Samurai Shodown was the very first pure weapon-based fighter from SNK, an innovative idea released during an era when the company had no shortage of flagship fighting games, with the likes of Fatal Fury, Art of Fighting, and later The King of Fighters. Proving their fighting game catalog was not just a collection of formulaic hits, the original Samurai Shodown was not just an incredible 2D showcase for their arcade hardware, but the weapon-based fighting was something the genre had never seen before. It was genre defining in ways that influenced fighting games for decades to come, becoming an inspiration and standard-bearer, providing the blueprint for Soulcalibur, which took the intense sword fighting into the 3D realm.
What was great about Samurai Shodown was that it wasn’t just an experimental novelty idea for a fighting game, it was a proficiently designed and balanced fighting game. While SNK were producing many cool fighting games, it can be argued that their weapons fighter put them on the map as a serious contender to Capcom and Street Fighter II, perhaps even more so than what Fatal Fury did.
The game had the same methodical balance of games like Fatal Fury and Street Fighter II, except the weapons system added a new layer of strategy in both offense and defense, as well as a level of violence and brutality which was quite uncommon unless it was Mortal Kombat. The weapons were not mere substitutes to punches and kicks, as the damage inflicted by these blades felt authentic. There were moments during battle when two blades would clash against each other, at which point both fighters would wrestle to gain the advantage. It was also possible to drop your weapon during combat, a feature introduced in Namco’s Soul Edge later.
Samurai Shodown went on to have sequels, with the second title still considered to be the very best of the franchise. From the third game onward there were more characters, new meters, and a faster fighting system emphasising long combo chains typical of contemporary fighting games. Each sequel tried new things, but by the sixth mainline entry the series had squeezed the proverbial cloth as much as it could as newer characters were less and less interesting (such as a French maid) and the gameplay balance became increasingly messy.
Over the course of its storied history attempts were made to bring the franchise into the realm of 3D, but much like SNK’s other 3D efforts this proved to be unsuccessful for the most part. From the PlayStation to the short-lived Hyper NEOGEO 64 arcade hardware, these efforts were generally underwhelming compared to the mainline titles and other 3D fighting games. Xbox 360 received Samurai Shodown Sen, which despite having all the right ingredients, simply fell flat in execution. All the uninspired visual and gameplay elements resulted in a disjointed and shallow fighting experience.
Despite the ups and downs over the decades, the series has a few distinct signature elements, with the most notable being the combat design which is heavy, brutal, and precise. As time went on the design would overburden itself with complicated systems and combos, but at its best this is a no-nonsense 2D sword fighting experience, where each fight battle feels rewarding and every bladed-strike matters; heavy, calculated, and methodical. Every slash and every hit in the game is malicious and impactful, unlike most modern fighting games there is no wasted motion or offense here, and no inconsequential chain attacks either.
Another signature element is the rage art system; a devastating comeback to turn the tide of battle. Unlike most fighting games where a super meter fills up when you are the dominating fighter, the rage art meter fills up when you take punishment, allowing you to build up a desperation attack as a final trump-card. These attacks are damaging and don’t come by too often, allowing the fighting balance to stay fair and methodical.
These signature elements evolved over years, at times even across genres too (the Japan-only Samurai Spirits RPG is apparently not bad at all). Diving into the history of this franchise is like diving into ancient samurai literature, and the mainline titles alone shape the history of its steel-infused combat.
Samurai Shodown (1993)
SNK couldn’t have asked for a better technical showcase for their groundbreaking arcade hardware than the original Samurai Shodown. Unlike its contemporaries, the game utilised enormous character sprites that were animated with such sheer fluidity and detail that it had to be seen in motion to be believed. This was the game that set the foundation, introducing a level of weapon-based fighting that had never been seen before.
The game was a spectacle to witness in the arcades, but thankfully for console players the 16-bit systems managed to faithfully port the experience over. At the time, and for quite a while, the Panasonic 3DO offered the definitive home conversion, providing the otherwise ill-fated 32-bit system a measure of momentum during its launch period.
Samurai Shodown II (1994)
If the first game created the foundation, then the second perfected that traditional formula and more. Adding new characters, impressive moves, and several techniques to add more range to the fighting styles and more strategic depth to the combat, this is easily the signature title of the franchise. The graphical prowess and art style alone impresses even to this very day, with stronger artistic detail drawing upon its rich historical setting.
