Fate/Samurai Remnant Preview – An Experience Full of Drama and Action

Out of all the crossovers we’ve seen developer Omega Force take part in over the years, I never expected to see them tackle the Fate series. Fate has a long history of releases across other multi-media, including anime and mobile games, but interestingly, it has attempted this Dynasty Warriors approach in previous games, as seen in Fate/Extella. I suppose going straight to the source of the one-versus-one-thousand genre was the next best thing to do for Type-Moon. Fate/Samurai Remnant tells an interesting story set in the Edo Period. While it retains the high-action set pieces you’d expect from this developer, it also slows down the pace to make time for exploration and story.

I was able to play Fate/Samurai Remnant during Anime Expo 2023. The demo lasted 15 minutes, but in that time, I understood what type of experience this game was trying to bring fans. First off, the approach to character designs highlights some advancements in overall graphics that we’ve seen in recent Omega Force titles. The characters are expressive in their movements and are portrayed in a rather captivating mix of anime and 3D designs.

While exploring, the Edo Period setting contains many saturated colors, but then the action kicks up, and you get to marvel at the contrasting lines of colorful attacks and magic. When in combat, it’s almost as if you’re painting the battlefield with each ability, which is further emphasized when I switched to the Servant Saber and utilized their abilities.

During a fight, players can play as Master and Servant, with options to deliver flashy dual attacks and follow-up combos. In the demo, I explored around town as Miyamoto Iori, the Master of this adventure, who utilizes a Sword alongside Saber, who can execute Water based attacks. The action was fast, but I wouldn’t compare it to the over-the-top straightforward action you see in Musou titles. Instead, it’s a bit more strategic, as you pay attention to enemy guards and weaknesses while making sure to dodge incoming attacks.

I can see the combat has a nice level of depth, as you can customize your abilities and fine-tune the character’s battle loadout. I wasn’t able to spend too much time in these systems, but interestingly, the characters learn these abilities through levels and the narrative. The abilities can also be used to interact with the environment and access areas you couldn’t get through previously.

Fate/Samurai Remnant is very narrative-heavy, as it seems like the developer understands how much fans of this series care about the relationship between Servent and Master and general worldbuilding. The part of the game I played had a nice balance of exploration, dialog, and action. I’m hoping this continues to be the case throughout the final product.

Fate/Samurai Remnant has an excellent foundation for a memorable action experience. The various gameplay systems highlight that Omega Force can blend their creative approach to action while also building off a narrative that fans of this series can immerse themselves in. The demo concluded on a high note for me, and I’m glad I don’t have to wait long before its release on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam on September 29, 2023.

A Limited Edition is available now to pre-order from NISA; standard physical copies are also available.