Customer Reviews

Muramasa: The Demon Blade

5 star:		(67)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I've been highly anticipating the release of this game since the first picture came out after TGS a few years ago and I'm speechless, this is the best 3rd party Wii game I have ever played and I doubt I will ever play one better. Vanillaware has created the most beautiful 2D game that I have ever seen, Muramasa is one of those rare gems that only happens once. Everything is hand-drawn, playing this is like playing art. We all know this game looks amazing, so I will focus more on the gameplay with this review.

This is a game for anyone really, the hardcore action fans will enjoy themselves and casual gamers will be able to finish it without too much struggle. Muramasa is a straight ahead 2D sidescroller, you run through the map and take out the enemies as you encounter them. There are secret items to collect and NPCs to speak with. You can initially start with 2 game modes, Muso (normal) and Shura (hard). In Muso mode you can level up and obliterate most enemies without trouble, Shura is more action oriented and it's MUCH harder...but way more fun if you ask me. You can switch between game modes on the fly too, nice. You can select 1 of 2 characters, Kisuke and Momohime. Both play exactly the same but the story and bosses that you encounter are entirely different. You have to equip 3 swords at a time and eventually you can forge your own blades. After you defeat each boss in each character's story you have the ability to forge more blades. In total there are 108, for your first play through you will not be able to forge all of them. After completing the main story with each character, both characters can use all blades, you can then backtrack and finish bonus dungeons to achieve a 100% game. Based on the blades that you equip you will have a different ending, 3 endings for each character. You also have the ability to cook items to restore health and add bonuses to your stats, it's actually really fun! The voice acting is the original Japanese, some may not like this but I prefer it this way. The music is excellent as well. I think that English voices would have ruined the beauty of this game, that's just my opinion. If you are at all familiar with Japanese lore then you will LOVE this game, if not you'll probably enjoy it just as much. Both characters have a great story, deep and philosophical. I couldn't be happier with this game, I knew it was going to be great but I'm truly amazed. 20+ hours for a complete playthrough, I've already started over again too. If you own a Wii, do yourself a favor and buy this if you haven't already.

GRAPHICS: Normally, the first thing I focus on in a review is gameplay and then the graphics, but I'm making an exception for Muramasa. Goodness is this game gorgeous. The graphics wowed me from the start. Simply amazing. The entire game is composed of stunning 2D artwork with multiple layers of animated backgrounds. The color palette is amazingly deep and rich and everything animates smoothly. This game is one of the best looking games that I've seen on any of the three current consoles, and that fact is entirely due to the amazing artwork and sense of style that pervades the entire game.

GAMEPLAY: The game is a combat-heavy 2D side-scrolling action RPG title made by the same developers as Odin Sphere, and the gameplay is very similar. For anyone who hasn't played Odin Sphere, the gameplay is somewhat like Castlevania and Metroid meet Smash Brothers and Viewtiful Joe. I kind of imagine this is what Legend of Kage would have played like if Legend of Kage was actually a good game. You play as one of two characters, each of which has their own story and acquires their own special abilities throughout the game. Although the game contains some platforming elements, the focus is on combat and the combat feels excellent. Some areas of the game already have enemies placed upon them, but usually you are ambushed by a number of enemies and then the game slips into combat mode. As you progress throughout the game you will constantly be discovering and forging new weapons, and with each new weapon comes a new combat ability to take advantage of. Weapons are unlocked in a progression tree fashion. I haven't counted all of the weapons in the tree, but my estimate is there are about a hundred or so different swords to use. The pacing is just about perfect, and I probably have been unlocking a new weapon every 15 to 30 minutes. Additionally, the game includes a simple, stylish, and effective in-game map system that is both functional and non-intrusive, which is a huge bonus. Finally, boss battles are very challenging, especially on the high difficulty setting and always open up a new weapon which opens up new areas of the game to explore.

CONTROLS: The controls are very good and precise, for the most part. The game can be played with remote and nunchuck, the classic controller, and also the GameCube controller. In fact, if you've played Smash Brothers Melee on the Wii, the controls are almost identical. Similar to Smash Bros., the game is button-mash friendly but if you take time to learn the nuances of the combat, you can become a devastating force of nature. Most of all, I prefer to play this game with the classic controller. My only serious complaint about the controls is that there isn't a separate jump button and the jumping is a little too touchy as it currently stands.

SOUND: The music is great, ranging from traditional Japanese themes and instruments to some light rock mixes. The music almost always seems to fit the scene and feels great. In particular, I'm in love with the The voice acting is enjoyable, but it is in Japanese. It might be good or bad voice acting in Japan, but to my untrained American ears I can't really tell and it seems to flows nicely and smoothly. While I don't understand a lick of Japanese beyond "konechiwa", I feel that the choice to use Japanese voices with English sub-titles definitely keeps the game feeling authentic. Combat sound effects are well done, consisting of exactly what one would expect with a swordplay heavy game. Clanging weapons and lots of noises that sound link clink, shink, and whoosh.

