Sword of the Samurai

aka: Sword of the Samurai: A Quest For Honor In Feudal Japan
Moby ID: 246
DOS Specs
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Description official description

Sword of the Samurai simulates feudal leadership in 15th century Japan. Players take on the role of a young samurai warrior with a small kingdom. You and your neighbors vie for land and perform feats to win the favour of your lord, struggling to win the shogunate. Time will be spent managing the kingdom and wandering through feudal Japan; setting the scene for arcade sequences that determine your standing. Win the battle, gain land; beat the swordsman, gain honour.

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Credits (DOS version)

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Reviews

Critics

Average score: 77% (based on 8 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.9 out of 5 (based on 29 ratings with 6 reviews)

Like a superb blade, beautiful in its simple effectiveness

The Good
First off, I will admit a certain biased nature. I love Japanese culture, especially the samurai...and especially the events of the Sengoku (Warring States) period. So this game was created with me in mind.

Despite a general public fascination with the period, there are few games based on the subject and only a select few are worthy of mention. Lords of the Rising Sun (for the Amiga), Conquest of Japan, Kesmai's Nobunaga's Ambition Series, and the upcoming Shogun:Total War are the highlights. Sword of the Samurai is definitely among them.

Although simplified, the game captures many of the spirits of samurai culture. Tea Ceremonies, politcal backstabbing, and the maintenance of one's perceived honor are abound. In fact, honor is as important to raising and keeping your position as is the amount of land you own and the size of your army. There is more to this game than simple action. If you aren't already familar with Japanese culture, you will come away with a little bit of education.

Much like its spiritual older kin, Pirates!, Sword of the Samurai tries to be part action, part strategy, part role-playing game, part asset managment. Although it doesn't do it as effectively as its much more famous counterpart, SoS does succeed at its attempt, something few modern games have accomplished.

The overhead melee battles, while plain by today's standards, captures the feeling of 'one against many' that is often found in historical tales and Kurosawa films of the period. While the AI is primitive, it is enjoyable to watch the enemy try to flank you...or run in terror as you decide to bravely attack them with your sword instead of picking them off with you bow.

The whole concept that you not only play your main character, but each male heir in his family line is refreshing and provides a good way of giving a player 'extra lives' with minimal penalty. It also captures the whole Japanese mentality of 'family over self'. For fun, play an evil samurai who does dastardly deeds and get caught.True to life, not only do you suffer, but your entire family is put to the sword.

Written by the master,Sid Meier, the duel sequence is at first seemingly simplistic, but like many things Asian, hides much more under its surface.

Like most Microprose literature from those by gone days, the manual is excellently written, not only supplying you with what you need to win the game, but given you a complete and interesting number of chapters on the background of Japan in the 16th century.

Best of all, the game still runs fine on modern machines, although you may not get sound if you soundcard doesn't emulate the basic old classic sound cards.

The Bad
Simply put, the game suffers mainly from its age.

Many aspects of the game are repetitious. Despite randomly generated locales, the melee battles often feel the same, the duels become a matter of doing what you have learned works, and the battles easy if you are properly prepared. General dialogue trees are often limited to 'what will avoid the situation/lower honor' and 'what will engage me in situation/potentially win me honor'. It would have been nice for more verbal situations, as such were the case in the period. After all, samurai could lose honor more quickly by being inconsiderate and behaving improperly than from a loss on the battlefield.

Because you will have to duel many people, engage many in melee, and fight exhaustive battle after exhaustive battle, the repetition becomes painfully obvious...so much that by the time you're a daimyo vying for power, you will find yourself relegating most of the encounters to an underling solely because you don't want to have to have to go through anymore.

The game suffers from the lack of media space of the day. Your dueling opponent always looks the same, whether he be a crazed Ninja or a wandering swordsman. The image for you and your kin is always identical, making you wonder if your family invented cloning. Fief management is perhaps too macro-managed.

With some more depth added and the available space of a CD, many of this game's issues could be resolved.

The Bottom Line
While its age shows thoroughly, the beauty of its design stands as a testament that age doesn't always matter. A fan of Japanese culture and samurai should give this one a shot and at least play it through to its conclusion once. No means a masterpiece, Sword of the Samurai is one of the best unknown games of its time.

DOS · by Ray Soderlund (3501) · 2000

Comprehensive, yet simple and fun!

The Good
I enjoyed being rated on various aspects, such as the amount of land (and taxes), honor, generalship, and swordsmanship. The "honor" rating distinguishes and defines this excellent game: every move that you make will be judged, unless you're clever enough not to be caught red-handed!

The gameplay has enough variety to keep one interested: marrying the right woman, having sons to take over your legacy (and giving up your power at the right time so that a young heir can have enough time to continue), balancing diplomacy and intrigue among your rivals or allies in order to be the "best", raising taxes, practicing generalship and swordsmanship, defending villages, and battling against enemies in relatively simple wars.

The game's progression is logical, as you expand your focus from the tiny to all of Japan eventually by game's end.

The music and cut-scenes (or dialogues?) create a sensible and enjoyable environment. The atmosphere is pleasant, yet very tense and suspenseful.

The Bad
If there were a weak part, I would have to choose the sword fighting. Ironically, this is the section of the game that was created by Sid Meier! It succeeds in that it attempts to replicate the discipline and techniques of its era (such as balance and a rocking momentum), but, as a game, it doesn't work: you are limited to only three (or four) basic moves: left slash, right slash, powerful overhead slash, and blocking.

(Even so, this is a minor point, considering the game's age and these duels represent only a small portion of its strategy.)

Sometimes, the keys don't seem to respond quickly enough in the duels and the battle sequences.

The Bottom Line
Sword of the Samurai stands the test of time. I play it occasionally today! It balances action, strategy, and historical inspiration in an elegant way.

DOS · by M B (15) · 2002

Gettysburg meets Pirates

The Good
Very few people have seen this game, but it had a blend of both real-time combat (via troops moving in formation) and personal honor (go rescue your daugher singlehandedly from your opponent's castle. Do this and other game mechanics successfully, and you will slowly control all of Japan!

The Bad
The formation combat was a bit slow and not all that exciting.

The Bottom Line
Another of the great Sid Meier's triumphs, although not very well known.

DOS · by Tony Van (2803) · 1999

[ View all 6 player reviews ]

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Justin Hall.

Linux, Windows, Macintosh added by Sciere.

Additional contributors: formercontrib.

Game added August 26, 1999. Last modified January 20, 2024.