Review: Onechanbara Bikini Zombie Slayers

This past weekend I got a pleasant surprise when the post office called and informed me that my package from Hong Kong had arrived. 30 minutes later and I ripped open the packaging and fired up Onechanbara Bikini Zombie Slayers. Knowing fully well what to expect I was pleasantly surprised with the menu’s ( yes its basic and functional, but awesome once the View Mode gets unlocked ) and introduction to the game. D3 publisher makes no attempt to walk you through the game by forcing you to play tutorial stages and the like, instead you are thrown samurai swords first into the bizarre world that is Onechanbara. The basic premise of the games story is focused on sisters Aya and Saki. The sisters are looking for answers about the origins of their baneful blood and insatiable lust for zombie killing. Simple. It’s about as simple a story as one needs considering this is not the first game in the series, and secondly you are not really playing this game for the story!! There are however some surprises along the way which are rather interesting.

Now onto the meat and potatoes of the game, the gameplay. This is really what the game is all about, and it offers something refreshingly different in tems of mature content on Wii. Each character in the game has 2 unique fighting styles which can be switched on the fly with a quick press of c on the nunchuck. So for Aya you have single sword style or double sword style. Each style offering unique move sets that is very rewarding once one learns how to execute each move. All actions are performed using the Wii remote, the nunchuck or a combination of both. Further more the game recognizes vertical and horizontal slashes pretty accurately. For example Aya can swing wildly vertically or one can execute the very awesome maelstrom combo which involves vertical motion as well as appropriately timed horizontal motion. It all works rather fantastically once you figure it out. It reminded me alot of the uber tricks in SSX Blur, only a tad easier. While on the combo topic a thrusting forward motion is also detected. Experimentation is the key ( and if that does not float your boat D3 publisher has released a developer walkthrough ) Furthermore there is a hint system which I recommend to turn on. The really excellent feature of this game is the variety each character has on offer, Saki’s fighting styles include her beat mode and single sword. There are 2 secret characters, one with guns and the other with a whip-sword. Awesome stuff. Its also worth noting that your timing is often important in order to execute cool combinations, which is required to kill a certain type of enemy. However in your first play-through you probably won’t be able to kill these enemies since Onechanbara also offers a light RPG mechanic which has you collecting yellow orbs from the dead undead enemies. The player is also rewarded for longer and more stylish attacks and combos with a larger size orb so you’ll definitely be wanting to experiment what works for you in order to have super powered bikini clad protagonist capable of taking on Kratos himself.

The other gameplay elements that function very well is the two meters which one has to keep a good eye on. The first is the ecstasy gauge that will fill up according to the number of hits and stylishness of your attack. This gauge when filled to maximum has 3 levels and will allow you to evade enemy attacks, and execute special moves. Both maneuvers will be used more frequently  in the boss fights. The second gauge is the more entertaining of the two, the blood meter. This meter shows how much blood your weapon has accumulated. This has a twofold effect, firstly it slows your weapon down and secondly it decreases your attack power. Why you ask is this more entertaining, well for starters it shows how well you are performing. The more blood that gets split the quicker your character will go into a super saiyen like state called blood rage mode. This will in turn make your character so powerful that you will now be able to kill Kratos and Dante without even batting an eyelid. All this power comes at a cost though, your health will slowly begin to drain. The only way to save yourself is to find a save point or obtain a goddess fragment. Another cool effect is that the amount of blood your character is covered in actually shows up on your character. The girls also have a double jump at their disposal. Overall the combat system is very well implemented if you are willing to invest a little time into the game. I came off feeling very excited with the motion control system, its a title that actually utilizes alot of the Wii’s features. The level design is in appropriated well done. Levels vary in length from 5 to 30 minutes, perfectly suited to the more casual players as well as the more enthusiastic gamer who finds time an issue.

The content offered in this game is actually very good. There are plenty of modes on offer. The single player campaign is a decent offering, Each characters story can be completed in around 3 hours, however replay is encouraged with the Rpg mechanic and a host of unlockables. I am very excited at the prospect of running through a characters story with a fully leveled character. The single player mode also offers multiple difficulty settings. Two are initially available, with 3 more being unlockables. There are also Free play, Survival, Practice and Quest modes available for both single and multiplayer. Free play allows you to play any chapter cleared in the story mode, this mode also serves to allow you to complete quests. The quests are are very well varied, however not indicated until you clear  them hence I suggest getting the developer walkthrough. Survival pits you against an endless wave of zombies and Practice allows you perfect your fighting style, combos, and special moves. Onechanbara also allows you to customize your game. I suggest zooming the camera in as close as possible to your character, since the character models are very well done and the action also looks cooler close up. Some players may not like this, you can opt to use the default setting. The zombie blood color is also customizable, with red, green, gold, white and purple being your choices. All the changes can be made in game. Graphically the character models are done very well, environments are decent and enemies are typically undead. Everything runs at 60 frames per second with no hint of slowdown even with around 30 to 40 enemies on screen at the same time.

All in all Onechanbara is a very entertaining game. What you will be getting is a simple hack and slash game that offers plenty of depth provided you invest a little time in the title. Personally I really enjoyed playing this game, it utilized the NEW generation motion features of the Wii very well. The title has a very good sense of immersion, everytime a Mudman enemy is defeated it feels like you are actually reaching into his chest and ripping his heart out. Very entertaining. So I would highly recommend this title if you are looking for a Fun way to satisfy all of your gamer zombie killing urges. It has lots if little surprises and secrets with plenty of unlockables and the ability to upgrade your character which in turn provides extensive replay value. The admission price is $35 on play-asia.com and the pal version goes for around 30 pounds. I highly recommend this title. Please note this is a M rated title and is certainly not for the kids.

Gameplay                              8.5

Graphics                                7.7

Sound                                      7

Replay                                     7

Wii NEW Gen features            9

OVERALL SCORE                    8.4

A really fun addition to your Wii acton collection