Previous Next

Do not despise the snake for having no horns - for who is to say it will not become a dragon?

Bell bottoms, a funny top-knot hairdo and a big sword. What could possibly go wrong for the guy who has everything? Hell's bells. What's this? Some tricky bligher known only as The Demon King disembowels his master (Lord Akira, anime apocalypse fans) before his tear-filled eyes! First Samurai is understandably upset. Time for the chap with the dodgy hair to wield his weapon.

Prepare to enter the world of First Samurai. A world of magic. A world of revenge. A world of passion. A world of multi-directional scrolling. Guide the 16th centurn Samurai through oriental gardens, forbidden dungeons and across a hazardous cityscape to mortal confrontation with The Demon King.

Hack 'n slash your way through a multitude of baddies (you know when you've hit 'em - they flash white, and the same goes for your Samurai bloke) with a blade crafted and fashioned in finest steel and tempered in the burning heart of a young warrior whose master has just been chopped up by a bad bloke. The weapon's magical properties are revealed when it flashes from the sky and manifests itself at your feet early in the first level (oh, sory, it appears when you collect enough Mystical Energy - well, that sounds magic enough to me).

In platform power-up tradition, the sword disappears when you lose a life. Okay then, kick (there's a rather attractive flying kick, and a natty judo-esque leg sweep), punch and multiple-knife-throw your way through said multitude. Who needs a magic sword anyway?

Special semi-concealed areas tempt the impressionable Samurai from his mission. Douse fires or break down walls for access. These may well be dead-ends in terms of finishing levels but they're invaluable stockpiles of power-ups and food.

Zool-esque climbing plays its part. An ambitious high jumping kick results in a drop down a cavern or an apparently insurmountable object blocks the Samurai's path. Other lesser games heroes might, by dictate from their design, resort to jumping thrice their own height, but First Samurai climbs like a real bloke. A real bloke with Schwarzenegger forearms, maybe, but a real bloke nonetheless.

The second to tenth levels include some rather delicious maze sections - it's not the usual recipe of "generally head up and right". Each section is an innovative dish lovingly blended from staple ingredients - wholesome adversaries for roughage, power-ups to ensure your protein intake's healthy, the merest soupcon of finely chopped puzzle to spice things up, and a different colour sky to keep the nouvelle cuisine department happy. Tasty.

Hang on just one goddam minute. Hack 'n slash across platforms? Ferret out a demonic boss to avenge a loved one's demise? Hmm, this hardly sounds new and exciting! Okay, we'll come clean. The game's not exactly new, and the format certainly isn't. But, while First Samurai is formulaic (like Gods and Switchblade 2) and, it must be argued, understandable and accessible, it is by no means average. First Samurai's first release was a breath of fresh scrolling-platform air, and now on budget, while hardly innovatve, it still merits a plce in the higher echelons of ST combative adventures. Why? Because the whole game works.

Another pleasing dimension to First Samurai is the time travel element. It all stems from that tricky blighter at the offset, The Demon King. Having offed the Samurai's master, the aforementioned Mr Akira, (while yer lily-livered pony-tailed Samurai geezer was doubtless either too gobsmacked or too yellow-bellied to join in the fight) The Demon King disappears to guess where? The future, damn his eyes! First Samurai then takes a crash course in magic from the Wizard Mage and, amongst other things he learns the rudiments of transporation. In return for his not inconsiderable troubles, Mage requires the young Samurai to collect certain "special items" and doubtless deliver them to him in a plain manila envelope.

The transportation isn't as simple as sci-fi would have us believe. None of this "Beam me up, Scotty" nonsense. No, no. You must find the appropriate potion (typically hidden behind walls that need a good kicking or guarded by scary-looking bosses. Find the little bottles, crouch down to pick them up, and you'll be magically whisked away. But where?

Ah, yes, Reincarnation Pots. They'll be those little earthenware receptacles that glow with static charge. They're dotted around the landscape and spaced well enough to be useful.

The Reincarnation Pots serve as standard restart points, for example, lose a life, and Sammy the Samurai reappears at the pot (with a pleasing, but somehow familiar sound effect). They also serve as a base for transportation. Each pot must be charged up by the mystical energy that Sammy generates during play. As that energy is limited, only one can be active at any one time, which adds a strategic element to planning your transportation antics. See? It's a cut above standard.

Erm, take a look at the screenshots. Good, aren't they? Oh, what you mean is: "How does it look in motion?" Well, for goodness sake, dig a tenner out of your wallet, or raid the five pence jar or whatever and load up your own disks, don't just leer at our screenshots. Bugger off. Get your own! At this price, you're a fool to yourself if you don't yourself bag a copy.

The background graphics are top class, the scrolling works without a hitch or a glitch and the animation's very good, it a little jerky. Then again it doesn't move incredibly quickly so overall it feels as playable as you'd want it to be. For a tenner, anyway.

Armed and unarmed combat are both a thrill, and when your energy's low enough to rob you of your sword and throwing-daggers (there are plenty lying around - simply help yourself to them) Sammy's karate skills are a treat. The reverse kick feels really good. It's a special move reminiscent of Matthew Le Tissier's edge-of-the-box flick that set him up for his goal-of-the-season contender. That goal came third in the goal-of-the-season competition, by the way, but then did you see Rod Wallace's winner? Stunna! Sammy the Samurai would do for the J-League what Eric Cantona's done for the English Premiership. But anyway...

The music's suitable for the game. It's quite alright for a while but gets a little repetitious. The sound samples are crisp and clear, and once again fitting to the feel of First Samurai, especially the return-to-Reincarnation-Pot effect.

Use the Personalised Access Code on disk two to store your game at any completed level. The clever little thing remembers how many of your five lives you've got left, along with health status and number of bonuses earned. Now run along and put the kettle on. Oh, you're not that clever are you? First Samurai is a big game, and, unless you've got very little to do with your life, don't expect to finish the whole thing in one sitting. Use the save game facility, and come back to the levels, the baddies, the swashbucklingly romantic top-knot, and the special pants at your leisure.

First Samurai doesn't do anything incredibly out of the ordinary, but what it does, it does very well, and is a joy to play. Healthy double-helpings of gameplay, a bread-and-butter tear-jerker storyline, a neatly garnished side-salad of graphics and one of the most special pairs of pants ever to grace the ST add up to a thoroughly digestible game. Buy it. Now!

1. Classic arcade gameplay.
2. Easy graphics and workable animation.
3. Charm.
4. Special pants.

1. Another slash 'n hack platformer?