I consider myself a fan of TM-works. I spent almost 9 years of my life playing FGO, I've played Extra and Extra CCC an innumerable amount of times, I've read all of Type-Moon's written works whether it's light novels or visual novels or material books or interviews, I've watched each adaptation and even translated some works unbeknownst to the community. The thought of a genuine single-player experience within this era of Type-Moon felt like a dream and I was initially very excited for this game, going so far as to pre-order the limited edition Musashi statue from the Koei-Tecmo JP store.
Unfortunately.. this game did not live up to my expectations. Visually and sonically this game is a treat. Koei-Tecmo was able to adapt brilliantly Rei Wataru's gorgeous illustrations and made a game that looks appealing. Daisuke Shinoda and Keita Haga's work on the OST is equally as beautiful. However, playing this game is difficult. The world is barren with very little to do between events and unmemorable with no distinct locations that leave an impression. The characters are somewhat charming but I felt the cast overall fell somewhat flat aside from the two lead characters of this narrative. And I found that the story often meandered between events with a significant portion spent running around trying to find one particular Master with no real payoff. Of course, the core of this action RPG is its gameplay but I was unable to truly enjoy it. I appreciate the effort in attempting to balance the more controlled, refined gameplay of a Master against the unruly, awe-inspiring gameplay of a Servant but this dichotomy resulted in poorly designed, and unfun, boss fights. Samurai Remnant attempts to balance musou gameplay with a more focused action RPG element but in trying to do both achieves a weird blend that is just awkward to play. And I think that's part of my complaint with Samurai Remnant.
It's clear in interviews with Kou Shibusawa in regard to Samurai Remnant that this game was intended to be an encapsulation of what made the Shimousa chapter in FGO so thrilling (no, this is not the part where you complain about how awful Epic of Remnant Shimousa was). Samurai Remnant captures that essence so brilliantly but unfortunately, in an attempt to be amicable for newcomers of the franchise Koei-Tecmo was unable to fully deliver a tight, action experience that they are otherwise known for whether it's Dynasty Warriors/Orochi or Nioh.
At the end of the day, I can see why so many like this game but it did not resonate with me.
Unfortunately.. this game did not live up to my expectations. Visually and sonically this game is a treat. Koei-Tecmo was able to adapt brilliantly Rei Wataru's gorgeous illustrations and made a game that looks appealing. Daisuke Shinoda and Keita Haga's work on the OST is equally as beautiful. However, playing this game is difficult. The world is barren with very little to do between events and unmemorable with no distinct locations that leave an impression. The characters are somewhat charming but I felt the cast overall fell somewhat flat aside from the two lead characters of this narrative. And I found that the story often meandered between events with a significant portion spent running around trying to find one particular Master with no real payoff. Of course, the core of this action RPG is its gameplay but I was unable to truly enjoy it. I appreciate the effort in attempting to balance the more controlled, refined gameplay of a Master against the unruly, awe-inspiring gameplay of a Servant but this dichotomy resulted in poorly designed, and unfun, boss fights. Samurai Remnant attempts to balance musou gameplay with a more focused action RPG element but in trying to do both achieves a weird blend that is just awkward to play. And I think that's part of my complaint with Samurai Remnant.
It's clear in interviews with Kou Shibusawa in regard to Samurai Remnant that this game was intended to be an encapsulation of what made the Shimousa chapter in FGO so thrilling (no, this is not the part where you complain about how awful Epic of Remnant Shimousa was). Samurai Remnant captures that essence so brilliantly but unfortunately, in an attempt to be amicable for newcomers of the franchise Koei-Tecmo was unable to fully deliver a tight, action experience that they are otherwise known for whether it's Dynasty Warriors/Orochi or Nioh.
At the end of the day, I can see why so many like this game but it did not resonate with me.