Wii Review – Muramasa: The Demon Blade

Muramasa: The Demon Blade
Published by: Ignition Entertainment
Developed by: Vanillaware / Marvelous Entertainment
Genre: Action / Platformer

ESRB Rating:

Reviewed by: Justin Alderman

From the moment I first saw a screenshot for Muramasa: The Demon Blade I was astounded by the visual presentation of the title.  The amount of detail in the character designs and the backgrounds combined with the incredible art style make every still shot of Muramasa worthy of being in a frame and hanging in an art gallery.  However, it takes a lot more than beauty to make a good video game and the real question is if Muramasa’s gameplay lives up to its mesmerizing visuals.  At this point I’ve put in over 20 hours with the title and I can safely say that Muramasa: The Demon Blade is every bit as fun to play as it is to just sit and stare at.

Muramasa’s visual presentation both in-game and in the menus is truly a sight to behold.  From the moment the opening sequence starts on the screen to when the final credits roll every single aspect of the title is a work of art.  Every character, both friend and foe, is beautifully crafted and has a wide range of animations that bring them to life.  The level artwork is equally impressive and ranges from rolling farm fields, to snow covered mountains and dark forests.  Sure, a few areas reuse backgrounds and some enemy types reappear in later areas with a different color paint on them but I was so enthralled by the visual presentation of the title that it didn’t bother me in the slightest.  All of this visual polish is tied together with wonderful presentation that mixes Japanese written characters and dialog with English subtitles.

In my original impressions post I wrote that the two characters in Muramasa, Momohime and Kisuko, had stories that were slightly different.  Now after playing through the game with both characters that statement needs to be revised.  The two characters in the title have a similar gameplay experience but their stories, level design, supporting cast of characters and boss battles are completely different.  While the two stories do cross paths at times they are different enough to make them feel like two different games that share a common gameplay design.  On my first run through the game I beat Momohime’s story in 11 hours (which could have been cut down to about 8 if I had not spent so much time exploring areas that were not essential to the main story), while Kisuko’s story took me 7.5 hours to finish.  After completing each story once you unlock the ability to go back equip certain swords and fight a different end boss battle that results in a different ending.  With each character having three different endings there is certainly no shortage of story in Muramasa.

The basic game design in Muramasa is similar to other classic 2D games like Metroid (although it moves along at a much faster pace).  You will enter an area that has at least one barrier that you cannot pass through without having a particular sword, which you will gain after defeating the boss in that level.  After gaining the sword you need you will then need to backtrack through the level to the barrier to move on.  Muramasa is completely free roaming in that as long as you have the correct sword to defeat a barrier you can go anywhere on the map that you please.  The one flaw in this game design is that you are forced to backtrack several times during the game to get where you need to go to continue the story or make it back to a village for supplies.  There are a few different ways to fast travel from one specific point on the map to another but these are only one way trips and there are not nearly enough of them to make fast travel a viable option.  The characters do run through the levels at a quick pace so it’s not a deal breaker when you are forced to backtrack but it is slightly annoying.  The good news is that after you complete the game you can fast travel from a save points to any area on the map.  This makes exploring the areas you skipped over during your first run though much more enjoyable.

Outside of the main story Muramasa has plenty to keep gamers busy and coming back for more.  There is a level up system for the characters that increases your health, strength and vitality stats.  Raising the strength and vitality stats allows you to equip better swords.  New Swords can be forged (basically bought) and there are over 100 to collect between the two characters.  Each sword has its own power and you can have up to three equipped at one time, which allows for a decent amount of character customization.  Additionally, there are cooking recipes and ingredients, a small amount of item management, challenge areas, boat rides that lead to a fishing game or a giant octopus fight and you can even take a bath in the hot springs with a few monkeys.  When you combine all of this in with the story it will easily take over 20 hours to see everything Muramasa and that’s not counting the hardest mode that is unlocked when you beat the game the first time.

Controls for Muramasa are pretty simple and the game supports three control schemes: Wiimote and Nunchuk, Classic Controller or the GameCube Controller.  For me the Classic Controller with its superior D-Pad was the way to go.

The last thing that I want to touch on with Muramasa is that even though you will likely spend over 20 hours running through the game it never seems to get old thanks to the wonderful pacing.  Every 15 minutes or so you will either gain enough points to forge a new sword, find a merchant that is selling cook book you didn’t have, level up and gain the ability to equip a new blade, gain a new item or fight another huge boss battle.  The game never stops giving you a reason to play for just a few more minutes.

Recap:

Muramasa: The Demon Blade is a true masterpiece in 2D gaming.  The visual presentation is a downright beautiful work of art but Muramasa is also so much more than simple eye candy.  The controls are polished, there are light RPG elements to add your own touch of customization on the characters and well over 20 hours of fast paced gameplay that never seems to get old.  Muramasa: The Demon Blade is a classic and should not be missed.

Final Score: 09/10 – Excellent