Review for Senran Kagura Burst Re: Newal. Game for PC and PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 22/02/2018 The version for PC came out on 22/01/2019
If we ever find a constant, a sort of fil rouge, which binds much of Japanese pop iconography, citing ninja and high school students, we would certainly be on the safe side. Two figures that recur all too often in the collective imagination "anime and manga" and in the video games connected to it, and Senran Kagura Burst Re: Newal certainly does not disappoint in this respect!
Senran Kagura Burst Re: Newal, developed by Marvelous entertainment, is basically a sort of cross between a musou and a normal fighting game, which will see us put in the (skimpy) shoes of a dozen high school students who, in addition to all their normal activities as teenagers, are part of a special section of the school , where young kunoichi, or deadly ninja warriors, are trained!
The game we have on our hands is a remake of Senran Kagura Burst, released in 2012 for 3DS, which makes the most of the greater potential of PlayStation 4 adding to the original title new animations, new levels and, in general, an improved and much smoother gameplay.
As already mentioned, Senran Kagura Burst Re: Newal is a fighting game very much based on the personal characteristics of the characters. The protagonists, divided into two different opposing ninja schools, each have their own style, their own techniques and special skills, as well as being all very cute and well characterized.
The story mode is divided into two narrative arcs: that of the girls of the Hanzō Academy and that of the rivals of the Hebijo Academy, distinct but still intertwined with each other. Each narrative arc consists of five chapters, in turn divided into different missions, to be faced each with a specific girl at the moment at the center of the narrative. The story between one mission and another is told as a kind of graphic novel with very high quality images.
Completing a mission, and the way in which you do it, allows you to earn experience points for the character, then making him level up with an increase in characteristics and learning new ninja techniques. Once the mission is completed with the specific character, she will be available to be replayed later with any of the other girls, which is useful, along with the special "Free Missions", to gain experience and practice with our busty and young ninja.
The sliding levels, in which we will face hordes of opponents of the lowest level in full musou style, will allow us to roam more or less freely for very evocative environments (they really seem to come directly from an anime) but not excessively varied and detailed. Nothing serious after all, also because we will often be busy peeking under the skirt of our heroine!
In addition to the musou levels, or more often at the end of the same, there are the one-on-one challenges, which instead will see us engaged in fighting an opposing kunoichi as in a normal three-dimensional pichiaduro. And here comes the real beauty. In general in every game mode, but especially in head-to-head challenges, the more our life bar goes down and the more our student's clothes tear, showing off the girl's abundant graces. This is true both for us and for the opponents of course and, at any significant level of damage, we will be spectators of a short, but very mischievous, skit in which the unfortunate loses "some pieces". Very often a victory is equivalent to seeing the opponent completely naked or almost in more than embarrassing positions!
During the clashes, when we want to use more powerful techniques or very simply we are literally staying in our underwear, we could perform the Shinobi Transformation which, after a mischievous cut that knows so much about Sailor Moon in hot sauce, will dress us with a new combat dress (and relative lifebar full) that will allow us to make the most of the most devastating techniques of our arsenal. Each mission can be tackled in normal mode or with Frantic Mode, which will see us (another cutoff) tear off our clothes at the beginning of the level, forcing us to face the challenge only with underwear on, resulting in low health but with all the Attacks boosted to maximum right away.
In addition to all this, as if the fan service is not already powerful enough in this game, from the Ninja Room (the main menu of the game) we will be able to access the wardrobe of our bursting ninja, dressing them (and undressing them) as we wish, changing cut and hair color and equipping them with all kinds of ornaments and accessories that can be purchased in game or unlocked. This fun customization mode allows us not only to play with our fighters dressed up to our liking even in the cutscenes, but also to have our darlings pose in the Diorama mode, a simple but complete photo mode where we can decide who to portray, with what clothes (often very few) and in what position, some of which very, very spicy. In this version of Senran Kagura Burst Re: Newal was not included, as it was for Senran Kagura PEACH BEACH SPLASH, the Intimacy Mode, a controversial mode that allowed us to freely groped the breasted protagonists.
Technically, Senran Kagura Burst Re: Newal is very well done, with a very clean and colorful graphics, which never slows down whatsoever, even in the most excited and crowded game phases. Even the sound sector behaves very well, with evocative but never annoying music and with the voices of the protagonists (all audio is in Japanese, with subtitles and menus in English) that characterize the characters even better.
On the other hand, we found a certain inaccuracy in the automatic management of the camera, and a lock on system on the opponents a little too rough. Minor defects but which, especially when it comes to cameras, can sometimes be unpleasant.
Senran Kagura Burst Re: Newal is a very funny and tantalizing title. Deliberately super mischievous, dripping with fan service, but that never expires in the most vulgar vulgarity. The gameplay is very fun and intuitive and the story, although not original, is still pleasant and smooth. A great title and a great way to discover, in extra luxury mode, the origins of the Senran Kagura series.
► Senran Kagura Burst Re: Newal is a scrolling beat 'em up game developed by Marvelous XSEED and published by Marvelous XSEED for PC and PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 22/02/2018 The version for PC came out on 22/01/2019
