Kessen

• Release Date: October 26, 2000
• Genre: Strategy
• Style: 3D Turn-Based Strategy
• Similar Games: Romance of the Three Kingdoms VI: Awakening of the Dragon (PlayStation)

Game Description

Let us take a step back through time -- to a place where honor meant everything. Let us go back to feudal Japan, where a few good men lived by the sword and died by the sword. This is the setting for Kessen by Koei and Electronic Arts for the PlayStation 2.

Kessen is the story of two warring clans waging war against each other for control of the entire land, during 15th and 16th century Japan. Tokugawa Ieyasu is a very strong and powerful leader and is tired of seeing the country ruled by his archenemy, Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

This is a single player tactical strategy game where you take control of either side to decide the fate of Japan for years to come. Kessen boasts two different modes: the story mode, where you control either army, and a hidden battle mode where you can jump back into any previous battle and try your luck again or plan a different strategy to try and win the war. The game contains 10 stages of battles in all, five for each side.

Koei, the developer of such turn-based strategy games as The Romance of the Three Kingdom series, has added something unique to the genre: You are able to bribe members of the opposite side to come and join your team, so if there is a certain general that would look good working for you, just click on him and see what happens.

The game's turn-based strategic combat is surrounded by real-time cutscenes that move along the cinematic story, which is filled with personal conflict and political intrigue.

Review: Overall

Kessen is an excellent game ... if you like games with a low replay value. Koei's latest effort is a good try, but with some more fine-tuning, it would've been a lot better.

The fact that it is a beautiful looking does not make up for the fact that Kessen is only an above average game. You would think that a game by Koei (makers of The Romance of the Three Kingdoms games) would have kept you entertained for weeks, but it will only keep you entertained for days.Two days to be exact -- the time it takes you to go to the video store, rent it, and return it.

The only thing that will keep you playing is the great storyline. Kessen takes place between the 15th and 16th century in Japan, where disputes over land ended up in bloodshed on the battlefield. The game is centered on a famous battle during that period in Japan. The battle of Sekigahara in 1600 A.D. saw one of Japan's most powerful warlords turn his back on his own emperor and try to reunite the war-torn "land of the rising sun".

When you begin, you are Tokugawa Ieyasu, a powerful general in Emperor Toyotomi Hideyoshi's army, but when you realize that the country is not being run the way it should, you decide to form your own army and try to overthrow him.

Kessenis unlike any strategy game you have played before; it's not as fast-paced as real-time strategy games like StarCraft, WarCraft and Command and Conquer. You still have to keep a close eye on your forces, but not as much as C&C or StarCraft. You also get to bribe other armies from the opposite side to try and join you, something that hasn't been done before in this genre.

The cutscenes in Kessen are also top notch. Koeidoes a great job of presenting this epic story, and with a narrator introducing each and every battle, it's almost like watching Discovery Channel. It's just too bad that the voice acting isn't up to par. The dubbing is so bad, it's almost like watching an old Godzilla movie.

The actual battles are good but could've used some polishing up as well. It's nice to see general versus general square off the first time, but with no new animations, it gets boring after about an hour of play. It's a good thing you can skip the battle scenes, or else you would fall asleep watching them over and over again.



When it is all said and done, and the war has been won, there's not much point to replaying Kessen. The only extra is a secret battle mode, where you can choose to replay any of the battles that you've fought in already. Kessen is a good first-generation title for the PlayStation 2, but with some extra work it could've been a true classic.

Review: Enjoyment

Kessen is enjoyable for up to two days from the time you go out to the video store to rent it, play it, and return it. If it weren't for the story, then this game would be back in the store within a day.

Review: Graphics

The graphics are quite impressive for a first run PlayStation 2 game. All the character models are really sharp, especially during the cutscenes.

Review: Sound

If Kessen has one bright spot, it would have to be in the sound department. The music is really well done, as it truly brings to life the epic struggle for control of Japan. The sound effects are also good; every sword clash sounds right, and the way the horses gallop onto the battlefield is quite sharp. The dubbing of the English voices could have been better.

Review: Replay Value

Why doesn't this game have a multiplayer battle mode? It would have been so cool to play against another human player. That is what strategy games are meant to be. The story mode gets old once you have finished using both characters, and there is no point in playing the battle mode again. Do you really want to sit through the same animations again and again in the same battle that you won?

Review: Documentation

The manual is quite exceptional. Along with the standard "basic control" pages, it also contains the history of the actual battle of Sekigahara of 1600, and profiles of mostly all the characters in the game. If you are still unsure of how to play the game then just start a new game, and it will run through a tutorial for you explaining the different ways to navigate the field and go through the different menus when you hit the planning stage.

Production Credits

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