Reviews// Red Steel (Wii)

After catching up with Mr Sato, you begin to encounter yakuza who would rather fight you with swords than guns and, for our money, that’s where the fun really starts in Red Steel.

A tutorial fight teaches you how to sidestep attacks – by using the nunchuk stick and the [C] button. Naturally, you launch your own attacks by wielding the Wiimote as if you were Errol Flynn.

Defeating the first guy gets you a broken sword, which you can use to parry incoming attacks, by flicking the nunchuk left or right. If you time those correctly, you can put your opponent off balance, providing an opening for some frenzied slashing of your own.

It’s pretty satisfying stuff, and when you defeat an opponent, you can choose to apply the coup de grace by swinging your sword, or spare him by flicking the nunchuk downwards – the latter earns you Respect points.


Although it’s pretty much a single-path game, and is heavily check-pointed, Red Steel contains plenty of set-piece sequences which add a sense of variety. For example, you must run up the stairs of a car park, in pursuit of a car full of yakuza, taking out yakuza as you go and making it to the top floor in time to shoot the driver.

In line with the modern trend seen in games like Gears of War, your health regenerates after a period in cover. The A.I. seems pretty good – if enemies get close they take you out swiftly. There is armour to be found, but even when you’re kevlared-up, you can’t take many bullets.

Storyline and graphics
The storyline is basic but effective – after you help Mr Sato and Miyu to escape from the hotel, you discover that Mr Sato is yakuza himself (albeit not the nasty sort of yakuza), and embark on a quest to track down those responsible for the attack. Which takes you to some quite exotic locations, such as massage parlours. Looks-wise, Red Steel can’t be faulted – it looks pretty good for a Wii game, although somewhat shoddy by next-gen standards, of course.

SPOnG Score: B-
Red Steel offers a great intro to the charms of the Wii, with its manic sword-waving and nicely fettled shooting. It’s fairly frothy, and if it wasn’t for the Wiimote, it wouldn’t seem at all remarkable. However, it’s pretty much a must-buy if you’re keen on a Wii.