Bleach: Shattered Blade

"A fighting game to dye for."

Bleach, a popular Manga and Anime series, follows the story of Ichigo, who is given powers by a Soul Reaper named Rukia. Shattered Blade takes place shortly after the Soul Society arc.

Gameplay:

You choose a character and start a fight against the Computer. Your Wii Remote is the sword. There's three main ways to attack, Horizontial Slash, Vertical Slash and Stab, done by doing the action with the remote. The accuracy of the slashs is remarkably good, since the remote uses motion senser compared to the sensor bar.

Each character has Special attacks which are done by holding B and doing a slash. Most of these move are long range. Characters also have a Bankai mode, which sends players into a dreamscape world where they are powered up and use their Bankai special abilities. Every character in Bankai mode has a finishing move, which depletes their Bankai bar but inflicts heavy damage.

There's Episode Mode, Versus Mode (1p vs 2p, 1p vs com, com vs com), and Arcade Mode, with more than 20 characters ready to unlock. In Arcade Mode you choose a character and go into 8 fights in a row and unlocks most of the characters. Arcade mode can be tedious though, especially if you are playing as a rubbish character.

Overall, the gameplay is very stable and unique. With lots of hidden move and unlimited tactics to discover.

9/10

Graphics:

The Graphics are high standard, with excellent detail on the character's clothing and abilites, everything runs smoothly with no glicthes. However, there are no motion cutscenes and mouths don't move in time with the words.

8/10

Sound:

Bleach: Shattered Blade does well in the Sound department. Voiceover's are provided every time a character speaks, the audio has the fast rock pacing with makes the action feel more alive, and you can also buy the sounds and audio in the game at the shop.

8/10

Replayability:

It's a fighting game, so of course there's going to be quite a bit of extra play if you have friends to fight with. In terms off Single Player, the Storyline can be done in about 2 or 3 days, but if you want to unlock all the characters, Arcade mode is going to take up a lot off your time.

7/10

Gameplay: 9/10
Graphics: 8/10
Sound: 8/10
Replayability: 7/10

Overall, Bleach: Shattered Blade is an over avarage game, and a must have for all fans off the series. 99% of the time, the controls work and respond well, and the inclusion of a KON Vs Robot Orihime (Future Form) just makes this game feel polished.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 03/21/08

Game Release: Bleach: Shattered Blade (EU, 02/29/08)