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Unleash the DVD capabilities

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 18 / 19
Date: January 09, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This games sets ground to a new area, bringing many great animations (both 3D, DVD, and rendered) inside an RTS game with a touch of Japanese history. This game deserve those 5 stars because of its new way of bringing the animations.

I was impressed to see real-time video, with a touch of 3D rendered as well as 3D polygons at the same time!! That creates a touch of reality over the virtual 3D world and it looks great. I have to agree that I've seen animations that had a little bit more details over the character's face but the overall reality of those graphics plus the number of them are amazing.

I've also looked a reviews that talks about the repeating special features video and you can bypass them by pressing the triangle button. But something else that is interesting is that you can simply sit back and control the armies or you can zoom on a squad while they are fighting; bringing a different reality.

If you are still afraid of this game, it is at least a must-rent to see this kind of approach and the useful DVD features.

Save your cash

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 12 / 12
Date: November 01, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Koei was and is the master of turn-based strategy games, so why have they stopped producing them in the US? This game is visually arresting, but the battle sequences leave something to be desired to gamers more used to a hands-on control of troops (from games like Starcraft, etc.) Point, click, kill isn't as fun when you are just a spectator. I grew tired of the same video sequences often replayed during battle. The game is too easily beatable, and I'd recommend rental for all the same fun, and one-tenth the price. Old school Nintendo games like Nobunaga's Ambition still have much better replay value, and once you've beaten this game, you've seen it all, and there's no increased entertainment from added play. I'd much rather a turn-based game that allows you to raise your own army as opposed to inheriting everything from the grace of the programmers. Despite all my gripes, it is still a fun game, but don't bother buying it. Rent.

This would be an incredible game. . .

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 13 / 15
Date: December 17, 2000
Author: Amazon User

. . If it weren't for the fact that you just don't get that much in return for the amount of time you spend setting the game up. The creator of the game spends a majority of the first 3 hours of "game play" giving you an in-depth look at Japanese history, and whereas this is interesting and all, it's not what I bought the game for.

I was looking for the old time fun of "Nobunaga's Ambition" (sp?) for the original Nintendo. I used to spend hours tinkering with that game; playing and replaying different scenarios. This game doesn't give you the option of deciding which battles to fight. It just takes you to the next one and assumes that's where you want to go.

The animations are. . . good. Not great; certainly not above the standard I've been seeing in other PS2 games. The real drawback to the animations is that you get the same ones every time. . If you fire a cannonade 5 times, you sit throught the same animation 5 times- and you can't stop it once it starts. If your cavalry charges 30 times, you sit through the same animation 30 times. . .

On the plus side: The whole game is attractive, with more detail per character (story-wise) than many I've seen. And you DO get a MASSIVE amount of history in the game (like it or not), not to mention a terrific glossary of terms and additional historical materials on the disk.

I'd have given this game 3 or even 4 stars if it had given more to me. Unfortunately, more money and effort was spent on the animations than the storyline and playability. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE games that require a high degree of concentration, but this just got boring after a short amount of time. Anyone have a copy of Nobunaga's Ambition?

A fantastic game, but easy to beat and tedious toward end.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 10 / 10
Date: December 01, 2000
Author: Amazon User

I was absolutely enthralled with this game, staying up all night to play it. These people took the Japanese civil war storyline from the 1600's and turned it into a great strategy game. The graphics are phenomenal. I only have two things to comment on, however.

1. For each attack command or special move, it plays a movie relevant to the theme. However these movies get old after a while and I got tired of pushing the continue button after making a command.

2. It was way too easy to beat. I would have been willing to play it for two weeks if I could, but I beat it in one night. It was like a demo game.

Rent it! You'll have an evening or two of great fun.

Makes a better movie...

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: November 12, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Game is visually stunning. The graphics blow you away, the music is sweet, and the voiceovers are awesome. But you don't really play. You tell your guys what to do, then spend an hour (or more) watching them do it, hoping that your computer powered guys fight better than your computer powered opponent. Don't get me wrong; everyone should try it, and it is immensely fun for awhile. Just rent it or borrow it, don't buy it. If you like this sort of game, I definitely recommend going with Dynasty Warriors 2 over this one.

A Beautiful Beautiful game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 7
Date: March 09, 2001
Author: Amazon User

From the moment I placed this game in my Playstation 2, I was hooked and did not stop playing this game for another 7 hours. I have never used the word "Beautiful" to describe a game video game before, but then again, nothing like Kessen has ever been attempted before in Video game history. This game is grand and breathtaking in its scope. Part movie, part history lesson, part chess match and part Braveheart, Kessen has broken new ground which I hope shall be trod upon by many more game manufacturers in the future.

Like most PS2 games, it has excellent graphics. But unlike most strategy games, KOEI's bold attempt at making the battles occur over real time truly makes you feel like a field commander. You can even manipulate the politics of the day to affect the outcome on the battlefield. Of course, what addicts you to the game is the history and drama of the underlying story.

If you are just a button slapper and a shoot-em-up blaster person, then this game might not be at your pace. But if you are seeking a highly intelligent, gripping work of art, then Kessen is the game for you.

