"Warning, blade battlers! Game is overloaded with fun, action, and seriously FUNNY jokes!"

Before I begin the review, I'd like to point out that I do not read nor do I understand the Japanese language. Also, I have yet to play any other Bleach games out there. Yes, this is my first, and it proved to be exhilarating for an initial try.

Intro

So the game is like a versus style game, just like Tekken or Street Fighter. But of course if you own this game you would most probably have a very high interest in the anime as well. I have read that other Bleach games have English interfaces. I don't know why, but Blade Battlers don't supply English interface, at least not the main menu. You start the game; you come up to a title screen and move on. You'll be immersed almost immediately into a fully-Japanese menu, where, without trial and error or knowledge of reading Japanese, you would most probably be scratching your head or zooming very close to the TV screen. Now don't expect this game to be fully loaded with 3D action that expands 12 hours of gameplay (despite my over-exaggerating title). Don't. It is very simple and easily finished, especially if you play the game non-stop. However it is also very much addictive, and falling on the negative side, a one speedy short videogame that will surely cause your boredom to worsen... if overdosed.

Story/Gameplay

8/10

As mentioned, the game comes out almost all Japanese. For me, it was trail and error. Of course thanks to a handy dandy FAQ available in GameFAQs, you can always view the translated menu online. But since the game itself is rather less perplexed than it appears to be, I guess it would take one less than several tries before one can achieve a familiarized state with the menus. That is good news especially if you don't understand the language.

Moving on to the storyline. Well basically there is a story mode in the game. According to my personal observation, the villains stay as villains and heroes well... stay as heroes but they mix and match the fights and you must complete them. It is stand-alone, meaning it doesn't follow the anime or the manga. It is short, about 6 “episodes”. One episode varies in length, since it could contain from two fights to four fights in total. Some of them are quite humorous, and that wins the story rating overall!

As for the characters, they're really well animated. There are 23 (or so) characters available for players to pick, although you begin with 5 and unlock as you complete the mission mode. The main characters are available when you start, and if you wish to play with more characters, you can almost immediately start unlocking them by playing the missions. The story doesn't allow the player to pick their desired characters since well, it IS story mode after all.

The gameplay is okay. I find them quite simple and easy to master, and the button combinations are good for your controller's health. =) It doesn't have any tough combinations for you to memorize nor does it have an on-screen button combination where you perform in a timed manner. Nothing like that... Just simple combos for you where I find casual and lovable. Easy too... Many of the combinations are universal; they are used for almost all the characters, so there isn't a secret technique for a particular character in the game, although of course the special abilities vary from one character to another.

Every character have their weapons from the anime, and they can perform special moves. If a character is a Shinigami, then he or she wields that katana. And so he or she has “Ban-Kai”... so he and she can go into Ban-Kai mode. Just like Ichigo in his black, super-speedy outfit wielding the Tetsa Zangetsu... Exciting, I know... But just wait until you realize how bad his Ban-Kai is... Anyway, that's about it. You don't have to gain anything to do their abilities, they are fixed and you cannot gain anymore either. Now that's limiting. However it is best to keep it original.

The mission mode is divided into two; the “main” mission mode and another “special” mission mode.

The normal mission mode allows players to finish the mission with any available characters (with or without a support character) and they are rated based on time factor and several others. A mission may or may not contain extra lives, or any other supporting factors. A higher ranking means more marks; more marks means more playable characters. Do you now see the concept? In order to get the unavailable characters when you freshly start the game, you have to attain the overall mark the game has set for each characters (higher marks don't equal better characters though). These missions can support an ally, which means a second player can join in. So this is a great two-on-two co-op mode which you can enjoy with an awful brother or cousin or a cool sister, or maybe your mom... Yeah... that's that.

The other, the “special” mission mode is a little tough to explain, however I'll do my best. In this mode, the characters are fixed and it's a one-on-one battle, meaning neither a supporting CPU nor your mommy or daddy can join in. In this mission mode, you pick a selection (where two characters are already matched in a battle) and defeat your opponent. But you cannot simply defeat them; you need to finish them off with a special move (the cinematic attack I was talking about earlier). Fail to do so results in a game over... Well, that is why you must always save up your spirit energy... okay, I'll explain the battle menu now...

Your health is displayed on the top screen just like many other battle games. Underneath your life bar is a blue bar, the rietsu or spirit energy bar. This will play a major role in the game. You attack an enemy or receive damage, either one will cause the bar to rise. Maxing it out will allow you to use your special move, or activate “Ban-Kai” or any other associated power that is leveled with it. However your health must be lower than 50% or in the danger state to use this. Makes more sense to save the best for last, eh? In the middle is the clock, but many missions aren't timed, and they are as simple as beating your opponents, but be warned that some missions are not as simple as just that. So this is why the game is far too simple... Pretty much means that there isn't much exploring or unlocking to do... But wait, there's more.

The “Special” mission mode will unlock something extremely cool. Ever wondered how the characters would perform OTHER character's special moves or Ban-Kai? Finishing the fights in this mode unlocks the ability to swap the characters with their special abilities, whoever they face in the special mission mode. Say, Ichimaru gin versus Renji. If you beat the mission, you are able to switch the special abilities of Renji with Ichimaru, so the next time you perform a special move; Gin will bring out Zabimaru for you... Completely ridiculous and funny! Definitely something you don't wanna miss in the game.

Now, picture Kon holding Zangetsu... How would that look like? :p

Audio/Effects

9/10

I love the music, they're really good. Nothing serious or horror-like, but they hold suspense in certain parts of the game. But more importantly are the voices. The voice actors are the original anime casts, so expect them to be similar. The feeling is there, just like watching the anime when you perform hits or get beaten to the ground. They have audio expressions; plus you get to see their interviews and stuff. Pretty cool once you've unlocked them.

Graphics

6/10

Nothing too great about the graphics, but it wasn't a bother to me. But since I needed a rating, I guess 6 is a fair one. Basically they keep their anime look, and almost all their clothing are similar to the ones portrayed in the anime. They're quite average actually, but at the same time they're quite enjoyable. I still liked the style, but I cannot exaggerate on this one too much. One advice though; don't worry too much if you have doubts on the graphics. The gameplay far surpasses the urge to complain on the graphics, and it'll make up for its flaw. =)

Replayability

7/10

Now, now why would you go and play again? :p
To be honest, I've actually played the story mode twice, and yes it's a re-play. I've played the mission mode all over again in the toughest difficulty (well there are only two difficulties to begin with...) just to get S rankings for all the missions.

If you do that, you will unlock a feature that enables you to have infinite spirit energy! Easy as hell once you get this on. Also, the S ranking is only attainable in the hard difficulty, so if you've finished all the missions with an A, you might want to try them with better and tougher enemies and try to get an S for them. I'd say yes if you're still not bored with the game! =)

Overall

7/10

A good game, not very extensive in terms of length or bonuses, but seriously, this game will make you laugh! Even if you have no knowledge of what they speak of, seeing the videos in the Urahara shop will get you laughing in the middle of the night till your folks wake up! And believe me, once you see Kon's special attack, you'd definitely want to see the rest of the characters performing his move... in his shoes! So yes, get the game, even if you have to wait for your shipment!

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 02/20/07