Nearly six years ago Square Enix (then known as SquareSoft) brought Brave Fencer Musashi to North America, after several dismally translated releases in the west. Dubbed a "Zelda Killer" at the time, Brave Fencer Musashi told the tale of a kid samurai loosely based on the legendary Japanese swordsman of the same name - known for using two swords in battle. The game obviously wasn't a Zelda killer by any stretch of the imagination, but fans here in the North America loved it. The game turned out to be a sleeper hit, and the rest is ancient history. Square Enix hopes that the upcoming follow-up title, Musashi Samurai Legends is just as well received as its predecessor, and early indications are that it will be.
The new Musashi, much like his real-world name-sake, also uses many swords in his combat techniques, and by the end of the adventure he'll have control of seven - six of which will offer powerful attacks and keys to getting past many of the "puzzling" obstacles that await.
Musashi Samurai Legend features many of the same elements that made the first game so addictive, and adds some new features that work better on the beefier PS2. Musashi retains the fast paced action, light character development, simple role-playing elements, the ability to "duplicate" or copy certain enemy attacks, and offers light-hearted story elements and character dialogue that doesn't get in the way of the action.
Musashi Samurai Legend's main character may bear the same name but has no concrete connection, save an out-of-control hair-do, to the protagonist in Brave Fencer Musashi. This Musashi is a different fellow altogether, but finds himself in a similar situation at the beginning of the game - being summoned to aid in the midst of a terrible crisis in a slightly sci-fi land called Vespire. Calling this game a true sequel is up for debate, but the game can at least be considered a "spiritual sequel" due to many similarities in gameplay.
Cutting Loose
Musashi falls more in the category of an action platformer than a role-playing game because most of the game revolves around slicing and dicing enemies and figuring out various obstacle based puzzles. The original concept of the game when it was first conceived was to create a fighting system where players could take down enemies using a variety of different cutting patterns. These cutting techniques are gathered through the duplication system, which is handled by using focus on enemies and – at the right moment (cued by a visual prompt) -duplicating the move and adding it to your repertoire.
Some of these techniques are straight-laced attack moves used by combining movement with actions (attack or jump as an example), while others simply consume Mystic energy to be activated. While you can probably play through the whole game without these extra moves, they certainly do add some spice to the journey and make taking down hordes of corporate robots an easier task.
But before players start collecting moves through duplication, they start out with some basic moves like jumping, climbing ladders, carrying both enemies and pretty maidens and grabbing onto ledges. Beyond the basics and moves assimilated into your arsenal by duplication, players can gain some additional enhancements from objects called artifacts. These rare finds afford special powers like double jumping, water walking, wall crawling, etc. Many of the puzzles in the game require moves provided by these artifacts or the use of an elemental sword's powers to proceed, but chances are players won't miss locating them as they traverse Vespire.
The carrying system mentioned above, a new feature in this game, allows players to carry both NPCs and enemies on the battlefield and use them as weapons. Players can also throw friendly characters in the air, slash at enemies and catch them again for a quick kill – or in the case of enemies - toss them in the air and give them a spinning slash with your katana. Carrying is an integral part of gameplay and is slightly better than having to walk an NPC to safety – which most would agree is a real kick in the stones.
Stats Your Way
Hit points and mystic points make up the consumable energy force that Musashi uses. Hit points are pretty obvious, while mystic points are used for various techniques and the powerful attacks afforded by the five elemental swords players will collect during the course of the game. Players will find themselves consuming a lot of both important energies as they use the five elemental swords, which they can quickly replenish by buying a myriad of different foodstuffs from vendors in the mystics' city.
Leveling up in Musashi Legends, just like the duplication system has been refined a redefined this time around. In this game players are allowed to focus on one type of statistic, allotting slightly more points to single choice, while still giving points to other attributes. Players can also simply distribute the points evenly if they so choose and can also focus on the points given to hit points and mystic points. No matter what you choose, the game does a good job of allotting points evenly and liberally across the board so your character's stats aren't too far out of whack no matter what you decide.
