Genji: Dawn of the Samurai Preview

PRE-E3 2005: Hands On

Take a famous fictional work and apply rich graphics and a generous supply of enemies and you have a game that is visually compelling and has direction.

At least that is the hope of the SCEA development team behind the PlayStation 2 title of Genji: Dawn of the Samurai. Braced against the background of two clans fighting for control of Japan, Genji follows the tale of Yoshitsume, who is blessed with some special abilities and has to fight through a horde of monsters, both humanoid and fantastical, on his journey.

SCEA showed off the title during its pre-E3 Editor’s event in Santa Monica. The title is slated for release in fall of 2005. Dawn of the Samurai is based off one of the first published books and SCEA likened the style of the game somewhat to Onimusha, though from the hands-on look at the title there is certainly a lot of resemblance to the KOEI franchises such as Dynasty Warriors – with the game focusing on one player fighting the odds and not one play leading an army.

The levels seem rather linear, with the main character following a path through a wondrously rendered world that will even take on seasonal changes and weather aspects associated with that.

There are two playable characters in the game, Yoshitsume and Benkei – who is a Paul Bunyon-esque warrior-monk. All the bosses in the game were inspired by the legends and mythos of 11^th-century Japan, and the game does sport some role-playing elements.

You will find power-ups, some of which are tied to the d-pad for easy access, and Yoshitsume can move quicker than most of his adversaries. He does have power-up moves, can jump to avoid damage, and will level up.

The combat does show combos achieved, number of hits balanced against number of kills and scores players’ attacks as beginner, intermediate or expert.

The control scheme was simple to understand and work through, and after playing Dynasty Warriors, seemed rather intuitive. The game is a localization of the title developed by Game Republic in Japan (spearheaded by Yoshiki Okamoto and bearing the artistic stamp of Keita Amemiya), and SCEA has decided that the core voice acting of the game will remain in Japanese with English subtitles on all the CG elements.

As for the look of the game, one of the SCEA developers on hand during the event described it as “almost a neo-Japanese Fantasia” and that the “translation from concept art to gameplay is spectacular.”

The game certainly has challenge, and the fixed camera position can hamper some depth perception in relationship to enemy location, but this was merely an early look at a delightful bit of eye candy with solid combat mechanics.