Samurai Spirits: Zankuro Musouken

"a beautiful game, that Samurai Shodown fans will love"

Samurai Shodown III (import) for the Sega Saturn is a great game. If you are a fan of the series, This is a must have. The translation is near perfect. There are some small differences between the Saturn and arcade versions, but they are minor. Some animation is missing, and some of the sound effects don't come through all the time. Compared to the Neo Geo CDZ (the double speed version), the load time is slightly faster, but the nice pencil sketches and animations during loading have been cut out.

Sound
The sound quality is not as good as the Neo Geo CDZ version, but considerably better than the arcade. CD has a bonus ending song if you finish the game with Rimururu, and it also has the drama tracks that are on the Neo Geo CD version.

Graphics
This game has very smooth, hand drawn animation. The characters are very large, and have great, flashy, high-damage special moves.

Game play
The game play is the same as in the arcade, with some occasional slowdown. If you've never played the game before, the game has great control, and the matches are fast paced. The combo's are large and damaging (several infinite, and dizzy combos). Some people like this, and others don't. This is also the only game in the Samurai series that has air blocking.

Recommendations
If you're looking for something new in the Saturn version of the game, there isn't anything. There's no survival mode, or training mode. If you liked playing it in the arcade and got tired of it, don't think you'll find something new in this version. This is a great buy if you can find it packaged with Samurai Shodown 4. This is better game if you intend on playing against another person. The AI can become very dull to fight against.

If you have seen or played the Playstation version, give the game another chance on the Saturn. The Saturn version is _much_ better.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/99, Updated 09/03/02