Home ports would faithfully capture the experience (much later followed by a notable Xbox Live Arcade release) and most nostalgic fans of the series will always swear by the second game as being the very best, and for good reason too. It may not be the preferred title for tournament play, but this is easily one of the pioneers of fighting games, and it established an excellent template for others to follow. In fact, the 2019 reboot would model its fundamentals after Samurai Shodown II.
Samurai Shodown III: Blades of Blood (1995)
The third is perhaps the least popular among the mainline titles, but it was far from a bad game, it’s just that it was perhaps far too ambitious for its own good. It rebuilt the sprites, assembled the largest roster yet, and added a whole lot more to the fighting system, but a lot of these were either not intuitive or they lacked polish in execution.
Despite its flaws, the sense of style and graphical richness were still there; making it a highly desirable release on Saturn and PlayStation. The ideas may have been temperamental, but the experience as a whole marked a fundamental shift for the series, providing the basis for subsequent entries to build upon further and even fully realise these ambitions.
Samurai Shodown IV: Amakusa’s Revenge (1996)
For the longest time, this was it: the ultimate perfection. Samurai Shodown IV feels like the game that Samurai Shodown III was always meant to be; really polishing up the gameplay and execution to near perfection. In terms of graphics and art, it’s easily among the best looking and playing 2D games of its era. Seasoned fans would swear by the second game for the classic high-damage combat and the fourth game for its modern innovations and refined depth.
By this time home console conversions were getting close to arcade perfect, and other than forking out a small fortune for NEOGEO AES version or dealing with the tedious load times of the NEOGEO CD version, the best and most practical avenue was the Saturn port which made use of the RAM expansion cartridge to bring the most authentic experience, bringing all the frames of animation to life. Unfortunately, the excellent Saturn game would only be released in Japan, with Western players having to make-do with the PlayStation port which didn’t perform the best.
Samurai Shodown V (2003)
After several years and a few failed 3D transitions, the series would undergo a soft reboot of sorts with the release of Samurai Shodown V. Chronologically, the game takes place before the first game, making it the prequel to the entire series from a storyline standpoint. The narrative scope was ambitious too as the game, taking place during Tenmei era of the Edo period in Japan. The game itself was a retool of Samurai Shodown IV with new characters to assemble the largest roster yet.
Not long after, an enhanced expanded edition called Samurai Shodown V Special (2004) would follow, and it is notable for being the final official release of the NEOGEO platform. It’s worth taking a moment to appreciate the magnitude here: this is the very same hardware from 1991 that powered both the original 1993 Samurai Shodown and the final release Samurai Shodown V Special; just comparing these two games alone shows staggering differences in graphical and technical prowess. It’s almost unreal just how powerful this hardware was, with SNK being able to extract so much out of it for decades.
For fighting game enthusiasts who tend to lean more towards the serious competitive side, Samurai Shodown V Special is the definitive tournament experience with the ideal balancing. When the NEOGEO Collection was released in 2020 to celebrate the series, it included the first ever exclusive port of a new edition: Samurai Shodown V Perfect (2020), which did minor gameplay revisions and added more story sequences.
Samurai Shodown VI (2005)
The sixth mainline entry doesn’t actually take place in the main series canon. Instead, it’s an oversized crossover featuring nearly all previous characters and bosses, plus some new faces too. It definitely throws everything including the kitchen sink, but the experience feels like a case of being a bit too much, to the point where it lacks focus and polish. Further, the game runs on the newer Atomiswave arcade hardware, which lacks the refined 2D precision of NEOGEO. There’s close to 50 characters here, but there’s next to no balancing for serious competitive fighting. There are definitely lots of ideas and content here, but some of the newer characters are just plain silly.
Those curious can still pick up the PS2 port off the PlayStation Store, but most players are better off sticking with the mainline NEOGEO entries. Even most diehard fans can live without ever playing this almost spin-off entry.
Legacy
Samurai Shodown saw one of the greatest fighting game reboots back in 2019, a fully modern re-imagining of the core fundamentals of the series’ combat conventions, featuring some of best looking visuals in any fighting game. The fanbase lovingly refers to it as ‘Samurai Shodown VII’, a fitting moniker without a doubt.
The five mainline titles were compiled together in the excellent Samurai Shodown NEOGEO Collection that’s available on all modern gaming platforms. The sixth title remains the one with the most limited availability, but the enhanced PlayStation 4 port can still be picked up from the PlayStation Store. Fans willing to dig out vintage hardware can find all six mainline titles in Samurai Shodown Anthology.
All images captured by author on Nintendo Switch/PlayStation 5.
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