Way of the Samurai 4

An open-world samurai adventure with an interesting structure and a lot of personality that is, unfortunately, not very good.

It lacks polish, but the freedom found in this samurai adventure may be worth a look.

Ultimately Way of the Samurai 4 is a hard sell to anyone who is not already a fan of the series, and indeed even some fans may be put off by the radical shift in tone and humour.

Deserving praise for encapsulating the sort of Japanese-themed action RPG shenanigans that PC owners rarely glimpse, it's nonetheless fair to say that Ghostlight's latest is far from perfect. For those willing to forgive its more archaically-rooted foibles however, Way of the Samurai 4 very often proves to be a hugely entertaining prospect while providing a gleefully quirky look at one of the most enticing and formative periods of Japanese history.

For all its shortcomings, Way of the Samurai 4 manages to be captivating. It taps into that collective interpretation of Japan as mysterious comedic badass, which—while terrible for various reasons—is incredibly appealing.

The PS3 version was released in 2012 but no new content has been added despite the long wait

A must-have samurai sandbox title for those who treasure player agency and reactive narrative above high-level production values. WotS 4's absurdist videogame take on Yojimbo is surreal, funny and magnificent.

Way of the Samurai 4 certainly is a unique take on the open world mechanism of ultimate freedom. There’s a lot to see and a lot to experience, but in a small yet versatile package that contains tons of little things.

Way of the Samurai 4 didn't impress me a great deal, or perhaps I didn't look in the right places, but it isn't altogether bad. It has its charm and some good ideas running in the background, but these are offset by the game's more overt issues, and a taste for the surreal that will never be popular for the mainstream. That being said, while this game was not for me but it is just odd enough that it might work for you.