Wii - Bleach Shattered Blade

Reviewed By: Mindesyn, Byronic Gaming, Canada

Bleach Shattered Blade is a fighting game that is based off of the hit anime and manga series Bleach by Tite Kubo. The game isn't based directly on the storyline of the series however, in this particular arc Ichigo and his friends rush to find shards of the mighty executioner's blade to force open the gate leading back to their world. However, fierce supernatural foes seek the same powerful shards for their own gain. The Espada.

If you have ever watched the show you would know the main cast of Bleach consists of dozens of characters, and this game is no exception, with 32 characters to play in total after unlocking them all. 31 from the series and 1 character made specifically for the game and story arc, an Espada by the name of Arturo Plateado, rounds it out to 32.
The characters are fairly balanced to the point that their isn't much difference between many of the choices. Some of the more well known characters have their traditional attacks, special moves, and of course Bankais make an appearance for the select few. The game doesn't give away any spoilers so if you haven't seen the Bankai in the anime yet, you won't see a sneak peek in this game.

The game offers various modes of play including Episode mode where you play the storyline with selective characters, Arcade mode, where you choose any character and fight through 8 other opponents. Versus mode, where you are able to play against other players or against the computer. Training mode allows you to learn the basics of the game's controls. Urahara Shop gives you the opportunity to buy items such as costumes, characters, stages, and gallery. Gallery gives an in depth look at the art style of Tite Kubo and also lets you hear the English voice acting in the game.

The voice acting was a bit of a letdown since I have become accustomed to the Japanese voice actors portraying the characters for so long. The English voice overs, always seem so forced and unnatural, however in saying that, there are moments in the storyline that do shine in the English actors favour and it shows. Pronunciation of the Japanese names and moves were correct and fluid. The sound effects and music suited their purpose, nothing special, just generic fighting game sounds and music.

The opening FMV was a collaboration of clips from the series, including new ones for the new character, Felt like a traditional Bleach opening theme. The graphics where not superb did look rather sharp at times. Lots of flashy lights, and kanji indicating sound effects litter the air around your fighters. Treating it like a cartoonish style of fighting from the series. The absence of blood was a letdown since the series does show it from time to time, and a game consisting of Katana combat would endorse it, however the game does fine without it nonetheless.

Controls were based mainly on motion controls. 3 types of attack types, that you could alter holding the B or A buttons. The basic attacks were chops where you swing the Wiimote downwards. Slash, where you swing the Wiimote left or right, and Stab, where you push the Wiimote inwards towards your TV. To change the actions to certain special attacks you hold the B button and swing the Wiimote in the desired direction, same goes for the Critical attacks, except you hold the A button for those. Z guarded, C made your character use a technique called 'Flash step' which made your character run and move faster when you used the control stick. To activate Bankai, you shake the nunchuk to accumulate soul power and once maxed, flick the nunchuk to go into Bankai mode.

Overall this game does the series justice if you are a fan of Bleach. For a stand alone fighting title however it falls a bit short on the fact the controls are at times unresponsive to what you want to do, and the characters are a bit to similar in moves, and balances. Lots to unlock however will keep you busy, and it is a story arc to the series, that won't be shown. Could have used an online mode to up the value of the title, but really wasn't needed.

For Byronic Gaming I give this game 3.4 Bankais out of 5.