Samurai: Way of the Warrior

Growing up in culturally diverse San Francisco has its privileges, one of which is the available programming that we were exposed to, especially on Saturdays. Of course, I personally kicked it off right with a little cartoon time: some Shirt Tales, a little Thundarr the Barbarian (Ookla the Mok, baby!), and finally Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. But eventually, after a Ma and Pa Kettle flick or a Shirley Temple vehicle on Channel 44, I would turn to Channel 2, Channel 20 and/or Channel 26 as one or all would show martial arts movies from midday through the afternoon. This is when I remember seeing Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance for the first time and being amazed by the violence and just the relationship between father, a ronin, and his toddler son. While it did not exactly rival Akira Kurosawa’s The Seven Samurai, it nevertheless was unforgettable then as it is now almost 25 years later, especially when reminded by games like Mad Finger Games’ Samurai: Way of the Warrior. This game is quite literally a ‘bloody’ tribute to those movies as well as recent samurai-inspired game franchises like Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden and Koei’s Dynasty Warriors. Visually stunning, Samurai: Way of the Warrior plays wonderfully with great controls cleverly using the touchscreen for combos. Plus, unlike most games in the App Store, this game has nice polish from solid gameplay testing as it automates movement right when you want it and not before or after. Presented in comic style, the storyline is easily digestable, while simply framing objectives. Although, in its most basic form, it’s a hack and slash game, it never feels repeative or gets boring. Highly recommended. Price: $2.99.