History VideoGame / WayOfTheSamurai

* AnyoneCanDie

* GreyAndGrayMorality

* HelloInsertNameHere

* HeroicWannabe: Dona Dona.

* {{Manipulative B|astard}}itch: Princess Araragi, oh so very much. Her MO is basically "seduce the most potential person to be the one man that can unite Japan and bear his child, whomever it may be, at ''any'' costs." Her second ending has you spare Shuzen out of self-restraint, [[spoiler:only to be shivved by her for your trouble]].

* {{Megamanning}}: Movesets are tied to swords, meaning that killing a foe and taking his sword (plus some practice) allows you to take their fighting style. This is double subverted in the fourth game, as while it seems with separation of swords and fighting style means you cannot do this anymore, major [=NPCs=] drop their sword as well as their style.

* PsychoForHire: Kyojirou Kagenuma

* VirtualPaperDoll

* ''Way of the Samurai'', released for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 in 2002.

* ''Way of the Samurai 3'', released for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 and the UsefulNotes/{{Xbox 360}} in 2008 in Japan. The game was released in the US on October 20, 2009. The game finally made its way to PC via Steam in March of 2016, courtesy Ghostlight.
* ''VideoGame/WayOfTheSamurai4'', released on the [=PlayStation=] 3 on March 3, 2011. Released in the US on August 21, 2012 by Creator/XSeedGames as a digital download title on the UsefulNotes/PlayStationNetwork, and in Europe on October 5, 2012 by Creator/NipponIchi. There was also a 2015 PC port published by Ghostlight via Steam.
* ''Katana Kami: A Way of the Samurai Story'', released for the [=PlayStation=] 4, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, and PC via Steam on February 20, 2020. A {{Spinoff}} from the main series made by Creator/SpikeChunsoft, that works more like a dungeon-crawling {{Roguelike}} unlike any title prior.

* BonusBoss: A random foreigner in the 2nd game with {{Excalibur}} can be fought if you visit the sword informant with a very high relationship with the townspeople and is tougher than any foe on the current difficulty. Sousuke Nakamura in the same game is never fought in any ending, but can be attacked in the magistrate headquarters for a decent fight. Completing enough quests for either the Aoto Gang or Magistrates gives you a quest to kill the opposite broker, who has high health and a unique sword. Defeat the inevitable assassin out to get you afterwards, and you discover that [[spoiler:your own job broker hired for the assassin]]. Naturally, you have the choice to fight him as well.
** {{Marathon|Boss}} BonusBoss: Tessho in the second game, Hard mode. It's not so much defeating him that's difficult; it's that whenever he is at low health, he will declare victory for you and sheathe his sword, ending the battle, making him impossible to kill, which denies you the chance to obtain his sword. This means you have to whittle down his massive HP bar all over again. Doubly frustrating when he's using the notoriously damage-spongy Reikon-kudaki, which is a [[CherryTapping wooden sword]].

* {{Bishonen}}: Umemiya Yuma in the third game. The fourth head choice is white-haired. Also one of the default templates in the fourth game.

* [[RecycledInSpace Recycled In Akihabara]]: Acquire's ''VideoGame/AkibasTrip'' is ''Way of the Samurai'' in [[WidgetSeries modern Japan and stripping vampires]]. Despite such a difference in tone, the gameplay is surprisingly similar.

* {{Yakuza}}: The Kurou family in the first game (Tsubohachi in particular) act the part, while the second game's Aotou Gang started out as a RobinHood-esque band of chivalrous ronin who devolved into this when their previous leader died.

There was also a GaidenGame released for the [=PS2=] in 2005, ''Samurai Western'', which was a more action-centered game that amounted to ''Way of the Samurai'' [-[[RecycledINSPACE IN]] [[TheWildWest THE WILD WEST!]]-]

* AxCrazy: Josui Tamagawa, the military commander in 1. The story never shows him before he's already played his hand in securing Rokkotsu Pass, where he flatout wants to KillEmAll because he despises samurai. Of course, he also doesn't mind tying up the innocent Suzu to some cows so that they'll ''tear her in half'' for no good reason but his own sick kicks.

* GuideDangIt: Getting all 2[[spoiler:2]] endings in Way of the Samurai 3. The game suggests that there's 21 after you get any one of the endings (slots 22 to 28 at this point being the 7 different credits sequences). The game also does not tell you how to get a specific ending, unlike the titles. The secret ending? [[spoiler:KillEmAll with no regard to your Samurai Point total afterwards.]]

* SequelDifficultySpike: The first game has its hard battles, but usually these were the leaders of the factions or final day battles. Each successive game after that added more swords and combat styles, more larger environments and complex storylines, and consequently more ways to get yourself slain or lose track of the story and get a botched ending as a result.
** This also isn't getting into the general increasing difficulty. For an example, it's generally recommended ''not'' to play Normal right off the bat in the fourth game, even as a veteran of the series, because Easy might as well be the Normal equivalent, and Normal should probably be likened more to Hard.

* ShoutOut: Manji-Kabura is a reference to the InfinityPlusOneSword in ''VideoGame/ShirenTheWanderer'', which was known as Kabra's Blade in localizations of the series. The merchant who sells it even has Shiren's NiceHat! Kabura Sutegi was in ''Shiren'' as well, called Kabra Reborn in localizations, and was an even better sword which you got when you took the time to temper Kabra's Blade to its limit.

* BaldOfAwesome: Kitcho in the first game. Of course, it's fairly obvious that he shaves his head.
* BaldOfEvil: Fujimori Shuzen in the third game.
** Kai Kobato, the Yakuza job broker in the fourth game, is this. He is also [[spoiler:one of the Yakuza Quartet]], so it overlaps with BaldOfAwesome.

* InfantImmortality: Except for Sayo in 2, who [[spoiler: may get killed during the festival if she sustains too much damage or any damage on higher difficulties. This becomes problematic if [[PsychoForHire Kyojirou]] targets the player, due to her wild attacks that can easily get Sayo caught in the crossfire.]]

* RealMenWearPink: Magistrate Sousuke Nakamura of the second game has a flamboyant appearance, uses feminine language and is hinted to be CampGay, but is one of the most difficult opponents in the game (utilizing a top-stance sword which can juggle-lock you to death) should you happen to [[BewareTheNiceOnes piss him off]]. It's a good thing the player is never actually ''required'' to fight him, or else he'd become ThatOneBoss.

* DiscOneNuke: The Short Green Onion "blade" in the third game, which gets a whopping +35 attack and defence via a title if you get it to level 10. While it won't carry you through the game, it'll be more than enough to let you get used to the combat system and allow you to survive fights you otherwise wouldn't.

** [[spoiler: The GuideDangIt part is that there's a very specific order to who you kill and when... otherwise you'll accidentally trigger one of the other endings.]]

** Kyojiro in the second game is a pure BloodKnight, fighting with a pair of serrated blades to inflict as much agony as possible and trailing the player if they catch her interest. She'll even [[spoiler:[[MurderTheHypotenuse kill Kasumi]]]] for making sure she has your undivided attention.

* FunnyForeigner: The first game has Donald Donatelous, AKA 'Dona Dona', a foreigner with a FunnyAfro who [[HeroicWannabe wants to be a samurai]]. Basically serves as PluckyComicRelief, though he may well prove a better hero than ''your'' 'hero'...