A wonderfully anachronistic samurai-era Japanese shooter with an abundance of saturation and playful cultural jabs. Samurai Aces blends an affection for Japanese mecha with historical lore and cultural quirks, set in the skies at a time when Japan was locked in its feudal era.

Wacky flying machines and machine guns in 1500 AD? Sure. The decorative properties scream style and the mash-up of mixed-up technologies somehow sings when in this combination. Throw away swords and armor – Samurai Aces re-imagines historical lore as a flying battle, flushed with the game genre’s gluttony of explosions, laser beams, and bullets. It’s design freedom, sending motorized tanks made of wood into battle with a legality-dodging X-Wing from Star Wars. Imagine the whole thing as miniaturized and vertically widescreened theatrical presentation and Samurai Aces blossoms as a culturally charming good/evil story with plenty of zip.

4/5