Rurouni Kenshin

Rurouni Kenshin (るろうに剣心) is a set of manga and anime series created by artist Nobuhiro Watsuki, set during the early years of the Meiji period in Japan. The English versions of the OVAs as well as the movie are sold under the Samurai X name.

The games

There were two Rurouni Kenshin games released for PlayStation. The first was Rurouni Kenshin: Ishin Gekitouhen, released on November 29 1996 and released in the PlayStation The Best lineup on August 6 1998. Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenyaku Romantan: Juuyuushi Inbou Hen was released on December 18 1997 and was re-released in the PlayStation The Best lineup on November 5 1998.

Related Topics:
PlayStation - November 29 - 1996 - August 6 - 1998 - December 18 - 1997 - November 5

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Rurouni Kenshin: Ishin Gekitouhen is a typical fighter platformer. You can control several characters from the anime to fight against other characters. Both Kaoru and Saito are secret characters. Zanza (not to be confused with Sanosuke) is somewhat of a secret character in that you have to press select when highlight Sanosuke to use him.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

You progress though six fights, the final being against Shinomori Aoshi. The game follows the first encounter with Aoshi and his group. One of the highlights of the game is the many anime cutscenes throughout the game.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenyaku Romantan: Juuyuushi Inbou Hen is an RPG starring a male or female character, Hijiri or Hikaru. The story is unrelated to the manga or anime. During the story you will recruit various characters from Rurouni Kenshin including Kenshin himself. Both Saito and Aoshi are playable depending on which character you are playing as. Saito is playable in Hijiri's story and Aoshi is playable in Hikaru's. You journey with the Kenshin-gumi to discover the truth behind your past and defeat an evil group up to no good. Many characters from the anime make cameos during the game, including Kenshin's master Hiko and Misao.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The gameplay is a more complex version of rock-paper-scissors. Each attack can be blocked, parried or countered unless it is the character's unblockable. At first you can only predict a few of the enemy's moves but as you level up you will be able to predict more moves until you can predict all the moves they will do that turn.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The battles are not party-based. The first character in your party will be the first and only character to attack. They will fight until they are either defeated or replaced by another character. Other fights, usually boss fights, are one-on-one. Each character is paired with a boss. The battle sprites are highly animated with every character having their signature moves. If a character defeats an enemy with one of their specials, a short cutscene will play after battle.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Neither game has been translated into English.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~