Product InformationSet three years after the last chapter of Genkuro Yoshitsune's life Genji:Days of the Blade continues to expand on the historical accounts of feudalJapan. Days of the Blade unveils beautiful next generation visuals andsword slashing gameplay as an exclusively developed title for the Playstation 3.Game StorylineThree years have passed since the young swordsman Yoshitsune Minamoto and hiswarrior-monk companion Benkei Musashibo defeated the Heishi Clan and theirleader in a brutal battle over the possession of "Hinaishi"-- divinejewels that bring their owners godlike powers. With that success it had finallyseemed that peace however temporary had arrived.During this time Yoritomo Minamoto Yoshitsune's older brother and leader ofthe Genji clan tracked the remnants of the Heishi to the South of Japan wherehe and his army were preparing to eliminate their weakened numbers.However rumors begun to spread of new ungodly creatures appearing withinthe Heishi ranks and their evil force re-strengthening even without the use ofthe Hinaishi.Now with the aid of his closest friends and some unlikely allies Yoshitsunemust once again wield his fierce blades and summon the powers of the Hinaishi inand epic battle to save all of Japan.Product Features Twice as many missions as the original - Twice the amount of gameplay (over 15 hours total) Rich storyline influenced on historical Japanese events - 3 years after Genji - Dawn of the Samurai 4 playable characters interchangeable at any time producing devastating team-based fighting combos Over hundreds of on-screen enemies and incredible fighting sequences on horseback
Features:
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Twice as many missions as the original - Twice the amount of gameplay (over 15 hours total)
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Rich storyline influenced on historical Japanese events - 3 years after Genji - Dawn of the Samurai
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4 playable characters interchangeable at any time, producing devastating team-based fighting combos
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Over hundreds of on-screen enemies and incredible fighting sequences on horseback
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42 of 51 found the following review helpful:
Great Graphics, Great Gameplay, Giant Enemy CrabsNov 18, 2006
By Lisa Shea
"medieval swordfighting enthusiast"
Genji Days of the Blade is probably most notorious for its silly E3 demonstration. The speaker talked about how it portrayed authentic feudal Japanese battles - involving Giant Enemy Crabs :) He also talked about novel concepts such as "attacking its weak point for maximum damage" and how you could do (gasp) REAL TIME weapons change in the game. This last item actually looks very silly - you could be swinging one sword, hit a button and MID SWING the sword changes into a new weapon.
In general, this is a fighting game set in PRE feudal Japan, i.e. 1187. I ran a Feudal Japan newsletter for many years, and feudal Japan was the 1500s, the days of Oda Nobunaga and the wars then. Back in 1187, there was a quite different government setup. If you're curious about this time period, read The Tale of Genji sometime by Lady Murasaki - this is acclaimed by many as the first novel ever written. It was written back in the 11th century! It's a great read even today, which is quite an achievement.
So back to the gameplay. You play a young two-sword warrior and have as your pals an older warrior, a female warrior and a war-god turned spellcasting warrior :) You fight through various Japanese landscapes and settings, taking on the Bad Guys. You have your combat techniques and magical powers to help you triumph.
The graphics are very impressive. In the cut scenes, you can see the fabric weaves on the layers of kimono, the metallic sparkle in the lacquerware, the rippling heat waves by the fire. During gameplay the character movements were fluid and natural. Fabric pieces would sway and tiny, glistening sparks would float on the air. Some scenes were really quite lovely in a painting sort of way.
Gameplay itself involves slicing with swords, chaining up attacks and blocking. There are, a la the Giant Enemy Crab, situations where you have to Attack the Weak Point for Maximum Damage. I didn't like the HUD of the map in the top left - it took up too much space and looked "silly" in almost a PacMan kind of way. The top left HUD of characters and health was much better done, less intrusive.
For sound, I love Japanese culture and really enjoyed the traditional music that played in the background in many scenes. For me it really helped immerse the game in an authentic setting. Many of the characters speaking are obviously Japanese and hearing that accent and proper pronunciation of historic names was great. Some have British accents ... odd.