VALUE: The game contains two stories that follows two main characters. The two different adventures play very similarly, but you will explore different areas in a different order. The game is reasonably long and the amount of mileage you get out of depends on if you race through it and stop playing or explore and unlock everything.

THE GOOD:
+++ Gorgeous graphics and artwork
+++ Great music
+++ Easy to learn, tough to master gameplay.
+++ Tons of new weapons to unlock at every turn of the game.
+++ Enjoyable story.
+++ Quality 2D gameplay in an industry where it often feels like 2D gameplay is going the way of the dinosaur.

THE BAD
--- Some areas, especially the villages use very repetitive graphic tiles. Gorgeous, but repetitive. A bit more variety would have been nice in these areas.
--- The game lacks a good quick travel system. This game could have really benefited from a Castlevania-style quick teleport mechanic that could eliminate some of backtracking that you have to endure.


Overall, this is an amazing game. When so many games today are trying to wow us with fancy 3D tricks, lighting, and particle effects, it is truly refreshing to see a game set out to impress through pure artistry. What's even better is if that artistic game plays well, which this game definitely does. If you enjoy 2D hack-n-slash RPGs such as the Castlevania series, I highly recommend purchasing this title. Fans of the 2D Metroid games will probably also enjoy this game immensely.

You know that awesome hardcore Wii game you've been waiting for to get your blood pumping like back in the good old days?

The Wii game that provides a level of excitement that you have yet to feel while playing your Nintendo Wii?

Well, my friends, I have discovered that game, and it's name is, "Muramasa: The Demon Blade"

Muramasa: The Demon Blade is a 2D Side Scrolling Action RPG made exclusively for the Nintendo Wii.
And although Muramasa is a 2D game, it has by far the most impressive visuals I've ever seen on Wii! And I've played Fragile & The Conduit!

So much detail is put into every little thing on the screen, and the back grounds are bursting with color!
Muramasa is not just a game, it's a work of art!

The action is fast-paced and exciting, so much so that it made my heart race in a way that it hasn't since the N64 days!
You use the Wiimote & Nunchuk, Classic Controller, or GCN Controller to move your character and pull off dazzling moves with grace, precision, & lightning speed!
No Motion Controls here, just good old-fashioned button pressing.

At first glance, Muramasa would appear to be a Button Masher, but it's actually quite the opposite...
Battles in Muramasa require a lot of strategy & precise timing, you won't get very far if all you do is mash the buttons wildly.

Muramasa has 3 modes in all...
Muso (Easy-Normal)
Shura (Hard)
And Shigurui (Super Hard) *Unlocked by beating the game on Shura, In this mode, you only have 1 HP!

There are 2 Playable characters, Kisuke (Male) & Momohime (Female) each has their own unique story, swords, & bosses!
The game requires multiple playthroughs to view everything, but don't let that turn you off! Muramasa is so insanely entertaining that you'll want to play it over many times as both characters.

Muramasa also has over 100 different blades within the game to collect, but much like the characters story, it requires multiple playthroughs to obtain them all.

Muramasa is also fully voiced in the original Japanese language, with English Subtitles. No poor-quality English Dubbing here!
There's also an option to switch off the Voices if you find them too distracting.
The game includes no cut scenes, every character you speak with in the entire game has full voiced dialogue.

Music in Muramasa consists of beautiful classic Japanese instrumentals which serves to further immerse the player into the atmosphere of the game.

The only slight draw-backs to Muramasa is that it's Single Player only, and it would've been awesome if there had've been some 2 Player Co-op thrown in.
Also, translation isn't word for word, it's basically just the gist of what the characters are saying.
Many reviewers have also complained about alot of back-tracking, but they obviously were unaware of the "Bronze Mirror" item which allows you to warp back to the last Save Point you visited.

Otherwise, Muramasa: The Demon Blade is a truly breath-taking Wii game and the most entertaining one I've ever played!
I literally couldn't stop grinning while I was playing!

Please go out and buy a copy, (rent it 1st if you have any doubts) it's clear that Vanilla Ware & Ignition put alot of work into this game, and this game deserves to sell well and let the developers know when they've done something right.

It's not everyday that you play a 3rd Party Wii game that it's clear the developer worked really hard on, and Muramasa is the 1st Wii game I've ever played with this extensive amount of effort weaved into every fiber & detail of the game from the visuals to the combat system.

Muramasa is a classic in every sense of the word, and has earned it's place as a shining example of what can be achieved on the Wii with a little effort.

Just to start things off, I completely mean it when I said you'll waste a lot of your time if you intend to purchase and play this game. Just thought I might forewarn everyone since it is just that damn addictive. But down to business.

