''Kenseiden'' is a 1988 action platforming

game A game is a structured type of play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or video games) or art ...

developed and published by

Sega is a Japanese video game company and subsidiary of Sega Sammy Holdings headquartered in Tokyo. It produces several List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises for arcade game, arcades and video game cons ...

for the

Master System The is an 8-bit Third generation of video game consoles, third-generation home video game console manufactured and developed by Sega. It was originally a remodeled export version of the Sega Mark III, the third iteration of the SG-1000 series ...

. The player controls the samurai Hayato in

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Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

as they attempt to retrieve five scrolls and a sacred sword from evil

warlock A warlock is a male practitioner of witchcraft. Etymology and terminology The most commonly accepted etymology derives '' warlock'' from the Old English '' wǣrloga'', which meant "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver". The term came to apply special ...

s and spirits led by

Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...

. The game was released as ''Sword of the Hwarang'' in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

with multiple visual differences. Hayato is altered to look like a Hwarang warrior and the levels are changed to be set in Korea. ''Kenseiden'' received positive reviews from critics.

Gameplay

''Kenseidan'' is a

side-scrolling A side-scrolling video game (alternatively side-scroller) is a video game viewed from a side-view camera angle where the screen follows the player as they move left or right. The jump from single-screen or flip-screen graphics to scrolling grap ...

action-adventure An action-adventure game is a video game genre, video game hybrid genre that combines core elements from both the action game and adventure game genres. Definition An action adventure game can be defined as a game with a mix of elements f ...

set in

. Each level is set in an ancient Japanese province where the player is tasked. After A certain point, the player can play levels in whatever order they choose, and can go back to previous levels at anytime except for the final level.

Reception

Upon release, ''Kenseiden'' received positive reviews ''

The Games Machine ''The Games Machine'' was a video game magazine that was published from 1987 until 1990 in the United Kingdom by Newsfield, which also published '' CRASH'', ''Zzap!64'', '' Amtix!'' and other magazines. History ''The Games Machine'' ran head ...

'' gave the game an 86% score, considering it one of the best "hack-'n-slay" games because of its "simple, but highly playable action and superb presentation." ''

Computer and Video Games ''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') is a British-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot web ...

'' gave it an 85% score, describing it as a "huge" role-playing adventure with exploration, "truly superb" still screens and "plenty of brain-bending puzzles" to last "weeks on end!" Retrospectively, Levi Buchanan of

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

reviewed Kenseiden. He gave the game a 7.0 and said "even though I found the choice to go grim interesting and the visuals engaging, I have discovered my appreciation for Kenseiden was more of a 'love the one your icwith' sentiment. Master System junkies should still seek it out and give it a go, but there are indeed better games for the console that deserve your renewed attention."

References

External links

* *{{IAg, segasms_Kenseiden_1988_Sega_JP_en 1988 video games Action role-playing video games Fantasy video games Horror video games Master System games Master System-only games Platformers Sega video games Single-player video games Video games about samurai Video games developed in Japan Video games set in feudal Japan