I have waited possibly decades for a realistic sword simulation game. I am what people might dub a sword afficianado. I visit forums dedicated to accurate replicas of historical swords. I own a real sword. Any time I play a fantasy-based game with swords in it, I choose to use one (or more often two). There is something about a blade that I have always found beautiful and elegant, artistic even. It is because of this love of one of history’s most cherished weapons that I find myself wary of any game that attempts to mirror swinging one around. I avoided the first Red Steel with a vengeance, looking away whenever I’d see it on shelves, quickly closing my browser whenever seeing it mentioned for fear that it might tempt me into that realm of disappointment. And by all accounts, it was a disappointment.

However, I was unable to avoid Red Steel 2. For one, it promised to possibly make good on promises and deliver us a true sword simulation. I should have known better, particularly after Wii Sports Resort fencing failed to live up to a similar promise. This is not to say that Red Steel 2 is a bad game. It’s actually not. It’s very fun at times, and while the controls take some getting used to, once I got a feel for how everything worked, I started actually feeling somewhat swordmaster-y. It still isn’t the sword simulator that I’m looking for. This is partly to blame on hardware I think. The WiiMotion Plus, if an improvement over the standard Wiimote, still isn’t up to the challenge of real 1:1 movement. Unfortunately, I think we might have to look to Sony for that goal. And I almost wish Ubisoft had waited for the Move to publish Red Steel 2. It might have been amazing.

The setting of Red Steel 2 is spaghetti western meets samurai sword dojo. Players take the role of an unnamed remnant of famed Kusagari clan whose family sword has been stolen by the frothing Jackal gang. The story really isn’t much more complicated than that. The game’s real center takes place in the action. The Jackal gang provide bodies for the hero to slice and shoot, and a few boss fights for him to overcome. The hero’s allies are generally just shopkeepers. One is there to teach him new skills. Another is there to hand him out quests or sell him new guns. Realistically this game could have been created without any story or talking characters at all. But they do add flavor, and the setting is one many people enjoy, tumbleweeds and all. The hero is also a complete badass, and it’s always nice to take the reins of a badass.

Visually the game is very pretty, utilizing a cel-shaded look similar to what Borderlands did (though it’s on the Wii so it still kind of looks like crap). It’s played from a first-person perspective using sword and gun interchangeably. The settings are not particularly varied. Players will find themselves walking down similar technology lined dirt roads for the majority of the game. Likewise, enemies never really change too much either. The same guy fought in the beginning will reappear a little later but surrounded with a red glow to denote that he has in fact become a super nutstomper. He dies just as easily.

The upgrades and skills gained are a nice touch, particularly for players who choose to play the game with some strategy in mind and don’t run into it just flailing the WiiMote everywhere. And if that sounds like a criticism of certain playstyles, for much of the game flailing works just fine. Our hero can learn new sword skills, buy new guns, and even gains access to mystical powers a few hours in. The sword skills are the real meat of this upgrade system, and a few of them are very cool. For instance, one skill allows players to launch an enemy in the air. Dashing towards him after the initial launch results in the hero jumping up after him, where players can then slash him on the way down. Another skill involves spinning in a circle and stunning whatever enemy the sword happens to come in contact with. The skills not only are capable of being used in anytime situations, but also have a finishing move aspect to them. Punching in the correct button combination and gesture if an enemy is downed will change the animation and deliver brutal death.

Controlling the hero has a bit of a learning curve, and I was required to tinker with settings before I found something that was comfortable. The WiiMote is used for the slashing, aiming, and the menu, while the nunchuk controls movement, switching the enemy lock on target, and the quest log. Players viewpoint is dictated by swinging the WiiMote around, much like any FPS. One would think that swinging the sword would cause the camera to go nuts, but the lock on feature, which is automatic depending on the nearest enemy, keeps this from happening in combat. And indeed, even out of combat a quick sword slash into a box or wall won’t sending the camera spinning. Personally, I had to jack the sensitivity up to its max setting. Everything felt incredibly sluggish to me otherwise. This forced me to have better aim and to play the game more carefully, but it was easily worth the trade off as after changing, I felt more in control.

As far as gun versus sword, Red Steel 2 takes an opposite approach from most games set in the first person mode. There are four different guns that can be acquired throughout the game, but even shooting enemies in the head doesn’t kill them. I don’t quite know the science behind that phenomenon. Perhaps they’re pellet guns. Headshots do stun, however, and shooting someone in the leg will cause them to fall to their knees for a simple sword dispatch. The real damage is in the sword moves, which are really the only way to kill something aside from a few instances where the hero can shoot gas tanks to blow an area up, or finish someone off with the high powered shotgun. But this is good because this isn’t an FPShooter. It’s an FPSworder.

The plot progresses through a series of quests tacked up on a billboard in true western style. There are some optional and some not, but for the most part it’s in a player’s best interest to nab them all. They never become too overwhelming like some RPG quest-fests, and often one will be on the way to another. The rewards are monetary, and money is used to buy new weapons or skills.

Strangely enough, the more I played Red Steel 2, the more it began to appeal to me and the less issue I had with its problems. Part of that has to do with the acquisitions gained, which are doled out at a reasonable rate for the most part. In the latter half of the game, our hero gains money faster than he can learn the skills that cash gets him, but even then it’s just a matter of forcing oneself to use them. They’re nearly all useful as well, so learning them is always beneficial (they also look cool). So for this reviewer, Red Steel 2 was a bit of a slow burn, but it gets hot and I found myself wanting to play because I was having a hell of a time. I think anyone looking for something replicating a real sword-slashing adventure needs to give this game a try. It’s not the promise land we’re after just yet, but it’s an important step on that long staircase to paradise.

Title: Red Steel 2 Publisher: Ubisoft Developer: Ubisoft Paris Platform(s): Nintendo Wii Genre: Action / First-person Shooter Release Date: March 23, 2026 MSRP: $49.99 ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Doin’ It RIGHT: - Attempted sword simulation is gaming’s best effort to date. - Cool spaghetti western meets sushi setting. - Solid skill upgrade system that’s particularly useful.	Doin’ It RONG: - Doesn’t replicate true sword-swinging as effectively as we might like. - Dated Wii visuals. - Controls can be very frustrating at first.
FINAL SCORE: 8 / 10

The recent scans of Nintendo Power’s June 2009 issue cover revealed that Red Steel 2 is indeed in development at Ubisoft Paris. Apparently the title is headed for a holiday 2009 release and will feature cel-shaded graphics.

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