Atlus USA's Samurai Western is a decent third-person action adventure game featuring light role-playing elements, a lot of unlockable content and a pretty solid fighting system. Players don the role of Gojiro Kiryu, a loner samurai who is on the trail of his wayward and dishonorable brother in 1880's America during the gold rush. Along the way he'll have to take on thousands of crazy cowboys, banditos and a cast of thugs, mercenaries and gunmen to take out a powerful man named Goldberg.

The game spans 16 missions, all of which can be replayed and tweaked for the sake of challenge - or played out in practice mode to get the hang of a given level before you take it on "for real." As players clear missions they are given a score which gives them experience, a high score for the level, and sometimes unlocks certain unlockable content like accessories, better weapons and even new playable characters. There are 25 playable characters, 70 accessories and 20 weapons that players can use.

Each of these weapons offers different "stances" which allows the samurai to use different fighting styles. For instance, one sword will allow you to double jump, while another will allow you to deflect bullets with ease. At the heart of the gameplay is the ability to deflect bullets and other projectiles back at the enemy and the ability to grab some objects and enemies to use as a defense against enemies - players can also throw objects at enemies as an effective way of killing them..

The accessories are also useful in that they add various bonuses to your stats. Some are pretty basic items like cowboy hats and guitars, while other are over the top like parrots, pirate hats and afros. Sure some of these accessories make your samurai look like a real cornball tourist but they add some much needed fun into the gameplay mix.

As players complete each level and unlock new ones, they'll encounter a variety of different bad guys and occasionally face off against a boss character that is a tad bit more difficult than your average cowboy fodder. As players reach the end of the adventure they'll face even tougher challenges, but using the right sword will ultimately be the best way to defeat even the most challenging boss in the game.

Samurai Western is a lot of fun to play, looks good and offers a very visceral experience that combines gun vs. swordsmanship gameplay (dubbed Bushido Sense) that works very well. There is also a special Master Mode that lets you launch a time limited power attack (different with each sword you use) that lets you chain hundred-hit combos. This mode speeds up time allowing you to slice through bad guys at a dizzying pace and can come in quite handy when the enemy is coming at you in droves.

The only real complaint I have with this game is the two-player mode, which is made difficult by the game's camera. Because the first player controls the view, the second player is left at the mercy of the first player, oftentimes being attacked by enemies that aren't within his line of sight. Obviously this part of the game needed to be refined a bit more.

But beyond that minor gripe, I think Samurai Western is a pretty decent game. There's a lot of replay value, and although the game could have mixed up its level variety a bit more, it certainly gets the job done.

If you're a fan of fighting games or light role-playing games then you can't go wrong with Gojiro Kiryu's American adventure. For the rest, give it a rental and you'll see why it's a pretty decent game with a lot of replay value.