Bleach: The Blade of Fate Nintendo DS Nintendo Review

Bleach, a popular manga that has now spawned a television series, tells the story of Ichigo Kurosaki, a high school student who runs into Rukia Kuchiki, a shinigami ('Death God' or 'Soul Reaper') who inadvertently provides him with special powers that allow him to, among other things, see the dead and kick a lot of ass. After a series of events which we won't go into here, Rukia returns to her home in the 'Soul Society' and is subsequently sentenced to death as punishment for the aforementioned power-transferral, but not before Ichigo and his chums set off to save her. It is here that The Blade of Fate kicks off (the story mode, anyway) and where we will begin to discuss the finer points of the game and whether or not it's worth your hard-earned clams. So, let's get started!

Upon first viewing, the in-game screen(s) can look rather intimidating. There are status bars all over the place and the touch-screen is full of panels with phrases like 'Sp.A' and 'Lower S-Power' written on them. Thankfully the controls are nice and simple simple in comparison, so we'll start with those. Each playable character (of which there are nearly 30!) can perform a light, medium and heavy attack as well as a flash step, guard, throw and line change (see below). The first three can be used on their own or in conjunction to perform (RF) special and super attacks. This is where those trusty status bars come into play. There are three in all: Soul (health), Spiritual Pressure (fills after successful hits), and Spiritual Power (fills gradually). Special attacks can be performed with no Spiritual Power (but are less powerful), whereas super attacks are completely dependant on having sufficient Spiritual Pressure.

Only attacks that are equal to or stronger than their predecessors can be chained together to create seamless combos. For example; it's possible perform a light, medium, heavy, special, RF special, and super attack in quick succession provided you have enough Spiritual Power/Pressure. The game even offers examples of more complex combos and tests your ability to perform them in the Challenge Mode. It's this hierarchical combat system that is key to the game's depth and long-lasting appeal for experienced fighting fans. Whilst it's certainly possible for newcomers to enjoy the game (those mysterious panels we mentioned earlier are actually shortcuts to performing combos without the need for well-timed button presses ? perfect for beginners, but mostly useless for advanced gamers attempting to string together attacks seamlessly), those looking for a deeper fighting experience can rest assured that Blade of Fate has you covered as well.