Samurai Jack The Shadow of Aku

by Sega Of America, Inc.

Product Features

• Defeat enemies with signature combat moves, plus three elemental Swords, Throwing Stars, and a Bow and Arrow.
• Defeat enemies with Sakai Mode (slow-motion action).
• Fight against well-known Samurai Jack foes such as Aku, the Scotsman, Mad Jack, and other unique enemies.
• Select from three difficulty levels to match your gameplay style.
• Contributions from the cartoon series creator, artists, voice actors, and composers create an authentic Samurai Jack experience.

Product Details

• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B0001FVE2M
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.2 x 0.8 inches ; 4 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: March 23, 2004
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #21,009 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Game Informer Review

Genndy Tartakovsky's Samurai Jack cartoon has a lot of cool things going for it: a unique look, smart stories, good sound design, and tons of action. The Samurai Jack game, however, has none of the above. The conversion of Tarakovsky's two-dimensional characters to three dimensions makes for graphics that look familiar, yet still crappy. Where the show looks lush, the game looks bland. But the graphics aren't the only dull aspect of this title.

As with the show, The Shadow of Aku follows Samurai Jack's quest to defeat the evil demon Aku by travelling back in time to thwart him before he can rise to power. Before he can head into the past, Jack has to free those Aku has enslaved. In each stage, Jack must seek out caged villagers and ancient relics to earn power-ups. Freeing villagers can earn Jack new swords, while relics can be exchanged for more life, power, or Zen (which allows Jack to enter "sakai mode" – basically a simplified bullet time). The trouble is that none of these power-ups have any real effect on gameplay. The various swords all appear to dish out basically the same amount of damage.

Like most licensed games, The Shadow of Aku is a collect-a-thon with simple combat, basic platforming, and little innovation. This isn't a truly bad game, just a very uninspired one. The various combat systems all work perfectly, they're just shallow and a bit counter-intuitive. The difficulty level is hilariously low; on the hardest setting, it's still a cakewalk, on the lowest, it can be easily completed by someone in a coma. Strangely, young kids don't seem to be this title's target audience, based on the Teen rating. Overall, The Shadow of Aku comes across as an amazingly generic action title. It's a shame, as Samurai Jack is easily one of the most unique cartoons on the air today, so this could have been so much more.

Concept:
Take a Cartoon Network hero, dumb him down, and shove him in a generic third-person action title

Graphics:
The look is pretty faithful to the show, which sadly doesn't make for a good-looking game

Sound:
The music, sound effects, and voiceovers are all pretty minimal and forgettable

Playability:
The slightly bizarre control scheme works just fine, but it isn't exactly deep

Entertainment:
Even Samurai Jack fans will find themselves yawning through this one

Replay:
Low

Rated: 6 out of 10
Editor: Jeremy Zoss
Issue: May 2004

2nd Opinion:
Every single one of the four points I'm giving this game is for the animations seen in sakai mode. Sakai, apparently, makes time slow down and allows Jack to execute some really nice kung fu-inspired moves. But to be kind, the rest of Samurai Jack's latest outing is less than inspiring. There are hub worlds. I really thought that we were past all of that sometime back in 2001. I don't want my missions doled out by ungrateful villagers in such a predictable and linear fashion. In addition, although the look of the game kind of resembles the show, it ends up just looking gross.

Rated: 4 out of 10
Editor: Lisa Mason


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Product Description

Samurai Jack: Shadow Of Aku takes you into the latest adventures of the amazing character from the hit Cartoon Network show! Samurai Jack was thrust from his era into a dark future where his worst enemy, the wizard Aku, rules the world. You'll help Jack fight through legions of enemies and destroy the evil wizard!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most fun I've had in a while, July 4, 2004

By 

S. Glover "horror-tech-metal geek" (Jasper, Alabama USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Samurai Jack The Shadow of Aku (Video Game)

I'm not sure if that says more about me than the game but anyway...If you're not sure you like Samurai Jack this game is definately a rental but if you love Jack you've got to have this game. It's not really much more than your standard platformer but after playing Metal Gear Solid, Hitman, GTA (series) it's refreshing and hard to put down. I finished it in one night (granted, that night went from 7 PM to 2 AM) hence the rental comment above. The only flaw, and it could be considered a big one, is the camera control. It will take you forever to get used to it and I never ended up being able to say it was okay. It makes it way too hard to keep up with enemies on the screen, especially the flying ones. But again, if you like Jack, you'll like this game in spite of it's (one minor) flaw(s).

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars missed this game!!, June 30, 2009

By 

G. Abraham (pgh pa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Samurai Jack The Shadow of Aku (Video Game)

i could not belive i found this game when thinking about it ! when and looked and there it was! great game and price thanks!! wd b a !

4 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great but not perfect, April 8, 2004

By 

Jake (leoma,TN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Samurai Jack The Shadow of Aku (Video Game)

It is a cool game, alsome theme, and great fighting. The bad thing, if considered bad, is the grafics.If your new with the Jack let me tell you, after being put in the future by a evil morfing, thing named Aku, you have to fight your way though the lands, to go back in time and undo the evil that was placed upound him. Let me tell you, this game is great, if you like fighting and nija stuff. Samurai Jack is alsome.