What I really liked about the game:

*The freaking beautiful (albeit slightly perverse at times) artwork and graphics.
If your a guy intending to play this game (and likes girls) get it simply for the fact that you'll be oogling the girl character in the game for hours... esp. during the hot springs/spa portion of the game. Don't worry, I won't tell if you do. xP

*Did I mention how great the graphics are? Oh, I did? Well I thought it deserved another mention (It really is just that good).

*Gameplay wise, its as simple and as intuitive as a game can be. It's a side-scrolling 2d action adventure, and after five minutes of tutorials you'll be a ninja master in no time. You'll create so much onscreen mayhem of carnage and combos, its sometimes hard to tell who is killing who. But it looks so good, you probably won't care.

If I have to fault the game at something:

*The first one would have to go to repetition. I understand that to remove some of the repetitive and mindless button smashing, the game implemented hundreds of different swords + magic that you can obtain and use in the game on the fly with the push of a button (three swords maximum can be equipped and switched up at any given time during the game). Of course it is by no means a "God of War" type of game in terms of variety and EXTENSIVE combo + move list, I really wished for it to be a least somewhat close to that sort of level. Considering how much better games are getting nowadays, adding more available moves to remove sort of the repetitive button smashing is an absolute must for games released these days. Based on that alone, I would have given my rating at a 4. I said 5 since I was on the fence between a 4 and a 4 and a half. The thing for me that tipped the scale to a five for me was it's beautiful artwork (much like the "Okami" series, which is also just as gorgeous in terms of visuals).

*Another fault would have to go to the initiation of enemy fights. Okay I understand it might have been an artistic style of choice to do it they way they did in the game, but it loses its sense of dynamic type of gameplay for me whenever game makers decide to make enemy encounters sort of "scripted" for a lack of a better word. You'll encounter A LOT of exactly the same enemy encounters throughout the course of game... again, variety in this would have been phenomenal. To better grasp what I mean, take a game like Metroid Corruption on the Wii. Sure there might be the same enemies from time to time, but the way you encounter them is dynamic, and really varied. I know some of you might think of this as a completely irrelevant analogy since Metroid on the Wii is a 3D game, but I can't think of another example to explain this at the moment.

Overall:
I recommend someone buying this game highly. It's a great game with lots of fun things to discover. And its also a plus if your a guy, since I'm probably sure the art director/game director was a guy since there is a lot of content with lots of umm... stuff that guys like scattered throughout the game... haha. If you need a game that you'll for sure get your money's worth, this is one of them. Just take into consideration though that gameplay will get tedious, and repetitive a lot of the bulk of gameplaying. But I overlooked all of it, and simply decided to take it for what it truly is: a beautiful work of art implemented into game form. Thanks for reading my long winded nonsense. :-D

Muramasa is a rather awesome game and is a blast to play, the maps and characters look amazing and the combat is fast and furious. My major gripe with this game is that is just gets old over time. Aside from getting new swords and killing stuff there not much else too do. There is a story and it is not a bad one, but it is also not really there and easily cast off to the side. I would love to see a sequel with improvements but overall there is much to be desired.
Pros:
Looks great
Plays great
Fun combat

Cons:
Not real motivation to go to far into the game
Plot is pointless
Was the depth of a SNES action game

I had never even heard of this game until I happened to read about it last week. After reading reviews and seeing screen-shots, I ordered it almost instantly so I could have it by the weekend. I'm happy I made that choice.

Muramasa: The Demon Blade is a game that you can tell a lot of love and effort went into. The art is gorgeous, and the gameplay and control feels great! The voice acting (all in Japanese, with English subtitles) sounds good, and the music is solid as well. It's just an all-around well made game.

The combat system is fun, and not hard to get the hang of. It almost feels a tad too easy at first, but I came to realize that the game is very forgiving at first and then gradually increases in difficulty as you become more experienced. However, even when at the beginning when it seemed easy, I was still having lots of fun.

I was a bit amused by how they worked eating food into the mechanics of the game. Different kinds of food give "Spirit", which along with "Souls" (collected while adventuring or from defeated foes) are used to Forge new swords. Luckily, Spirit seems to come naturally, and I've never yet had to eat stuff just to eat so I could forge a new blade.

The Forging system is interesting as well. It works like a tree, and different swords open up paths to other swords. The 2 characters start out in separate trees, but further down the trees do have crossovers. The game suggested that I would have to choose a path of swords (styles), however so far I've been able to afford making all that I meet the requirements for. That might change further in the game, or in higher difficulties, I don't know.

The only fault I can find in it so far is sometimes the travel is a bit annoying. At times, will have to walk through many screens through areas where there is little or no combat. I wish they had added a better way of traveling through previously explored areas. They do have palanquin carriers here and there, but the game could use some better travel options, as well as less need to backtrack.

