http://www.samurai-shodown.com
Go to Videos and there click on LINK things.
It misses around 5 or 6 recent videos because I need to update the site, but other than that it has big amount
Things I disliked in SEN / EDGE OF DESTINY
-From long-range and close quarters combat in prev. games, here we have close quarters only (minus 50% of gameplay diversity). From normal and special attacks, they almost disposed of special moves (almost all original and long-range ones), and left mostly those resembling normal attacks/slashes.
-Most of returning special moves dont have good priority and are kept in movelist without having actual use, just for sake of them being signature. (Sogetsu doesnt have water bubble, or water fireball, or water column ? Come on…)
-No weapon flipping
-Pets dont accompany their masters during battle (minus originalty)
-Sub-boss and boss are americans and have american arenas, and I loved SS for feudal japan setting
-Ultra easy special move commands (Hanzo’s grab back+button instead of dp+button? Come on…once again)
-Characters dont have any supers. They achieve bonus move (similarly how SS4 characters achieved rage enhanced move), called “Ikari Waza” (Rage Move) which they can use while they are raged - but rage in this game vanishes after 4-5 seconds, plus you are better off doing bigger damage with normal attacks/juggles during those few seconds of rage - bonus moves are largely unused.
-Retarded unblockable system was added - by pressing ABCD each character can do slow unblockable attack that will dish out 50% of opponent’s lifebar (and remember characters fight in close quarters only in this game). So as you can guess, it forces players to playing aggressively, but here it means constant weak slash spam on each other, and those with longer and faster sword win (hello Ukyo). Those with shorter or slower weapons become junk (Black Hawk, Hanzo). Even though Hanzo can take 40% of health with one grab, you can tap weak slash with Ukyo with your eyes closed and one hand tied behind your back, and Hanzo have no chance of approaching you - his sword is shorter, he cant roll under your slashes as well, and his teleports wont help him as well, and he has no projectile (because it became his Ikari Waza).
-If SNK wanted to make a realistic fencing simulator and to dump supernatural special moves out together with all Makai mythology, demons and stuff, then I cant understand point of those anti-gravity juggles. Ukyo juggle will be juggle starter, A,A,A,A,A,A,B or near wall A,A,A,A,A,A,A,A,A,A,B etc…it looks silly.
-Game has too much of normal attacks. You will question is this really bad, but then think, how many unique slashes with unique properties will each character have, if we have lots of characters with lots of normal attacks each. Naturally, many types of attacks are shared, and that doesnt complements to diversity of game now that special moves are mostly absent or unused. Battles of different characters basically look alike - weak slash spam, then attacker does into high-low and defender guesses how to block, and then juggle phase.
-Arenas are big and empty, no interactivity, no wall jump, characters dont have evasions aside of simple sidestep from which horisontal slashes will stll get you, teleports are useless, so only weak slash spam remains I guess.
Things I liked in SEN / EDGE OF DESTINY
+Graphics are stunning, characters are photorealistic, arenas are very detailed with good weather effects like setting sun, rain, etc
+Number of classic arenas is recreated
+Violence, blood and fatalities (about time after SS6) but same for all characters
+Music has SS feel to it (while SS6’s didnt)
+Character artwork drawn by Senri Kita (artist for 3D SS games) in sumi-e style are beatiful (more so than ingame models :P)
+Atmoshpere of game is darker and more feudal japanese - just look at Koka-In Temple (Nicotine and Gaira’s old arena, now occupied by Kazuki and Sogetsu)