This is for sure one of the best fighting games that you can have in Nintendo DS. The Blade of Fate’s Story Mode takes it’s cue from the anime’s second season that has Ichigo surviving a most brutal battle between himself and two experienced Soul Reapers that have crossed into the world of the living to arrest and bring back Rukia for having defied the Soul Society in aiding the living. Having formed a bond with the lovely Rukia, Ichigo swears to go into the Soul Society and rescue her. Along with his friends Chad, Orihime and Uryu, Ichigo sets out to rescue Rukia by infiltrating the Soul Society itself. This isn’t going to be easy because not only is Rukia held in a tower known as the Repentance Cell but Ichigo must battle the Thirteen Court Guard Squad that consists of various powerful squad Captains and Lieutenants.
The fans of manga or anime will definitely recognize the assortment of foes Ichigo will face off such as Renji Abarai and even Rukia’s half brother Byakuya Kuchiki just to name a few of the enemies you will battle. Story Mode begins with a brief tutorial that is meant to recall a key moment in the series where Ichigo trains before he crosses over to the other side. While the story isn’t incredibly deep and forgivably skips a few details from the show and manga, the game relives some of the best Bleach moments such as Ichigo’s humorous battle with Ganju (and the boar he rides on) as well as the most memorable battles against Captains and Lieutenants. The story even has branching paths that have you facing off different opponents if you don’t successfully complete certain conditions required in each battle. One example might be that in order to reach a Captain who knows how to reach Rukia’s cell you must defeat his Lieutenant by not using a particular super-powered attack.
The best part is that you don’t have to be a Bleach fan to enjoy this game nor do you have to know who each character is to get by in the game. Fighting fans will almost immediately notice that The Blade of Fate tips its hat to 2D fighting games of the classic Street Fighter, King of the Fighters and Guilty Gears variety. The game doesn’t keep things simple, either, meaning each character has a wide array of attacks and abilities that set them apart so no two characters ever fight alike. For example, the game has three brawlers - characters that don’t possess transforming swords known as Zanpaku-to - and each one unleashes punches in different ways. Chad, for instance, has a heavy armored arm that can slam an opponent across the screen while the dainty Orihime uses her triangle-shaped force field to add a little extra to her punch. Even those characters with weapons never fight the same either, giving each of the 28 character in the game their own sense of style.
Control-wise, the game fits the handheld just right so gamers can simply pick this one up and start dealing the light, medium and heavy attacks with ease. The top screen displays the action while the bottom touch screen is reserved for the Spirit Cards and Special Attacks you can pick just by tapping them in the middle of battle. You start with a limited number of Spirit Cards in your deck and earn more in Story Mode with each opponent you defeat. These cards each possess a special effect or power that gives your fighter an extra boost in battle. One card, for example, might add extra damage to the blows you give your enemies while another card might give your Flash Step (which makes you dodge at a lighting speed) an extra speed boost. You can also switch to the Special or Super Attacks menu that has a number of individual special attacks that are true to each character and deals the biggest chain combo damage to your opponents.
Aside from the game’s main Story mode, there’s Arcade Mode that plays like your average arcade-styled game mode as well as Challenge Mode (where you’ll have to execute a number of combos to get by). There’s a shop where you can purchase gallery and sound goodies and there’s even a Deck Construction option that allows you to customize your Spirit Card deck the way you want it. The best feature just so happens to be Versus Mode, the game’s multiplayer game that allows you to play against a friend or three or go up against others online through the Nintendo DS Wi-Fi connection. Locally, your friends don’t even have to own a copy of the game so you can use a single card.
The game’s graphics are also something of a highlight since they’re actually really gorgeous. You can notice nicely detailed characters that produce some equally detailed visual effects. Even the backgrounds will be recognizable to fans so this is, overall, one pretty Nintendo DS game.
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