Afro Samurai

 Xbox 360
Metascore
65

Mixed or average reviews - based on 70 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 70
  2. Mixed: 48 out of 70
  3. Negative: 5 out of 70
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  1. Destructoid
    45
    Mundane boss confrontations don’t allow you to exhibit your fighting prowess. Awkward platforming segments slow the flow of the game to a crawl. Weird clipping issues and dangerous framerate drops deter the action of the rather short (five to eight hours) span of play. I wish there was more to Afro Samurai, but there isn’t much to sink your teeth into. The game feels 75% complete.
  2. 1UP
    42
    Ultimately, Afro falls into the same pitfalls as almost every other game based on a movie/television license: It presents an edited down version of a story that's familiar to fans but indecipherable to newcomers, wrapped up in a generic game housing. It looks great. It sounds great. But, otherwise, it's a mashup of characters and situations that makes little sense.
  3. GameSpy
    40
    Afro Samurai is a mess of a game. It's such a shame to see such a beautifully rendered and stylish world ground into the dust by such staggering gameplay foibles and technical glitches.
  5. Metro GameCentral
    40
    It looks and sounds the part but this anime tie-in should've worried about more than just presentation.
  6. Gamestyle
    40
    There are reasons why some of the gameplay features here have thankfully become extinct. Being linked so closely to the story of the anime may have been a hindrance, but we feel with a better developer this could’ve been something much, much better.

Awards & Rankings

79
#79 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2009
70
#70 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2009

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
6.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 67 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 25 out of 67
  2. Mixed: 25 out of 67
  3. Negative: 17 out of 67
  1. duffles
    Jan 15, 2012
    3
    If you want a good action game in the style of Devil May Cry or God of War, do not buy this game. If you want terrible camera controls, decentIf you want a good action game in the style of Devil May Cry or God of War, do not buy this game. If you want terrible camera controls, decent voice work, a barely glued together plot, and one of the most boring combat systems ever created, then go get this game. I took a 2 year break between starting and beating this game for how enraged i was at it. It tries to be much better than it is, and offers a glimpse of inspired combat, but fails rather quickly. The strategy for all non-boss fights is virtually identical, that being focus attacking, because the normal combos are worthless. One focus attack kills all standard enemies, but standard enemies need at least a dozen normal attacks to be defeated. The focus attacks themselves are fun, offering a No More Heroes style of slicing dudes in pieces ... that is when you can get it to work properly. Other than the Focus stuff all the normal attacks feel terrible, and don't feel like they are doing any damage. Combos 'exist' but only if you bother to look them up, and are pretty useless compared to a focus attack. Enemies barely react to attacks, and the only indicator of their health (or your own) is the character model tinting red. This game will go down as one of the few games in history that gave my a headache due to terrible platforming, level design, checkpointing, combat, and several other things. Of the few positives i'll say that the voice work is well done, and the soundtrack is alright, but it does get repetitive when songs loop infinitely during fights. The visual style is nice to look at, but it's dragged down by boring enemy and level design.… Full Review »
  2. TTW107
    Feb 13, 2012
    6
    I had a ton of fun with this game, still there are some problems with it. Sometimes you have to do very specific slices with your katana thatI had a ton of fun with this game, still there are some problems with it. Sometimes you have to do very specific slices with your katana that were hard for me to get down. At the end when you face a nearly endless, and i mean endless, wave of the same enemy was hands down the stupidest part of the game.… Full Review »
  3. DJPurge
    May 26, 2011
    8
    if you like Quentin Tarantino films, Ninja Gaiden-esque combos, great scenery and awesome music look no further. it's very repetitive and theif you like Quentin Tarantino films, Ninja Gaiden-esque combos, great scenery and awesome music look no further. it's very repetitive and the controls can often be maddening but overall a solid, fun game.… Full Review »
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