Muramasa: The Demon Blade

This article is about the video game. For the famous swordsmith, see Muramasa. For the band, see Japanese ska.

Muramasa: The Demon Blade
Box art
Developer(s)	Vanillaware
Publisher(s)	JP Marvelous Entertainment NA Ignition Entertainment[1] EU Rising Star Games
Designer(s)	Yoshifumi Hashimoto (producer) George Kamitani (director)
Composer(s)	Hitoshi Sakimoto Masaharu Iwata Mitsuhiro Kaneda Noriyuki Kamikura Kimihiro Abe Yoshimi Kudo Azusa Chiba
Platform(s)	Wii
Release date(s)	JP April 9, 2009 NA September 8, 2009[2] EU November 27, 2009[3]
Genre(s)	Action role-playing game
Mode(s)	Single-player
Rating(s)	CERO: B ESRB: T PEGI: 12
Media/distribution	Wii Optical Disc

Muramasa: The Demon Blade, known in Japan as Oboromuramasa (朧村正^?, literally "Hazy Muramasa") is an action role playing game developed by Vanillaware and published by Marvelous Entertainment in Japan, Rising Star Games in Europe, and Ignition Entertainment in North America for the Wii. The game was released in Japan on April 9, 2009, in North America on September 8, 2009, and in Europe on November 27, 2009.

Muramasa follows the story of Kisuke, a fugitive who has lost his memory, including that of a crime that he committed; and Momohime, a lithe princess possessed by a dark spirit. Gameplay allows players to use the Wii Remote (with Nunchuk), the Classic controller or the GameCube controller. The game allows players to use two different characters and features three difficulty levels.

Within its first week of release in Japan, Muramasa sold all of its shipped copies and reached the top Japan sales list.^[4]

Gameplay

Momohime fighting an Oni wielding a Kanabō

The game has three different control methods, one that involves the Wii Remote, one that involves the Nintendo GameCube controller and another that uses the Classic Controller, for players who prefer more precision.^[5]

Graphically the game is similar to Odin Sphere, retaining the same hand-drawn 2D art style, though inspiration was drawn from Japanese mythology and culture rather than Norse mythology.^[6] The game has over 30 different stages.^[7]

Two playable characters are selectable: Kisuke, a young amnesiac ninja, and Momohime, a young princess of Narukami Han, Mino Province. Momohime starts off in the eastern Edo and goes to the western Kyo, while Kisuke goes the opposite direction. Both wield three katana out of 108 to collect and forge.

Weapons are distinguished into two categories, Blade (katana) and Long Blade (nōdachi). Long Blade is bigger and deals more damage than Blade, suitable for sweeping a group of weak foes, while Blade has a shorter attack interval and is geared for high agility combat. Each sword has a Secret Art (ōgi), a powerful attack technique.^[8] Overuse of a sword (unleashing Secret Art or defending) will deplete its "Soul Gauge" and eventually break it and its attack power will drop substantially. A broken sword will automatically recover itself when sheathed for a short time.^[9]

The game can be played in three modes: Muso, Shura, and Shigurui. Muso Mode focuses on character leveling as opposed to action, whereas Shura Mode is more action-based, recommended for skilled players. Shigurui Mode is only available after a player clears the game in Shura Mode. This mode plays in the same fashion as Muso Mode but limits the player's HP to 1 and will never grow when leveled up.^[10]

Plot

Characters Kisuke (top) and Momohime (bottom)

Setting

The game takes place during the Genroku era at the time of shogun Tokugawa Tsunayoshi on Honshū, the main island of Japan. Because of his thirst for power, a conflict over immensely powerful swords, the Demon Blades, occurs. The swords are cursed and are said to bring tragedy, madness, and untimely deaths. As the chaos from the conflict spreads, creatures from the netherworld are summoned by these blades, along with Dragon and Demon Gods.^[11]

Story

Kisuke is a fugitive being chased for a crime he no longer remembers. His only desire is to find a certain katana. After defeating his arresters, he meets Yuzuruha who offers to guide his path. Meanwhile, Momohime, after being possessed by the soul of foul swordsman Izuna Jinkuro, is forced to flee her castle and accept Jinkuro's offer to complete his plan.^[12]

Characters

• Momohime (百姫^?) (Miyuki Sawashiro): A young and introverted princess of Narukami Han, Mino Province. Ending up being possessed by the spirit of Jinkuro, she is forced to flee her castle and head westward to Kyo from Edo.

