Bushido Blade 2 is a 1998 fighting video game developed by Lightweight and published by Square for the PlayStation. The game was re-released in 2008 for PlayStation Network.

The Story Behind Bushido Blade 2

During the Story Mode, each of the playable characters will face two "bonus battles," when a player is temporarily given a new character to control for one stage. The game is similar to the first, except the story and characters expand and relate on two rival clans/gangs/schools; The Narukagami (which mainly features characters from the first game), and the Shainto, in which both clans seek a different journey, while still in opposition of each other and their mission. That is the point from which the opening FMV begins, covering the assault which is later seen more fully in the story mode.

To redeem their honor, they move to recover the Sacred Sword Yugiri and wipe out the last descendant of the Kagami family. If that character dies in a level, then the main character jumps in to finish it, and the story continues progressing normally. They lived in peace until war on mainland Japan crushed the Daimyō.

How Bushido Blade 2 Plays

Levels involve a pattern of fighting several generic ninja followed by a boss, who is one of the playable characters from the opposing school. Bushido Blade 2 expands on some of the aspects of Bushido Blade, while limiting or removing others. Playable characters are chosen from groups which represent two opposing schools of assassins, the Shainto and Narukagami, and are armed with swords or polearms of varying types.

The yugiri (a sword which is quite similar to the nodachi but wielded like the katana), which was used by the original Bushido Blade final boss Hanzaki is now a selectable weapon, but is only accessible in the final battle versus the unarmed "last member of the Kagami clan". The weapons usable by both schools (such as the katana) have a slightly different design for each school. Some of the original Bushido Blade selectable weapons—rapier (which does not appear as a selectable weapon, but only in Highwayman's two-sword stance when he has the long sword equipped), sledgehammer and ninjato—as well as the boss-specific "Double-Bladed Sword-Staff" and "Special Sabre", have been eliminated.

Why Players Still Load It Up

The game was re-released in 2008 for PlayStation Network. is a 1998 fighting video game developed by Lightweight and published by Square for the PlayStation. However, if the player manages to complete a level with a new character and then completes his or her story, then he or she will be unlocked in the character roster.

With the exception of Highwayman, they all still belong to the Narukagami clan. The game received favorable reviews according to the review aggregation website GameRankings. But nonetheless, kudos to Square for trying such a different approach to begin with, and for refining it in such a fearless manner.

Bushido Blade 2 — Frequently Asked Questions