Muramasa Rebirth (PS Vita)

The two main playable characters from Muramasa Rebirth

When Muramasa was released for the Wii back in 2009 I cursed myself for not being able to play it. I didn't have a Wii and I didn't even live in a country that sold games at the time. It was yet another game by Vanillaware that I would not get to play. The years passed, pain and jealousy towards others receding into a dull petulent sulking.

A few months back I managed to snag a used Vita from a Chinese student in Oslo that no one trusted enough to buy from. All he wanted was a bit more scratch to somehow survive in this monetary black hole of a city and all I wanted was to play Persona 4 Golden. I thank him now for selling me this system because Muramasa Rebirth has been released for the Vita and it is very, very awesome.

The graphics are so stylish that I sat staring at the screen with my mouth open like an idiot. That is I did, until my girlfriend smacked me in the head for ignoring her. I blinked at her a few times, slightly confused, then simply turned the Vita's screen in her direction. I watched as she was slowly sucked into the colourful little scene, her eyes darting around to take in all the little details. She was especially charmed by how eating dishes in Muramasa is portrayed. Every click of the action button causes a piece of the meal to disappear. Every so often a 'bite' from the dish is accompanied by a voiced line like "I wish I had some sake" from the main character. In another area the wind blows through a field, in a background layer you can only see when you jump. There is motion in these little moments and it is this movement which breathes life into Muramasa Rebirth's 2D world.

Of course the graphics would mean nothing without some substance to the actual gameplay. There's a lot of slashing accompanied by the shattering of swords as you get to grips with how the game controls. It took me a little time to adjust to but soon enough I was flinging my character around the screen with reckless abandon, pointing my blade at anything that even remotely looked like it wanted some.

This isn't supposed to be a detailed review so I'll stop before I go on for hours, and I could. I realise that half of my joyous freak-out is because I've never played the original Muramasa, or even any other Vanillaware games. There are no doubt issues that I haven't seen or grown tired of yet, issues that fans of the original will point out. There will likely be accusations of repetition and a degree of shallowness to something or other.

All I can say is that Muramasa Rebirth is a beautiful game with fluid action that's a hell of a lot of fun to play. You will find something that is without a doubt well worth your time if you allow yourself to be drawn in by its stunning world.