The title character, Akane, is a kunoichi who serves (and is in love with) the samurai Goro. When he gets kidnapped by the evil Hiromi, Akane sets off to rescue him. The game features fifteen levels, divided into five acts (with the third level of each act featuring a boss fight).
The game was developed by Haruneko (the company of Italian indie developer Giovanni Simotti). It was released in 2011 for Xbox 360 (being part of the Xbox Live Indie Games program). It was later ported to Windows (releasing on Steam and Desura) and iOS. Haruneko later released Amazing Princess Sarah, a sort of Spiritual Successor.
Not to be confused with Akane, which is an arcade slasher game.
Tropes included are:
- All Your Base Are Belong to Us: The second act, Goro's Castle, is strongly implied to be this. Goro's home appears to have been attacked and filled with Hiromi's goons.
- Animated Armor: The Samurai Living Armour boss, of the second act, is this.
- Attack Its Weak Point: Some of the bosses have to be hit in the face. One of them shields his face when not attacking, so you have to time it right.
- Black Magic: Implied. When Hiromi's ninjas throw kunais, there is a red aura around it. Dalasheem's kunais also does this when he shoots them.
- Big Fancy Castle: The second act (Goro's Castle) takes place in a Japanese style castle. It is most definitly Goro's home that appears to have been ransacked by Hiromi's ninjas.
- Boss Battle: Each of the five acts has a boss battle as the main feature of its third and final level. Each boss uses different mechanics.
- Bottomless Magazines: Akane never runs out of kunais to throw. (However, there's also an achievement called "Kunais aren't cheap!" for not using them.)
- Collapsing Ceiling Boss: The third boss, in addition to more normal attacks, also causes spikes to fall from the ceiling, which you must dodge. It's made a little more difficult by the fact that the fight occurs in running water (which carries you slowly along if you aren't moving).
- Excuse Plot: The plot is deliberately simple, and there's no text or speech — just a short, dialogue-free cutscene at the beginning and another at the end. The fact that Akane is in love with Goro, for example, is just communicated by a rising column of floaty heart symbols.
- Flechette Storm: Using magic scrolls, Akane can summon a large quanity of kunais to rain down on her enimes. Dalasheem also can summon multiple kunais at you.
- Flunky Boss: Hiromi, the game's villain, does not fight Akane directly. Rather, she stands on top of a platform while the area below her gradually fills with other, lesser enemies (including some which must be dodged rather than killed). She is defeated by running up an opposite wall and throwing kunais at her.
- Golden Ending: If you've got all the bonus collectibles by the time you rescue Goro, he starts to reciprocate Akane's affection for him, and they all live happily ever after. Otherwise, he just gets rescued and that's it.
- Akane also changes into a kimono with a different hairstyle.
- Gotta Catch Them All: The collectibles in this game are the "Charming Lost Kimonos". Collecting all of them will result in getting the Golden Ending.
- Green Hill Zone: The Akamatsu Plains stages fit this model. They're the first (and easiest) of the game's five acts, and they're brighter and more colorful than subsequent environments.
- Happily Ever After: Invoked by name if you get the Golden Ending.
- Ignored Enamored Underling: Akane's love for her master Goro is not reciprocated, and even rescuing him doesn't necessarily do the trick. Only if you've collected all the collectibles first does Goro return Akane's affection.
- Lethal Lava Land: The fifth and final act (Hiromi's Manor) features a lot of lava, although it seems to be more of a decorative choice by the villain for her manor than a consequence of natural volcanism.
- The Lost Woods: The third act (Nocturne Woods). This act introduces natural hazards (specifically, waterfalls and streams that carry you away) in addition to the regular enemies.
- Maneki Neko: These breakable statues holds various items such as power-ups, magic scrolls, and extra health. They are as breakable as China plates, and they can also move their paw.
- Meaningful Name:
- Akane's name in Japan means "deep red" and thus associated with the color red. This matches Akane's red hair.
- According to a common traditional feminine spelling of Hiromi, 寛美, it means magnanimous beauty. And she does look beautiful, at least as far as one can tell on pixel art.
- Ninja: Naturally. Besides Akane herself, most of the enemies she fights are also ninjas of some description. Some just try to charge her, but others can throw kunai like she does (albeit only one at a time and much slower).
- Pacifist Run: Possible for some levels, and there's an achievement for doing it. That said, it is not possible for the game as a whole (since you have to kill bosses, at least).
- Purple Is Powerful: Akane's purple clothes do help show her awesomeness.
- Hiromi's purple shows her status as a the villain.
- Save the Princess: As in many of the classic games that it emulates, the objective is to rescue someone (although in this case, it's Akane's master rather than a princess).
- Sensible Heroes, Skimpy Villains: Inverted and Downplayed. Akane wears a stripperific outfit, while Hiromi wears a kimono. However, Hiromi's sprite implies she has a bigger Cleavage Window than Akane.
- Possibly justified, as Akane's outfit allows greater form of movement, while Hiromi, not doing any actual fighting, doesn't have too much movement.
- Shout-Out
-
Word of God states that Akane's outfit/appearence is a tribute to Mai Shiranui and Ibuki. - In the Steam Trading Cards, the description for "Samurai Living Armour" trading card is a reference to Fullmetal Alchemist, specifically the main character Al.
Nothing scares more - and no, it doesn't know alchemy, sorry. -
- Slippy-Slidey Ice World: The fourth act (Northern Mountains) features patches of snow/ice on the ground which preserve momentum, making it easy to slip off the edge of a platform by accident (or be slid off one by an enemy hit). Additionally, the third act (Nocturne Forest) features flowing water which pushes you along if you don't move against it, which has similar effect.
- Sorting Algorithm of Mortality: The only enemy you can't kill are the dogs, who completely ignore any attacks. In gameplay terms, they basically function as a trap to be dodged rather than an enemy to fight.
- Stock Ninja Weaponry: Kunais are the main ninja weapon used in the game.
- Subordinate Excuse: Akane is in love with the samurai Goro, whom she serves. Rescuing him from his kidnapper is the point of the game. If you get all the collectibles before rescuing him, he falls in love with Akane and they live happily ever after.
- Wall Jump: This is necessary for Akane to reach certain areas, including quite a few of the collectables. It's also necessary to defeat the final boss — you can't use it to reach her, but you can use it to get high enough to throw kunais at her.
- Weaponized Headgear: One of the regular enemies throws a conical hat. It works rather like a boomerang, so (unlike the kunais thrown by ninja enemies) you have to watch out for it as it returns as well as when it's thrown.
