After the release of the cult-classic manga publication, as well as the subsequent anime mini-series, Afro Samurai has made the transition to the world of interactive entertainment in the form of a fully-fledged, Namco-produced videogame, bringing with it the stylised look, voice talent (such as Samuel L. Jackson and Kelly Hu) and original music (from Wu-Tang Clan member, RZA) that gave the anime mini-series such a cult following. What could go wrong, right?

Well, for a licensed game, Afro Samurai certainly is a high quality third-person action adventure slash ‘em up, with a graphical style that is definitely appealing, a fusion of western, hip hop and oriental inspired background music, great voice acting and highly satisfying combat, all coming together to create a game that capitalises on the source material.

For a game trying to compete in a world of triple-A titles, however, Afro Samurai soon degenerates into a stop-start action affair, as the presentation begins to fall away, the combat shows itself up to be shallow and linear, and the story skips from plot point to plot point without regard for those of us that have never seen the source material.

Continue reading El33tonline’s Xbox 360 review of Afro Samurai.