There were a lot of little details that I really enjoyed. Obviously these guys had done their research. The little click as a sword was reset into its scabbard, the traditional sword holders on the ground, the way the swordsmen would set up a stance and move, it was all really enjoyable to watch. In many ways it was like being in a well done movie. That all being said, they took a few liberties about what the buildings looked like, and the characters dressed like, back in 1187. It was more like a time traveller from the feudal Japan period (i.e. the 1500s) went back to 1187 in some cases :) But that's sort of like the movie Excalibur, where King Arthur and his knights were wearing armor from the 1600s England. Historic King Arthur certainly wasn't alive in the 1600s :) But we accept that anachronism as part of the myth. It's not like the Japanese soldiers in 1187 had magic powers, either.
In general I really love this game. If I'm going to pick out a particular flaw, it's the camera. You can't control the camera at all, and there are situations where it becomes incredibly annoying. Still, that's something you can just resign yourself to while you enjoy the game!
17 of 21 found the following review helpful:
defective beautyNov 27, 2006
By Kora Genji is set in ancient Japan that is supposed to be actually historical, However when you run into giant crabs and Ladies floating around with butterfly wings, you start to question that concept. The graphics are awesome, obviously next generation quality and great sound to make you feel like you're in mythical Japan. The problems with the game are obvious. You'll start playing the game and then when a battle is over, you'll have no idea where to go or what to do so you'll start wondering all over the map until a cut scene starts. The camera doesn't help either. All too often your character will be fighting something off-screen or your character will disappear through a wall and you'll have no idea what or if you're hitting anything and you'll get frustrated when you die because you couldn't see what was happening. The game play is hack and slash. All that happens is "kill this giant crab, wonder around, go through the door, activate cut scene, repeat." There's no variety in the game play that keeps the player interested. If the game had fixed the weak points (which could have been very easy for some such as the camera) this could have been at least an average game. But these flaws are not acceptable for games anymore (if they ever were) and more should be expected for a next generation game.
PROS Great graphics Set in mythical ancient Japan CONS No idea where to go Repetetive and straight forward gameplay "Where am I?" camera
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
suprised! in a good way.Jul 20, 2008
By Scotty boy blue
"gamer"
having heard the negative feedback from it's show at e3 (large crab) I was very cautious to try this game, but I am glad I did. I would say this game is a mix of ninja gaiden and a simple action rpg, but it makes for some very fun gameplay. It was pure enjoyment for me the whole way through. Though The game seems rather easy at times, it can be pretty challenging at others. If I knew I would like this game so much I would have bought it sooner. Mostly, I was very suprised at how good this game was.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
It's what you'd expect if you've played the first oneFeb 16, 2009
By Kong M. Xiong
"Poetic Ninja"
Yep, Genji: Days of the Blade pretty much uses the same mechanics as the first one - so if you liked the first one you'll like the second one. There were a few problems that I encountered, namely save points. Many of the levels don't have a lot of save points and especially when you really need them, although one level in particular seemed to have a good enough amount of save points. One more problem I didn't like about the game was that the first game had more interesting and difficult boss battles - I wasn't really interested in most of the boss battles and most of them were easy for me. I'm playing it a second time on hard so I'm not sure yet if these battles will be more difficult yet.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Jump n pray methodDec 14, 2008
By Ken Church
"Capricorn"
Genji was this fist Game I bought, played, and traded in at my gaming store. What an honor for this "feudal japan" game. It's Pros are few and superficial and it's cons are many and tremendous. the first and biggest problem I had with it was the fixed non rotational camera, A beheading offense. It also left so much more to be desired, in level design, character design and all around cliche-isms. You have you're plucky, young, crazy haired hero. Gruff, older, quiet side-kick, the "hot", yet untouchable love interest, and we can't forget the bad to his eyeliner foil. As another reveiwer said it best "The game play is hack and slash. All that happens is "kill this giant crab, wonder around, go through the door, activate cut scene, repeat." There's no variety in the game play that keeps the player interested." -Kora And I couldn't agree more. Long and short (with only a little ranting)this game was a MASSIVE waste of time, that I could have watch grass grow with, and be more entertained. This is NOT interesting or hard in any way unless you want to really be Zatoichi and fight blind. I would love to see it regain some honor and preform Seppuku.
based on 38 reviews
( 38 customer reviews )
