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The legendary Last Ninja series prompted a wave of Ninja game, with everything from Ninja scooters to Ninja rabbits! But now, from the men behind Last Ninja, comes a new brand of martial arts hero. Phil "Sumo Samurai" King wonders if this will stimulate a surge of 'Samurai Squirrels' games!

The plot of First Samurai rings a bell... with yet another Ancient Japanese hero warping into the future to tackle a demonic villain. This time, though, there's not a Ninja in sight as the purple-trousered hero swings his Samurai sword into action.

He wasn't always so violent. Why, once he was a lowly tax inspector's assistant in an Ancient Japanese village. However, when his master was brutally murdered by the Demon King, he vowed revenge. But how could he achieve this when the Demon King had transported far into the future? The young Samurai needed magical help, and he got it in the form of the powerful village Wizard who sent him forward in time to catch the dastardly Demon.

Warping into a magic pod (with an impressive swirling-spirit animation), the hero finds himself in some beautiful Japanese countryside - still very familiar, even though it's now the year 2323 AD. However, the Demon's presence is evident in the many mutated creatures which swarm around the Samurai, draining his physical energy on contact. At first, he's unarmed and uses a number of karate moves to kill the baddies.

By then collecting their floating spirits, the hero's magical energy is increased. When this is half full, he receives a magic sword - brilliantly animated with blur lines to give an impression of speed and fluidity. As well as despatching baddies, it can be used to 'dig' through destructible walls in the landscape. Another function of the sword is that it saves the Samurai's life when he loses all physical energy - instead some magical energy is transferred to physical and the sword is lost.

As well as performing superbly animated combat moves the hero crouches, jumps and climbs walls while exploring the caverns of the multi-directionally scrolling first level. Like the others that follow it, this is truly vast - reminiscent of Turrican, as is the quality of the graphics. Amazingly, programmer Jon Williams has managed to duplicate the Amiga version's massive map.

Thankfully throughout there are more magic pods to charge with magical energy to create a new restart point (if you die, this is where you start your next life from). Potions can also be found to return you to the last restart, saving a lot of backtracking while exploring. Teleporters also come in useful.

The landscape must be meticulously explored to find magic chests, hacked open to reveal weapons (axes, daggers and a homing seeker) or special objects including a lamp (allowing you to see otherwise invisible chests) and a magic belt. The latter can be rung to summon the Wizard to help you bypass a large hazard such as a lava-spitting volcano - the Wizard's face appearing as a hint after the location's been visited several times.

The Wizard must also be summoned to allow the hero past the end-of-level hazard - after first collecting the necessary number of relevant objects. For example, on Level 1, logs must be collected to build a bridge across a ravine. This super-hazard is followed by a the obligatory super-baddie, ranging from a fire-spitting dragon to mutant slime to a huge mechanical piston!

Considering the size of the first four countryside levels, it's absolutely astounding that they're all contained in one load! The next load has only one level, but it's set on a moving train with blurred scenery flashing past. Martial artists must be dealt with while climbing up walls, over the roof and kicking in the odd door or ceiling. Finally, you get to beat up the driver!

The third load comprises three levels set in the city, ranging from plush modern offices to derelict buildings and sewers. The fourth and final load has two levels: riding lifts to reach the top of the Demon's skyscraper and a final stunning showdown with the evil King himself - he's scary!

The sheer scale of the game is beyond belief, but if you find the prospect of ten huge levels daunting, the good news is you don't go right back to the start when dead - you simply restart the load you're on.

As with Last Ninja, the action's far from mindless combat. Real skill is needed to control the athletic hero's many moves, exploration (and mapping) forms a large part of the game, and of course there's the puzzle element of knowing what objects to use where and when to recharge pods and use potions.

First Samurai is a truly epic adventure that should keep you playing for weeks on end. This could well be the Turrican of 1992!

I must admit to thinking "Oh lordy, not another bloody Ninja game" as the disk drive whirred industriously to itself while loading First Samurai. But I was forced to eat my words very quickly (washed down with a nice bottle of red wine - hic!) 'coz the game's bleeding brilliant. Though this isn't surprising since it was designed by Vivid Image, whose previous offerings include Hammerfist, Time Machine and Last Ninja I and II!

The Samurai is an amazingly agile little chap. At first he's only able to punch and kick, but once his mystic blade is summoned (from where I dread to think) plenty of slicing and dicing fun ensues. The animation on the sword especially impressed me, the way our lad swings his unfeasibly large weapon around makes your eyes water (just you dare put anything here Phil). Each level is huge, a veritable cartographer's dream, and all of you who think that First Samurai is just another beat-'em-up are wrong. There are plenty of puzzles to exercise the old grey cells, and a plethora of collectable items to utilise. I'm just off to find my espadrilles and Samurai sword to join in the fun. Banzai, dudes!

Presentation 95%
Clever multi-load system has up to four levels per load, and you can restart on the same load when dead.

Graphics 96%
The Samurai is superbly animated as he runs, jumps and climbs around the gorgeous multi-directionally scrolling scenery. The sword animation is stunning.

Sound 89%
Atmospheric Oriental title tune and impressive FX.

Hookability 94%
Instantly playable swashbuckling action.

Lastability 97%
Ten vast levels to explore and plenty of puzzles to solve. You'll be burning the midnight oil with this one!

Overall 95%
An Oriental stunner.