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PS2 | Action | Genji: Dawn of the Samurai

Boxart for Genji: Dawn of the Samurai
Genji: Dawn of the Samurai 6 screen shots
  • GRAPHICS: 4.5
  • SOUND: 5.0
  • CONTROL: 4.0
  • FUN FACTOR 4.5
  • AVG USER SCORE 4.7
  • AVG CRITIC SCORE 3.6
Winner of the GamePro Editor's Choice Award

Review: Genji: Dawn of the Samurai

Review by The Man in Black | 09/21/2005 | 19:32:06 PM PST

Dawn of the Samurai engages you in a compelling tale of honor with swordplay that won't break your fingers.

Genji: Dawn of the Samurai is one of the finest Capcom-style, Onimusha clones ever made--but it's from Sony. Game Republic in Japan is the developer and not surprisingly the company's headed by designers from the Onimusha teams. That being said Genji starts out like a finely-crafted Japanese sword in a beautiful scabbard. Then the more you gradually draw it out, the sharper it gets. This game's intoxicating hack and slash gameplay starts out simply then confronts you with deep, fantasy-based action.

A Clean Cut Samurai
Dawn of the Samurai's presentation--graphics and sound--is near flawless. The visual design paints crystal clear imagery of old Japan, and both the environments and the characters combine to make you feel like you're witnessing some gorgeous samurai anime. Gameplay animations tread across more familiar-looking technique, but you have to admire the attention to the aesthetic just the same.

The sounds are superb. Sony made an excellent move by retaining the original Japanese voices with English subtitles. You are also treated to moving music by Japanese flute and drum.

You start the game as the young hero Yoshitsune, leader of the Genji clan. Your mission is to restore the power and honor that has been usurped by the evil Heishi group. The game progresses in linear fashion through the levels, and along the way you meet up with a battle cohort, Benkei, who becomes a playable character, too.

Practice Made Perfect
Genji's gameplay breaks no new ground, and it casts no doubt that it's a classic button-jammer. You basically work the Square and X buttons with R1 playing defense, but the controls demonstrate a refined gameplan that builds in complexity just perfectly. In fact, you start out thinking you're going to easily cut a swath through the game, but then the numbers of Heishi troops and demons grow into gang-like proportions and the bosses warriors and creatures start to get downright nasty.

The most interesting gameplay feature is Kamui power. This is a sort of katana "bullet-time" effect that you can build up in order to unleash devastating and beautiful looking sword technique. Even though Kamui is a matter of just timing Square button presses as prompted by the game, you're not going to nail them all without practice.

Classic Story-telling
Genji's appeal for hardcore and newbies alike is that it's an excellently crafted example of the good 'ole slice and dicer with just enough challenge to keep things interesting. Oddly, it's M-rated for its fountainous blood sprays (like you'd see in any film), even though it in no way approaches the sheer brutality or sexuality of Sony's similarly tagged God of War. Genji: Dawn of the Samurai is an adventure to be savored like a great samurai film that captivates you from beginning to end.