Samurai Defender (Nintendo 3DS) Review

"Samurai tower defence" alone is enough to get anyone excited. Tower defence titles challenge the mind, forcing quick reactions to all things on screen and the need to think up fast-paced and effective strategies to stay alive. Samurais are a staple of Japanese culture, and have an air of mystery and mythos around them that keep them interesting and relevant in a modern world.

Why doesn't Samurai Defender work, then?

Aesthetically, it is charming enough. Bright colours target the younger install base on the 3DS, and the crisp art style can be appreciated by older gamers.

Its biggest, and perhaps only, strength is in the art department. The sprite work is incredibly well done and lively without succumbing to the blatant retrofication that several indie and iOS games end up being victim to, and the movements and actions on screen are surprisingly fluid - something the gameplay sorely lacks.

Fluidity in a game is almost always crucial for a good experience to be had. The flow needs to keep moving, and it needs to engage users in a way that allows them to feel they are constantly doing something that matters. With the touch screen and stylus, this should be a simple enough task.

The core gameplay in Samurai Defenders consists of pointing at enemies for the samurai to shoot at and kill before they begin to deal damage to the tower/palace/etc. As progress is made, certain skills and new characters can be unlocked to fortify the base and add some variety, but nothing really ever truly changes or feels good.

Using the stylus is surprisingly sluggish and lacking in satisfaction. There is an odd weight to it that deliberately slows down the pacing. Increasing the speed stat is possible by spending in-game currency on it, but the progression is so slow that it takes several levels before a meaningful change occurs.

Samurai Defender's biggest flaw is how static and uninspired it is. From start to finish, it feels the same. The last stage plays just like the first, but without any of the initial novelty found when booting up the game. It tries to hook a player in with customisation and a rank system, but it's all so pitifully underdeveloped and uninspired that it can be safely assumed that half of the mechanics were included simply because other games have them.