Skulls of the Shogun Review
Skulls of the Shogun is a new turn-based strategy game developed by 17-Bit studios.
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The cartoon graphics are pleasing to the eye and give joyful feelings to fans of all things that are old-age Japan. The game comes complete with fun dialogue, enjoyable characters and also offers up 3 different modes for gamers to play through, those of which include: solo campaign, online multiplayer and local multiplayer. In the game, players will assume the role of the General Akamoto, a man whom was heavily feared in life but in death finds himself fighting for control over the title of Shogun of the Dead with an army at his side.
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The game deserves massive praise for the fact that it takes time with the player. Instead of dumping a heap of instructions and skills on the player as quick as possible, it slows down and takes steps to teach the player what’s what. With each new battlefield, the player will discover a new skill, enemy or minion to learn up until there’s simply nothing left to learn. However, the game is not to be mistaken for an easy game. It has a difficulty not suited for those who are impatient and unwilling to plan ahead. You must always be aware of where your general is as well as the
placement of the rest of your army at hand.
Every battle has the same goal in mind. Your army must defeat the army of the other side as well as the general if there is one. Each battle has five moves per turn you take. Your army consists of four parts: the cavalry, archers, infantry and a monk (which comes later into the game). The cavalry has the advantage of being those who can travel the furthest on battlefield during their turn. The infantry play the role of the damage dealers and the archers are handy to hit an enemy at long-distance. Your monk is also very valuable as he is used to protect and heal the General as well as the rest of your army if needed. Though, there are three different types of monks you can use. The Fox Monk is the healer type, the Salamander monk is the long-range damage dealer and the Crow Monk is good for blowing enemies back and might actually push an enemy off a ledge/into the water and kill them instantly.
Another note-worthy part of each battlefield is the rice paddies that you must haunt in order to collect rice. Each turn you gain 25 rice for every paddy a solider has haunted. The rice is used to raise more soldiers for your army from the grave, or to raise a monk from the monuments. The monuments and statues must also be haunted before the player can purchase from them. The enemy are able to use rice paddies too!
Your General is a playable character. He is very useful for the fact that he can move the longest distance and do the best damage. He also can do more than just one move per turn. It is best advised that your General is left to meditate (a process that allows for your General to gain 1 HP per turn) as he will gain more HP. If your General is
killed, whether he be meditating or not, your game will end and you will have to start all over. I found this rather frustrating when I spent a good thirty minutes on a battle and lost every single thing I did due to my General being downed.
Lastly, the game encourages your soldiers and General to eat the skulls of the opposing team. Sounds gruesome, but it allows for the soldiers/General to gain HP back if they’ve lost any, and if not, your soldier/General will gain extra HP. The monk will gain new skills when he consumes a skull. Eventually this practice leads to
additional moves per turn and after eating 3 skulls your warrior becomes a demon, offering lots more health and damage!
All in all, this game is fantastic. I would recommend it to anyone who is a fan of turn based strategy games. It’s pretty easy to pick up and play, and has a decent way of teaching players how to play. It is a pretty difficult game at times, but well worth it. The graphics are extremely pleasing and the dialogue will keep you laughing throughout. Players can find it on Xbox Live, Windows 8 and Windows phones, making it easy to play just about anywhere.
9/10
Review By Jackie C