Nice Intro To Japanese History and A Great Game Too!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: February 07, 2002
Author: Amazon User

First off, this game has taken some critical hits for being too easy. Keep in mind that the first time through you are playing at INTRODUCTORY level (level 1 of 5), at which it is extremely difficult to lose. For a REAL challenge, try the skirmish battles at level 5...scream in agony as you are quickly outnumbered 8 units to 2...with your own reinforcements not showing up until near the end, and enemy defections highly unlikely. Even the regular battles become more difficult, but not as unbalanced as the skirmishes. You are no longer treated to complete intelligence reports on the enemy units or officers, so hopefully you've retained knowledge from earlier games. Enemies fire off more frequent and effective special attacks and in general behave in a more combat savvy manner. Another complaint-the inability to "cut short" the "cut scenes"-well, just press the triangle button and they'll disappear!Here's the few things I didn't care for in the game-difficulty levels should have been selectable from the beginning and not just after playing through the easy game. More battles should have been included as well-there are 13 (I believe) but 4 of them are Sekigahara variations. It is nice that you can play as either side. The goals are far too straightforward (although very relective of Japanese warfare, where the goal was to kill as many of the enemy as possible, rather than territorial objectives or strategic postioning). These are about the only complaints I have, and that isn't much!What does this game do well? Great cinemas based on the ascension of Tokugawa Ieyasu to power. Some of the battles (such as Osaka Castle and of course First Sekigahara) are straight out of Japanese history with accurate battlefield maps and orders of battle. Other battles are built upon logical extensions and "what-ifs" branching off from Sekigahara. The clan leaders and Daimyos of the game are given entertaining individual personalties and look great (yes, they really DID wear those outlandish looking helmets with the cool armor, although Tokugawa was a older, heavy balding man by the time these battles took place). The clan defections add to the game, turning victory to defeat (or vice versa) in seconds (although it would have been nice if they were a little more unpredictable). The myriad options in political mode give you the chance to tinker with your units, plans, and strategies until you come up with the "perfect" one! Although it was historically incorrect to see units using ninjas (no self respecting Daimyo would OPENLY use a ninja...but Uesegi Kenshin's fatal trip to his castle outhouse proved using them secretly was another matter) and women (there were as many samurai women as men, but except for rare isolated instances such as Tomoe Gozen they never went to battle) you can give it a try here! Unit compostion, officers, weapons, formations, special attacks-they're all yours to play with. You don't NEED to but they add a lot to replay value. There is a nice informative tutorial mode that eases you into the game (Koei games can be a little intimidating at first). The game also helps to point out why the side with the most soldiers didn't always win-officer ability, loyalty, and especially morale were of paramount importance during this period. Fans of fast action, button mashing games won't be happy here-DYNASTY WARRIORS or even the delightful mess that is KESSEN II might be better for you. All in all, while Kessen is no SHOGUN:TOTAL WAR it provides solid game play, an entertaining storyline, lots of opportunities to tinker and is a good introduction to both samurai warfare and Japanese history as well as being a lot of fun. One of my favorite games that I keep coming back to!

Visual Eye candy

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 9
Date: October 29, 2000
Author: Amazon User

This DVD-rom game for PS2 is great. watching the Five minute opening sequence is like watching the battle sequences in movies like the patriot and braveheart. The game is dubbed in English from the Japanese version but the graphics and strategy make up for it. You will want to get a memory card before you start because the battle may take a long time to complete and if you don't have a card you'll have to start over from scratch if you turn it off. This game showcases the DVD power of the PS2 and I hope future games will look this good.

Shows off the DVD format and the PS2's graphics

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: January 01, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I rented this game thinking well if I didn't like it I'd only rented it and didn't waste ... on it. Well I wasn't really disappointed, I wasn't expecting much, maybe because I hadn't read any reviews on it, but when I put this into the system it stayed on for hours. I finished the entire East campaign with 2days, but that's over 10 hours of play. It can take a while to get used to the controls and in order for you to get it right they have a tutorial that will take you through the controls of the game. I wasn't much into the history that game portrays, I don't live in Japan and therefore could have cared less about the history however, it does lend itself to the game so I didn't mind it. Graphically this game is stunning, however you will see some of the animations of the battle sequences be the same throughout. The way to stop the animation is just press the triangle button, it won't finish it. For strategy gamers out there, this is a title for you, I'm not sure that other gamers won't like it, but this is definately a strategy game, the graphics are just there to enhance the gameplay. Keep in mind you don't control any particular person in this game, you will command your troops to do the tasks at hand so those hands-on people should probably just keep your hands off this title. Graphically this title so far as I've seen is unmatched. Great strategy game, it was a bit short though and that's the reason for 4 stars instead of 5. Only about 10-12 hours and I played through the East campaign, with some of the individual battles lasting almost an hour, you can see there aren't many battles in place here to go through.

How can you go wrong!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: November 10, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Ok! If you are fan of war simulators and have played the PC game Shogun: Total War then get ready to be blown away. Kessen is the best 17th century Japanese war sim I have played. The story line, the "Discovery Channel" way the game explains the battles that you are about to get into are outstanding! The movies and cut scenes are all exciting to watch and really get you into the game. This game is like an excellent book, you just can't put it down once you get going. You will not believe how good and how much fun war sims can be until you have played this one. Don't miss out!

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