Taisyo cherry blossoms dance in the age of 2025! Review of "New Sakura Wars", the latest in the "Sakura Wars" series

The action-adventure "New Sakura Wars" for PS4 was released on Thursday, December 12, 2019. Since the first game in the "Sakura Wars" series was released on the Sega Saturn in 1996, the series has garnered attention not only for its sequels, but also for its appearances in a variety of media beyond the game itself, including manga, novels, anime, and stage performances. Here is a review of the latest installment in this long-running series.

New Sakura Wars," the first new title in about 14 years

This is the first new title in about 14 years since "Sakura Taisen V: Saraba Aishiki Hito" was released on the PlayStation 2. However, the only thing I know about "Sakura Wars" is "Run, Kousoku no Teikoku Kagekidan" that I heard in a TV commercial when I was a child, and "My Body is Self-Made ......" that is often used as an internet meme. When people say "new" Sakura Wars, I don't have the experience or knowledge to compare what's new in the first place.

I don't get a sense that it has gone from simulation to action, or that the characters are now depicted in 3D. In that sense, "New Sakura Wars" for me is the first "Sakura Wars" that I have come into contact with.

The setting of this work is Japan in the era known as "Taisho. After the loss of all the members of the Imperial City, Paris, and New York City Hagekidan in exchange for victory in the "Descent of the Devil War," Hagekidan were born all over the world to protect people from the enemy called "Descent of the Devil," while competing in singing and combat in the "Hagekidan Competition" to hone their skills.

Ten years later, the main character, Seijuro Kamiyama, is assigned to the Imperial Theatre as the captain of the new Hanagumi, the Imperial Blowout Troupe. He aims to rebuild the failing Hanagumi and to win the "World Kagekidan Taisen," in which Kagekidan performers from all over the world fight for the top spot. The story is divided into two parts: an adventure part in which Kamiyama takes control of the Hanagumi and travels around the Imperial Theater and Ginza, interacting with Hanagumi members; and a battle part in which he rides an aircraft called the "Reiko fighter" to challenge the Hanagikidan War and fight the oncoming demons. The battle part is divided into two parts.

The adventure part is to watch over the serious Captain Kamiyama.

In the adventure part, you can freely explore the Imperial Theater and the Imperial Capital. The "Sumatron," which is given to the player at the beginning of the story, allows the player to check at a glance who is in each location and what main and sub-events are occurring, allowing the player to proceed at a brisk pace. Although there is no fast-travel function, there is not a large area to explore, and you can quickly get to the end of the story by dashing around. The loading time is short, and I did not feel any particular stress.

An interesting feature is the "LIPS" system. When conversing with the main characters, choices sometimes appear, and you have a limited amount of time to choose what to say in response. There are many variations, such as being asked for feedback on a proposal or confiding in someone about a problem, but Kamiyama's responses are no different. He can respond sincerely, or he can make a joke or tease. Depending on the player, Kamiyama can be hard, soft, or innocent, but he is also an elite among elites, having graduated from military school at the top of his class and having served as a captain of a special task force ship in the Imperial Navy at the age of 20. Considering his future, I would like to choose as serious a response as possible .......

But since the choice is so blatantly aimed at him, he can't help but "make a mistake". The protagonist, who is being pressed by the team members, also makes a lame excuse in a serious tone of voice, which makes me laugh at the funny difference in temperature. However, since the "trust level" of the other party goes up or down depending on the answer you choose in LIPS, you may get hurt in the battle part later on if you joke around too much (more on this later).

Incidentally, not daring to choose a choice can also be the answer, and there is also a type of stick that can be moved up and down to adjust Kamiyama's posture and voice volume. Furthermore, in the case of a series of sub-events involving the same person, the previous choice is made to affect the new event (after peeking at Anastasia while she was bathing, I went to see her in her room and was offended). It is up to the player to decide whether to follow his/her desires or to be faithful. Incidentally, during the pauses in the story to save, you can check the trust level of the characters. If a character's trust level is too low, you may need to think a little about how you treat him or her.

The screen to check the trust level. I wonder if there will be a sticker or something.

The battle part is easy to operate and offers flashy action!

After the adventure part is over, you will enter the battle part. The main character and the heroine accompanying him control their own aircrafts and eliminate all the enemies that appear. The battle itself is action-oriented, and attacks are launched using a combination of the 0 and △ buttons.

The basic action is the "0" attack, but the timing of the "△" attack changes the action that follows. Depending on the combo, it is possible to launch the enemy into the air. Since all attacks are completed with only two buttons, there is no particular skill required, and simply hitting the buttons repeatedly is more manageable than one might think.

