September 16, 2005 - Genji is a short, generic action game with excellent visuals, wonderful music and one cool gameplay mechanic, however gimmicky it may be.
A lithe young lad by the name of Yoshitsune and a strapping man of legend called Benkei are on a quest to rid feudal-mythical Japan of the oppressive Heishi clan. To defeat the Heishi warlords, Yoshitsune and Benkei will have to acquire and use Amahagane and the Essence of Amahagane. Only by upgrading themselves with these magical gemstones will they be able to challenge the most powerful generals of the Heishi, who themselves are imbued with similar rock-magic.
For a change, Genji's tale is delivered without compromise. There are no painfully dubbed sequences, nor has the name Frank been randomly inserted into parts. It's the same story Sony's Japanese market experienced, right down to every neatly pronounced Japanese word.
The tale itself is spread across a few chapters and even allows players to navigate a very limited world map. Cutscenes are present, but unlike more heavy-handed Japanese exports, Genji does not focus on its non-interactive sequences. They instead serve to neatly tie together manageable segments of combat.
Focusing on gameplay is great, but to the title's detriment, there's barely any sense of time or scope -- players just move about from one place to the next slaughtering things and gaining Amahagane. This sort of nondescript heroism diminishes the eventual achievements of Yoshitsune and Benkei and pulls them down from idyllic champion status until they eventually feel like, "Those guys that are going to stop that one mean dude so that we can all live happily ever after."
Throughout the game players will be allowed to choose between Yoshitsune and Benkei, (though at times one character will be required). Yoshitsune is by far the more enjoyable hero. He's basically why the game was made. The story directly concerns him and the fighting system suits his character. Besides, he just feels cooler. Benkei has that brutish thug quality and is hardly special. But even if you choose Yoshitsune, you'll eventually feel worn.
Fast Like Gerbil Genji is a very basic room-by-room action title that incorporates a couple key systems from Onimusha and Shinobi. The combat always occurs in manageable spurts and never feels overwhelming or taxing. It's designed this way so that players can accumulate enough magical rock power to trigger a slow-time effect that can be multiplied. Kamui, they call it. Kamui immediately forces enemies into a preset series of attack patterns. Once a critical moment approaches, the player is presented with a flashing square icon. Hit square at that instant and you'll either kill or nearly kill your opponent. Since it's always square and the enemies always do the same move, it gets pretty easy. Only boss fights are actually exciting. An enormous fiery phoenix comes to mind. Here's where it gets tricky... Even though it's not particularly challenging and the gameplay mechanics behind Kamui plainly repeat, the instant killing is one of the better parts of Genji's gameplay. We attribute this to how empowering it feels when effortlessly transitioning from one enemy to the next, killing dozens at a time without taking a scratch. It works so well that we've begun to develop a sort of dance, moving through most of the game without ever taking a hit.
Any game that forces its player to be damaged purposefully or by way of negligence is poorly designed. A skilled player should alwaysbe able to save himself. Genji knows this. If you're good, you can beat anyone like a master. That still won't stop how canned, scripted, and constrained the action can feel, though. Flow as you might, you'll still be confined to small areas and tight paths.
Now, even if Genji is essentially a series of tight rooms strung together by tiny load points that offer the illusion of openness, it still looks damn good. Soft leaves, trickling streams, gentle snow, lively villages, surreal extra dimensional realms... The environments are very nicely done. Consistent, too. Characters are also clean, sharp, and well detailed, though it seems Yoshitsune has had special care applied to his features.
The only real graphical problem is with Kamui. While all the visuals in Genji are topnotch, the slow-time animations lose frames, which makes Genji look choppy, not dramatic. Some extra camera angles in the Kamui department might have also helped intensify the combat and create more diverse encounters.
Finally, I'd like to mention Genji's music. It's just wonderful. It's simply the type of soundtrack a fan might purchase and enjoy thoroughly. Emotional and stimulating tracks chase subdued Japanese rhythms. And between them all there is a simple, elegant silence during which the woods seem to whisper.
A lithe young lad by the name of Yoshitsune and a strapping man of legend called Benkei are on a quest to rid feudal-mythical Japan of the oppressive Heishi clan. To defeat the Heishi warlords, Yoshitsune and Benkei will have to acquire and use Amahagane and the Essence of Amahagane. Only by upgrading themselves with these magical gemstones will they be able to challenge the most powerful generals of the Heishi, who themselves are imbued with similar rock-magic.
For a change, Genji's tale is delivered without compromise. There are no painfully dubbed sequences, nor has the name Frank been randomly inserted into parts. It's the same story Sony's Japanese market experienced, right down to every neatly pronounced Japanese word.
The tale itself is spread across a few chapters and even allows players to navigate a very limited world map. Cutscenes are present, but unlike more heavy-handed Japanese exports, Genji does not focus on its non-interactive sequences. They instead serve to neatly tie together manageable segments of combat.
Focusing on gameplay is great, but to the title's detriment, there's barely any sense of time or scope -- players just move about from one place to the next slaughtering things and gaining Amahagane. This sort of nondescript heroism diminishes the eventual achievements of Yoshitsune and Benkei and pulls them down from idyllic champion status until they eventually feel like, "Those guys that are going to stop that one mean dude so that we can all live happily ever after."
Throughout the game players will be allowed to choose between Yoshitsune and Benkei, (though at times one character will be required). Yoshitsune is by far the more enjoyable hero. He's basically why the game was made. The story directly concerns him and the fighting system suits his character. Besides, he just feels cooler. Benkei has that brutish thug quality and is hardly special. But even if you choose Yoshitsune, you'll eventually feel worn.
| Genji: Dawn of the Samurai Guide Defeat the Heishi powers and unlock the secrets of Genji. Get the guide now! |
Now, even if Genji is essentially a series of tight rooms strung together by tiny load points that offer the illusion of openness, it still looks damn good. Soft leaves, trickling streams, gentle snow, lively villages, surreal extra dimensional realms... The environments are very nicely done. Consistent, too. Characters are also clean, sharp, and well detailed, though it seems Yoshitsune has had special care applied to his features.
The only real graphical problem is with Kamui. While all the visuals in Genji are topnotch, the slow-time animations lose frames, which makes Genji look choppy, not dramatic. Some extra camera angles in the Kamui department might have also helped intensify the combat and create more diverse encounters.
Finally, I'd like to mention Genji's music. It's just wonderful. It's simply the type of soundtrack a fan might purchase and enjoy thoroughly. Emotional and stimulating tracks chase subdued Japanese rhythms. And between them all there is a simple, elegant silence during which the woods seem to whisper.
