| Samurai Warriors 3 | |
|---|---|
 PAL territories cover featuring Yukimura Sanada (front) and Kai (back) | |
| Developer(s) | Omega Force[a] |
| Publisher(s) |
|
| Series | Samurai Warriors |
| Platform(s) | Wii,PlayStation 3,PlayStation Portable |
| Release | Wii
|
| Genre(s) | Hack and slash |
| Mode(s) | Single-player,multiplayer |
Samurai Warriors 3[b] is ahack-and-slashvideo game developed byOmega Force and published byTecmo Koei for theWii. It is the third installment in theSamurai Warriors series. The game was released in Japan in December 2009 and internationally in 2010 byNintendo.[1][2]
Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo attended the game's Press Conference in 2009, to present a new mode in the game based on theFamicom Disk System gameThe Mysterious Murasame Castle.[3] Versions for thePlayStation 3 andPlayStation Portable without this mode were released only in Japan.
A sequel,Samurai Warriors 4, was released in March 2014.
Like other games in the series,Samurai Warriors 3 reinvents the story based on theSengoku period of Japan, a period where Japan was ruled by powerfuldaimyōs and where constant military conflict and much political intrigue happened that lasted from the middle of 16th century to the beginning of 17th century. The game, however, has a slightly extended time frame compared to the previous game; whileSamurai Warriors 2 is mostly focused on the events leading to the greatbattle of Sekigahara, this game also covers the events beforehand.
The game features many gameplay improvements over previous games in the series, the most notable being the addition of the Spirit Gauge, a gauge which allows for characters to cancel certain attacks to perform more powerful ones. These occur depending on the level of the gauge. It can also be combined with Musou attacks to perform an "True Musou". Certain combinations of attacks from theXtreme Legends expansions also make a comeback. Each of the character's weapons are categorized under Normal, Speed, and Power types similar toDynasty Warriors 6, except that each character still has unique weapons assigned to them.
The option to create/edit characters fromthe original game returns and is required to access the new "Historical Mode", which can be used to create an original story for edit characters by reenacting parts of historical battles. Both Story Mode and Free Mode return, as does the shop system, which has been redesigned and is now part of "Dojo", a section also dedicated to creating edit characters and color-edit existing characters. An exclusive mode for the Wii version is the "Murasame Castle" based on Nintendo'sThe Mysterious Murasame Castle, which allows for the control of its lead character Takamaru.
Seven new characters made their playable debut in theSamurai Warriors franchise, most of them former generic non-player characters in past installments. Most of the characters from previous games also return, all redesigned with several receiving new weapons. Four characters;Goemon Ishikawa,Gracia,Musashi Miyamoto, andKojiro Sasaki do not return, although Gracia later returns in theMoushouden expansion. Of all of them, seven characters do not have stories, though they are given stories in theMoushouden expansion. Altogether, there are 30 returning characters for a total of 37 characters in the game.
* Denotes characters added through expansion titles
** Denotes Takamaru only found in Samurai Warriors 3/Sengoku Musō 3: Mōshōden
Bold denotes default characters
Samurai Warriors 3 comes in three different variations: a stand-alone copy of the game, a Classic Controller Pro set, and a treasure box edition. The treasure box edition includes the controller as well as a mini figure, an original soundtrack CD and a book with strategies and artwork. The controller included in the latter two bundles is a special edition black Classic Controller Pro with the game's logo and Japanese inkbrush marks in gold.[4]
JPop artistGackt performs two theme songs for the game, "Zan"[5] and "Setsugekka".[6] The song "Zan" was used in the promotional commercials for the game, and is also featured in the game's ending. The single, titled "Setsugekka (The End of Silence)/Zan", which contains both songs, was released on December 9, 2009.
The game features three expansions/ports that either add new contents or expand on gameplay mechanics of the game.
Sengoku Musō 3: Mōshōden is the first expansion of the game, released for theWii in Japan on February 10, 2011. The game introduces two new modes, the "Original Career" mode which allows the opportunity to create original scenarios by completing missions and acquiring gold to increase the player's abilities and strength, as well as the series staple "Challenge" mode that has three challenges of varying objectives. It also adds new weapons, items, two new difficulty levels ("Novice" and "Expert") and stories for characters that did not have them in the original. The game also has online functionality which was not possible in the original. It was also released for thePlayStation 3 on the same day under the title ofSengoku Musō 3 Z. This version has updated graphics compared to the Wii, but removes the Murasame Castle mode and Takamaru. Both of these versions did not receive an overseas release.
Sengoku Musō 3: Empires is the second expansion of the game, released for the PlayStation 3 in Japan on August 25, 2011. Like the otherEmpires expansion, the game is more focused on the political and tactical battle system. The game features a different version of Historical Mode and Free Mode that fits with theEmpires structure and retains the edit character feature. LikeMoushouden, this game was never released overseas.
Sengoku Musō 3 Z: Special is a port for thePlayStation Portable released in Japan on February 16, 2012. As it is based onSengoku Musō 3 Z, it has all of its features (including the removal of Murasame Castle mode and Takamaru) as well as the ability for four players to compete in the game's Challenge mode. Due to memory limitations however, the graphics have been significantly downgraded. This port did not receive an overseas release.
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| GameRankings | 58.73%[7] |
| Metacritic | 55/100[8] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Destructoid | 8/10[9] |
| GameRevolution | D+[10] |
| GameSpot | 4.5/10[11] |
| IGN | 3/10[12] |
| Nintendo Life |   [13] |
| Nintendo Power | 6/10[14] |
| Nintendo World Report | 4.5/10[15] |
| Official Nintendo Magazine | 61%[16] |
| VideoGamer.com | 5/10[17] |
Samurai Warriors 3 was met with mixed to negative reception upon release;GameRankings gave it a score of 59%,[7] whileMetacritic gave it 55 out of 100.[8]