Afro Samurai (Xbox 360)

The tough part about making an Afro Samurai game would be (in my opinion) getting the art direction and gameplay to allow folks to really experience all the things that made the series so notable. Specifically, finding a graphic way to bring the series animation to what should be a super bloody hack and slash console game and have it make sense...all while retaining the unique style of the series through the characters, story, design and music.

The folks that made this game, to my surprise, nailed the crap outta the hard part. Which should make this game be all kinds of super awesome and a ton of fun to play. The game retains all of the violence, RZA and Samuel L. Jackson goodness that the series had, and presents it all in a really swank and surprisingly cohesive way.

However, if you've read a review of this game then you may have heard mention of the very "brokeashell" in-game camera. This is because (as awesome as this game is), the camera is, in fact, dysfunctional beyond belief. However, if you give this game a little bit of time you will eventually get "used" to the camera and stop fighting it as much as you progress through the game. But, and I'm not going to lie here, that process will drive you nuts in the first couple of stages. So with that being the case, is this game worth playing through?

Yepper.

And here's why. When the camera does behave and isn't whipping around for no reason, chopping up frames, and generally blocking your view of what you need to see - it does deliver some of the straight-up coolest hip-hop infused samurai action moments in the history of histories... chock full of body parts, buckets o' blood in slo-mo, and it's all To The Beat.

If this game were rereleased with a functioning camera, it would be a solid 5 star game. No joke.

So while it definitely sucks, the camera doesn't make this game as unplayable as some folks'll lead you to believe. The game is certainly worth your time, and I would say money... but not at full price. I am a fan (not huge, but def a fan) of the series and actually enjoyed this game.

I'd say, unless you are super hardcore fan of the series, this game doesn't hold up well enough to buy new. Rent it or buy it used.

In summation - If you're into the series or just into the wonderful Reeses Peanut Butter Cup of Awesomeness that is the combination of Samurai Action + Hip Hop culture, then this game is certainly worth playing, but with the whole camera issue...not exactly worth owning outright at a new price.

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This is a great game, lots of fights, fun visual, good controlling. But the camera breaks it all, the fights, the visuals etc. Also the game is a little slow paced for me.

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If your looking for a hack and slash Kill Bill simulator and are worn out from Ninja Gaiden 2, then you've came to the right place. This game isn't groundbreaking but it's very fun and although I never saw the TV show, I had a good time with it. The graphics very much resemble an anime and don't try to be cutting edge. If your looking for cutting edge graphics, look else where. The gameplay is very fun, I have to say I enjoyed hacking through dozens sometimes hundreds of enemies at once. I felt like Uma Thurman in Kill Bill. Lastly parents, do not buy this for your kids. This is truely an M-rated game on par with Grand Theft Auto and Saints Row. There is bloody violence, limbs hacked off, bodies chopped in half sometimes with internal organs exposed, constant profanity(of course if your kid goes to public school, they probably hear this language already), sexual references, and nude strippers and prostitutes. Teens could probably handle it but younger children should be kept far away despite the cartoony look.

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