Author: Yennaedo Balloo
Samuel L. Jackson is something of a mythic figure; legends abound that the actor picks his scripts by playing eeny meeny, miney moe, without reading anything more than the title. If that myth is true, then something good has come from it since it led him to the manga-inspired Afro Samurai television series. The original story of the Afro Samurai and his quest for revenge is told in a five episode series that is as astonishing in its masterful storytelling as it is in its action and gore. Throughout the series, Afro and his fast-talking cohort, Ninja-Ninja, (both voiced by Jackson) seek revenge against the gunslinger, Justice, who murdered Afro’s father.
Developer Surge made the Afro Samurai game for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 as a retelling of the five episode series’ events, with some reinterpretation (to expand for gameplay) and plenty of rehashing of the show’s major scenes.
Reviewing a game like this is complicated. It is hard to interpret it simply as fan service or criticize its flaws objectively without acknowledging how awesome Samuel L. Jackson is for being a part of this project. The game looks gorgeous and is animated with a style that feels appropriate. Even people who have only a basic familiarity with anime/manga style can appreciate the game’s aesthetics.
However, I found the load screens to be a bit long considering how simple the level designs were. Furthermore, the levels are all extremely linear, although the player can enjoy exploring the game’s environment while searching for “mementos” of Afro’s father. All in all, the game is incredibly formulaic. You can’t just use a wall run in any situation since the game calls for specific platforming.
Taking a page out of game creator Hideo Kojima’s book, the loading screens offer their own bits of entertainment and exposition, even though they are a little creepy. Should you fail a level, which is probably going to happen to virtually anyone who plays the game, the loading screen can reload almost immediately.
This is because there’s one enemy in the game who’ll always be taking cheap shots at you and contributing to your failing objectives and losing battles – the game’s camera. The camera is extremely jumpy and unresponsive. It will continually allow enemies to take cheap shots from off- screen before you can see them.
Afro Samurai lacks a quick target lock button, or camera auto center button, making the 20-1 brawls (which are 95% of the game) more difficult than they should be. Even without the camera centering ability, the God of War method of zooming the camera out to see the whole “arena” would have been better. This would have showcased the gorgeous environments more effectively.
Still, the camera does do some things well: when you use Afro’s “Focus” ability, the camera centers behind Afro and the color drains from the screen so you can focus your swing and properly cleave your enemies in two.
The game has tons of gore and bad language. Its developers embraced the game’s “M” rating. You’ll make regular work of the basic enemies while cutting off arms, legs and heads. The game’s engine is designed to dismember bodies as they’re cut, not just in pre-cut models. You’ll really get a nice sense of being a part of the action.
This is where I start warning in earnest: Afro Samurai is a button masher. You have two sword attack buttons (light and heavy) and a kick attack. No combos need to be learned. The game is trying to have a Prince of Persia feel in terms of Afro’s movement, and a God of War combo style, but the camera, level design and battles do not provide depth to the combat system or the platforming segments.
The most perplexing element of the game is its leveling system. Afro will earn experience and level up, but you can neither return to areas to gain extra experience, nor can you be lazy and try to skip enemies. This means that you’ll level up at a standard rate regardless of your ambition or obsessiveness. This trivializes the level up system, which makes no discernible difference in Afro’s abilities and characteristics.
The game’s story and the gamer’s ability to interact with the characters in the show is what will bring in most players. Ninja-Ninja is as hilarious as ever.
However, because of the interactivity of the medium, the game had to alter the story. In the show, Afro is arguably a villain who is only out for revenge. Because the gamer is in control of Afro, and fighting the numerous bloody battles that make him a villain in the show, the developers altered certain dialogues and events to give Afro more moralistic leeway. This was a bad choice.
The point and beauty of Afro Samurai is that he is not a hero; he’s not admirable, he’s just incredibly devoted. You find yourself admiring him for that and nothing else, even when it turns out that you may have been rooting for the villain all along.
Final Word: For those who are fans of the show, I’d recommend a rental. You’ll have fun for a couple hours hacking, slashing and listening to the masterfully voiced Ninja-Ninja. However, it’ll make you want to watch the show more than continue playing. This game has little depth, is frustrating, and ultimately a poor game that stands unsteadily on a few good ideas.
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