Samurai Shodown (2019)

Samurai Shodown (known as Samurai Spirits in Japan) is a 2019 fighting game developed and published by SNK for arcades, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Stadia, Xbox Series X and Series S, Android and iOS via Netflix Games, and Windows as an entry in the Samurai Shodown series, as well as a reboot to the series. Samurai Shodown is a 2D fighting game with 3D graphics that uses many elements from past games in the series. It shares similarities with The King of Fighters XIV and SNK Heroines: Tag Team Frenzy. The controls consists of four buttons: weak, medium, strong blows with weapons and kick. By pressing special combinations, the character can carry out captures, counterattacks, interceptions and evasions. The Rage Gauge is back in the game. It replenishes after each damage taken by the character. A fully filled scale gives access to new abilities. After gaining a full scale, the player can activate the rage mode, which increases the character's strength for a while and opens up the opportunity to inflict a disarming blow to the opponent. During the activation of the fury mode, an explosion occurs, pushing the enemy away and opening him up for attack. After the end of the rage mode, the player is deprived of the opportunity to use the scale until the end of the match. Each character has a Super Special Move, which deals very powerful damage when hitting an opponent. However, it can only be attempted once during the entire match. The game uses a trainable artificial intelligence. The player can create his/her own so-called ghost. The AI will observe the player's actions and then try to copy them. In a battle with the player's own ghost, weaknesses in tactics, movement patterns and offensive and defensive habits can be observed, useful for the player's gameplay improvement. The bloody finishing moves that were absent in the previous titles of the series returned to this game. Samurai Shodown takes place in the time period between Samurai Shodown V and the original Samurai Shodown, and has been commonly cited as a reboot of the series. The game takes place in 1787, during the Tenmei Era of Japanese history. During that period, the entire country is beset by a terrible and looming evil. Fire, ruin and famine ran rampant throughout Japan. Meanwhile, as these events unfold, a sinister cloud envelops the air with a foreboding sense of dread. Shizuka Gozen, the deceased spirit of a young woman who is possessed and trapped in Yomi, (labeled Eternity in the game itself) threatens to destroy Japan. Warriors from all across Japan and beyond the ocean, driven by their own needs and desires, converge to investigate these evil forces and vanquish them.