However, overall it's a fantastic game, and has quickly become one of my favorite Wii titles. It is an action-RPG with high production values, a fun combat system, and mixes some old-school feel with modern and high quality production values.

To start, this is definitely a basic hack and slash game, so if you don't dig those then you probably won't like this game. That being said, the artwork and worlds are just breathtaking. On top of that game motion flows artfully with the battles, fitting seamlessly into the gameplay.

I've seen some complaints about there being limited items and exploration being kind of boring after a few hours, but I did not feel this way. There are some side quest-like endeavors, like cooking recipes, for a change of pace, which would at worse level you up.

Anyway, I highly recommend this game for people who love gorgeous artwork and running around beating on monsters and ninjas.

Muramasa: The Demon Blade is the type of game that makes me extremely glad I own a Wii system. I absolutely loved Odin Sphere on PS2 and knew I was in for a special treat with this offering from Vanillaware. The first thing that hits you are the drop dead gorgeous graphics. The artwork, animation and tremendous attention to detail are a sight to behold. My only regret is not being able to view this game in full 1080p. I'm a huge fan of 2-D type games and I could not be happier to now have this game in my collection.

The gameplay is fun and rewards you for mastery of all the techniques at your disposal. What is particulary enjoyable are the Boss fights. Every boss in this game is imposing and defintely puts your skills to the test. Some have described this game as a glorified button smasher, but having beat this game over eight times already, I can tell you that could not be further from the truth. To properly play this game, you need a subsantial degree of split second timeing, and the ability to implement chess like battle strategies at a moments notice. You will need to manage your resources (money, items, cooking, etc.) carefully in order to overcome the real challenges that come once you beat this game. What also surpised me is that each character does play slightly different and you will need to adjust accordingly. For example, Momohime (female) is just a bit slower in handling the heavier long blades, so I favor using the shorter quick blades with her. I used the classic controller, and the controls are spot on... the game would be worthless otherwise since it's intensly combat oriented.

I have only two problems with this game. From almost the very beginning of the game, you will be forced to back-track over and over again. This does get annoying especially towards the end of the game where the stages become more expansive. The only good news is that once you beat the game, you will be able to warp from one area to the next. My second issue does not apply soley to this game but includes others on various systems as well. My issue is that once you become your ultimate, perfect, "invincible" form, you've already completed everything there is to do in the entire game so you really never get the chance to do anything new or even challenging at this point. In other words, you must meet every available challenge to reach this state and then there's nothing else to do afterwards. I find this to be a flaw in many games these days.

Overall, this is a must own game period. Anyone who owns a Wii and does not have this game is more than missing out. I cannot give this game a higher recommenation.

I felt I had to post a review of this, after playing the game myself. I highly recommend this game, and I'm afraid I'm going to gush about it. If it was only mediocre, I wouldn't have written a review.

The looks are striking. I really think this may be the most beautiful game I've seen this console generation, and I'm including the Wii, 360, and ps3 in that comparison. It doesn't have photorealistic 3d models; instead, it has wonderfully animated figures that look like they flowed out of a paintbrush. It's like comparing the hand-drawn Disney "Pinocchio" to the CGI of "Ice Age". The 3d stuff is fun, but the 2d art is rich and beautiful.

Fortunately, the gorgeous images are wrapped around a good game. Gameplay is fast and straightforward, capturing the feel of old-school videogames. It really plays clean, and doesn't take more than a minute to really understand the fundamentals. It does get hard, though, later in the game.

The dialog is spoken Japanese with English subtitles. I didn't mind that, because the setting is very clearly in ancient Japan. The story is a bit hard to follow, especially if you aren't familiar with Japanese names and myths. It barely matters, though; the story is just quick flashes in between dozens of fights.

Wii games are all over the board, in terms of quality. This is definitely one of the best. This should be one of the core titles for the Wii that everybody should consider getting, up there with Mario: Galaxies, Metroid, WiiSports, and so on.

I will try to be quick and concise since most reviews of this game are more or less the same.

The graphics are gorgeous. The gameplay is a little repetitive, but I felt it was more enjoyable the more I played simply because I got better at handling the fighting. Enjoying the game is largely based on your mentality. If you looking to focus on how repetitive the game can be, that's what you're going to see. If you focus on getting better at fighting with each encounter, it will stay interesting. I personally didn't find running through "empty levels" tidious at all because they are actually filled with smaller encounters that yield experience and money that is worth collecting. Not to mention the soul you will want to be collecting to get new swords (I had no problem having enough spirit to get the weapons I wanted).

To summarize, this game is very much a kick back, relax and enjoy. If you're the kind of person who wouldn't watch a mindless comedy because of theatrical imperfection, this probably isn't a game for you. If you've looking for a game that you can just relax and play when you get home from work without having to think too much, this is the game for you. The game is beautiful, the storyline interesting, and the boss fights very entertaining.