• Kisuke (鬼助^?) (Hiroyuki Yoshino): A young ninja with no memory of his past and filled with a sense of vengeance as he goes eastward to Edo from Kyo. He carries a phantom katana as his weapon. He was granted skill in the powerful Oboro style when a ghostly swordmaster saved his life by fusing his soul with that of Kisuke's.

• Jinkuro Izuna (飯綱 陣九朗^?) (Jouji Nakata): The spirit of a foul swordsman who originally planned to possess Yukinojyo's body so as to claim his political and physical strengths, but accidentally took over Momohime's instead due to her interruption.

• Kongiku (紺菊^?) (Omi Minami): An Inari Kitsune (fox deity) under Fushimi who shows affection toward Jinkuro, who sees her as a tool to achieve his own goal.

• Yuzuruha (弓弦葉^?) (Shiho Kawaragi): Another Kitsune who aids Kisuke, she is driven by the loss of control of the Demon Blade that sealed her kind's mortal enemy, Kuzuryu.

• Torahime (虎姫^?) (Ayako Kawasumi): The older sister of Momohime, she is a miko of her family for guarding a Demon Blade that contained the spirit of Kuzuryu.

• Yukinojyo Yagyu (柳生 雪之丞^?) (Shō Hayami): Third son of the Yagyu family who serves as swordsmaster to the Shogun's family. He has acquired mastery of a Yagyuu swordsmanship sect and is in charge of espionage. He was originally planning an engagement with Momohime, but this was ruined by Jinkuro, who originally intended to possess him.

• Sayo (小夜^?): A young female Yamabushi who uses paper charms, explosives and crows in combat against demons during her journey.

• Rankai (乱戒^?) (Yasuhiro Mamiya): An evil monk chasing after the Jinkuro-possessed Momohime. Before his baptism, he was a swordsman and was crippled in a fight with a then-living Jinkuro.

• Tsunayoshi Tokugawa (徳川 綱吉^?): The shogun, whose thirst for power caused the conflict over the Demon Blade and ordered Yukinojyo to exterminate Torahime with her family.

• Kuzuryu (狗頭竜, "Dog-headed Dragon"^?): An evil Inugami who was sealed in the Demon Sword kept under guard by Torahime, using Tokugawa to accomplish its own desires before using him as host to regain its physical form before Kisuke slays it.

• Fudo-Myouou: The protector of the Buddha, he appears as a giant statue that the Jinkuro-possessed Momohime must destroy.

Development

Originally titled Oboromuramasa Yōtōden (朧村正妖刀伝^?, literally "The Hazy Legend of Muramasa's Mystical Sword"), it was shorted to Oboro Muramasa before release. While being developed, the game was referred to as Princess Crown 3, as Odin Sphere was referred to as Princess Crown 2. Director George "Jōji" Kamitani said he wanted to create a similar atmosphere as The Legend of Kage and Genpei Toma Den.^[5] Audio production was assigned to Hitoshi Sakimoto's studio Basiscape as in Odin Sphere.^[13]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
Aggregator	Score
GameRankings	81.94%[14]
Metacritic	81/100 (based on 57 reviews)
Review scores
Publication	Score
1UP.com	A-
Edge	6/10
Eurogamer	7/10
Famitsu	34/40
Game Informer	7.75/10
GamePro	4.5/5
GamesRadar	8/10
GameTrailers	8.3/10
IGN	8.9/10[15]
Nintendo Power	8/10
Play Magazine	10/10

The game was received generally positively. Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu gave it a score of 34/40 citing the game's difficulty, short load times, graphics and sound but criticized it for its lack of a climax.^[16] The game entered the Japanese sales charts at number 2, selling 29,000 copies in its first week.^[17] It opened to similar numbers in North America, with 35,000 units.^[18] On June 8, 2009, X-Play named Muramasa the "Best Wii Game of E3 2009". When reviewing, they scored it a 3 out of 5. Adam Sessler and Morgan Webb later explained in a discussion that "just because a game gets Best Wii Game Of The Year, doesn't make it good." It was then stated that they only based their previous crowning of Best Wii Game on the basis that they had only played a small portion of the game.^[19] Play magazine praised Muramasa, stating "The art and animation throughout is so refined...the gameplay is intuitive and never grows old; the RPG elements are unique and superbly presented and the score is simply mesmerizing."^[20] 3xGamer noted that it had some of the most unique backgrounds and music, which combined to make a solid gaming experience.^[21]

The game was later released under Nintendo’s "Everyone’s Recommendation Selection" of budget titles.^[22]

