Sword of the Samurai

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.

The Good
The endless variety of paths one can take, as well as the management of your character's skills and possessions, is an approach that feels unique to this day. The various mini-games don't ever seem to get old. There is a definite feeling that you control the destiny of a samurai family in their rise to power. The brilliantly balanced combination of ease and depth of play make it a game you can play for a few minutes or for hours on end.

The Bad
The controls start to get a little sloppy when you're in the top-down combat mode. Sword duels are always a little easy if you just keep hacking at your opponent. I've never figured out how you can't recruit more samurai when you control most of Japan, but then one of your daimyos rebels and suddenly has more samurai than you. There are tricks to the battles that make them almost a sure victory, even when tremendously outnumbered.

The Bottom Line
The best simulation of the life of a samurai made, Sword of the Samurai combines action, adventure, and strategy elements to create a compelling look at life in feudal Japan. Starting as a lowly vassal, the player has to develop their skills, honor, and army to advance up the ranks of their clan to become daimyo, and then must attempt to conquer enough of Japan to declare themselves Shogun. Easy to play yet with depth and complexity to make it tremendously replayable. A true classic, and one that every gamer should have the pleasure of experiencing.

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.