Samurai Warriors 2 Empires

"A nice improvement..."

Samurai Warriors 2: Empires

Control Scheme – 9
The game controls are nice and well thought of. They're easy to memorize and flow nicely into the game play.

Game Play – 6.5
“Hack and Slash”, and “Hack and Slash”, and “Hack and Slash”. That's about it. Once in a while you get to use a little bit of strategy in combat, but not too much. As far as the strategy phase goes for the game, it's not bad. Koei has definitely improved on the “Empires” game play. Fans of the “Empires” will be glad to hear that. There are more actions to employ and they have more effect on combat then they use to. Also, they've added some surprise features that I won't spoil. Trust me, if you're a fan of the “Empires” you'll want this game.

Music – 9
The music goes along nicely with the game's theme. So if you're a fan of hard heavy music while playing games you'll want to use your own.

Sound – 7.5
The sound effects aren't bad. Unless you're really paying attention they go well with what's going on in the game. The voice acting is better then usual. The dialogue seems less “corny” and you actually feel more like you are in an actual war setting. Of course, once in a while you still here that annoying dialogue that never seems to make sense.

Graphics – 9
The graphics like in most Koei games is nothing short of beautiful. I have always loved the intense graphics in the DW and SW games and Koei has not failed to take full advantage of the 360's power.

Extras – 4.3
There's nothing too impressive about the custom character feature. Create your own character and conquer the lands. The archives aren't that awesome either. They keep track of all the stuff you've done and unlocked. The main reason for the low score though is not what they put in, but what they decided to leave out. The encyclopedia. In DW5: Empires they had an encyclopedia that explained the actual history of the characters and the battles the game was based on. Since it wasn't in this game I thought it should lose points for taking out an obviously good feature. Sorry Koei.

Overall – 7.6
Well that's it. SW2: Empires is a great game if you love “Hack and Slash” combined with a little bit of monopoly warfare. If you're a big Koei fan like me, then this game should be on your wish list. Otherwise, you might find yourself bored.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 09/11/07

Game Release: Samurai Warriors 2 Empires (US, 02/27/07)