Fate/Samurai Remnant from Koei Tecmo Games is a Fate series fan’s dream come true with how great it is. If you’re a fan of the franchise and love “Musou” style games, you’ll really have a tonne of fun here.
This is a very newcomer friendly title and if it’s your first time being exposed to the Fate franchise, you will immediately see why so many people are heavily invested in it.
Fate/Samurai Remnant
Following the tale of Miyamoto Iori, players will be thrown straight into the Waxing Moon Ritual and the Holy Grail War. Fans of the Fate series will know all about this but newcomers will be brought up to speed quite quickly by the game in a truly cinematic fashion.
Upon starting the game, players will play through an introductory chapter that introduces you to Saber, a Servant. Two other Servants will also make an appearance and after witnessing a very high quality cutscene, you’ll begin on your journey.
Playing as Iori, you’ll soon discover that you are a “Master” and have a mark on your hand. This mark has allowed you to summon Saber, a “Servant”, which will do glorious battle for you against seven other Masters and their Servants. Why? Well it’s all for a chance at granting a wish.
Without spoiling too much of the story, Fate/Samurai Remnant onboards you in such a way that it really grips you and makes you want to keep playing to learn more about the game’s world. Koei Tecmo have really outdone themselves here and made it quite clear that this isn’t just another musou game.
Gameplay is split between more traditional JRPG elements such as exploring a town or city and talking to NPCs, and fighting off hordes of enemies. This is done organically via specific areas within the game world being marked off as having enemies contained within them. Iori will be able to summon Saber and fight alongside her against enemies.
Afterglow
You’ll be able to use different stances with both light and heavy attacks and trigger a special ability known as “Afterglow” once you’ve used a specific stance enough. Swapping stances will trigger the “Afterglow” and provides bonuses to you while you’re in another stance such as increased attack speed or attack power. On top of this, you can also make use of your servant’s Affinity Techniques and Link strikes to really augment your damage output. These attacks are extremely powerful, flashy and feel incredibly satisfying to use in battle.
Iori can also use magecraft spells by employing the power of gems. These add an additional way to deal damage too and can really come in handy when things get heated on the battlefield. Players will also be able to recruit rogue servants later on in the game and these further add complexity to the musou formula.
The storytelling in Fate/Samurai Remnant is excellent with a heavy focus on the worldbuilding. The Keian era is represented here with Edo Japan locales being used in the game. Asakusa, Yoshiwara, Kanda and more feature in the game and the environments have prominent landmarks. Players will learn more about the game world as Iori bonds with Saber throughout the game.
Exploring the various towns while slightly limited due to the map sizes is fun and you can even stop to pet the dogs and cats that inhabit the areas. Talking to the NPCs gives you a deeper understanding of what’s going on in the time period that the game is set in and they will also reference events that have transpired such as Asakusa being set ablaze early on in the game.
Graphically, Fate/Samurai Remnant looks excellent with the cutscenes and animation being top notch. The soundtrack of the game is great too with music that perfectly suits the game. While there isn’t an English dub here, the Japanese voice acting really brings the characters to life and helps you feel a deeper connection with them.
Final Verdict
Overall, Fate/Samurai Remnant is a hack and slash button bashing game with a lot of heart. Fans of the Fate franchise will immediately fall in love with this game due to its presentation and the fact that the animation quality is ridiculously good. Koei Tecmo have created a musou game they can be extremely proud of and while it does have some slight issues such as some enemies being damage sponges, Fate/Samurai Remnant gets a solid recommendation from me as one of 2023’s most enjoyable games that I’ve played.
It might not be to everyone’s liking but it certainly grabbed my attention and kept me entertained for more than 30 hours. If you’re a Fate series fan, grab this game and give it a try!
Fate/Samurai Remnant Trailer
For more reviews head here https://invisioncommunity.co.uk/category/review/
You must be logged in to post a comment.