Samurai Warriors 5 is everything you expect from a musou game, and I mean that in a good way. There’s a ton of content to enjoy, fun characters to play as, and a story that has me genuinely interested in Japanese history. It has some performance hiccups, and anyone who isn’t into musou won’t be convinced otherwise here, but for what it is, Samurai Warriors 5 is a blast.
Samurai Warriors 5
Developer: Koei Tecmo and Omega Force
Price: $60
Platforms: PS4 (reviewed,) Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch
MonsterVine was provided with a PS4 code for review
I love a good musou game. From the Berserk one to the One Piece adaptations, I’m always down to swat away thousands of foes with ridiculous attacks. I’ve never really delved into the Dynasty and Samurai Warriors franchises though, and I wish I had sooner. Not only is it fun to play in the way that only musou games can provide, but it also got me interested in the Japanese history that inspired the narrative of the game. That’s pretty impressive for a hack-and-slash title.
Samurai Warriors 5 is about daimyo Oda Nobunaga’s rise to power. The famous Warlord starts small, but gradually takes over more and more of Japan with the help of his retainers and allies, until he becomes a terrifying force that even his allies question. From the start of Samurai Warriors 5, I found myself getting invested in a story based on Japanese history, to the point where I started Googling characters from this game to get further info on them. No, the events didn’t necessarily happen in this very “anime” way, but Samurai Warriors 5 is pretty spot-on when it comes to the general gist of things. Regardless, I was excited to find out what happened next with each chapter, which is the mark of a good story, and an especially good historical tale.
For those who have never played a musou game, the basic concept is that you pick a character and mow down dozens of weaker foes at a time with hack-and-slash combat. Different characters use different weapons, which all blow away enemies in different and equally fun ways. You can defeat certain enemies to capture bases on the map, fight bosses who take way more than a few hits to down, or you can just rack up combos using special attacks. It can get a bit old if you play for too long in one sitting, as there’s little variation in how each level works, but digested in doses, Samurai Warriors 5 is a rather fun musou title.
“There’s a lot of depth to shaping your characters the way you want with different weapons and experience types, and it feels rewarding to turn your favorite character into an overpowered killing machine.“
There are two main modes to play: Musou Mode and Citadel Mode. In Musou Mode, you follow the story of Nobunaga, and eventually, Nobunaga’s retainer Akechi Mitsuhide, as well as various What-If scenarios. The missions are mainly “defeat x number of enemies,” “escort someone to a location,” and “defeat <name>,” without too much variation. It works for the story, as Nobunaga essentially just goes places and slays people, so it’s the most streamlined experience in the game.
It’s in Citadel Mode that things get a bit different, as you have to protect your base for a set amount of time or defeat the enemy commander when they appear. This earns you materials that can be used to upgrade your various facilities, which let you buy new stuff, improve your weapons, and train your characters to easily level them up. You can play Citadel Mode as any character that you’ve unlocked, so it also gives you a chance to grind up any favorite characters that you don’t often play as in Musou Mode. It’s a nice change from the straightforward storyline, and it feels beneficial to both modes since it lets you upgrade so many things through playing.
No matter which mode you play, it’s important to upgrade your characters. You can obtain different weapons that all have their own skill gems, which can eventually be upgraded and transferred onto other weapons. Playing as a character also grants you skill points that can be used to power up your character by boosting their stats, granting them extra gauges and more. You also accrue experience and weapon mastery points that can be spent to give your character new combos, special attacks, and more. There’s a lot of depth to shaping your characters the way you want with different weapons and experience types, and it feels rewarding to turn your favorite character into an overpowered killing machine.
The sound and visuals of Samurai Warriors 5 are strong, though the game occasionally struggles to keep up with everything that’s happening on-screen. The occasional few-second freeze and dropped frames would make the unending action feel a bit less fluid, though these issues didn’t happen often enough to hamper the entire experience. The energetic music really gets you in the mood to slash up hordes, as does the passionate voice delivery throughout the story.
The Final Word
Samurai Warriors 5 is a strong musou game. It can be a bit repetitive and has some technical stuttering, but blowing through foes and experiencing the fascinating historical story are just too fun. There are multiple modes to try, lots of customization to be had, and plenty of unique characters to try out. If you’re into musou games or Japanese history, this is the game for you.
MonsterVine Rating: 4 out of 5 – Good
