Samurai Shodown

 PlayStation 4
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 80 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 60 out of 80
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 80
  3. Negative: 14 out of 80
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  1. Trigunner4110
    Jun 25, 2019
    10
    Amazing old school fighting game with depth and an incredible art style. Netcode is legit!
  2. xenoss
    Jun 26, 2019
    8
    Honest review from a long time fan of Samurai Shodown:

    Although I am glad to see such high scores for the game, I do not believe this to be a 10/10 game. And I say this as a long time fan of the franchise dating back to the first game when I encountered it in an arcade as a kid. Samsho is my #1 fav fighting franchise until it transitioned to 3D in the early 2000s and killed it. So    Honest review from a long time fan of Samurai Shodown:

    Although I am glad to see such high scores for the game, I do not believe this to be a 10/10 game. And I say this as a long time fan of the franchise dating back to the first game when I encountered it in an arcade as a kid. Samsho is my #1 fav fighting franchise until it transitioned to 3D in the early 2000s and killed it.

    So why is a fan like me giving this game an 8 only? Actually I'd give it a 7 but my inner fanboy is so glad the series is back I boosted it up 1 due to my love for the franchise.

    The GOOD:

    It feels legit oldschool. After falling in love with Guilty Gear and BlazBlue, I am surprised that an oldschool game like this is actually what I am looking for now. Slow paced, sure. But deep. Not in the way GG and BB was with lots of systems and combo chains, here it's about mind games and counter moves, reading your opponent and then punishing them.

    SNK delivered a true SamSho experience.

    The BAD:

    LOAD TIMES are atrocious. Takes a good 10-15 seconds of black screen with a white rabbit to get into a match. It feels too long for a game of this nature.

    Graphics are subpar and feels like a budget title sold at full price. I am biased towards 2D sprites. But Guilty Gear Xrd, DBFZ and footage from Granblue Fantasy Versus showed me what is possible with 3D: cellshading done so well they look like high def 2D. And those games are done in the UE4 engine, the same as this game. SamSho 2019 is not on that level.

    Don't get me wrong, I am not saying it's super ugly. What we get is still very pretty and stylized. But I can't help but wonder what SamSho would look like if it was done on the tech level of DBFZ, with the WATERPAINTING look they are going for. GG and DBFZ raised the bar too high. I want to see that waterpainting look fully realized.

    Speaking of raising the bar, MK story modes did that for single player mode. SamSho is oldschool, but that turned out to be a double edged sword. The story mode here is too oldschool and feels barebones in this day and age. You fight through random opponents for no real story reasons, get the same boss tease cut scenes, get 1 single rival opening scene, and then the boss. I was expecting this to be the case so I wasn't disappointed. BUT how could I give a 9 or 10 to a fighting game in 2019 as a competitor to MK11?

    FINAL:

    SamSho 2019 is just too barebones to compete with its contemporaries. Other games have done so much more in terms of content and graphics (and load times) for the past 5 years or so. This makes SamSho 2019 feel like a budget title. They should have sold it as such. For full price there just isn't enough.

    That's a shame, since the gameplay, the systems, the soul behind it is so well done. It IS SAMSHO, you can't get that experience from the other fighting games.

    And for SamSho fans, that's probably enough. And so despite my misgivings I have to give it an 8. It is hard not to love the game, but also hard not to be annoyed by it.    … Expand
  3. shootingstars99
    Aug 23, 2019
    6
    It's alright, but not as great as what people are hyping it up to be. It's a simple, punishing fighter reminiscent of the 2D fighters of the mid 90's. The exchanges are more mind games and baits than combos and pressure, and one mistake can cost you 50% life easily. While this game is fun, and the online is pretty stable (which is saying a lot for modern fighters), the overall feel lacks aIt's alright, but not as great as what people are hyping it up to be. It's a simple, punishing fighter reminiscent of the 2D fighters of the mid 90's. The exchanges are more mind games and baits than combos and pressure, and one mistake can cost you 50% life easily. While this game is fun, and the online is pretty stable (which is saying a lot for modern fighters), the overall feel lacks a sense of charm and spirit to it. The characters just all feel kind of bland, and the Street Fighter 4 art style is a bit of a turn off for me. The funnest thing about this game is punishing people online who are too aggressive and throw out reversal moves too often by taking off 50% of their life with a heavy attack. The defensive options are nice, and not many games nowadays emphasize them enough. Overall, the game can be fun, it's an alright fighter, but the art style has been done before and is not aesthetically pleasing at all, and the game just lacks any kind of lasting charm to it.

