SNK have announced that Samurai Shodown will be heading to Steam, along with revealing DLC character Shiro Tokisada Amakusa.
As stated in the press release, the game will now be heading to steam, after having been an Epic Games Store exclusive on PC for over a year. In June 2019, Samurai Shodown director and art director Nobuyuki Kuroki stated that an offer of exclusivity on Window PC from a “PC download sales platform,” had been rejected by SNK Corporation CEO Koichi Toyama.
However, an Epic Games Store showcase in March 2020 showed Samurai Shodown among their upcoming titles. The game launched on PC via the Epic Games Store on June 11th, 2020.
As for the new character, Shiro Tokisada Amakusa is the final boss of the original Samurai Shodown from 1993. and a recurring character in the series. He is based on the real life Amakusa Shirō; who led the Japanese Roman Catholics Shimabara Rebellion against the Shogunate in late 1637 for five months until April 1638. The rebellion failed, and he was executed; his head displayed on a pike near Nagasaki to deter others.
In the Samurai Shodown universe, Amakusa was resurrected by the dark god Ambrosia, possessing Shinzo Hattori’s body (son of Hanzo). He attempted to steal the Palenke stone to bring Ambrosia into the mortal world, but was defeated. Some endings hint that Ambrosia may have been controlling him in some manner, his loss of faith and narcissism being used against him.
In Samurai Shodown IV, he was revived once more but split into two halves. The good half sought to prevent the evil from taking over the world, but the evil half was killed. As such, the good half now exists, harbored in the body of Shinzo.
While no gameplay was revealed, a single image of the character was shown (as seen above); with the date of the character’s full reveal coming June 11th. Amakusa is also the third character in the Season 3 pass. The Season 3 pass launches on March 16th, and will also include Cham Cham [1, 2], Hibiki Takane.
Samurai Shodown is available for Windows PC (via Epic Games Store, June 14 on Steam) Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Google Stadia.
You can find the full rundown (via Epic Games Store) below.
SAMURAI REBOOT!
SAMURAI SHODOWN has enjoyed worldwide success as a blade-wielding fighting game series since its first release in 1993. Over 10 years have passed since the last series installment, and it is now time for SAMURAI SHODOWN to return in a brand-new game featuring high-end visuals and gameplay! With its story set one year before the very first installment, warriors and combatants from various backgrounds and with their own goals are about to battle to fulfill their destinies!
- Carrying on the Legacy
Faithfully reproducing the game mechanics and atmosphere that contributed to the success of the series, the new game aims to bring the same tense and exhilarating battles that the series is known for. Intense and epic battles are back!- Evolving the Presentation
Using the power of UNREAL® ENGINE 4, the series is able to achieve a level of detail never before seen for a totally new visual experience!