When the "energy gauge" is full, the player can press the □ button to launch a special attack. However, since there is no lock-on function in this work, it is difficult to narrow down the target of the attack. During combat, since the player moves mainly by evading and using the aircraft's boost to move at high speed, he cannot fully control his movement speed and often strikes out with his attacks (although this may just be my inexperience).

In terms of defeating the enemy, both the anti-demonic war and the Hagakudan war are the same, but the Hagakudan war is somewhat special. Unlike the dungeon-like field, in which the player must traverse, the player selects two heroines in addition to the main character, and the three players compete against each other in pairs. The winner is decided by destroying as many enemies as possible within a certain amount of time and by earning points. In essence, the player should destroy every target that comes into view. However, once the story enters the midpoint of the game, tactical tactics become more important, such as moving to locations where there are more enemies or giving priority to golden enemies with high points. In particular, the battle against the Lun Dunka Gekidan seemed to test the players' understanding of such factors, and it was a very close battle.

Just Evasion" is also an important factor in winning. This is triggered by evading an enemy's attack at the right moment and slows down the movements of everyone except yourself for a certain period of time. During this time, you can concentrate on attacking the opponent. During the effect, only the Kamiyama machine can make a special attack to kill an enemy with a single blow when its health is reduced to a certain level, which is especially useful in the Kagekidan wars, where efficiency is required.

Just evasion is not so easy, and even if the attacker is a little late, he or she can still succeed. Since there are no defenses in this game, it is important to become familiar with just evasion. As the story progresses, you can experience battle training in a virtual space using "Iksa-chan" in the underground hangar at any time, so we recommend practicing there.

Each of the heroine's aircraft has its own characteristics. Kamiyama, Sakura, and Hatsuho specialize in close combat, Clarice specializes in long-range attacks, Azami is suited for one-on-one combat, and Anastasia is well-balanced and can handle both long and short distances. In addition, the Kamiyama machine and the heroine's machine are always affected by the "bond gauge.

The bond gauge rises when various conditions are met during battle, and each time it reaches a certain value, the attack and defense capabilities are strengthened. The gauge will decrease if the heroine is attacked by an enemy, so it is important to fight without taking damage. Before entering the battle part of the game, the heroine's trust level must be increased in the adventure part to compensate, and the player can start the game with a certain level of the bond gauge.

In addition, the Kamiyama/heroine machine can perform a "combined attack" that greatly enhances the performance of both machines for a certain period of time. Since it can only be used once per battle part, it must be used as a trump card during battles with strong enemies or when the player is backed into a corner. The direction of this combined attack differs depending on the heroine with whom the heroine partners. The images below show some of them. Is this an "attack" in the first place?

Perhaps it is because I usually play only action games and RPGs, but I am not familiar with the type of games in which the characters make out with each other, and when I do pick up a game, I often cringe at the hero's soft attitude, but Kamiyama Seijuro is different. As the saying goes, "A name represents a body," and thanks to his endangered "sincerity," even the scandals that occur between the members of the team through conversations using the LIPS system are refreshing to watch.

The structure of the game, which focuses on different main characters in each episode, the simple action, and the Kagekidan war, which cannot be won by simply defeating the enemy in the dark, are both easy to get to grips with and profound in their many elements. As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, this is my first "Sakura Wars," so there is nothing new or old about it. However, the fact that a newcomer can enjoy a long-running series is another reason why this is the "new" Sakura Wars.
(Text by Yoshiyoshi Natsunouchi)

• Product Outline
• New Sakura Wars
• Compatibility: PlayStation 4
• Release date: December 12, 2019 (Thursday)
• Price:
• 　Normal Edition / Download Edition 8,800 yen (excluding tax)
• 　Limited First Edition and Digital Deluxe Edition: 14,800 yen (excluding tax)
• Genre: Dramatic 3D action adventure
• Players: 1 player
• Publisher/Distributor: Sega Games Co.
• CERO: C (for ages 15 and up)

• Staff: Main Character Designer: Kubo
• Main Character Design: Kubo Taito
• Guest Character Design: Yukiko Horiguchi, BUNBUN, Fumikane Shimada, Ken Sugimori, Shigeki Soejima
• Music: Kohei Tanaka
• Story Structure: ISHIIJIROU
• Original Story: Prince Hiroi
• Cast: Yohei Azaue, Ayane Sakura, Marie Uchida, Hibiki Yamamura, Ayaka Fukuhara, Saori Hayami, Yuichiro Umehara, Sumire Uesaka, Nobunaga Shimazaki, Aimi Numakura, Nana Mizuki, Rie Kugimiya, etc.

(C) SEGA