    The ghost battles could have been something great and been done similar to a style of Virtua Fighter where they are you know, actually intelligent and learn your style so you can see the holes in it, but in SS they just dodge and swing randomly, even ghosts of top 100 players on the leaderboards, what a joke. Overall the game is easy to learn and to pass a few hours with. It's for sure a game to rent and have fun with for a week, but not worth $60 IMO.    … Expand
  4. KainM
    Jun 25, 2019
    10
    This game is a lot of fun I enjoy it alot. One of the best fighting games I played all year
  5. Bbb1
    Jun 25, 2019
    10
    Snk did such a great job with this game. I am enjoying this game more and more thank you Snk.
  6. 00wolf
    Jun 26, 2019
    10
    SNK successfully breathes life back into one of their most beloved fighting game series. The game looks gorgeous, plays just like the classic SamShow you know and love, and serves as a perfect entry point for those looking to get into fighters with its focus on neutral play, lack of complex combos, and easy to use reversal mechanics.
  7. Yuber
    Jun 28, 2019
    9
    A nice game, is not graphically perfect like namco game series , but is better than kof, i llike old style black ink like street fighter 4. also i love the blood in the game, anyway missing some characters , and old movements like bust or burst like ss4 .

    Anyway a good game
  8. Mezzeruk
    Feb 2, 2020
    9
    Staggeringly great reworking of the classic Neo Geo game series. Looks and sounds great and most important plays like a dream. Brilliant job SNK.
  9. tatachrome
    Jun 27, 2019
    10
    İf you want to play hardcore fighting game with beautiful artstyle and japanese flute just buy it and enjoy the real legend.
  10. OfflinePlayer
    Jul 8, 2019
    10
    Extremely solid fighting game. Good Roster, Good art-style, Good Soundtrack, Good style. Perfect for all SNK lover.
  11. Mogmog000
    Jan 24, 2023
    4
    Beautiful graphics.
    Few default characters. Too many paid DLCs.
    The loading time of the story mode is too long.
    The last boss is too hard and his attack is too cowardly.
  12. Si3g
    Jul 9, 2019
    10
    Excelente game. Tem aquilo que é vital em um ótimo jogo de luta, gameplay instigante, q consegue isto sendo acessível da forma correta,sem joguinho que tu vai apertando um botão e sai com ando. Pra quem quer ver filminho ao invés de jogar,eu sugiro que vá pra MKXI, Samsho é um jogo de luta tradicional, e não fica nessas novelinhas e filminhos que os jogos de luta tem eito ultimamente
  13. Alex_Pilgrim008
    May 10, 2023
    8
    A gorgeous revival of the 90's franchise. Fans of the older games will surely enjoy the combat. But the lack of extensive modes and content is disappointing. Even SNK's King of Fighters 14 had more for players to chew on. Still, there's enough to justify a full priced purchase. "Samurai" is unique in the annals of fighting titles. It's more slower-paced than either Street Fighter V or SoulA gorgeous revival of the 90's franchise. Fans of the older games will surely enjoy the combat. But the lack of extensive modes and content is disappointing. Even SNK's King of Fighters 14 had more for players to chew on. Still, there's enough to justify a full priced purchase. "Samurai" is unique in the annals of fighting titles. It's more slower-paced than either Street Fighter V or Soul Calibur VI. Unfortunately, loading screens are a bit long in between matches. Despite the flaws, this is the best in the series since Part II. I would rate it with an 8.1 out of 10.… Expand
  14. ShadowPeter
    Jul 9, 2019
    9
    That's right, K. O. in two blows. Maybe it was for lack of attention or pure ignorance on my part, but even though I've been playing videogames since the 90s, I've never heard of Samurai Shodown. I heard about the Tekken, Street Fighter, The King of Fighters and Guilty Gear, but i never heard about Samurai Shodown. I know I know. I should be executed in every way, I deserve that. The fansThat's right, K. O. in two blows. Maybe it was for lack of attention or pure ignorance on my part, but even though I've been playing videogames since the 90s, I've never heard of Samurai Shodown. I heard about the Tekken, Street Fighter, The King of Fighters and Guilty Gear, but i never heard about Samurai Shodown. I know I know. I should be executed in every way, I deserve that. The fans of this SNK series have had a long wait of more than a decade in front of them, but behold now Samurai Shodown makes his return, and it can be said that it is a great return.

    For those who do not know Samurai Shodown, this is a fighting game in which the fighting style focuses more on the opponent's mistakes than on making elaborate combos. It's the exact opposite of what other fighting games usually do. In other words, don't expect to crush the buttons like there's no tomorrow and try to be patient and wait for your opponents' mistakes, because a wrong move can be fatal, as most Samurai Shodown hits are very powerful. Let's say it's a unique fighting style.

    Most Samurai Shodown techniques are very simple to perform, except the super special moves. But don't think that it is only to beat the opponent; make parry, perfect parry and disarm our enemy is also important. When it is disarmed, the blows aren't very powerful compared when we have the weapons. Simple and smooth are the words in Samurai Shodown's, because the gameplay is very good. You can wait for huge amounts of blood and cuts in half, but the game has a more cartoony style and not as gore as what is commonly seen in Mortal Kombat. And this isn't a criticism.

