Kengo 3
Developer: Light Weight
Publisher: Genki
Released On: 09/22/04
You watched your father killed in a duel when you were just a boy. Now that you have become a samurai yourself, you must decide whether you'll take the path of blood and profit, or seek a more honorable life. Either road will be challenged by the kengo, thirty three legendary samurai of Japan. Slay them and make yourself a part of history.
A sword is a deadly weapon. A single stroke can result in a crippling wound, or even death. Kengo 3 provides you with a single attack button to lash out at your enemies, but also the options to block, evade, or counter-attack to be sure that with enough skill you can emerge from any battle unscathed. Though with the ability to equip three styles (out of the insane amount that can be earned in duels) and the varieties of sword-drawing blows and counters there's some diversity in your strikes, but not quite enough to make up for the game's other shortcomings.
Variety and focus is where Kengo 3 comes up lacking. Each of the kengo have their own storylines and accompanying cut-scenes, but it isn't always obvious what you need to do to trigger them, especially when towns are nothing more than menus, each with nearly identical locations. Without that you're left with the missions, which normally boil down to one hit killing a group of enemies, or a series of duels. It's a shame because the fighting system has considerable depth to offer, and it's a neat feature to dress your samurai how you want, with everything from ninja jammies to devil masks. Pity the menu interface for everything is so cumbersome, especially for previewing and choosing your sword styles.
Outside of the main game, there's also versus and challenge modes, the former playable against the CPU or a flesh and blood opponent, and both letting you step into the kimonos of Japan's most legendary fighters. The fighting engine really shines with a live enemy when spending most of the time blocking is no longer such a safe defense. Just don't expect the sword wielding equivalent of Virtua Fighter 4.
If you're eager to create your own legendary sword master and don't mind the occasional tedium involved in getting there, then Kengo 3 is your game. If you're looking for a fast action slash fest with a deep storyline, however, just keep wandering.
Namco x Capcom
Developer: Monolith Soft
Publisher: Namco
Released On: 05/26/05
It's sad when being a fan of something usually means being taken advantage of.
Companies shovel out TV show or anime tie-in games half finished and low budget because they know the faithful don't have any other choice but to pay up. Either that or bang out sequel after sequel of a popular series until it becomes so diluted that the game makers have forgotten what made the first great. Though the absolute worst is being a fan of a series that was cut off in the prime of life, and have to survive on table scraps in the form of guest appearances in other games. I bought Namco X Capcom because I'm a fan of Darkstalkers and Rival Schools, and in the end I would have gotten more "gameplay" from an art book.
Hand the wildly popular (in Japan at least) Super Robot Wars series, along with the fighting engine of the Tales series, to a developer who didn't bother to play either, and you might get something like NxC. It's not so much a game as a high-priced fan disc because there really isn't all that much for the player to do. You can't choose what characters you get for any particular fight. You can't upgrade their stats or customize them outside of one lousy piece of equipment and a few one use items that you'll rarely need. You can't effect the flow of the story in any possible way. And it's actually hard to lose a battle since your forces are so much stronger than the enemy.
The combat system is an insult to any 2D fighter fan, making the original Street Fighter look like... well, Street Fighter 3. You can use five normal attacks and one special against an enemy, not counting team ups, but whatever attack you use doesn't really matter beyond a different sprite showing on the screen. Sure, some will do more damage against certain enemies, but your team will be too powerful to matter. And these no-fun battles drag on and on with enemies and allies appearing all over the map, leaving you the tedious chore of lurching your cumbersome forces to the new hot spot.
The portrait art of the game is lovely. That's about the only good thing I can say about it.