References

1. ^ Alexander, Leigh (2009-04-21). "Ignition Picks Up Muramasa Rights For North America". Gamasutra.com. http://gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=23307. Retrieved 2009-04-21. 
2. ^ "Muramasa: The Demon Blade European Release Date Pushed Back". Siliconera.com. http://www.siliconera.com/2009/02/16/little-kings-story-marching-towards-release-muramasa-cut-from-2009/. Retrieved 2009-02-16. 
3. ^ Spencer (2009-06-12). "Rising Star Bumps Muramasa: The Demon Blade Up". Siliconera.com. http://www.siliconera.com/2009/06/12/rising-star-bumps-muramasa-the-demon-blade-up/. Retrieved 2009-06-28. 
4. ^ Sessler, Adam (July 21, 2009). "Muramasa: The Demon Blade Preview". X-Play. pp. 1. http://g4tv.com/videos/40079/Muramasa-The-Demon-Blade-Preview/. Retrieved 2009-07-23. 
5. ^ ^{a b} "Muramasa: The Demon Blade Developer Interview". 1Up.com. http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3170405. Retrieved 2008-10-07. 
6. ^ "Vanillaware Unveils Wii Action Game Oboro Muramasa Youtouden". 1Up.com. http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3162529. Retrieved 2007-09-06. 
7. ^ "TGS 2008: Muramasa Hands-on". IGN.com. http://wii.ign.com/articles/918/918509p1.html. Retrieved 2008-10-10. 
8. ^ "The Five: Muramasa: The Demon Blade". CrispyGamer.com. http://www.crispygamer.com/features/2008-10-23/the-five-muramasa-the-demon-blade.aspx. Retrieved 2008-10-24. 
9. ^ "TGS 2008: Muramasa: The Demon Blade Hands-On". GameSpot.com. http://www.gamespot.com/wii/rpg/oboromuramasayoutoden/news.html?sid=6198987. Retrieved 2008-10-09. 
10. ^ "Muramasa: The Demon Blade will accommodate action and RPG fans". Joystiq.com. http://nintendo.joystiq.com/2009/03/03/muramasa-the-demon-blade-will-accommodate-action-and-rpg-fans/. Retrieved 2009-03-06. 
11. ^ "Marvelous Entertainment USA and XSEED Games Announce Muramasa: The Demon Blade Exclusively for the Wii". XSEED Games. http://www.xseedgames.com/news.php?id=44. Retrieved 2008-10-06. 
12. ^ "朧村正｜ファミ通". Famitsu Online. http://www.famitsu.com/sp/090213_oboro_muramasa/. Retrieved 2009-02-13. 
13. ^ "Muramasa: The Demon Blade - sound composer details". GoNintendo.com. http://gonintendo.com/?p=75743. Retrieved 2009-03-15. 
14. ^ "Muramasa: The Demon Blade". GameRankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/wii/943228-muramasa-the-demon-blade/index.html. Retrieved 2011-07-06. 
15. ^ Bozon, Mark (2009-09-04). "Muramasa: The Demon Blade Review". IGN. http://wii.ign.com/articles/102/1021608p1.html. Retrieved 2009-09-04. 
16. ^ "Famitsu’s Muramasa: The Demon Blade review - more details". GoNintendo.com. http://gonintendo.com/?p=77494. Retrieved 2009-04-01. 
17. ^ Jenkins, David (April 16, 2009). "Japanese Charts: Devil Kings Spin-Off Tops Countdown". Gamasutra.com. http://gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=23223. Retrieved 2009-04-16. 
18. ^ Justin (October 22, 2009). "Ignition Confirms Muramasa Sept Sales Numbers, Expects Strong Sales Through the Holidays". Gamer Investments. http://gamerinvestments.com/video-game-stocks/index.php/2009/10/22/ignition-confirms-muramasa-sept-sales-numbers-expects-strong-sales-through-the-holidays/. Retrieved 2009-04-16. 
19. ^ Vinson, Dana (June 8, 2009). "X-Play Presents the Best of E3 09 Awards". X-Play. pp. 1. http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/696357/X-Play-Presents-the-Best-of-E3-09-Awards.html. Retrieved 2009-07-22. 
20. ^ http://playmagazine.com/index.php?fuseaction=SiteMain.Content&contentid=1836
21. ^ Henry. "Muramasa Wii Review". 3xGamer. http://3xgamer.com/2009/09/muramasa-demon-blade/. Retrieved 2009-10-09. 
22. ^ Spencer (January 20, 2010). "Nintendo Channel Voters Pick Budget Wii Games". Siliconera. http://www.siliconera.com/2010/01/20/nintendo-channel-voters-pick-budget-wii-games/. Retrieved 2010-03-09. 

External links

• Official website (Japanese)
• Official Ignition Website
• Official Rising Star Games website