    The base game features a range of 16 characters, including veterans Haohmaru, Ukyo Tachibana, Nakoruru and Jubei Yagyu, and some newcomers such as Darli Dagger and Wu-Ruixiang. They all have their own movements and their own history. And speaking of history, it should be noted that the events of this Samurai Shodown take place between the events of Samurai Shodown 5 and those of the original title, and function as a reboot of the series. Although the story mode is reasonable, the truth is that it's nothing special either. The same is just a mere arcade mode.

    No big surprises, modes like Training and Tutorial are present and are always super essential in fighting games. Of course, it's a good idea to invest some time in these modes before you go into serious battles, whether offline or online. In the tutorial, basic mechanics like Just Defense, Dodge, Counter, Sword Clash or Blade Catch, among others, are some of the things that we will learn and train. And being a fighting game, training is essential.

    At offline modes, you can count on Time Trial, Survival, Gautlet (a mode that sets us against all characters in the game) and the traditional Versus mode. In online mode we have modes like Ranked Match and Casual Match. In the latter, we can choose the type of battle: Single VS or Team VS. In Team VS, it can be 2on2, 3on3 or 5on5 battles, just like we can choose the rules: Point Match or Elimination Match. On the connections of the game, I have no great reasons for complaint. Just be aware of the connections of our opponents.

    Samurai Shodown also features an interesting asynchronous online mode, called Dojo. Put simply, the game studies and learns the behavior and tactics of players in offline modes, and with this information, creates a Ghost opponent that mimics a human opponent. This Ghost opponent can later be unloaded by other players for an experience versus asynchronous. In addition, we also have a rewarding challenge, called the Ironman Challenge, that impels us to face 10, 50 or 100 CPU Ghosts.

    Visually, Samurai Shodown is super colorful and cartoons, and the quality of the artwork and the models of the characters is very good. The typically Japanese soundtrack and Japanese voices are equally of great quality. At first it may be strange for those who are accustomed to other fighting games more focused on combos, but after a short period of habituation, Samurai Shodown is really very addictive. Overall, it was a job well done by SNK.    … Expand
  15. ZeroSigma
    Jul 4, 2019
    10
    Just awesome game! SNK did it :) they improved their 3D graphic, epic gameplay, ost and nice roster.
  16. DefenseForce
    Jun 30, 2019
    9
    Solid and good fighting game. Maybe the best of the serie. You must like the slower gameplay but if you like it then this is one of the beat fighting games available.
  17. Sk8terBae
    Oct 20, 2019
    10
    Greatest SNK so far its good Overall at best the graphics the characters I mean this is SNK first fighting game that uses Unreal Engine I mean look at it
  18. sergio123456
    May 16, 2020
    7
    Juego de lucha entretenido, al estilo japonés con espadas, katanas... el modo historia es repetitivo, pero hay una gran variedad de personajes a elegir, si buscas un juego para pasar un rato divertido no lo dudes.
  19. SNKBrasil
    Jun 27, 2020
    10
    The amazing return of the franchise, Samurai Shodown brought again the return of nostalgic warriors, and the newcomers are also well acepted. The news graphics is very amazing and the gameplay is the better of Samurai Shodown games. SNK finally nailed it this time.
  20. scrampus
    Jul 28, 2020
    4
    Not my type of fighting game. Its reminiscent of old school fighting games so i can see why some people would like it, but again it wasn't my jam.
  21. Devil_Bogard
    Aug 31, 2020
    10
    This is one of the best games in the Samurai Shodown franchise, director Nobuyuki Kuroki managed to capture all the essence of the franchise in this title, a punitive game, but easy to learn, very beautiful graphics resembling a Japanese painting.

Awards & Rankings

43
#43 Best PS4 Game of 2019
97
#97 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2019
27
#27 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 53 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 47 out of 53
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 53
  3. Negative: 0 out of 53
  1. Game Over Online
    Aug 20, 2019
    86
    Overall, Samurai Shodown has some rough edges to it – but fewer than any entry has had in around 20 years. It’s the best-playing entry in the series since the legendary second installment, and stands out nicely even in today’s crowded field of fighters. Much like it did in the early ’90s, by being different than the pack with its feudal Japanese setting and story, it allows the core game to be different even if the framework is still a single-plane fighter. It’s a must-play for any lapsed fans of the series and will not only rekindle old memories, but forge new ones for all who play it.
    Read full review
  2. Games.cz
    Aug 19, 2019
    80
    A refreshing trip to the beginnings of modern Japan in a company of furious, heavily armed samurai. The tactics are everything and the best offense is a solid defense. Not every retro is cool, but this comeback is absolutely worth the price.
    Read full review
  3. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    Jul 30, 2019
    80
    A fantastic reboot that reworks Samurai Shodown’s best ideas into an accomplished Street Fighter V-alike. It can’t truly escape the trappings of its own heritage, but fans will adore SNK’s return. [Issue#165, p.82]
See all critic reviews »