To win in Bushido Blade 2 you need quickness and technique. If you can parry or block some shots by your enemy then that's good enough to beat the game. Even though I am describing this game like it's really hard it isn't. It probably would be if there wasn't unlimited continues. The bosses in the game (there's only 2 in the game and you only fight 1 depending on what family you choose) are really hard. But, with unlimited continues it isn't hard to beat the game. Anyway, the cool and unique thing about this game is when you fight, you can also change your stance. There are 3 different stances and each stance is different for each weapon. The common stances re used to block a part of your body. One stance can be blocking your head, but not you body. One can be blocking your body, but not your head and one can be neutral (guarding for both). There are moves in the game, but they aren't really publicized in the game. If you want to find out the moves that people in the game have, you'll probably have to use a FAQ or some type of cheat. Well, now I'll describe the modes I listed. VS. mode of course is one on one competition which is very fun for some reason in this game. Training mode has the character you chose with a kendo stick and a straw dummy. Here you can practice moves. Another thing you can do in battle is throw things. You can throw a knife , a ninja star, or whatever but it depends on who is your character. There is a total of about 20 or more characters in the game. Well, that's basically the game and it is very very fun. I gave it an 8 because I feel that this realistic type fighting is fun, but not as fun as other fighting games.

CONTROLS: (8/10)

Well every fighting game has to have good controls right? That 'theory' is the same for Bushido Blade 2. The controls are pretty good. The controls are easy to learn, but there are some hard parts. There are some special techniques for some characters; like moves or special attacks and it's hard to do. Running isn't too good either and it took me a very long time to learn how to jump high and to throw items. Every button is used in Bushido Blade 2 and it can get very hard when trying to do a certain thing because there are so many things to do. I'm surprised they got everything in the game compatible with the PSX controllers. Anyway the characters are very responsive and the movement is prefect. The problem with having so many things that you can do in this game is that since there is not enough for each button, some moves require 2 buttons to be pressed at once. I didn;t have a big problem with the controls when playing this. The controls are easy and that's all you need to have a good fighting game. Overall, good controls.

MUSIC/SOUND: (7/10)

Where's the music? The only bad thing about this game is that there is no music during battle. It's not a big deal because Bushido Blade 2 is very realistic. The music that you can hear is very good, clear and has a nice beat. The sounds are excellent. When your weapon slices through your opponent, they let out a shriek of pain and you hear a loud slice. It's very realistic and this factor is a definite high point for Bushido Blade 2. I think that it is good how the music and sound FX are very accurate. When there is music, it sounds like some older time japanese music and the sounds are jsut great. When you run, throw something, slice, jump, fall, you name it, you can hear it. The main reason why I gave a 7 to this category is for a couple of reasons. First, I didn't like how all the battles were quiet. The only thing that can be heard during a battle is the sounds which are excellent. I liked the music that was available. It has good quality of music and it's very clear. Overall, no music, but excellent sounds.

GRAPHICS: (9/10)

I liked the graphics in Bushido Blade 2. Everything looks great. The graphics are in 3D and this changes the way the game is. The characters in the game look good and very detailed. Since this time zone is very far back most of the people look like how they would in Japan back then (I wouldn't know). The backgrounds in this game are also very good. The vast territory where the battles are detailed and somewhat dull. The same design is done through the whole level. For example, in the woods all there is a bunch of trees, in the dojo there is nothing but wood. More things should've been in the levels, but I guess that may be a good thing that it's not because there wouldn't be a lot of open ground. Everything in the game has a nice dark coloring within the game describing the mood and the tension between the two families. Everything in the game looks really good from the weapons to the shoes on the characters feet (if they had any). Overall, a definite + for the game.

CHALLENGE: (4/10)

I don't really think this is much of a hard game in terms of beating it. With the unlimited continues, it makes the game too easy. Although the Narukagami and the Shainto bosses are really hard, it doesn't matter because you have unlimited tries to beat them. The only thing that I felt was challenging during the game was when you have a different character so you can get them playable. This caused me to be very nervous while playing. Overall, the challenge is pretty easy.

REPLAY: (10/10)

A very good thing about Bushido Blade 2 is that it has a very high replay value. Trying to get all the characters in the game can be pretty hard and may take awhile so this is a definite replay if you want to beat the game. Using all the characters and mastering them and becoming a master in the art of bushido may take a lot of replaying. As in most every other fighting game, the main reason why this replay value is so high is because it is much funner with 2 players. I've gone 60 rounds with a friend before. It's so easy and quick to play this game that you can fight in 30 rounds in 5 - 7 minutes. Overall, the replay value is at its highest point.

OVERALL: (9/10)

Bushido Blade 2 is a great fighting game that is very fun and innovative. I think this game is atleast a rent, but could also be a buy because it's probably $20 at all stores now. This game could get you hooked and if you play it you might not want to leave. For a Square fighting game the only thing I can say is good job, but they fail too much for me to believe that they are very good at making fighting games. Well, that's all I have to say about Bushido Blade 2 and I'd recommend a rent. Thanks for reading and have a nice day!

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/06/00, Updated 07/06/00