Scott Steinberg

Seven Samurai 20XX Review

By Scott Steinberg - Posted Apr 05, 2004

Akira Kurosawa's classic film gets a futuristic retelling in this slice 'n' dice action game.

The Pros
  • Spunky combat moves
  • Inspired visuals
  • Fun in spurts
The Cons
  • Repetitious battles
  • Killer load times
  • Pitiable difficulty level

You won't still be playing "Seven Samurai 20XX" a couple days after you pick
it up. It's not a bad game; it just resembles "Nightshade" too closely. That
wouldn't be such a bad thing if "Nightshade" were a great game. But it isn't.
Join us on tonight's "X-Play" as we learn that two wrongs don't make a right
-- or a compelling diversion, for that matter.


Reinventing the wheel


Everything old is new again in Sammy's futuristic retelling of Akira Kurosawa's
classic film. Swapping feudal Japan for a sci-fi setting, the story pits lead
character Natoe and friends against killer robots, rather than rampaging bandits.
Caught up in a whirlwind adventure after saving a ragtag band of villagers from
certain destruction, the unwilling hero quickly mounts an armed crusade against
the sadistic automatons.


Wake us when it gets interesting



As in the recently released "Nightshade," gameplay is a series of large battle
sequences held together by verbose cut scenes. When you enter an environment,
barriers are erected around the exits and numerous enemies attack. When you've
killed them all, you can move forward. Boss fights and RPG-style scenarios break
up the tedium, but it's hardly an intriguing setup. These violent encounters
entertain when consumed in bite-size chunks. You're often pitted against more
than a dozen assailants. Flitting between foes with blade awhirl is easy, thanks
to a fluid combat scheme that lets you string together more than 100 hits. And
then there are the colored light displays, fancy explosions, slow-motion kills,
and satisfying blood spurts.


Everyone must die



You're encouraged to wade right in and satisfy primal urges. Combat involves
fending off attackers who approach from every angle. Swapping one adversary
for the next is easy, as is cleaving aggressors in two with special just attacks
(timed strikes), just steps (slick dodge moves), and just guards (counters).
Should the experience not prove chaotic enough, berserkers can access a nitoh-ryu
mode counter that lets you pull out a second weapon and double the carnage for
a limited time. All told, it makes for peppy battles, especially with immediate
feedback on one's performance constantly popping up on the screen.


Victim of circumstance


However, after awhile the quest fizzles, thanks to too many drawn-out loading
sequences, pointless transition scenes, and faceless battles. Recycled enemies
don't help. Nor do unimaginative end-level guardians. And save points, accessible
only after you've beaten lengthy stages, aren't well-plotted. Another major
problem is the woefully weak default difficulty setting. There's virtually no
challenge, since you can recharge nitoh-ryu mode, which devastates both cannon
fodder and more powerful villains in seconds. Stiff battle animations and noticeable
slowdown during heated confrontations will vex would-be champions, too.


Sound and vision


"Seven Samurai 20XX" works much better as a weekend rental, but it should satisfy
anime fans, if only because of its earnest aesthetics. Stylized characters,
gorgeous backdrops, and lovely cinematics bolster an attractive graphical presentation
that benefits from contributions by famed artist Moebius. You'll never be short
on the picturesque as you wander mysterious forests, mechanized factories, and
sprawling steampunk villages, all harvested straight from Japan's collective
consciousness. A lively soundtrack supplied by Academy Award-winner Ryuichi
Sakamoto keeps the action jumping. The Far Eastern electronica tunes maintain
a brisk pace that suits the exploit marvelously. General sound effects, including
sword swipes, explosions, and screams, are negligible, though in light of some
truly horrific voice-overs, that's probably for the best.


Better luck next time


Despite its consequential failings, "Seven Samurai 20XX" is worth a peek if
you're an enthusiast who suffers from the odd homicidal impulse. As a means
of killing 20 minutes here and there, the game has merit. We can't condone fiddling
with it for any longer in a single sitting, though. Prolonged exposure provides
ready explanation as to why the practice of seppuku was first invented. "Seven
Samurai 20XX" (PS2)