Kengo: Master of Bushido

by Playstation

Product Features

• PlayStation 2
• 4 modes of play including Practice, Training, Dojo and Sensei
• Animated blood and violence

Product Details

• ASIN: B000056PJQ
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches ; 4.8 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #15,137 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Gamers may remember when Bushido Blade hit store shelves for the PlayStation a few years ago. It was one of the first titles to break away from traditional fighting games by trying to cripple or instantly kill characters with one hit, rather than using a status bar to track the amount of damage done after each kick, punch, or parry.

Kengo: Master of Bushido is similar to Bushido Blade, plus it retains the generic health bar. It also has a Ki meter, which represents your ability to use special sword attacks and block your opponents' onslaughts.

The unusual aspect of this game is that you spend the majority of the time developing your warrior's attributes by fighting nonlethal battles with a wooden sword.

The game is chock-full of minigames. These are designed to enhance your character's stats and build endurance and power. But if you want to increase your abilities, you must actually fight and defeat opponents using the wooden blade. This will help you acquire the necessary fighting basics and allow you to move up to become a capable swordsman.

As you defeat the enemy dojos, you will get new moves, swords, and special attacks. New moves and special attacks can be inserted into your character's three-hit combo system--a very unique aspect of this game.

The culmination of all this training, though, is somewhat of a disappointment. You get to compete in a single tournament where real blades are used. The tournament only has a handful of fights, a surprise battle, and then the credits start rolling.

Just as in Bushido Blade, the combat is complex and offers up multiple parries and stances. The actual bloody combat, however, is relatively short-lived, which is bound to be very disconcerting to gamers looking for a hard-core hack-and-slash adventure. --Todd Mowatt

Pros:

• Attack moves and parries, learned throughout the game, add to replayability
• Customizable three-hit combo system

Cons:

• Character movement is difficult to control at times
• You spend most of the game training for one short tournament

Product Description

Kengo: Master of Bushido takes place during Japan's Genroku Period, from 1688 to 1704, and simulates the fighting style of Kendo. The game has 4 modes of play including Practice, Training, Dojo, and Sensei mode that offers a mix of fighting stages.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Samuri Construction Worker- Two by four Master, January 7, 2001

By 

"mhreader" (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kengo: Master of Bushido (Video Game)

Kengo, Master of Bushido. The most masterful swordfighting game of all time, Crave has offered up a prime port of the Japanese original.

One player campaign mode allows you to unlock 13 characters, two player mode allows you to whomp on your friends.

There are twelve dojo's, and each has an ancestral sword that you can win, bringing shame and dishonor to their families - that's right, scream, but I won your sword fair and square!

Sixteen different weapons are possible in this game, including, yes, the two-by-four. Well it just looks like a board. Supposedly it's a scepter... Hm.

A fully customizable series of attacks, along with blocking and parrying lend a depth of feel to the duels. You're not just button mashing here, this is a calculated effort to glean your opponents weaknesses, wear them down, and even dance in and out, slashing arteries - Then keep your distance as they bleed to death.

Eventually you earn your own dojo, and defend it against the upstart young would-be samuri, the high priest, and even your own ghost in your pursuit of enlightenment. Your master's dying words will lead you on the correct path.

Kengo is without a doubt the most well conceived and executed game for the PS2, the combat, characters, and environments lend a sharp realism to this recreation of fuedal Japan.

This game is a must have.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars May the Ki Be With You, May 22, 2002

By 

J. Leigh "jleigh7" (chicago) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kengo: Master of Bushido (Video Game)

I had expected a horrid game based from all the mediocre reviews this game had gotten. Curiously the magazine critics were harsher on this game than actual players of the game.

This is not a button-mashing game like DOA and Tekken. It is an elegant simulator that requires finesse and timing. You need to be able to see the trajectory of your opponent in order to be able to strike with success. You actually need to listen carefully in order to be able to block effectively (something people tend to forget: you can react to sound faster than you can respond to sight). When I first practiced blocking in the dojo, I was hopeless. You're going to be stuck on this part for a while- probably getting very aggrevated like I did. Then I stopped using my eyes to decide when to block and started listening. Once you get through that, you'll appreciate what this game is about.

The training levels add to the Zen mysticism of it all. The motion capture work makes the game really elegant. Nice touch to have the game in Japanese with english subtitles. Nice that there is no techno/rock soundtrack like all the other games these days. It's a very quiet game that really requires you to focus to win.

The best part of the game is that you can select your character, you can select the dojo you wish to join, and you can assign the fighting stances you learn to the hat keys on the controller. Each dojo has different sword styles so the game really becomes a nice tutorial to learn the various sword styles of bushido.

If only this were a Jedi training simulator rather than Bushido- but then again Jedi sword styles are really based on Bushido.

A bit of trivia: the game has a health meter and a Ki meter. Ki is described as the energy flowing through all human beings. In Chinese, Chi means the same thing- literally translates as breath/stamina/energy.

May the Ki Be With You

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars One glaring problem, January 16, 2001

By 

L.C. - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kengo: Master of Bushido (Video Game)

As fighting games go, this is all well and fine. It's got a nice fighting system with a variety of moves with a very simple layout. One button for attack, how's that for simple? However, you are able to customize your combos, of which you can store four different kinds, so you can truly create your own unique character with the fighting style *you* really like. You can combine moves from a variety of dojos making for a vast selection of custom combos to create. This game would have gotten four stars if not for one glaring problem. While you are free to create your own guy, and build him up the way you see fit, the game only allows one save. Unlike Ultimate Fighting, your friends can't create their own samurai and challenge your creation. That is simply lame. I have no idea how the testers did not catch that. This is all well and fine if you don't have friends to play with. While this makes it no different from many other fighting games, if you're going to allow a custom character, you should be able to share the joy.